Psalms 47:1 -- On The Voice of Triumph

"O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph."
Psalms 47:1


I like the idea of being so overjoyed with God that we were clapping our hands. And really, life is like that if we focus on the good. We should be clapping and saying "well done, God" every minute. But of course it is hard to keep that perspective. :)

I also like the idea of triumphing. In the Old Testament here I think they meant literal triumph in battle, but triumphing with God can mean a lot more than that as well. In D&C 121:8 it says "if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes," and it that case it is triumphing through exaltation, and the foes at that point are just the people who chose not to join God as well. That section is interesting in a similar way, too. There is a stark contrast between the prophet pleading for earthly, physical triumph up until verse 6 and then God's reply starting in verse 7.

I think that we often want the same thing that Joseph wanted there, or that David is talking about here, in this Psalm. We so often want to "win," to triumph in all ways, to show our superiority and to prove our way is right... but God is teaching us to triumph over ourselves... to win supremacy over the natural man, to let our goodness shine through and defeat our tendencies to evil. That is the triumph that really matters... that is the way to exaltation.

Today, let's work with God on finding that voice of triumph--winning in a good way, beating back our evil and finding the strength of righteousness. And let's remember to appreciate God and his amazing plan and creations today as well that help us to triumph in so many ways. Totally worth some applause. :)