Can we apply Ps 33:12 to the US or any nation?

Last updated on: April 11, 2020 at 10:03 am by Rob Dalrymple

Can we apply Ps 33:12 to the US or any nation? 2020-04-11T10:03:44-08:00 Rob Dalrymple

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Some are claiming, based on Ps 33:12 “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, The people whom He has chosen for His own inheritance,” that God has chosen Trump to save America.”The context of the Old Testament in general, and this Psalm in particular, shows that the nation addressed here was Israel.

The Psalmist was writing to encourage the people of Israel to call upon the Lord so that the promised blessing would come to fruition. Of course, one could hypothetically suggest that this promise of blessing applies to any nation.

The reality, however, is that only ancient Israel was ever in a position to fulfill this command. For, it is only in the context of ancient Israel that the chosen people of God were essentially identified with a particular nation (of course there were exceptions, such as the Syrophoenician woman (Mark 7); but such exceptions only prove the rule).

Once we reach the Christian era the people of God are now composed of individuals from many nations. Since no one nation today is composed wholly of the people of God, there is simply no way to receive the blessing of this Psalm on a national scale.

Could the blessing of this Psalm be applied to an individual? Sure. In fact, the focus of God’s blessings today applies to the people of God.

Note that 1 Peter 2:9 even identifies the people of God in nationalistic terms: “a chosen people and a holy nation.” The New Testament application of Psalm 33, then, would be, “Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord.”

In conclusion, any attempt to apply this Psalm on a national scale in the contemporary world is simply anachronistic. No secular nation may receive the blessing of this Psalm.

Nota Bene: I was searching images.google for an image to go along with this post (as I usually do) and was surprised when Ps 33:12 showed up in the search box. I was more surprised when the page loaded and hundreds of images with the script of Ps 33:12 and the US flag appeared.

I am sorry but in light of my post here I just don’t see how this connection can in any way be supported by this text.

(note there were also images of the Star of David–the Israeli flag. This has more potential to be correct. The problem here would be twofold: one the modern state of Israel is a secular state. Second, the people of God are defined as those who follow Christ: and though many Jewish people indeed follow Jesus today, this cannot be limited to Jewish people)

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