Reflecting on God’s Character in the Psalms

“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, 

“the one who is, who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”

~Revelation 1:8 (CSB)

Who is God?  What a marvelously, indescribably complex question!  People have spent their entire lives trying to unravel this one.  

From the very beginning when God created man and walked with him in the garden, to revealing His covenant name to Moses, to Jesus Christ proclaiming, “‘…before Abraham was, I am’” (John 8:58), and finally to the end of days when God declares, “‘I am the Alpha and the Omega…the one who is, who was, and who is to come, the Almighty’” (Revelation 1:8), God declares who He is to us.  

In Exodus, Moses has a singular encounter with the Living God.  God meets with Moses and gives him a mission to go back to Egypt to confront Pharaoh and ask him to release the Israelites from slavery.  God appoints Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt; thus, Moses must also speak with the Israelite leaders.  In light of this, Moses, I feel, asks a rather valid question, who do I say sent me?  God replies with His covenant name, “I AM WHO I AM” (Exodus 3:14).  The One Who Is, the One Who Exists, the Eternal One.  Translated as Jehovah or Yahweh, this self-proclaimed name of God “signals the truth that nothing else defines who God is but God Himself.  What He says and does is who He is” (Nelson’s).  Does anyone else need to catch their breath yet?

Following this train of thought, the Psalms reveal what God says and what He does.  Therefore, they reveal to us who God is.  

As I was reading, I highlighted verbs (the actions) attached to God.  (For this post, I focused on the list of Psalms that you can find at the bottom of this post.)  It was an intriguing list: speaks, summons, appears, testify, rescue, rebuke, protect, save, consume, rules, reigns, judges, forgives, heals, redeems, crowns, satisfies, knows, established, is coming, causes, provides, give, send, looks, searched, understand, observe, encircled, lead, hold, created, lead.  Taking a moment and think about what these actions reveal about God.  How do God’s actions reveal who He is?

Then I looked at adjectives and nouns used to describe Him: radiance, righteousness, strength, stronghold, faithful, shield, faithful love, refuge, glory, great, feared, praised, splendor, majesty, beauty, holiness, fair, justice, exalted, compassion, gracious, slow to anger, abounding, wondrous.  What do these words reveal about who God is?

At the end of many of the Psalms is a command to rejoice in the Lord, give thanks, bless the Lord, or give praise to the Lord.  I realized that when God reveals who He is to us, we can only offer one response – praise.  Take some time, when you either have it or make it, and read through the Psalms (see list below), and ask yourself who is God?  Who is He always?  Who do you need Him to be for you right now?  Then offer praise because He is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). 

I will leave you with a doxology, a praise to God.

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;

Praise Him, all creatures here below;

Praise Him above, ye heav’nly host;

Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost!

Further Reading

If you would like to read more Psalms that reveal characteristics of God, I suggest the following.

Psalm 46- God Our Refuge

Psalm 47- God Our King

Psalm 50- God as Judge

Psalm 59- God Our Stronghold

Psalm 96- King of the Earth

Psalm 97- The Majestic King

Psalm 99- The King is Holy

Psalm 103- The Forgiving God

Psalm 104- God the Creator

Psalm 139- The All-Knowing, Ever-Present God

Resources

Ronald F. Youngblood, ed., Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1995.