118:1 O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his steadfast love endures
forever!
118:2 Let Israel say, "His steadfast love endures forever."
(Add 118:14 - 116:18 for the Easter
Sunday Reading:
118:14 The LORD is my strength and my might; he has become my salvation.
118:15 There are glad songs of victory in the tents of the righteous: "The right hand
of the LORD does valiantly;
118:16 the right hand of the LORD is exalted; the right hand of the LORD does
valiantly."
118:17 I shall not die, but I shall live, and recount the deeds of the LORD.
118:18 The LORD has punished me severely, but he did not give me over to death.)
118:19 Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter through them and give
thanks to the LORD.
118:20 This is the gate of the LORD; the righteous shall enter through it.
118:21 I thank you that you have answered me and have become my salvation.
118:22 The stone that the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.
118:23 This is the Lord's doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.
118:24 This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
118:25 Save us, we beseech you, O LORD! O LORD, we beseech you, give us success!
118:26 Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the LORD. We bless you from the
house of the LORD.
118:27 The LORD is God, and he has given us light. Bind the festal procession with
branches, up to the horns of the altar.
118:28 You are my God, and I will give thanks to you; you are my God, I will extol you.
118:29 O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures
forever.
If my memory serve me right, this Psalm 118 is an interesting Psalm called Hallel, in which the Jewish people at Jesus time used to observe the Passover.
When the crowd cried out to Jesus, "Hosana! Hosana!" it meant "Save us! Save us!" as v.25 indicated. The line of "Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord" was used for Jesus as well.
What's going on here? Why did Jesus intentionally ride into Jerusalem on a donkey, and accepted praise from the people through Psalm 118? He definitely wanted people to know that He was the Savior!
v.27 indicated that they would have covered the road with branches and coats up all the way to the temple. Jesus went to the temple, as prophecy foretold, but there He was not welcome. The strong support He had gathered from the people was one more reason why the religious leaders want to squash Him.
Jesus always make waves. If He come today, there will be people who cry to Him, "Save us! Save us! from addiction, from proverty, from opression..." Some would be more understanding of His power and will ask Him to save us from sin, from ourselves, from judgement, and from the evil one. And there will always people there who will try to stop Him. Would His opponents be found in the temple? Would His opponents be found in the throne of my heart today? Oh God, save me from myself!
Coho, Midway City.
According to Jewish tradition, this is one of the psalms sung at the Passover meal. It tells of past trouble and celebrates victory at the hand of God. That victory had seemed so unlikely! As we wonder at the stone that sealed Jesus' tomb but only seemed to seal his fate, so the psalmist marvels that "the stone the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone." Only God could do this. What else can we do but rejoice?
