Psalm 128 Devotional

Blessing Around the Table

“In this way indeed shall blessing come to the man who fears the LORD.”Psalm 128:4 (BSB)

Psalm 128 paints a scene most people would recognize. A man eats what his own work has produced (128:2). His wife flourishes like a fruitful vine in the home, and his children gather around the table like young olive shoots (128:3). It is ordinary life, a meal, a family, and a day's work, received as blessing.

This blessing comes to the one who fears the LORD and walks in his ways (128:1, 4). Here, reverence for God shows up at an ordinary table. Then the view widens to the whole people, with blessing from Zion reaching to Jerusalem's good, to grandchildren, and to peace on Israel (128:5-6). Not every household looks like this picture, and Scripture elsewhere is honest about loss and longing. But the psalm shows where every good thing on the table comes from. Paul says nothing God created should be rejected when it is received with thanksgiving (1 Timothy 4:4). Your next ordinary meal can be received as a gift from his hand.

To think about: What ordinary blessing at your own table could you thank God for today instead of taking it for granted?