A word from God soon abases the lofty,
and hence failure to reckon on God is madness.
Even kings serve His purpose when they rise and when they fall,
for He is back of the scenes controlling all things.
Psalm 1
1 Unto thee, O God, do we give thanks, unto thee do we give thanks: for that thy name is near thy wondrous works declare.
2 When I shall receive the congregation I will judge uprightly.
3 The earth and all the inhabitants thereof are dissolved: I bear up the pillars of it. Selah.
4 I said unto the fools, Deal not foolishly: and to the wicked, Lift not up the horn:
5 Lift not up your horn on high: speak not with a stiff neck.
6 For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south.
7 But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another.
8 For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup, and the wine is red; it is full of mixture; and he poureth out of the same: but the dregs thereof, all the wicked of the earth shall wring them out, and drink them.
9 But I will declare for ever; I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.
10 All the horns of the wicked also will I cut off; but the horns of the righteous shall be exalted.
Psalm 1 – J. Vernon McGee
Psalm 75 – God Putteth down and Lifteth up
This psalm dates probably from Sennacherib’s invasion, and therefore the North is omitted in Psalm 75:6, that being the quarter from which the enemy came.
God is near, Psalm 75:1-3. There are high moments in life when we realize how real and near God is. The ground on which we stand is holy. We know that we are safe in the pavilion of our Father’s care. Then we give repeated thanks, Psalm 75:1. Presently God speaks and assures us that when the earth and its inhabitants dissolve, He will sustain its pillars. What an encouragement is this, when the whole world seems about to be dissolved!
Turning from God to man, the psalmist rebukes his enemies and bids them cease their arrogant talk and behavior, Psalm 75:4. The horn is the strength of certain beasts, and is a symbol of power, Deuteronomy 33:17; Daniel 7:7. But God is the supreme Ruler of men. Our position or promotion in life is His arrangement, to be held as a sacred trust for Him. Let us, amid a world in arms, be light-hearted and sing. God will take care of those who trust Him. —Through the Bible Day by Day
Psalm 75:7—He setteth up.
This is the psalm of up-lifts. Against the up-lifts of the wicked, described in the fourth verse, the psalmist contrasts the up-lifts of God. They come neither from East nor West, but from above. God is the supreme arbiter of human destiny. The horns of the wicked are cut off, and those of the righteous are lifted up, by the interpositions of his Providence for God is judge.
Are you depressed today? Look up to Him, and ask that you may be uplifted into fellowship with the risen glorified Lord. The Ascension of our Lord is the measure and example of our own. Are you lying among the pots? Seek for the wings of the dove, that with flitting pinion you may make your way to the Ark, where the hand awaits to take you in. Have you been in the valley of the shadow of death? Claim that the mighty power which wrought in Christ when God raised Him from the dead, and made Him sit in the heavenlies far above all power and principality, may do as much for you.
This is also true in a temporal sense. Promotions in any direction, to positions of credit, influence, or consideration, are the gift and work of God. To be lifted up to a chief place in his Church, to the stewardship of large wealth, to the exercise of commanding influence, is due to the Divine interposition. You do not hold it at the caprice of man, but as the direct bestowment of your Father. Do not fear to lose it because you are true to Him. He expects you to be true to Him. He has put you where you are for no other purpose than that you should realize his purposes among men. “A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven” (John 3:27). But if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory? —Our Daily Homily