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Day 42

Psalm 74:13a "You divided the sea by Your strength..."

Day 42 – Psalm 74

“You divided the sea by Your strength…” Psalm 74:13a

MEDITATING ON THE STRENGTH OF THE LORD

After returning and establishing basic faith in God, the psalmist went on to thinking about the strength of the Lord.

“You divided the sea by Your strength;
You broke the heads of the sea serpents in the waters.
You broke the heads of Leviathan in pieces,
And gave him as food to the people inhabiting the wilderness.”
Psalm 74:13-14

1. “You divided the sea by Your strength”

a) This thought harks back to Creation.
b) It took formidable strength to “divide the seas”.
c) And the seas (oceans) of the world remain divided by God’s creative strength.

2. “You broke”

a) The heads of the sea serpents.
b) The head of Leviathan in pieces.
c) What are these sea serpents/Leviathan?
i) The psalmist did not make himself clear when he wrote these words.
ii) It is likely that the psalmist was making reference to folklore.
iii) The use of folklore may be easily defended as the language of the common people.
iv) These sea creatures/ Leviathan represent great power.
v) However the great power of mighty sea creatures is broken by God.

3. “And gave him as food to the people inhabiting the wilderness”

a) The mighty Leviathan became mere food for people.
b) People inhabiting the wilderness would be a reference more to Gentiles than Israel.
c) Israel had strict dietary laws and it is likely that the sea serpents could not be eaten by the children of Israel because they would be non-kosher.