Psalm 117
Okay, I had to laugh when I opened up to the psalm for today. Seriously, have I ever read Psalm 117 before? I didn’t remember there being a Bible chapter that has only two verses! I guess this is the one to read if you’re dashing out the door in the morning and need a quick devotional!
Because it’s so brief, I’ll just quote the whole thing:
All you nations, praise the Lord.
All you people, praise him
because the Lord loves us very much,
and his truth is everlasting.
Praise the Lord!
Photo © Unsplash/Tim Mossholder
One of the interesting things for me to discover was that this psalm is included in what is known as the Hallel Psalms—the hymns sung in conjunction with the Jewish Passover meal. During the meal, Psalms 113 and 114 would be sung, and at the end, the event would conclude with Psalms 115 through 118.
Thus, when the Bible says, “After singing a hymn, [Jesus and His disciples] went out to the Mount of Olives” (Mk 14:26), this psalm would have been part of the traditional text for that song service.
I just had to think about that—especially in light of what Jesus was preparing to do as He went out from the Last Supper. He knew He was headed to Calvary to do two things: (1) Show us that His love for us is infinite, and (2) Reveal the ultimate truth about what sin does to sinners.
Thus, Jesus was preparing to reveal the two reasons why this psalm calls on all of creation to praise God: His love is unfailing, and His truthfulness is everlasting. According to the psalmist, those reasons are more than enough to praise the Lord, even to call forth praise from the “Gentiles”—people who were viewed by the Jews as being outsiders to salvation.
Photo © Unsplash/Caroline Hernandez
These two things about God have never changed. First, He is right. He tells the truth. And when His honesty is in question, He provides evidence (even at great cost to Himself) to prove the truthfulness of His word. Second, He loves you. There has never been and there never will be anyone who loves you more than God loves you. He will do absolutely anything to let you know that and absolutely anything He can to win you back.
God is right, and He loves you.
Hallelujah!