THE PRAYER OF AZARIAH 8, 1:42-46 The Rain and wind praise the Lord 42 "Bless the Lord, all rain and dew; sing praise to him and highly exalt him forever. 43 Bless the Lord, all you winds; sing praise to him and highly exalt him forever. 44 Bless the Lord, fire and heat; sing praise to him and highly exalt him forever. 45 Bless the Lord, winter cold and summer heat; sing praise to him and highly exalt him forever. 46 Bless the Lord, dews and falling snow; sing praise to him and highly exalt him forever. In these verses, the poet turns his attention to the Second Day of creation, especially the waters of first heaven. The rain and dew in verse 42 have a double meaning. For while the rain and the dew bring moisture and life from God to his creation (Job 38:28), they also represent the Gospel itself. For God says, "Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants. I will proclaim the name of the LORD. Oh, praise the greatness of our God!" (Deuteronomy 32:2-3). The winds bring storms that show the change of seasons. "The tempest comes out from its chamber, the cold from the driving winds. The breath of God produces ice, and the broad waters become frozen" (Job 37:9-10). But the winds of the sky also represent the messengers of God, the angels that serve man with protection and serve God with praise and obedience. "He makes winds his messengers, flames of fire his servants. He set the earth on its foundations; it can never be moved" (Psalm 104:4-5). Fire and heat are necessary for life. For used properly, whatever is burns "Is man's fuel for burning; some of it he takes and warms himself, he kindles a fire and bakes bread" (Isaiah 44:15). But fire and heat also serve as a reminder of the coming judgment. "Look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat" (2 Peter 3:12). And Jesus warned, "If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out" (Mark 9:43). Winter cold and summer heat both serve their purpose. It is the Lord God "Who set all the boundaries of the earth; you made both summer and winter" (Psalm 74:17). God has promised these things as a pledge of his providence and care. He said to Noah, "As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease" (Genesis 8:22). He looks after his creation in many ways and with all of his gracious love. Once again the poet's mind turns to dew; this time in connection with the snow that falls in springtime, when dew and snow can appear in the same day as life returns to the world all around. The Lord asks, "Does the snow of Lebanon ever vanish from its rocky slopes? Do its cool waters from distant sources ever cease to flow?" (Jeremiah 18:14). The change of the seasons from summer to fall to winter to spring reminds us especially of the promise of the resurrection, when we all we return to life on the Last Day. "Let us acknowledge the LORD; let us press on to acknowledge him. As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth" (Hosea 6:3). We know "that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in his presence" (2 Corinthians 4:14). When God uses even the natural world around us to remind us of his wonderful promises, we kneel before him and praise his holy name. For the springtime of the resurrection will certainly come. The flowering of mankind, made new again, sinless and in the image of God freshly restored, will come with the voice of our Savior calling us forth from the grave. And we will live with him forever in heaven. In Christ, Pastor Tim Smith