Seek the Lord. It is one thing to seek some favor from the Lord; quite another to seek the Lord himself. Do not seek any extraneous thing from the Lord, but seek the Lord himself. He will hearken to you and even while you are still speaking, he will say, “Here I am.”
Augustine, Exposition on Psalm 34
Main Point
Maginfy the LORD with me by tasting and seeing that the LORD is good.
Outline
I. The Call To Magnify The LORD Together(Psalms 34:1-7)
A. Invitation to Magnify the LORD Together(Psalms 34:1-3)
1. Personal devotion to praise the LORD(Psalms 34:1)
2. Implicit invitation to others by publicly boasting in the LORD in order that the humble might be glad(Psalms 34:2)
3. Explicit invitation to magnify the LORD together(Psalms 34:3)
B. Reasons for Magnifying the LORD(Psalms 34:4-7)
1. Personal experience of seeking the LORD and receiving the LORD’s answer of deliverance(Psalms 34:4)
2. David’s interpretation of his experience(Psalms 34:5)
3. Restatement: Personal experience of crying to the LORD, and having heard by the LORD(Psalms 34:6)
4. Allusion: The Angel of the LORD encamps around his people to protect them(Psalms 34:7, Exodus 14:19-20)
II. The Call To Taste And See The LORD’s Goodness(Psalm 34:8-22)
A. Invitation to Taste and See(Psalms 34:8)
1. What? The Goodness of the LORD
2. How? By being blessed as a result of taking refuge in Him
B. What does it mean to take refuge in Him?(Psalms 34:9-22)
1. Fear the LORD(Psalms 34:9-10)
i. Ground: Those who fear him have no lack(Psalms 34:9b)
ii. Explanation: Those who seek the LORD lack no good thing(Psalms 34:10, see 2 Chronicles 26:5, Jeremiah 26:19, 2 Chronicles 32:26)
2. Instruction on what it means to fear the LORD(Psalms 34:11-22)
i. Invitation to be taught the fear of the LORD(Psalms 34:11, Deuteronomy 6:1-3, 17:18-20)
ii. What is the fear of the LORD?(Psalms 34:12-22)
a. If you truly desire the good life, turn away from evil and do good(Psalms 34:12-14)
b. Why? You fear not seeing the face of the LORD and not being near to him(Psalms 34:15-22)