[Note: This is the prepared text for a split sermon delivered at the Feast of Tabernacles on October 18, 2024 in Taupo, New Zealand.]

Do you remember where you were on October 7, 2023? I remember where I was. I was sitting in services on the eighth day of the Feast of Tabernacles in Mossel Bay, South Africa, hearing the initial reports of Palestinian attacks on Israel that led the brethren attending the Feast of Tabernacles that year in Jerusalem to seek the safety of bomb shelters before, belatedly, finding their way out of the war zone, mostly through Amman, Jordan. I also heard reports that political riots in Guatemala were leaving brethren stranded and short of food and other supplies due to roadblocks set up by the political opposition. We come here to where God has placed His name in Taupo, New Zealand from many places, some near, and some very far away. We come here to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles, with its vision of global peace and prosperity under the millennial rule of Jesus Christ.

In my message today, I would like to draw our attention to what may be an unfamiliar part of the scriptures that has a lot to say about our mindset as we begin the Feast of Tabernacles. This section of the Bible is known as the Songs of Ascent, and it is composed of Psalm 120 through Psalm 134. During the Second Temple period, at the very least, the time period that began with Ezra and Nehemiah and ended shortly after the time of Jesus Christ, this set of psalms was sung by those who visited Jerusalem to assemble for the festivals of the Days of Unleavened Bread, Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles. Today, in the remainder of my message, I would like to focus on the theme of peace that runs through so many of these psalms, and to draw our attention to the many facets and layers of peace that generation of believers sang about and wished for in their observance of the festivals of God, so that we too can join in on the expression of longing for peace that these psalms so eloquently express.

My approach to these particular psalms will be straightforward. I will discuss only those parts of the Songs of Ascents, mostly in order of how we find them, that deal with the theme of peace. We will take the psalms that discuss peace one by one, looking at those verses and passages that express the psalmists’ desires for some aspect of peace to be provided by God for themselves as well as for Israel and Jerusalem and the body of believers as a whole. After discussing the psalms as they deal with the theme of peace individually, we will then summarize the aspects of peace that are discussed from Psalms 120 to 134, and then conclude with a discussion of its relevance to our own evil age. After all, like the brethren of long ago times who wrote and sang these hymns, we too live in an age of conflict and hostility, and we too long for the peace that comes from God to those who live under His laws and according to His ways in obedience to His rule.

We first find the theme of peace in the beginning of the Songs of Ascents. Let us read Psalm 120 in its entirety. Psalm 120:1-7 read: “In my distress I cried to the Lord, and He heard me. Deliver my soul, O Lord, from lying lips and from a deceitful tongue. What shall be given to you, or what shall be done to you, you false tongue? Sharp arrows of the warrior, with coals of the broom tree! Woe is me, that I dwell in Meshech, that I dwell among the tents of Kedar! My soul has dwelt too long with one who hates peace. I am for peace; but when I speak, they are for war.”

In this brief psalm, we open with the distress of believers who live among the Gentiles in places where their desire for godly peace is not respected. Believers often live surrounded by lies and deceptions; this is true in our own time and, as we have read, it was true during biblical times as well. One of the consequences of the deceitfulness and violence of people who are hostile to God’s way is that such people are often hostile to God’s people as well, and that is what we see here. It is interesting to note that the psalmist singles out two peoples in particular as being responsible for this lack of peace. Meschech is mentioned as a descendant of Japeth and a separate one is a descendant of Shem, and this group of people is mentioned as being a dominant part of Gog and Magog in Ezekiel 38 and 39, and while they originally lived in an area southeast of the Black Sea, they are often associated with the steppes of Russia and Central Asia, an obviously violent part of the world today. Strikingly, Kedar is associated with the area of Southern Arabia, or modern-day Yemen, another flashpoint of conflict in the contemporary world. What we see is that at the beginning of the Songs of Ascents, brethren both to the north and south of Israel dwell among violent and deceitful Gentile nations who seek after war while the believers long for a godly peace.

If Psalm 120 was a lament for peace, Psalm 121 speaks of confidence in the security brought by God. Psalm 121:1-8 reads: “I will lift up my eyes to the hills—from whence comes my help? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is your keeper; The Lord is your shade at your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul. The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in from this time forth, and even forevermore.” Here, although the word peace is not used at all in the psalm, the theme of this psalm is all about the security we can find when we put our trust in the Eternal who delivers us from evil, helps us in times of need, and preserves our lives. This is not only peace as an absence of war and conflict, but peace as complete well-being.

As we might guess, the theme of peace is explicitly mentioned in the next psalm as well. Let us now turn to Psalm 122:6-9 to see how it is that peace is referred to in Psalm 122. Psalm 122:6-9 reads: “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: may they prosper who love you. Peace be within your walls, prosperity within your palaces.” For the sake of my brethren and companions, I will now say, “Peace be within you.” Because of the house of the Lord our God I will seek your good.” It is not very surprising that believers have always had to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Even if Jerusalem has the name of a city of peace, the shalom of God has always been in danger over the course of thousands of years of human history. According to some military historians like John Keegan, Jerusalem is the most fought-over city in world history and remains so to this day. The Bible itself records many battles and sieges in and around Jerusalem, and even more can be added when one adds the accounts of historians like Josephus and the writers of 1 and 2 Maccabees to this amount, to say nothing of the history of the Crusades or any other many times in history where Jerusalem’s peace has been imperiled by attacking armies. When believers worshipped at the temple, though, praying for the peace of Jerusalem was of the utmost importance because a Jerusalem at peace meant a safe place for brethren to assemble together where God had placed his name.

Interestingly enough, Psalm 123 presents a different sort of peace than most of the rest of the Songs of Ascents, what we might view as a negative form of peace. This psalm is only four verses, so let us take it in full. Psalm 123:1-4 reads: “Unto You I lift up my eyes, O You who dwell in the heavens. Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our God, until He has mercy on us. Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us! For we are exceedingly filled with contempt. Our soul is exceedingly filled with the scorn of those who are at ease, with the contempt of the proud.” What we see here are two different approaches to God and to peace. While the psalmist (and presumably we as believers) look to God to have mercy on us and give us peace of mind as well as security in our lives, those who hold God’s ways in contempt have an ease that comes from a mistaken belief in their own self-sufficiency and in their own ability to control the situations and people around them. This pride is a vital enemy to faith and to the humility that is necessary for us to recognize our true nation and our true condition.

This true condition for mankind is discussed in the next psalm, Psalm 124. Let us read the first five verses of this psalm. Psalm 124:1-5 reads: ““If it had not been the Lord who was on our side,” Let Israel now say—“If it had not been the Lord who was on our side, when men rose up against us, then they would have swallowed us alive, when their wrath was kindled against us; then the waters would have overwhelmed us, the stream would have gone over our soul; then the swollen waters would have gone over our soul.”” The phrase gone over also means swept over, imagining us to be on a ship in a great storm, like a hurricane for those of us from the United States, facing the threat of being swept overboard and drowned in the waters of hostility and trouble, if the Lord God had not been on our side. Fortunately, God is on the side of those who follow Him and obey Him, for we cannot deliver ourselves from the troubles of our existence.

Moving along, Psalm 125 is one of two psalms in the Songs of Ascents that ends with the phrase “Peace be upon Israel.” It is worthwhile, though, to examine briefly what comes before this statement, which we find in Psalm 125:3-5. Psalm 125:3-5 reads: “For the scepter of wickedness shall not rest on the land allotted to the righteous, lest the righteous reach out their hands to iniquity. Do good, O Lord, to those who are good, and to those who are upright in their hearts. As for such as turn aside to their crooked ways, The Lord shall lead them away with the workers of iniquity. Peace be upon Israel!” Here we see that the peace that the psalmist wishes for Israel comes from good government. Believers can only enjoy peace when they are not only righteous themselves, but live in a world that is governed by righteous laws and righteous lawmakers. Unfortunately, there are far too many corrupt rulers now and have been throughout the entirety of human existence, and this psalm reminds us that those who rule corruptly, or those that fall prey to the evil examples of corrupt leadership that we see all around us will be judged with the ungodly, and there is no peace of mind for those under that judgment.

Skipping over Psalm 126, we come to Psalm 127. Let us take in this psalm in its entirety, as it deals with two different sorts of peace that are related to our families and communities. Psalm 127:1-5 reads: “Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows; for so He gives His beloved sleep. Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them; they shall not be ashamed, but shall speak with their enemies in the gate.” In the first two verses of this psalm, we are reminded that without God’s protection, our efforts at securing our lives and property are useless, and all we get for our stress and anxiety is lost sleep and the bread of sorrows, while God gives those who trust in Him the peaceful sleep of the blessed. In the other three verses, we see the psalmist praise those who raise families full of godly children, because those children are raised to walk bravely and boldly in God’s truth and overcome their enemies in the gates of cities. Both family and community find different but related forms of peace when they are filled with godly believers.

Psalm 128 is the second of the psalms in the Songs of Ascents that ends with the phrase “Peace be upon Israel,” that we also saw in Psalm 125. Let us read the psalm in its entirety and see how the psalmist wishes for this peace. Psalm 128:1-6 reads: “Blessed is every one who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways. When you eat the labor of your hands, you shall be happy, and it shall be well with you. Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the very heart of your house, your children like olive plants all around your table. Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord. The Lord bless you out of Zion, and may you see the good of Jerusalem all the days of your life. Yes, may you see your children’s children. Peace be upon Israel!” Here we see that those who fear God, obey Him, and walk in His ways are promised great blessings, but blessings that are very close to home. Those who work hard and eat of the fruits of their labor, they will be at peace with themselves. The psalmist further promises peace in their household with a loving spouse and godly children raised up to be godly and obedient to God’s ways like their parents are, living a long life in which they see future generations of their family be raised and also see the elusive peace of Jerusalem throughout their lives. This is precisely the sort of millennial peace that we can and should yearn for as believers worshipping at the Feast of Tabernacles, even if it is not a peace that seems very likely for us to see here and now.

Psalm 129 takes a somewhat darker view of peace that reflects the lives of many believers and also speaks again as to the denial of peace to those who live in wickedness and disobedience to God’s ways. Psalm 129:1-8 reads: ““Many a time they have afflicted me from my youth,” Let Israel now say—“Many a time they have afflicted me from my youth; yet they have not prevailed against me. The plowers plowed on my back; they made their furrows long.” The Lord is righteous; He has cut in pieces the cords of the wicked. Let all those who hate Zion be put to shame and turned back. Let them be as the grass on the housetops, which withers before it grows up, with which the reaper does not fill his hand, nor he who binds sheaves, his arms. Neither let those who pass by them say, “The blessing of the Lord be upon you; we bless you in the name of the Lord!”” Here we are given a picture of Israel–and of many believers–whose lives from childhood have been marked by trauma and abuse, which God has delivered them from, so that they can praise God for delivering them and also speak to the judgment that comes to those who hate God’s people that they will not know peace and blessings, but will instead wither up and perish from the earth in the face of God’s righteous judgment.

In Psalm 130 we are reminded where our peace comes from, and under what conditions it comes. We see this stated briefly in Psalm 130:3-4. Psalm 130:3-4 reads: “If You, Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with You, that You may be feared.” These verses remind us that our ability to stand before God, alive and at peace with Him, depend on God’s forgiveness of our sins. If God kept an accounting of our sins, no one–save Jesus Christ–could be seen as righteous in His own eyes, and we would all perish in judgment. Our ability to live under God’s rule depends on His merciful and forgiving nature. From this realistic understanding of God’s ways as they apply to each of us individually as believers, the psalmist draws a conclusion about God’s concern and care for Israel as a whole, which we see in verses 7 and 8. Psalm 130:7-8, which closes the psalm, reads: “O Israel, hope in the Lord; for with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him is abundant redemption. And He shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.” The millennial peace that Israel will eventually find depends on God redeeming Israel from their sins, giving them a heart of flesh instead of a heart of stone, and giving Israel His Holy Spirit so that they will be led to follow God’s ways instead of persisting in their rebellion against Him. God’s mercy and redemption will lead Israel, in the world to come, to be a model nation of obedience to God’s ways for the peoples all around them.

Moving on to Psalm 131, we find a short call for Israel’s hope that reminds us that humility is the basis of the peace we have in God. We will read this psalm in its entirety; it only has three verses. Psalm 131:1-3 reads: “Lord, my heart is not haughty, nor my eyes lofty. Neither do I concern myself with great matters, nor with things too profound for me. Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with his mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the Lord from this time forth and forever.” One of the necessary aspects of our character that we must cultivate before we can enjoy peace with God is humility. When we recognize the care and protection we have from God, and when we have faith and trust in Him to sort out the complex and profound aspects of life that are beyond our capability to control or even to understand, we can find a peace that remains elusive when we think that we are the captains of our own destiny. Those who believe that they have the power to shape the universe through their own imaginations and control others so as to achieve their own plans and goals can never know this peace, because they have set themselves at war not only with everyone and everything else in the universe but against God Himself, against whom they cannot prevail.

Finally, we come to Psalm 133, another very short psalm, and the last one of the Songs of Ascents that deals with the subject of peace, albeit in an indirect way. Psalm 133, like Psalm 131, is only three verses, and we will also read it in its entirety. Psalm 133:1-3 reads: “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down on the beard, the beard of Aaron, running down on the edge of his garments. It is like the dew of Hermon, descending upon the mountains of Zion; for there the Lord commanded the blessing—life forevermore.” It is a beautiful thing for us to be assembled together in observance of God’s Holy Days in unity, as it always has been for those who have followed God’s commanded to assemble throughout history. What is necessary, though, for us to assemble together in unity? We must be at peace with both God and each other. When we are peace with God, we have ceased from our rebellion and disobedience and set ourselves to follow God’s commands, including to assemble together where He has placed His name when He has commanded us to come before Him. We must also be at peace with others, not poisoned by the root of bitterness or caught up in various storms of false doctrines and ungodly behaviors that divide us against each other. We have been called to become priests and kings in God’s kingdom, to receive the blessing that came upon Aaron and His descendants, who served as priests of the Most High God throughout biblical times. And the blessing of life forevermore that came from those priests was a message of peace. Let us turn to our last scripture and look at that blessing of peace as we move towards our conclusion, in Numbers 6:24-26. Numbers 6:24-26, the priestly blessing, reads as follows: ““The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.” ’”

In this message, I have shared with you a wide and complex set of different aspects of peace that the Songs of Ascents explores. Some aspects of peace relate to our relationship with God, in which we walk humbly in obedience with God, trusting in Him to deliver us from the evils of this present world. Other aspects of peace include families joined together in living God’s ways, husbands and wives at peace with each other, united in their raising of Godly children who bravely live and speak of God’s ways before their enemies. We see the peace of congregations of brethren united in worshipping God as He has commanded. We see the peace of God in protecting the lives and property of people within godly communities, and nations and peoples seeking godly leaders to lead them in godly service, all the while recognizing that this world is full of people who hate the peace of God because they wish to dominate others and live according to their own wicked ways. Ultimately, the peace of God will be established by the rule of Jesus Christ in the millennium, where evildoers will no longer have the power to bring harm to those who follow God and live according to His laws and ways.

How are we to appreciate the fullness of peace that we have seen within the Songs of Ascents? Hopefully, we can first recognize that our longing for peace in a world filled with conflict and strife is not a sign of our own times alone but has been the fate of mankind under the misrule of Satan and His demons and those people whom they have sought and encouraged to rule over others and fill the earth with violence and evil. Believers have always longed for the peace provided by God’s rule through Godly leaders, extending from the rulers of nations down to godly leaders in the Church and in the family who teach God’s ways to us as we grow up from childhood and as we worship from Sabbath to Sabbath and throughout the various Holy Days of God’s festival calendar. Let us therefore resolve, this feast and every feast, to pray to God for the peace that He wishes to provide to us as believers, to live as best as possible in the peace of these symbolic days, and to look forward to the ultimate fulfillment of God’s millennial peace for Israel and for the world as a whole.