Let's Read Psalms 34

1 I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
2 My soul shall make her boast in the LORD: the humble shall hear it, and be glad.
3 O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together.
4 I sought the LORD, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.
5 They looked unto Him, and were lightened: and their faces were not ashamed.
6 This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.
7 The angel of the LORD encamps around them who respect Him, and He delivers them.
8 O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the person who trusts in Him.
9 O fear the LORD, all you his holy children: for there is no lacking for them that fear Him.
10 The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing.
11 Come, all you children, listen to me: I will teach you the fear of the LORD.
12 What person is it who desires life, and loves many days of life, that they may see good?
13 Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking bitterness.
14 Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.
15 The eyes of the LORD are upon those who do right, and His ears are open unto their cry.
16 The face of the LORD is against them that do evil, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.
17 The righteous cry, and the LORD hears, and delivers them out of all their troubles.
18 The LORD is near to them who are of a broken heart; and saves such as are of a sorrowful spirit.
19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivers them out of them all.
20 He keeps all his bones: not one of them is broken.
21 Evil shall slay the wicked: and they that hate the righteous shall be desolate.
22 The LORD redeems the soul of his servants: and no one who trust in him shall end in desolation.

Clearly this psalm is an invitation to come to the God of Israel.  If we are those who would be trained to go into all the world to all nations and call all people to come to the God of Israel then it is good that we should have this psalm written deeply upon our hearts.  How deeply?  Deeply enough that it teaches us how to listen to the lost.  Hearing the lost nations that they might hear the good news from us is our first assignment.  How can this psalm help enable us to do this?

In verse 8 we read, Taste and see that the LORD - the God of Israel - is good.  How can the lost nations hear this?  How can they understand this?  How can they do this?

Let's put Psalms 34:8 together with Deuteronomy 30:15.  In giving to Israel the Torah of His will, God says, "See, I have set before you this day life and good, and death and evil".

To taste of the God of Israel is to taste of His will, to taste of the life which He created, to find that there is in that life that which is worth saving.  But how can the lost nations taste as fully of life as is needed for them to choose life and good and not death and evil?  Paul describes them as being by nature without the Messiah of Israel, without the promise of him, having no hope and without God in the world.  Ephesians 2:12

Indeed, God listens to and hears the cry of the poor person.  And there is no one poorer than the lost nations as described by Paul.  We also, if we will hear the spiritually poor nations as God hears them will hear what it means to truly be without the ability to taste that life is good, and in the training that we receive from the Messiah of Israel we will learn to help him to bring the taste of the goodness of life even to the most lost of the lost nations of the earth.