Among the Nations

 July 6, 2021

“Oh, sing to the Lord a new song! Sing to the Lord, all the earth. 

Sing to the Lord, bless His name; 

Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day. 

Declare His glory among the nations, 

His wonders among all peoples. 

Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns; 

The world also is firmly established, It shall not be moved; 

He shall judge the peoples righteously.””

—Psalm 96:1-3, 10

“When the Lord brought back the captivity of Zion, 

We were like those who dream. 

Then our mouth was filled with laughter, 

And our tongue with singing. 

Then they said among the nations, 

“The Lord has done great things for them.””

—Psalm 126:1-2

Three times in these two psalms a phrase with a double edge is repeated: “among the nations.” These words, found in very few places in the Scriptures, appear in two different, but related contexts. The first is that of Psalm 96; a call to speak aloud God’s praises in the public marketplace of business, politics, education, as well as in religious circumstances. “Among the nations” is a command to make God’s name known in the public arena—shouted, in fact, without apology, hesitation, or timidity. This is our calling and our privilege. 

The other side to this calling is the consequences for ignoring it. Repeatedly, God warned his people that if they abandoned his claim upon their lives, he would scatter them “among the nations.” A failure to proclaim God’s goodness, faithfulness, and mercy in the public arena will result in a scattering of his people among those very nations among whom they were charged with bearing God’s Good News. The strength of our proclamation is contrasted with the weakness of the scattering.

It will be one or the other. If we as God’s people don’t shout his praises, his character, his purposes among the nations, we can expect to be scattered—weak and powerless—among those same nations. The nations are no more eager to hear God’s praise today than they were in the days of ancient Israel. Israel failed their calling and were scattered. The same is happening to us today. The modern American church is scattered; divided and powerless because we have refused to proclaim the holiness and heart of Christ to the world around us. Only when we take seriously God’s command will we cease to be scattered and oppressed. May God grant us the courage and faith to do so.