PSALM 117

All nations praise the LORD.

Only two lines – but such a deep meaning. Allow me to walk you through.

v. 1a. Praise the LORD, all nations!

We have a glorious beginning – Hallelujah “Living ONE”! God is not called by His status; He is called by His name. Israel God is called by the name, but He is called by the Gentiles.

In the light of current political events, it is an important reminder that at the end ALL nations will recognize Jesus as Lord of the world. It will be done because the disciples will bring the Good News to all the nations – Matthew 28:18-20. Baptizing people and instructing them in faith. St. Paul uses this verse as a “proof-text” for the mission of Christ – Romans 15:11 (Let’s read!)   

v. 1b, Extol Him, all peoples!

Psalmist “doubles down” – he encourages all the peoples to extol Him. Exclaim with the loud voices, keep triumphant praise.

Together the unity of all nations and all peoples means everyone with distinction and without exception. The Book of Revelation puts it in four categories: nations, tribes, peoples, and languages. Together with believers from Israel they will worship the Lamb Who sits on the Throne (Rev. 7:1-10). 

What a glorious picture!!  

It is a long-awaited fulfilment of the prophecies:

2 Samuel 22:50 – glory to His name among Gentiles (a psalm sang by king David by the end of his life).

Isaiah 11:10 – the root of Jessy will give a hope to Gentiles. 

Isaiah 2:2-4 (note nations and peoples in v. 4) – do you know where the statue dedicated to this verse is located?

Also psalm 72:11,17 has the same ideas – kings of their nations fall before Him and serve Him (compare to Psalm 2:1-12). 

 

v. 2a, For great is His steadfast love toward us,

Great here has two meanings: (1) it is great in fullness (extended to all nations, see above); (2) it is great in intensity (covering all sins and faults), it is true on global and personal level: Romans 5:20-21 and 1 Timothy 1:12-14.

 Steadfast love – a word [hesed] which is very difficult for translation. We’ve talked about it last time (Psalm 118:1,29). It also can include mercy, grace etc. Most importantly, we need to pay attention “steadfast” aspect of “love” – along with other aspects of the meaning it should include “faithfulness.” God is faithful to His promises, covenants, and prophecies. We can rely on the fact of our forgiveness through Jesus, guidance by the Holy Spirit, and promise of heavenly haven prepared for us by the Son of God.  

 

v. 2b, And the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.

Faithfulness is a good translation; we also see it in Lamentations 3:22-23. It is a background for the hymn “great is Thy faithfulness.”

At the same time, we can add something: this word is related to very famous Hebrew word that all of you know – guess which one?

Jesus uses double of the word 25 times in the Gospel of John (for example 3:3; 5:24; 13:20). Using these doubles signifies that the words of Jesus are “really true.”   

Conclusion: Praise the Lord (Alleluia!)

The term denotes being clear (pure) sound and color, therefore “to show off [in a good sense], shine, or boast”

Think of the words of St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:30-31 (see the background in Jeremiah 9:23-24).

He is worthy to be praised, to be boasted about! He redeemed us!

Soli Deo Gloria – Glory be to God Alone!

Overview of the Bible: Lamentations

Lamentations

 

video lesson  

Title: The cry of the destroyed Jerusalem by Jeremiah.

Hebrew: Eyha(h) – “How” is taken from the first word of the book.  

Date of writing: 586 BC

Structure:

Five chapters – the best identified structurally book of the Bible. To understand the structure of the book we need to know that the Hebrew alphabet has 22 letters. 

Chapters 1&2 – 22 verses, acrostic based the Hebrew alphabet – from Aleph to Tov.

Chapter 3 – 66 verses = 22*3, acrostic where verses are grouped into the blocks of three 1-2-3 (Aleph), 4-5-6 (Beit), etc. each of the verses begins with the related letter of the Hebrew alphabet.   

Chapter 4 – 22 verses, acrostic based the Hebrew alphabet – from Aleph to Tov.

Chapter 5 – 22 verses, no acrostic…

There are few theories why the book is structured this way.  

Main themes:

Destruction of the City and Temple.

Faithfulness of God in the midst of the total world collapse.

Reflection in other parts of the Bible:

The Book is written as a result of what Jeremiah prophesied about. Therefore, it is important to remember how Jeremiah prophesied about the Temple turned into an idol (Jer. 7:1-20; Ez. 8 – 11).

The destruction of the Temple means the “destruction” of the regular festive times, priestly office, and the connection with the Temple mount (cp. 2:6, 9-10; Ps. 137).

The city (Jerusalem) is presented as a woman who was left/betrayed by her (foreign) lovers. The image is picked up/developed by the Prophet Ezekiel (ch. 16) when he writes about the unfaithful bride of the LORD. Also, theme of uncleanness which begins in Leviticus 12 – 15.  

When Jesus weeps over Jerusalem predicting the fall of great and glorious buildings (Mt. 23:37-39; Lk. 13:31-35), He is presented as a greater Jeremiah.    

Lutheran teaching:

Even though the Lutheran Confessions do not refer to the Book of Lamentations explicitly, two themes of the book are very important for the teaching of the Lutheran Church. First, God’s love is the foundation and the reason for our salvation. The Jews in the days of Jeremiah could not do anything to recover from the disaster of Temple destruction. It was God who carried them through the tunnel of national death and resurrection. Ap. V(III):26; 58-61.

Second, this love is not only should in the act of God’s deliverance but is an aspect of continual mercy for us on daily basis. God is the one who provides for us in our daily needs. Cp. SC II:1. 

Lutheran hymnody:

760 - What God ordained is always good

809 – Great is Thy faithfulness

Relevancy of the Book:

The Book of Lamentations is an important part of the canon. We remember about God’s love and mercy, but along with that we need to understand the reasons for His mercy – the infidelity of His people. As the people of old were punished, we can expect the punishment of the same grandiose magnitude if a nation is not going to submit to Christ’s rule.

At the same time, we can expect that loving Father will carry us through the present-day storms and attacks of Zeit Geist. The world/creation is sustained by His love and great faithfulness. We are but the agents who bring this love and faithfulness into a reality.       

Memory verses:  

3:22-23, The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.