"And let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us; and establish Thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish Thou it." - Psalm 90:17

                                                                          

What exactly is the "beauty of the LORD"?

 

For one thing, it is something that David singled out as a #1 priority to seek after - "One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in His temple"(Psalm 27:4).

                                                                                                         

Think about it. David was a mighty king. He could have pursued after all of the kingdoms or wealth of this world. Instead, he confessed that he had one thing that he desired - one thing after which he would be certain to seek. He wanted to dwell in the house of the Lord so that he could behold His "beauty." 

 

What is this "beauty of the LORD" that he so earnestly set his heart upon?

 

Psalm 29:2 defines it for us - "...worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness."

Again, in 2 Chronicles 20:21, we find its definition in Jehoshaphat's praise band - "...he appointed singers unto the LORD...that should praise the beauty of holiness..."          

 

"And let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us" - What a delightful prayer! Oh, God, make it happen as only You can! As the Governor of all people, things, and circumstances, cause it to take place. As the Alpha and Omega...First and the Last...Beginning and the End - let it come into being.          

 

"And let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us" - In the midst of Your holiness, let us behold Your graciousness, loveliness, pleasantness, and splendor - all that You are and all that You have. Let us sense Your presence, blessing, and approbation upon us. As we behold Your Glory, may we be changed into Your "image" "from glory to glory"(2 Corinthians 3:18).

 

"...and establish Thou the work of our hands upon us" - As we gaze upon Your Glory, we are persuaded that there is nothing too difficult for our God. Consequently, we bring our daily tasks before You - O Glorious Lord - petitioning Your blessing. Enable us to carry out the plans You have directed. Order our steps and direct aright each movement that we make. May we be settled and fixed in our purposes - not tossed to and fro or easily distracted.          

 

It is supposed that this particular Scripture referred to the rebuilding of the temple. In the midst of the surrounding pagans who would seek to hinder the work of the Lord, God's people prayed for success and prosperity - "...and establish Thou the work of our hands upon us."

 

We, too, are in the temple business - whether it be maintaining our own personal temples(body and spirit) or the collective temples(the Body of Christ). We need His enabling grace to accomplish our purposes and become all that He designs for us to be - "filled with all the fulness of God"(Ephesians 3:19). 

                                                                                                   

"...yea, the work of our hands establish Thou it" - Wait a minute! Didn't the Scriptures tell us not to use "vain repetitions" when we pray(Matthew 6:7)? But, oh, this is not vain repetition! This particular reiteration marks great earnestness - earnestness to get the temple built and the worship of God restored.

                                                                                                

Shouldn't this be our fervent desire as well?

 

O Lord, cause it to be that we - as Your temples - be found complete in Jesus and Your worship be restored. Hear the emphatic cry of our hearts that Your Glory be restored to our temples - both individually and collectively.         

 

"We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works..."(Ephesians 2:10). God is working in each one of us - working through His holiness and establishing grace. He is building a temple
whose latter glory will far exceed the former.

 

Hence, our heart cry to the Master Builder is -

"...Establish it, O LORD...yea, establish Thou it." 

May God Bless His Word.   

Connie