By Some of the prayers and songs in the Bible are the long, theologically rich, detailed explanations of God’s character, God’s actions, and the author’s experiences and worship. But then Psalm 117 comes along, and it is a mere five lines.
Praise the LORD, all nations!
Psalm 117
Extol him, all peoples!
For great is his steadfast love toward us,
and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever.
Praise the LORD!
Calling yourself to worship God each day doesn’t require a daily reading of three chapters, a blog reading, sermon download, and twenty-minute prayer. Sometimes a simple reminder of the obvious is all that is needed.
Psalm 117 is one of these short, simple, yet very spiritual calls to worship. Use it today to call yourself to worship with these thoughts:
“Praise the Lord, all nations!” – “The LORD” is the One Who chose to love us and will never ever lessen His love for us. Certainly then all the people in the world ought to honour Him for such faithfulness!
“Extol him, all peoples!” – It might sound very similar to the first line, but it is not redundant. To “extol” means to lift up so His perfections can be exposed to all people. How will you play your part today in showcasing His perfections for others to see?
“For great is his steadfast love toward us” – This is the reason why the praise and exultation of the first two lines is so fitting. The LORD’s “steadfast love” is something that has no parallel on earth. Nobody loves as steadfastly and loyally as God does. Nobody’s love is as excellent as the LORD’s. No wonder a fitting call each morning to worship is “Extol, lift up for all to see, the Lord’s unusual and unique love for us!”
“and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever” – It is truly the faithfulness of God’s love for us that makes His love so steadfast. The love we experience on earth from other people is rarely “faithful”, and certainly never “endures forever.” But the LORD’s love for us is of the faithfulness-into-eternity kind.
And that is really all this Psalm is intended to remind you of. But let this not only be spiritual truth in your mind. Let it produce praise for the LORD today. And so this Psalm ends with “Praise the LORD”!
Go, obey, and tell all people today of God’s steadfast love to you.