Psalm 8 - O Lord, our Lord,

 8:1       O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

AELW 12:98

"This psalm is one of the beautiful psalms and a glorious prophecy about Christ, where David describes Christ’s person and kingdom and teaches who Christ is; what kind of kingdom He has and how it is formed; where this King rules, namely, in all lands and yet in heaven; and the means by which His kingdom is founded and regulated, namely, only through the Word and faith, without sword and armor."

Psalm 2 - Two Worlds

AELW 12:92-93

"There are two worlds, as it were. The one is the devil’s, in which men are secure, proud, neglecting God and the Gospel. The Holy Spirit warns them that they must get rid of their false security, or they will perish on their way. The other is Christ’s. In it are the afflicted and miserable men who are disturbed by the sense of their sins and fear punishment for their sins, eternal death, and the wrath of God. And yet, because they see that the Son of God was made a sacrifice for their sins, they have hope for mercy. The Holy Spirit comforts them with the marvelous word: “Blessed are all who take refuge in Him,” or hope.

...this psalm describes the heavenly religion and true worship together with the true church and Christ, its Head. It shows that although the church lies hidden and concealed in the world and Satan and the godless seem to rule, yes, even in our own flesh, nevertheless through faith in this King the church conquers at last and triumphs against Satan and the whole world, according to this thought: “Blessed are all who take refuge in Him.” And so in the very great difficulties with which the church must battle, suffering and oppressed, as it were, on all sides, we also should hold to this comfort with both hands because, hoping in Christ, the Son of God, we are blessed. Amen."

The Holy Spirit will come to our aid, especially when we pray.

Psalm 2:11 "Serve the Lord with fear"
AELW 12:78

"David understood this art, as his sermons testify. Then, too, experience shows that he did not abandon hope when he was punished, for he continues to call on God. But even if his joy was exceedingly weak, still he overcame fear, because he saw the end of the chastisement. Nor was he entirely overwhelmed, as happens to the godless. If you look at the flesh, it is almost overloaded with fear also in David, so that he does not feel any joy. And yet, as Paul says (Rom. 7:25), “he serves the Law of God with his mind.” Even when suffering the punishment of exile, he calls on God. He does not feel that there is no place for mercy, as in the case of a jailer. Even while he receives the blows, he thinks to himself: “He is my Father; He will not be angry forever....

...It is, therefore, easy to say that the true fear of God is a filial fear, that is, a fear mixed with joy or hope. But if you follow your feeling, you will perceive that joy is all but overwhelmed and extinguished by fear. But you must not on that account let your heart sink or despair, but trust in the Lord and lay hold on his Word, which declares that God’s anger is but for a moment (Ps. 30:5) and His favor is for a lifetime. That is, God wants us to live. He does not want us to perish. And for this very reason He sends us blows. And so it happens that you feel at least some small drop of joy. It will grow little by little until it finally overcomes fear. The practice is difficult, but is nevertheless of the kind which the saints of God learned to do, as their examples show. We, too, must follow in their footsteps and learn this art also. Moreover, the Holy Spirit will come to our aid, especially when we pray."

Ps 2:11 More from Luther on vocation...

Psalm 2:11   Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
AELW 12:72

"Consequently you should simply put out of sight whatever has to do with religious practice and rites, even those which God instituted through Moses. For this new King has come, and a new service will also be established accordingly....

...I usually distinguish these two aspects for myself in this way: the “worshiping” is done by a man converted to God, but the “serving” is done by a man sent by God...

...For whoever worships, falls on his knees and shows signs of submission. This is a sort of passive service; in turning to the Lord this way in firm faith in His mercy for Christ’s sake, he receives forgiveness of sins and is justified. And after he has thus been received into grace, he goes out from God, turns to men, and carries out the commandment of God pertaining to the service of men. Now that he has been justified by faith, Paul does just works, that is, he fulfills his duty by teaching; the pious official by governing; the head of a family by working. And so they serve God. They certainly do not do what pleases them, like the monks, but what God commands....

...To serve God, therefore, is nothing else than to do what God demands and to acknowledge this as the obedience owed to Him."

Psalm 2:11 Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling.

Psalm 2:11. Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling.

AELW 12:70

..."what is the point of those commandments of which the books of the Apostles are full, about the love of spouses toward each other, the obedience of servants, the fairness and moderation of lords, and conscientious care in administering the government? Do not these very commandments show that the Gospel recommends all these stations in life? Was it not folly, then, to teach that to serve God meant to flee these positions in life, to change not only one’s dress, but even nature itself and sex? For what else does a monk do than wish, contrary to God’s order, to be something else than a real man? Is this not utter nonsense?....God does not mean you should change your clothing, change your sex, abandon civil and domestic duties, and hide yourself away in a monastery. All these things are external and can be feigned."

Psalm 119:148 My eyes are awake before the watches of the night, that I may meditate on your promise

Psalm 119:148 My eyes are awake before the watches of the night, that I may meditate on your promise

AELW 11:512-513

"...they seek to be filled here with the riches, the empty glory and pleasure of the world, not that they might meditate on His words. But the faithful people seek spiritual things, which are the greatest things given us in faith and in the Gospel, so that they might not only hear His words (in which He has conferred every good thing upon us) but also meditate on them and make them their own through increase...

...so it is clear that this verse prays literally not for the future church and her goods but for the present church and her good things, which are nothing but the Gospel of grace itself, which is the sign and word of things to be hoped for and not seen (Heb. 11:1). And with such food Christ nourishes us."

Psalm 119:65 - You have dealt well with your servant,O LORD, according to your word.

Psalm 119:65 - You have dealt well with your servant,O LORD, according to your word.

AELW 11:458

"Therefore, since there is such a mixture among us, if we say that we are good and have no sin, the truth is not in us (1 John 1:8), since only God is good, righteous, and truthful. But no one is altogether evil, unrighteous, and untruthful, for he cannot in any way be exclusively evil. Therefore we are always in the middle between the goodness which we have from God and the evil which we have of ourselves, until in the future all evils are swallowed up and God alone is all in all (1 Cor. 15:28), so that we are not our own but God’s, and He is ours."

Psalm 119:43 - Take not the Word of truth utterly out of my mouth

Luther's translation

119:43 Take not the Word of truth utterly out of my mouth, for in Thy judgments I have hoped exceedingly.

AELW 11:449-450

"That is to say: “Do not let the word of faith be silenced by me because of the opposition of the adversaries, but help me to speak and preach it all the more, because in Your judgments, etc., that is, in the very words of Your promise of things to come I have set my hope.”

Psalm 119:41-42 - every man who regards as shame what God turns into glory is a liar.

Psalm 119:41-42
       Let your steadfast love come to me, O LORD,
      your salvation according to your promise;
      then shall I have an answer for him who taunts me,
      for I trust in your word.

AELW 11:449

"And I will have an answer for those who reproach me, because I have trusted in Thy words. Namely, for those who say, “Where is your God?” Or, “You are stupid in looking for mercy and a salvation different from salvation in earthly things.” Thus the shame of the cross is made a matter of reproach and abhorrence for the faithful, not only before Christ would come and sanctify, dignify, and make most precious in God’s sight the cross and all evils of punishments in this world through His blessed suffering, so that this mercy is better than all lives...

Therefore, having obtained the mercy and salvation of God, who is Christ, they easily despise the shame of the cross, yes, they glory in the cross and have a word of response for the reproachers. These are not reproached in return, but they are admonished and gently taught that every man who regards as shame what God turns into glory is a liar. Faith and hope in things to come accomplishes this. If they did not have faith and hope, they would not respond, but keep silent and agree with them, fleeing the cross and seeking only the good things in this life, and thus the Word of truth would be removed from their mouth."

Psalm 119:27 - Make me to understand the way of Thy precepts, and I will be exercised in Thy wondrous works

 Psalm 119:27 - Make me to understand the way of Thy precepts, and I will be exercised in Thy wondrous works  

AELW 11:437

"Words cannot be exercised in any other way than with the tongue, since it is certainly something else for works to be exercised. Therefore “to be exercised in wondrous works” means to discuss, speak, and debate the words of Christ and “chirp” them to each other sweetly and swiftly, like the little birds in May. This is what the church did in its early days."

I don't know what the Bible says, but I believe....

Psalm 119, verse 24 - Your testimonies are my delight; they are my counselors

AELW 11:431-433

"24. For Thy testimonies are my meditation, and Thy statutes my counsel. This is again directed against those who hold their own opinion, for neither their counsel nor their meditation is the law of Christ, but their counsel is the invention and thought of their own head, after they have disregarded the study of Scripture...

Yes, it is as if Scripture ought to say to them: “Your meditation is My testimonies,” when it ought to be the other way around; our reason should be taken captive, and the testimonies of God should be our meditation...

Those people, on the contrary, want the commandments of God to be meditated and considered in their own commandments, yes, they want the meditations of men and their own teachings to be the commandments of God...

They do not consider the ways of God, but the ways of God should leave themselves behind and consider the ways of those people, that is, the ways of God should become what those people are thinking. Thus they do not meditate on the statutes of God, but they want the statutes of God to meditate on theirs, that is, become their meditations. All of this is that they impose their meaning on Scripture and do not permit its sense to be imposed on them...(See Note below)

But with them, on the contrary, it is “Your statutes,” “their counsel,” that is, “whatever they themselves have decided, this these exceedingly vain men want Your statutes to be...

So likewise do all the proud when they impose their own meaning on the Scriptures and want them to bear witness to what pleases them, not what they themselves in truth testify."

Note - The reference may be to De Trinitate, II, 3, where Hilary says: “Many have given to the plain words of Holy Writ some arbitrary interpretation of their own … Heresy lies in the sense assigned, not in the word written; the guilt is that of the expositor, not of the text.”

Psalm 118 - Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His mercy endures forever.

Psalm 118:1 - 1. O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His mercy endures forever.

AELW 11:410

" It is goodness when someone does good to the undeserving and unworthy. One does not impart benefits to those who are deserving, but it is done justly, and good is returned for good, and it is due to be returned to them. But to those who are worthy, it is not rendered to them as to the deserving, but as something justly owed to them as superiors and equals. God, however, imparted benefits through the incarnate Christ to the unworthy and undeserving, in fact, to those who deserved much ill, for also through this He showed Himself to be not an imaginary God, but a true and living God, in that He received nothing good and meritorious from us, but granted it altogether without charge."

Psalm 116 - It is better to take refuge in the Lord, than to trust man.

Psalm 116

116 I love the LORD, because he has heard
      my voice and my pleas for mercy.
            2       Because he inclined his ear to me,
      therefore I will call on him as long as I live.
            3       The snares of death encompassed me;
      the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;
      I suffered distress and anguish.
            4       Then I called on the name of the LORD:
      “O LORD, I pray, deliver my soul!”
            5       Gracious is the LORD, and righteous;
      our God is merciful.
            6       The LORD preserves the simple;
      when I was brought low, he saved me.
            7       Return, O my soul, to your rest;
      for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you.
            8       For you have delivered my soul from death,
      my eyes from tears,
      my feet from stumbling;
            9       I will walk before the LORD
      in the land of the living.
            10       I believed, even when1 I spoke:
      “I am greatly afflicted”;
            11       I said in my alarm,
      “All mankind are liars.”
            12       What shall I render to the LORD
      for all his benefits to me?
            13       I will lift up the cup of salvation
      and call on the name of the LORD,
            14       I will pay my vows to the LORD
      in the presence of all his people.

AELW 11:403

" Verse 12 -  What shall I render to the Lord for all He has rendered to me? What is this rendering of God to us? What have we earned? Did He not give it gratis? Otherwise how will it be grace? But the Lord renders good for evil, which is an excellent and divine repayment. For even men return good for good. In fact, the heathen do good to those who do good (Luke 6:33). But this is what it means to be God: Not to take good but to give it and therefore to render good for evil. Since He gives gifts before He takes them, what else does He do but return good for evil? If, therefore, He gave the good before, then it was not there, but only evil was. What, therefore, shall I render, since He has rendered to me faith and truth, by which I am truthful in His presence, and thus I am now not a man but God and the son of God, and a child like the Father?"

The Pelican

Psalm 102:6 - Similis factus sum pelicano solitudinis" - "I am like a pelican of the wilderness"

 AELW 11:306

The pelican, which in Lev. 11:18 and Deut. 14:18 is called “bittern,” is cited here for no other reason than that of its loneliness, although, according to Jerome, it has another quality, namely, that of reviving its young with its own blood, struck from its breast by its beak when the young have been killed by a serpent.(Jerome records this legend in his Regula monachorum. The Pelican-in-Her-Piety has become a striking symbol of Christ’s Atonement)*

And Cassiodorus most suitably to the theme describes it thus: “The pelican is an Egyptian bird, similar to the stork in the size of its body, which is always affected by a natural leanness, since, as the physiologists claim, with its bowel stretched throughout the inner organs, whatever it eats it passes on without any digestion. The result is that it is very little fattened by its own fat. It does not fly in a flock like other birds but consoles itself in solitary pleasure. There is said to be one kind that lives in swamps, and another that lives in deserted and secret places.”

And for that reason it is regarded as unclean in the Law, because it digests nothing that it eats, like a man who hears the Word of God and does not assimilate it."

*Note to the Note - The Rev. Dr. Stephen Starke Steve Starke also notes this in the LSB hymnal in Hymn 640 verse 3. I would show verse but need permission....