(Psalm 117/118 continued)


We have already seen that this psalm is national in its scope and outlook. Each individual will express his own convictions as is indicated by the use of the personal pronouns, I, me, and my. The distress concerning which the remnant will sing and out of which their progenitors were delivered can be nothing else than the Egyptian bondage. And account of Israel's slavery while in Egypt is set forth in the first chapters of the Book of Exodus. Their lot became intolerable. They therefore cried to God. At the proper time He sent Moses, the deliverer, who lead the people forth from their slavery. After their miraculous passage through the Red Sea and the destruction of their enemies by the receding waters of the sea, Moses and the children of Israel sang the song of deliverance, of which we read in Exodus 15:1-18. Israel cried; Jehovah delivered; and she was set in a large place--in the wilderness. It was large in comparison with the narrow quarters in which they had been crowded in Egypt.

"Jehovah is on my side; I will not fear: What can man do to me?
Jehovah is on my side among them that help me: Therefore shall I see my desire upon them that hate me" (vss. 6,7).

In these verse the remnant of Israel of this future day will joyfully sing that God is on her side and that she will fear nothing. She will be of the profound conviction that no man can do anything against her. If God is for us, who can be against us, asked the Apostle Paul. The one concern for the people is that they know positively that they are on the Lord's side. When they are convinced of that fact, they need not fear what man can do to them. The nations of the world are but as the small dust of the balance, or as a drop in the bucket in God's sight. And He can handle them and overrule all of their actions for the good of those who are trusting Him.

In these verses the remnant will sing that, since Jehovah is on their side, they will see their desire upon those who hate them. God does not arbitrarily get on the side of anyone. He is a holy, righteous, just, loving, Being. If people want Him to be on their side, they must forsake their sins and get on His side. Thus the remnant of Israel at the time here foreseen will have forsaken her sins and all her iniquities and will have come en masse over on God's side. Then their desires will be holy and in accord with the truth, and the Lord will meet and satisfy those desires with reference to her inveterate enemies. The Lord will do the very same thing for anyone who will give up sin and the world and will come over on His side, wholeheartedly. Then his desires will coincide with those of the Lord as revealed in His Word, and He will deal with His enemies in righteousness and in truth. King David stuck this same note in Psalm 23 when he said: "Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies." His enemies despised him and did all they could against him. Since his ways were pleasing to the Lord, He prepared a banquet of good things for his despised servant. We can claim that promise today whenever we get wholly on the Lord's side.

"It is better to take refuge in Jehovah Than to put confidence in man.
It is better to take refuge in Jehovah Than to put confidence in princes" (vss. 8, 9).

In these verse the remnant of Israel will say that it is far better to trust in Jehovah than to put confidence in men, even in the most powerful of men. In his saying this, we are not to understand that she will have no confidence in anyone. While it is true that the bulk of humanity is unreliable and undependable, nevertheless there are characters who are true, faithful, and loyal in all of their relations with men and in all their dealings.

People are not to repose their confidence in man and stake all upon them; not because they are unreliable, but because of their frailty. I know of good men who have been loyal and true, and who have made certain plans, but who, on account of human frailty and adverse conditions where unable to carry out their good resolve and intentions. It is therefore not best to put one's trust in man and in the arm of the flesh. On the contrary, it is proper, right, wise, discreet to put one's absolute and unswerving confidence in God who changes not, and who has the ability to accomplish things and to defend and protect those who come to Him.

The nation of Israel has, from time to time, put her confidence in other nations, that have failed her. For instance the Jewish people put their confidence in the League of Nations and in the British Mandate of Palestine. Unfortunately the Chamberlain regime repudiated the Balfour Declaration and, figuratively speaking, considered it no more than a scrap of paper. According to some late reports, certain Jewish leaders have approached the Russian government to take them under their wing. Such a move is putting confidence in men who will, sooner or later, fail her for one cause or another. From the prophetic scriptures we learn that the apostate remnant of the nation of Israel will put its confidence in the Antichrist. (See Dan. 9:27.) But she will be sadly disappointed. It is therefore better to take refuge in Jehovah than to put confidence in man or princes.

After proper preparation one makes his journey. Thus the pilgrims, when they made their annual visit to the Holy City, made the preparation and then started out on their sacred journey. In the same manner the nation of Israel, spiritually speaking, will start on its way back to God.

"All nations compassed me about: In the name of Jehovah I will cut them off.
They compassed me about; yea, they compassed me about: In the name of Jehovah I will cut them off. They compassed me about like bees; they are quenched as the fire of thorns: In the name of Jehovah I will cut them off" (vss. 10-12).

As has been noted before, the personal pronoun I, referring to the individual who sings this message, appears here and states that all nations have compassed "me" about. The nations cannot literally encompass one individual. This fact shows that Psalm 118 is used nationally. Note the fact that three times the expression, "compassed me about," appears. In the last occurrence the phrase "like bees," is added. This comparison is employed to indicate the great number that are involved in the action.

This prediction is confirmed by such passages as Zephaniah 3:8: "Therefore wait for me, saith Jehovah, until the day that I rise up to the pray; for my determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms, to pour upon them mine indignation, even all my fierce anger; for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of my jealousy." Note the fact that, whereas in Psalm 118 one sees the nations taking the initiative and encompassing Israel, in Zephaniah's passage the invisible hand of the Almighty is bringing them against her. Thus we see in the two passages the freedom of man and the sovereignty of God. We observe the same thing in Isaiah 10:5-7. Here the statesmen-prophet addressed the Assyrian, Sennacherib, and spoke of him simply being a rod in the hand of God to punish Israel, His disobedient people. Yet on the other hand, this same cruel, ruthless tyrant was prompted by his own motive and desires to carry out his cherished plans of conquest. Nevertheless, we see the sovereignty of God and the freedom of man in full action. We can never harmonize them, but we can accept the scriptural statements and believe them with all our hearts. Men may plot against others, and nations may launch campaigns against other races, but

"There is no wisdom nor understanding Nor counsel against Jehovah.
The horse is prepared against the day of battle; But victory is of Jehovah" (Prov. 21:30-31).

Men and nations may cast the lot of their own decision against others, but "the whole disposing thereof is of Jehovah" (Prov. 16,33).

In Zechariah, chapter 14, we have the following prediction: "Behold, a day of Jehovah cometh, when thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city" (vss. 1,2). Here we see the nations, not voluntarily taking action against Israel and encompassing her, though they are free and do act upon their own initiative; but we see, brought out in bold relief, God's overruling providence and His bringing all nations against Jerusalem to battle in the day of Jehovah, in the Tribulation. This siege here foreseen will be the last one of the many to which he has been subjected through the centuries. History reveals the fact that the Holy City has been razed to the ground time and time again, and that her sons and daughters have suffered as possibly no other nation has. In this last great distress the odds, humanly speaking, will be against her. Half of the city will fall into the hands of the enemy, the houses will be rifled and the women ravished. Half of it therefore will go into captivity but the residue--the remnant--will not be cut off from the city. The reason for these facts will be that Jehovah in the person of King Messiah will go forth as He did in the day of battle, will fight against the enemies of Israel, and will bring final and complete victory. "Then shall Jehovah go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east; and the mount of Olives shall be cleft in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north and half of it toward the south" (Zech. 14:3,4).

In our psalm the author after each statement relative to Israel's being encompassed by the nations, declares, "In the name of Jehovah I will cut them off." At that time Israel will have faith and will be confident that she will be energized and strengthened by super natural power, and will be victorious in the end. When the nations, at the very end of the Tribulation, invade Palestine with the purpose of exterminating the Jew and of wiping out every vestige of Jewish civilization, probably many in Israel will think that all of those things are against them. Jacob of old likewise thought that the trials which befell him were against him (Gen. 42:36). Instead of being contrary to him, they were being used of God for his blessing. We are assured by the Apostle that all things work together for good for those that love the Lord, and who are the called according to His purpose (Rom. 8:28-32). We know that the remnant in Israel has been called according to God's plan and purpose of the ages; we therefore are of the unshakable conviction that all the troubles which she in the end time will suffer will be designed for the purifying of the remnant and the making of them into vessels fit for the Master's use.

"Thou didst thrust sore at me that I might fall; But Jehovah helped me" (vs. 13).

In this verse and individual is singled out concerning whom it is said that He has thrust sore at the nation, but that he, being thwarted in his purposes by Jehovah, will not accomplish his purposes against Israel. The reason for my saying that this is the Antichrist is that he is the one who thrusts at Israel in sending the armies of the nations against her to battle. When we read this passage in light of other prophecies referring to the same thing, we know that it is the Antichrist who does this very thing. It is he who will dictate the policy of all the nations at that time. A careful study Isaiah 14:1-20 without doubt shows that this sinister rebel against Israel will be possessed and motivated by the great rebel against God, the devil. (Note especially verse 12-14.) This same individual is referred to under the symbolism of the "little horn" of Daniel 7:23-28. Again he appears upon the sacred page in Daniel 11:36-45. In the New Testament his portrait is given in II Thessalonians 2:1-13. Here he is called "the man of sin, the son of perdition" and then he is spoken of in terms "the willful king" mentioned Daniel 11:36-45. Once again we recognize this diabolical character in the person of the first beast described in Revelation, chapter 13. Finally, in the nineteenth chapter of Revelation, we see him and the false prophet leading he armies of the world at Jerusalem and arraying themselves against the Lord Jesus Christ at His second coming. In this final conflict he is slain and is cast into the lake of fire, where he, with the false prophet, remains during the thousand-year reign of our Lord. He is suffering the torments of hell at the conclusion of the Millennium in full possession of his faculties as same as when he is first put there. He will remain there forever and ever together with all the men and women who pit their wills against the Almighty and who spurn and reject the boundless, matchless grace and mercy of God offered to them in the salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ.

In the triple phrase, "In the name of Jehovah I will cut them off," is expressed their conviction of the remnant that divine assistance will be given. Then in verse 13 the faith of the remnant enables them with one bound to reach the end of the conflict and to take hold of the supernatural, divine assistance that is given to the nation at the final appearance Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. Seeing therefore by faith the outcome, they speak of it as a reality. The Lord never disappoints genuine faith.

"Jehovah is my strength and song; And he is become my salvation.
The voice of rejoicing and salvation is in the tents of the righteous:
The right hand of Jehovah doeth valiantly.
The right hand of Jehovah is exalted: The right hand of Jehovah doeth valiantly.
I shall not die, but live, And declare the works of Jehovah.
Jehovah hath chastened me sore; But he hath not given me over unto death" (vss. 14-18).

As we move along, we are always spurred on by anticipation of the joys that come at the end of a journey or at the completion of a task. Men are saved by hope. If this is taken from them, there is no incentive for heroic action and for enduring hardships and persecution.

The Lord has chosen Israel "in the furnace of affliction" (Isa. 48:10). This statement must be studied in the light of the entire chapter in which it appears in order that one may see its full force. (Read chapter 5 of my volume The God of Israel.) I know however from the facts that are presented in this passage that the prophet was referring to the judgments of the Great Tribulation and compared them to a furnace into which the nation is thrown in order that the dross may be purged away, and that the remnant may come forth refined and purified. In this connection study carefully Malachi 3:1-6.

In verses 14-18 of our song Israel, at the end of her journey, is standing before the gates of the Holy City, and is pleading that they might be opened in order that the nation might enter into the sacred precinct and worship God. Thus at the very end of the Tribulation Israel will have been purged of all her dross. Her faith will shine forth as the radiance of the noonday sun, and she will momentarily be expecting the return of her glorious Messiah to bring the final deliverance.

In verse 14 and 15 she will declare that the Lord is her strength, her song, and her salvation. He will give her supernatural strength in the final siege. Confirmation of this position is found in Zechariah 12:8. He will be her song; because in response to her faith, He will energize her, clarify her vision, and revive her hope, which will express itself in actual song in anticipation of the final outcome. The Lord will also become her salvation in that He will appear personally and will destroy all her enemies. Thus in the first part of verse 15 we see the nation rejoicing in anticipation of final deliverance.

In verse 15b and 16 the phrase, the right hand of Jehovah, occurs three times. This expression refers either to the power of God in the abstract sense of the term or to the Messiah personally, who is called the arm of Jehovah as in Isaiah 53:1. While in this context either interpretation accords with the facts presented, but, when we read this psalm in the light of related passages, it becomes quite probable that our phrase is a personal reference to the Messiah of Israel who at that time will go forth in the strength of His might and vanquish all of her foes.

In verse 17 the remnant by faith will declare, "I shall not die but live, and declare the works of Jehovah." Their faith will reach forward beyond the dark clouds which will be hovering over them at that time to that perfect day (Prov. 4:18); then it will look back upon the distresses through which they have passed and see themselves as having survived the ordeal of the ages by His grace. Then they will go forward in the work of God. Israel was called to be the missionary nation of the world. To Abraham, the great progenitor of the race, the Lord said, "in thee and in thy seed shall all families of the earth be blessed." The truth which we have has come from God through Israel to us. We who now have the truth, the believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, are to give it back to Israel now in order that, after the church is gone and the Tribulation judgments begin to fall upon the earth, this seed which we now sow in the barren soil of the hearts of indifferent Israel will germinate, spring forth, and produce the 144,000 Jewish evangelists of whom we read in Revelation, chapter 7. These will arise, will accept the Messiah, will go forth in the Tribulation, and will bring about the greatest revival in all ages, in which an innumerable host of people from every nation, tribe, tongue, and language will receive the gospel and be saved.

Not only will Israel give the truth to the nations during the Tribulation; but after the Millennium begins, the faithful remnant will be the missionary nation of the world, according to the promise of Zechariah 8, 22, 23: "Yea, many peoples and strong nations shall come to seek Jehovah of hosts in Jerusalem, and to entreat the favor of Jehovah. Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold, out of all the languages of the nations, they shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you."

Israel is the nation of destiny. All other nations as political units will come to an end; but not so with Israel, "For I am with thee, saith Jehovah, to save thee: for I will make a full end of all the nations wither I have scattered thee, but I will not make a full end of thee; but I will correct thee in measure, and will in no wise leave thee unpunished" (Jer. 30:11).

At the very end of the Tribulation the remnant having been purged by the judgment through which she has passed and having her vision clarified will be in a position to understand her checkered history. Thus she will declare, "Jehovah hath chastened me sore; but he hath not given me over unto death." According to this verse, all the Hebrews coming to the end of the Tribulation will be able to see clearly that all the pogroms, persecutions, and distresses, and sorrows through which the nation has passed have been designed for their good and that their troubles have been simply the chastening of the Lord, though she has been unable thus far to understand that phase of life. Everything that comes into the life of a nation or an individual is permitted of God, under the existing circumstances, and is designed to work out for the good of those who love Him and who are called according to His purpose. Let us, as well as Israel, view life from the beacon height. Then we shall be able to see a holy glow resting upon every sad experience through which we are called to pass.

The chastening of Israel, especially in the end time, will have had as its objective the bringing of the nation to the point where it will make the confession of the national sin--rejecting the long-expected Messiah. That Israel will make this confession was foretold by Moses: "And they shall confess their iniquity, and the iniquity of their fathers, in their trespass which they trespassed against me, and also that, because they walked contrary unto me." From the context of this verse we see that the last generation of Hebrews scattered among the nations will confess its iniquity and the iniquity of its fathers, which they, the fathers, while they were still in the land of Israel, committed against Jehovah, and on account of which He cast them out and scattered them among the nations. According to this prediction the fathers in Israel committed a heinous crime against God. After they did that, He scattered them among the nations where they have been these nineteen hundred years. When they thus sinned against God and against themselves, He spewed them out of His sight and allowed them to remain among the nations, suffering as no other nation has. When this last generation penitently confesses its share in this national sin and confesses this crime of the fathers, the Lord will remember them and the land promised and restore them to their home and their position as the head of the nations. Hosea likewise spoke of the sin of Israel and foretold that the remnant will have to confess that sin before Messiah returns to bless her (Hos. 5:14-6:3). The detailed statement of this confession is found in Isaiah 53:1-9, which the penitent remnant will make in the year 1946 plus X. (I do not know the specific date but speak of it in algebraic terms.) Again the same penitential confession is found in Isaiah 63:7-64:12.

Israel does not know that she is guilty of committing such a heinous crime against her God. It is for those who have this information to give it to her in love--to the entire nation--in such a way that she will be brought under conviction and be led to make this confession, which she must make. When she does that, the Lord will come and restore her to her rightful position among the nations in order that she might become the channel of world blessing in the fullest sense of the term.

When the pilgrims asked for entrance into "gates of righteousness" and promised that they would enter therein (PS. 118:19), the temple choir responded to them:

"This is the gate of Jehovah; The righteous shall enter into it."

The singers asked concerning the gates of righteousness; the response was: "This is the gate of Jehovah." The request and the response connect righteousness vitally with Jehovah. This thought immediately brings to mind such a passage as Jeremiah 23:5, 6: "Behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. 6 In his days Judah shall be saved, Israel shall dwell safely; and this is his name where by he shall be called: Jehovah our righteousness." In these verses we see a prediction concerning the reign of righteousness that will be established in the land of Israel in the future. From other passages we see that it will become the world order. The King who will administer such a just and benign reign is none other than Israel's Messiah, who will be known as, "Jehovah our righteousness." Being Jehovah in the form of a man, He will be the very embodiment of holiness, righteousness, and love. In this connection as we think of entrance into the service of God in connection with righteousness and also with Israel's Messiah, one naturally recalls the statement of the Lord Jesus Christ: "I am the door; by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and go out, and shall find pasture" (John 10:9). When these passages are studied carefully in their connections, it will be seen that there is a vital bond of unity existing between them. In other words, the passages from Jeremiah and from our Savior's lips are the further explanation of the symbolic language of Psalm 118:19. From these facts we can see the typical significance of the request of the newly arrived pilgrims and the response given to them by the temple choir; namely, that is a most beautiful representation of the fact that the Jerusalem authorities will in the future tell the people of Israel, who return to God in the spiritual sense of the term that, if they wish to enter into the service of God and communion with Him they must acknowledge and receive the Lord Jesus Christ, the Hebrew Messiah, as their Lord, Redeemer, and King. There is no other way to enter into the presence of God and into fellowship with Him other than that of coming through Him, the door of the sheep.

This thought was impressed upon my mind when I was in the Holy Land in 1939. One morning the group of students, which I took, and I went from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea. We stopped at the Samaritan Inn. While we were there, a shepherd, who had his flock within the walls of the compound of the Inn, gave his call; his entire flock immediately arose and followed him to the door of the east wall. When he open it, he stood in the passage way--where the door had been. While the door was still closed, none of the sheep could pass out. When he took his stand in the open door way with his staff in hand, none could pass. As he stood there, with his staff in his right hand, he caught the sheep that he did not want to pass through and pushed them backward. Then he lifted his rod and allowed those sheep to pass out of the fold that he wanted to take with him into the green pastures. Thus the shepherd pulled out those sheep which were not to go out and allowed those which he wished to go out to do so. Our Lord Jesus Christ had this picture in mind when He said, "I am the door." Only those of both Jews and Gentiles that come to Him who is the door, accept Him by faith, will now be allowed to pass through into the kingdom of God as it now exists, which is the vestibule to the great kingdom of glory that will be established upon earth when our Lord returns. Let us remember that there is no other way to approach God accept through Him. "I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no one cometh unto the Father, but by me" (John 14:6), said Jesus. Those who come to Him, will receive a blessing from Jehovah even "Righteousness from the God of his salvation" (Ps. 24:5). Man, as he is in his unregenerate state, cannot acceptably serve God. He must be righteous and holy. He has none of his own. He therefore must accept the Savior and Messiah and receive the blessing in the form of the robe of righteousness--imputed righteousness.

Only, by following very closely the facts presented in verses 20-29, can one see the marvelous beauty and profound teaching enshrined in the ritual of the rest of the psalm. [The best commentators recognize that, in the following verses, we have an excellent illustration of responsive singing. Perowne and Rotherham give, according to my opinion, the very best analysis of the various parts sung by different ones. In the main I have accepted their suggestions, at the same time following what seems to me to be facts at times overlooked by them.]

When the newly-arrived pilgrims entered the sacred temple enclosure, in response to the temple choir, the entire congregation began the service by singing:

"I will give thanks unto thee; for thou hast answered me, And art become my salvation" (vs. 21).

The first thing the redeemed soul, the regenerated heart, does, after accepting the Savior and His redemption, is to give thanks to God for His unspeakable gift, for saving his soul and bestowing all spiritual blessings upon him. All one is and can hope to be is by the grace of God. There is nothing in any of us to cause us to be proud or to feel independent. Everything that we are and have or may hope to have comes from His bountiful hand.