Psalm 118 - His Mercy Endures Forever!
Bunni Pounds
When I was a teenager, God spoke to me through Psalm 118. It jumped off the page into my heart, and I have returned to it in many seasons of life since then. Throughout high school and my years in Bible college, I used to say this was my “life Psalm.”
At first glance, Psalm 118 can seem disjointed when compared to other Psalms. I like to call it a “messy Psalm.” As a songwriter, if I were critiquing the Psalmist here – I would tell him to go back to the drawing board and start over. It doesn’t seem like it has one theme or thought that we can cling to. It has different revelations for different moments. It is extremely messy.
Throughout my life, I often feel pulled and pushed in so many directions. I love ministry, politics, writing, leading worship, cooking, serving, teaching, discipling, fundraising, leading…the list goes on and on.
I have so many things that I am passionate about, but it is not humanly possible for me to do them all. It has taken me decades to realize that God put all of these passions in my heart for a reason, and to just be faithful where He has planted me (while at the same time I continue to dream and develop myself in other areas.)
Those of us who love God’s Word can face a similar conundrum—there is so much in the Bible to focus on that we have to depend on God to pinpoint specific areas in His Word where He wants to speak to us.
There is so much that I can do with my career or in ministry, but I have to depend on God to show me exactly what He wants me to do. I must cling to the “Word of the day” and know that Jesus has my life under control – one day at a time.
There are so many great passages in this Psalm - but it starts and ends with this thought, “Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.” (Psalm 118:1 & 29)
When the lives of those who serve Jesus are over, they will end with this revelation - God is good and His mercies have kept us and will keep us into eternity.
The commentaries that I have read on Psalm 118 believe that David wrote this Psalm while he was reigning as king and that he was looking back over his life. He was meditating about his ascension to the throne and the trials he endured while waiting for God to raise him up. Then he prophesied about himself as a type and shadow of the Messiah, the chief cornerstone. David had finally made it to the ultimate place and calling where God wanted him to be, the King of Judah, and he had a revelation again that it had nothing to do with him. “Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.” (Psalm 118:1 & 29)
“I called on the Lord in distress; The Lord answered me and set me in a broad place. The Lord is on my side; I will not fear, what can man do to me?” (Verses 5 and 6)
God has a way of calling us out of a life of destruction and distress and putting us in a “broad place”. In the KJV it says “a large place” which literally means in the Hebrew - enlargement, either literally (an open space, usually in a good sense), or figuratively (liberty) - breadth, large place (room). God has a way of expanding our tents and giving our lives more room to contain more blessings. He puts us into a field of liberty where we can just dance, sing, and be glad.
“It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.” (Verses 8-9)
This is the scripture that God gave me when I was a teenager. As a single girl it kept me focused on Jesus as my only source. He kept me from looking to the right or the left and waiting on God for the man that He wanted me to marry. He told me, “Don’t put confidence in princes. Don’t wait for your Prince Charming to find you and save you. I have you.” Whenever a friend or a boyfriend would disappoint me, God would bring me back to this scripture. He would say, “Don’t trust in man. Trust in Me. I have your life under control.”
Today, this scripture still shouts volumes to me. “Don’t put your confidence in mere men. They are just men or women. Trust only in Me. Don’t worship leadership—as good and as noble as they are—they are just men and women of God. Don’t trust in the government, in government leaders, or politicians. Some of them have good intentions, but don’t put your trust in “princes”, trust only in Me.”
When I rest in that truth, nothing and no one can shatter my dreams. No one can break my heart, because God is the only one allowed to hold my heart. I can give my heart away in compassion and love to people, knowing that my full heart really belongs to Jesus, and He will protect it even if I am spit on or shunned. It is liberating and freeing to rest in that revelation.
“You pushed me violently, that I might fall,
But the Lord helped me.
The Lord is my strength and song,
And He has become my salvation.
The voice of rejoicing and salvation
Is in the tents of the righteous;
The right hand of the Lord does valiantly.
The right hand of the Lord is exalted;
The right hand of the Lord does valiantly.
I shall not die, but live,
And declare the works of the Lord.
The Lord has chastened me severely,
But He has not given me over to death.” (Verses 13-18)
In verses 10-12 before this passage, the nations (or his crazy life) are pulling, pushing, and surrounding David. He is being tested and tried, but he knows that through “the name of the Lord” he will destroy his enemies. He is confident in the ability of the Lord to rescue him.
I love how he says, “you pushed me violently, that I might fall, But the Lord helped me. The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation.”
The world has a way of pushing us around violently, trying to get us to fall. Our culture pushes and pulls us on every side to the point where we wonder if we can still stand up straight. But God is our Helper! He sings over us His song, and He has become our salvation.
Psalm 77:6 says, “I call to remembrance my song in the night; I meditate within my heart, and my spirit makes diligent search.”
God wants us to remember that He is our strength and our song. His song will not be stopped. He will not stop singing over us.
Zephaniah 3:16- 17, “In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:
‘Do not fear;
Zion, let not your hands be weak.
The Lord your God in your midst,
The Mighty One, will save;
He will rejoice over you with gladness,
He will quiet you with His love,
He will rejoice over you with singing.’”
This Zephaniah scripture truly means that God is dancing over us with singing. What a picture of His love and grace, that He would take us in His arms, quiet us with His love, and then start leaping and dancing over us – rejoicing. He knows that we are going to be fine in the end, because we are with Him.
I love the hope in these verses as well.
“I shall not die, but live,
And declare the works of the Lord.
The Lord has chastened me severely,
But He has not given me over to death.” (Verses 17-18)
God can chasten and discipline us, because we are His kids, but He has redeemed us through His love. He will not give us over to death. What a promise! And we can say with confidence “I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord.”
“Open to me the gates of righteousness;
I will go through them,And I will praise the Lord.
This is the gate of the Lord,
Through which the righteous shall enter.
I will praise You,
For You have answered me,
And have become my salvation.” (Verses 19-21)
David, when he wrote this passage, was probably visualizing the gates of the tabernacle. He knew that he needed to get to the place of worship and praise – the tabernacle - and enter in through the gates into the presence of God. He could only do that through the altar of sacrifice. He needed the blood from the sacrifice.
Today, we have a greater way to enter through the gates of righteousness. We go through the blood of Jesus who paid it all. Jesus laid His life down so that we might be saved and have part in His righteousness.
2 Corinthians 5:21 – “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
He has truly become our salvation, and David was prophesying that truth, even here in this passage.
The stone which the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone.
This was the Lord’s doing;
It is marvelous in our eyes.
This is the day the Lord has made;
We will rejoice and be glad in it.
Save now, I pray, O Lord;
Lord, I pray, send now prosperity.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!
We have blessed you from the house of the Lord.
God is the Lord,
And He has given us light;
Bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar.
You are my God, and I will praise You;You are my God, I will exalt You. (Verses 22-28)
This section of Psalm 118 is definitely understood by Bible scholars as a Messianic prophecy of the coming of Jesus. In one sense, David was singing about himself. He had been rejected by his family, leadership, and even his own father, but God had raised him up to be the King of Judah. “It was the Lord’s doing; It is marvelous in our eyes.”
Rejoicing in the fact that God had “set” him in a “broad place”, he knew that this was the day that God had created him to worship and rejoice. He wanted to give God all the glory and praise for everything that he had done in His life.
We can see this double meaning here in this passage, especially since David keeps writing about the Lord becoming his salvation. It is a futuristic picture of the true cornerstone, the coming Messiah – Jesus.
The stone which the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone.
This was the Lord’s doing;
It is marvelous in our eyes. (Verses 22 and 23 again)
Sending Jesus as our Savior was all God’s idea - it “was the Lord’s doing”. God had a plan to redeem us. It is hard to comprehend that one of the members of the Godhead, God the Father, would send down another member of the Godhead, the Son of God, Jesus, to be born of a virgin, be raised by human parents, minister on this earth for three years, and then be crucified as the sinless Lamb of God for the sins of the world. But it happened, it is a true story!
“God is the Lord, And He has given us light; Bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the alter. You are my God, and I will praise You; You are my God, I will exalt You.”
Why is He worthy of all our praise? Because He let Himself be bound to the altar to take our place.
This phrase “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord” is used in only three stories in the scriptures (though it is repeated in different Gospels). Here in Psalm 118, we see the first time that it is mentioned – a prophetic statement that God would send someone to redeem us.
The fulfillment of this prophecy took place here.
Matthew 21:8-9- “And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road. Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying:
“Hosanna to the Son of David!
‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’
Hosanna in the highest!”
(This story is repeated in Mark 11, Luke 19, and John 12)
The people were acknowledging, as Jesus rode through the streets of Jerusalem on a donkey, that He was the SON of DAVID, the King of Israel, and the One who had been promised in Psalm 118. The eyes of the multitude were opened, and they understood, even if it was just for a few hours, that He was the One they had been waiting for. They worshipped Him with all their might, throwing their clothes on the road in front of Him and waving palm branches to welcome Him. They were opening their gates for the King of righteousness to come in. (Psalm 24)
The final time this phrase “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord” is mentioned is when Jesus is talking about the end of days.
Weeping over Jerusalem and the people of Israel, Jesus said in Matthew 23:37-39, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you; you shall see Me no more till you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’
(This story is repeated in Luke 13 as well.)
There will be a day when God’s people, Israel, and the Gentiles that God has joined to them through the promise of Abraham, will all join with one voice and cry out “Baruch Ha Ba Beshem Adonai” (Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord). Israel will acknowledge their true Messiah, the Son of David and the Son of God – Jesus - and all the nations will come to worship Him and say “This is the day the Lord has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it.”
On that Day, all of the twists and turns of life will make sense. We won’t feel disjointed anymore, because God will have brought all things into focus, and we will say, “Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.” (Psalm 118:1 & 29).
Political Corner: Politics and government was a great career choice for me although I didn’t plan it for myself. I have had to flow in and out of many job titles, skills, and positions - always learning, developing more ideas, and growing. When I was on the ministry track for my life – I thought I would be a good missionary because I loved to do everything. In politics, it is very similar in that one day I am writing a fundraising email, the next I am organizing volunteers, or then coordinating hosts for events. For people who are multiply talented, it is sometimes hard to know whether you are on the right path or not. Know this – God has your life under control. He knows your seasons and the place where you can make the most impact right now in your life. After fifteen years in this business, I can look back and see the weaving of a beautiful story – in and out – and see His hand all over it all. I am so thankful that He makes it all make sense in the end. Keep moving forward!
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