Holy Is He

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1. Observe

   How many times is holiness declared, and where?

   • Once
   • Three times — at vv. 3, 5, and 9, at the end of each strophe; the repetition creates a structural drumbeat declaring God's holiness as the unifying note of the psalm
   • Twice
   • Never

2. Observe

   What three intercessors does the psalm invoke?

   • Abraham, Isaac, Jacob
   • Moses, Aaron, and Samuel — all called on Yahweh and were answered, kept his testimonies, and stood between God and his people
   • David, Solomon, Elijah
   • Adam, Enoch, Noah

3. Interpret

   Why is it significant that strength loves justice (v. 4)?

   • It is not significant
   • Strength normally crushes justice
   • Because power without love of justice tends to use itself for self-aggrandizement, oppression, or arbitrary will; biblical kingship requires power AND moral commitment to right ordering; God's strength is not just capacity to act but deep affection for what is just — this guarantees that his power will be exercised for the good of the weak and the right ordering of the world, not for the holder's pleasure; the same standard applies to every form of human authority that participates in his rule
   • Justice should be tolerated, not loved

4. Interpret

   How do forgiveness and vengeance (v. 8) hold together?

   • Forgiveness cancels justice
   • Vengeance cancels forgiveness
   • God forgives the guilty AND takes vengeance on the doings — the persons are pardoned in the covenant relationship, but the wrong deeds are not pretended away; consequences within history may still unfold even when the relational breach has been healed; this prevents cheap grace (which ignores consequences) and prevents despair (which assumes consequences mean no forgiveness); the cross holds these together definitively, where sin is fully judged and sinners fully forgiven
   • They cancel each other completely

5. Apply

   Which response to God's holiness is more natural — trembling or exaltation?

   • Both equally for everyone
   • Neither
   • Most believers tilt one way or the other — some toward trembling (which can collapse into legalism or anxiety if not balanced by joy), some toward exaltation (which can collapse into sentimentality if not balanced by reverence); honest self-examination identifies the tilt and seeks the missing pole; mature worship holds both, since God's holiness rightly produces awe AND glad worship in the same heart
   • The question is meaningless

6. Apply

   What does the precedent of answered prayer (v. 6) do for confidence?

   • It diminishes confidence
   • It is irrelevant to one's prayer
   • It establishes that God answers prayer — Moses, Aaron, and Samuel are not on a special list closed to ordinary believers; they called on the same Yahweh who hears now; the precedent encourages bold approach to a holy God on the basis of his demonstrated pattern of answering those who call, not on the basis of one's own greatness; "he answered them" is also "he answers"
   • It applies only to ancient prophets

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