Useful Bible Studies > Songs of Ascent Commentary

Psalm 134

· To get the maximum benefit from this study, please open your Bible and read Psalm 134 first.

The *Jewish people from across Israel went to *worship God in Jerusalem for the three sacred holidays each year. Two of these sacred holidays, called Passover and Tabernacles, lasted for a week. The other sacred holiday was called Pentecost; it lasted for just one day.

In these studies, we have thought about those men as they travelled. And we have thought about their *worship in Jerusalem. At the end of each sacred holiday, they would return to their homes and to their work. Their opportunity to *worship God at the temple (God’s house) had ended until the next holiday.

But *worship should never end. We should always praise God. We should not only pray on special occasions, or on just one day in the week. These activities should be continuous.

And the temple, God’s house in Jerusalem, was a place for continuous *worship, continuous prayer, and continuous *sacrifice. The fire that burned the *sacrifices never went out. Some priests, here called God’s ‘servants’, were always on duty. They served God by night as by day. They locked the doors, but they continued to praise God through the night.

This mattered very much to the people who were returning home. Their nation’s relationship with God depended on what happened at the temple. The daily *sacrifices in the temple were on their behalf. The daily prayers in the temple were for them. They gave gifts so that the priests could always do this work.

The people who were returning home urged the priests to do this duty with their whole hearts. They urged the priests to praise God continuously, even by night. When other men slept, some priests must remain awake. And they must continue to offer God the honour that he alone deserves. Other people would not see them by night. But God would see them, and he would receive their prayers.

Next part: To lift hands during prayer

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