#849 Divinely Appointed

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;

for his steadfast love endures forever!

2 Let Israel say,

“His steadfast love endures forever.”

3 Let the house of Aaron say,

“His steadfast love endures forever.”

4 Let those who fear the Lord say,

“His steadfast love endures forever.”

5 Out of my distress I called on the Lord;

the Lord answered me and set me free.

6 The Lord is on my side; I will not fear.

What can man do to me?

7 The Lord is on my side as my helper;

I shall look in triumph on those who hate me.

8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord

than to trust in man.

9 It is better to take refuge in the Lord

than to trust in princes.

10 All nations surrounded me;

in the name of the Lord I cut them off!

11 They surrounded me, surrounded me on every side;

in the name of the Lord I cut them off!

12 They surrounded me like bees;

they went out like a fire among thorns;

in the name of the Lord I cut them off!

13 I was pushed hard, so that I was falling,

but the Lord helped me.

14 The Lord is my strength and my song;

he has become my salvation.

15 Glad songs of salvation

are in the tents of the righteous:

“The right hand of the Lord does valiantly,

16 the right hand of the Lord exalts,

the right hand of the Lord does valiantly!”

17 I shall not die, but I shall live,

and recount the deeds of the Lord.

18 The Lord has disciplined me severely,

but he has not given me over to death.

19 Open to me the gates of righteousness,

that I may enter through them

and give thanks to the Lord.

20 This is the gate of the Lord;

the righteous shall enter through it.

21 I thank you that you have answered me

and have become my salvation.

22 The stone that the builders rejected

has become the cornerstone.

23 This is the Lord's doing;

it is marvelous in our eyes.

24 This is the day that the Lord has made;

let us rejoice and be glad in it.

25 Save us, we pray, O Lord!

O Lord, we pray, give us success!

26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!

We bless you from the house of the Lord.

27 The Lord is God,

and he has made his light to shine upon us.

Bind the festal sacrifice with cords,

up to the horns of the altar!

28 You are my God, and I will give thanks to you;

you are my God; I will extol you.

29 Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;

for his steadfast love endures forever! Psalm 118 ESV

A Psalm of Divine appointment. At least parts of this song were sang in Ezra's time Ezra 3

Let those who fear the Lord say, His steadfast love endures forever - This would summarize the call to all, Israel, the priestly family of Aaron, then all the world that fears God. 

Out of my distress I called on the Lord - These prayers are always with intent, as nailed to a cross we may as well be, for there is nothing in ourselves to call upon. We have used up all our physical resources, our mental faculties, the answer is outside of us. 

- Many of us can join with the Psalmist in the declarations of this verse; deep was our distress on account of sin, and we were shut up as in a prison under the law, but in answer to the prayer of faith we obtained the liberty of full justification wherewith Christ makes men free, and we are free indeed. It was the Lord who did it, and unto his name we ascribe all the glory; we had no merits, no strength, no wisdom, all we could do was to call upon him, and even that was his gift; but the mercy which is to eternity came to our rescue, we were brought out of bondage, and we were made to delight ourselves in the length and breadth of a boundless inheritance. C. H. Spurgeon

What can man do to me - They can surely disappoint, even those of the best intention, but our Lord suffered their worst, and yet sits at the right hand of God. He was more appalled and distressed at being so near the filth of sin, and when he cried out it was at the time His Father forsook Him, so that I would not be forsaken. The intensities of God's wrath, infinite holiness poured out against that to which He is infinitely opposed, that was so much more frightening. His heart melted within. 

45 From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land. 46 About the ninth hour, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me?” 47 When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He is calling Elijah.”… Matthew 27: 45-47

Than to trust in man - It is not only better to fear the Lord, but also better to trust Him over man. This would include all governments, for they are only men at the helm. The Bible also supports this in matters of church leadership as well, that those who are must be under the authority of God's Word and abide by It's direction concerning.

…7 which is not even a gospel. Evidently some people are troubling you and trying to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be under a divine curse! 9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be under a curse!… Galatians 1: 7-9

- It is better in all ways, for first of all it is wiser: God is infinitely more able to help, and more likely to help, than man, and therefore prudence suggests that we put our confidence in him above all others. It is also morally better to do so, for it is the duty of the creature to trust in the Creator. God has a claim upon his creatures' faith, he deserves to be trusted; and to place our reliance upon another rather than upon himself, is a direct insult to his faithfulness. It is better in the sense of safer, since we can never be sure of our ground if we rely upon mortal man, but we are always secure in the hands of our God. It is better in its effect upon ourselves: to trust in man tends to make us mean, crouching, dependent; but confidence in God elevates, produces a sacred quiet of spirit, and sanctifies the soul. It is, moreover, much better to trust in God, as far as the result is concerned; for in many cases the human object of our trust fails from want of ability, from want of generosity, from want of affection, or from want of memory; but the Lord, so far from falling, does for us exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or even think. - C.H. Spurgeon

But the Lord helped me - He was falling for the amount of stings, the fervor of their attacks, but he had called upon the Lord, and the Lord held him to his stand. If you fall down a thousand times, cry out a thousand and one more. Look back upon the circumstances of your life, refuse the praise of your ego, of other men, for surely everything you have made it through was to your service on this most difficult of days. The lion and the bear came before Goliath, and was it not God Who trained you in all these things. Have you learned of God's sovereignty only for table talk, only to sound brave, or to trust Him in the time of real trouble. Look back and praise God, lift Him up, this will cause your heart to soar and your enemies to second guess. 

The Lord has disciplined me severely - Whom the Lord loveth He chaseneth. He does not need you healthy, strong or at all, but what glory that the God of all glory would use such a pot as me. It is unthinkable that those, who should carry the power of such wonderful Words, His gospel, should not be chased, broken and made meek. Their Lord, Who needed no correction, humbled Himself, so whatever it should take, let us be made humble also. 

The righteous shall enter through it - To those who believe, we have the righteousness of Christ.

…8 All who came before Me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the gate. If anyone enters through Me, he will be saved. He will come in and go out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness.… John 10: 8-10

The stone that the builders rejected - 

…41“He will bring those wretches to a wretched end,” they replied, “and will rent out the vineyard to other tenants who will give him his share of the fruit at harvest time.” 42 Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This is from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes’? 43 Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.… Matthew 21: 41-43

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord - David was a shadow of things to come, anointed for the throne which Saul had dishonored. He was an unlikely candidate given his humble beginnings, and probably written off a hundred times given his many trying circumstances. He was opposed by many, but what is that after God has spoken.

…34 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I have longed to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling. 35 Look, your house is left to you desolate. And I tell you, you will not see Me again until you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.’” Luke 13: 34-35

The song ends as it begins.