Psalm 118:26 He who comes in the name of Yahveh is blessed. From the house of Yahveh, we bless you. Psalm 118:27 Yahveh is God and has given us light. Bind the festival sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar. Psalm 118:28 You are my God, and I will give you thanks. You are my God; I will exalt you. Psalm 118:29 Give thanks to Yahveh, because he is good; his covenant faithfulness is permanent.
say thanks
After asking for the Lord’s help, let’s not forget to say thanks when he gives it. He is our God, and he deserves credit for the success he provides.
Psalm 118:25 Please Yahveh, deliver us! Please Yahveh, grant us success!
say please
We depend on our LORD not only for our future salvation, but also for our present success. It is not a shameful thing to ask him for help. It brings him glory when his own seek huis favor.
Psalm 118:21 I will give thanks to you because you have answered me and have become my deliverance. Psalm 118:22 The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. Psalm 118:23 This came from Yahveh; it is miraculous in our sight. Psalm 118:24 This is the day Yahveh has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
rescues to celebrate
What day should we be rejoicing over? The popular chorus has us rejoicing merely because it is today. To me, that is just taking words out of their context. The text appears to give us two other options. Either we should rejoice in the day of rescue, or rejoice in the festival day when the rescue is remembered. Either way, the rejoicing is not just a party looking for a place to happen. It is a call to celebrate grace. The day of grace is the day that the LORD has made. Jesus entering Jerusalem as its king was such a day. His atoning death on the cross is another. His soon return will be yet another. Those were rescues to celebrate.
LORD, we thank you for your past rescues, and your future return. We will celebrate that rescue.
Psalm 118:19 Open the right gates for me; I will enter through them and give thanks to Yahveh. Psalm 118:20 This is Yahveh’s gate; the righteous will enter through it.
the right gates
We can spend life blindly following our own eyes or we can ask the Lord to open the right gates. We often miss the best for us because we fail to pray this prayer. On the other side of his gates is the solution to our petty problems — problems that might haunt us for decades, but have an easy solution.
LORD, open your gates for us, and give us wisdom to go through them into health and wholeness.
Psalm 118:17 I will not die, but I will live and proclaim what Yahveh has done. Psalm 118:18 Yahveh disciplined me severely yet did not give me over to death.
I will live
David and the Messiah after him say this for different reasons. David said it because God rescued him from the threat of death. The Messiah says it because God rescued us all from death through him. The resurrection of Jesus was God’s work and his promise to us all.
Psalm 118:10 All the nations surrounded me; in the name of Yahveh I destroyed them. Psalm 118:11 They surrounded me, yes, they surrounded me; in the name of Yahveh, I destroyed them. Psalm 118:12 They swarmed me like bees; they were extinguished like a fire among thorns; in the name of Yahveh I destroyed them. Psalm 118:13 They pushed me hard to make me fall, but Yahveh helped me. Psalm 118:14 Yahveh is my strength and my song; he has become my deliverance. Psalm 118:15 There are shouts of joy and victory in the tents of the righteous: “Yahveh’s right hand performs valiantly! Psalm 118:16 Yahveh’s right hand is raised. Yahveh’s right hand performs valiantly!”
destroyer of nations
David and the Messiah after him are the two people who can say this. Our Lord, surrounded by the nations, will destroy those who refuse to bow their knee to his Lordship.
Psalm 118:5 I called to Yahveh from a tight place; Yahveh answered me and put me in a spacious place. Psalm 118:6 Yahveh is for me, I do not fear what Adam does to me. Psalm 118:7 Yahveh is for me as my helper, And I — I look on those hating me. Psalm 118:8 Better to take refuge in Yahveh than to trust in Adam, Psalm 118:9 Better to take refuge in Yahveh, Than to trust in those who want to help.
a tight place
Have you ever been in a tight place with no one to help? Who was there to rescue you? God is the one to fear and the one to trust.
Psalm 118:1 Give thanks to Yahveh because he is good because his covenant faithfulness is permanent. Psalm 118:2 Let Israel say it because his covenant faithfulness is permanent. Psalm 118:3 Let the house of Aaron say it because his covenant faithfulness is permanent. Psalm 118:4 Let those fearing Yahveh say it because his covenant faithfulness is permanent.
permanently faithful
We are not always faithful to God but he is permanently faithful to his word. We can rely on him to do what he has promised and threatened.
Psalm 117:1 Praise Yahveh, all nations, glorify Him, all peoples. Psalm 117:2 You see, his covenant faithfulness to us is strong and the truth of Yahveh is permanent. Praise Yah!
foundation of faithfulness
We live in a world where everything changes, so drastically and quickly that our visions of the future cannot keep up. Is there anything that is constant? Yes, says the psalmist. The steadfast love of the LORD toward us. That faithfulness is our foundation, an oasis of consistency in an eve
Psalm 116:1 I love him because Yahveh hears my voice, my pleas for mercy. Psalm 116:2 I’ll call out to him as long as I live because he listens closely to me. Psalm 116:3 Death’s ropes were around me. Sheol was closing in on me. I was worried and afraid. Psalm 116:4 I called on the name of Yahveh, “Please Yahveh, rescue my throat!” Psalm 116:5 Yahveh is gracious and fair, our God is merciful, Psalm 116:6 Yahveh protects the simple. I was low and he delivered me. Psalm 116:7 Turn back, O my throat, to your rest, because Yahveh has done good things for you. Psalm 116:8 You have delivered my throat from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from being overthrown. Psalm 116:9 I walk obediently before Yahveh In the lands of the living. Psalm 116:10 I believed, because I said, I — I have been humbled greatly. Psalm 116:11 I said while I hurried away, ‘Everyone is a liar.’ Psalm 116:12 How can I repay Yahveh for all His benefits to me? Psalm 116:13 I will take the cup of deliverance and call on the name of Yahveh. Psalm 116:14 I will fulfill my vows to Yahveh in the presence of all his people. Psalm 116:15 The death of his faithful ones is valuable in Yahveh’s sight. Psalm 116:16 I am your servant. I am your servant, son of your handmaid, you hast opened my chains. Psalm 116:17 To Thee I sacrifice a sacrifice of thanks, And on the name of Yahveh I call. Psalm 116:18 Let me complete my vows to Yahveh, I pray, before all His people, Psalm 116:19 In the courts of the house of Yahveh, In your midst, O Jerusalem, praise ye Jah!
looking for a life-response
Donald Wrigley wrote that this psalm “witnesses to the fact that our God is alive and responsive to the prayers and needs of his people. In recalling times of distress when the Lord has come to our aid, we may think, “How can I repay the Lord for all his goodness to me?” We must remember that God doesn’t sell his blessings. He gives them freely through his Son, Jesus. He’s not looking for repayment. He’s looking for a life response of faith, obedience, and sincere worship.”
Devotions 