Grace Eric Enstrom 1918 (Photograph) |
1 Give
thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever.
2 Give
thanks to the God of gods. His love endures forever.
3 Give
thanks to the Lord of lords: His love endures forever.
4 To him who
alone does great wonders, His love endures forever.
5 Who by his
understanding made the heavens, His love endures forever.
6 Who spread
out the earth upon the waters, His love endures forever.
7 Who made
the great lights—His love endures forever.
8 The sun to
govern the day, His love endures forever.
9 The moon
and stars to govern the night; His love endures forever.
10 To him
who struck down the firstborn of Egypt His love endures forever.
11 And brought
Israel out from among them His love endures forever.
12 With a mighty
hand and outstretched arm; His love endures forever.
13 To him
who divided the Red Sea asunder His love endures forever.
14 And
brought Israel through the midst of it, His love endures forever.
15 But swept
Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea; His love endures forever.
16 To him
who led his people through the wilderness; His love endures forever.
17 To him
who struck down great kings, His love endures forever.
18 And killed
mighty kings—His love endures forever.
19 Sihon
king of the Amorites His love endures forever.
20 And Og
king of Bashan—His love endures forever.
21 And gave
their land as an inheritance, His love endures forever.
22 An
inheritance to his servant Israel. His love endures forever.
23 He remembered
us in our low estate His love endures forever.
24 And freed
us from our enemies. His love endures forever.
25 He gives
food to every creature. His love endures forever.
26 Give
thanks to the God of heaven. His love endures forever.
This is a this is a Psalm of Thanksgiving. The function of a Thanksgiving or Todah Psalm, or Psalm of Declarative Praise is to praise God for something He has done for the Psalmist. It is written to offer thanksgiving in the form of worship. It is a kind of praise offered to God that arises out of personal or communal experience yet in the context of overall commitment to God. The experiential dimension of todah psalms is easily seen in the middle section of the psalm as the worshiper recounts or gives testimony of his experience.
This is also a Salvation History psalm to recount in some way the story of God’s creation of the people of Israel. Most often, this includes an abbreviated version of the exodus story, concluding with praise to God for his deliverance, or calling the people to respond in praise and faithfulness to God’s grace.
(v. 1-3) Intro: A call to thank God who is “Lord of Lords” because “His love endures forever (refrain after every statement of thanks).
(v. 4-9) Creation Hymn: Gives a summary of the Lord’s “wonders” and “His love endures forever (refrain after every wonder)”.
(v. 10-22) Redemption Hymn: An excursus of the Exodus and God’s redeeming actions in it “His love endures forever (refrain after every statement of God’s redemption.
To him that smote Egypt in their firstborn: for his mercy endureth for ever:
...And brought out Israel from among them: for his mercy endureth for ever:
...With a strong hand, and with a stretched out arm: for his mercy endureth for ever.
...To him which divided the Red sea into parts: for his mercy endureth for ever:
...And made Israel to pass through the midst of it: for his mercy endureth for ever:
...But overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red sea: for his mercy endureth for ever.
...To him which led his people through the wilderness: for his mercy endureth for ever.
(v. 23 & 24) Redemption Hymn (summary): These two verse are also redemption hymn but they are more of a “summary redemption hymn” or a last quick reminder that whenever Israel suffered, Israel’s history of redemption continued, Egypt, the wilderness, etc.
This Psalm is also referred to as a “antiphon” or a song that was intended to be sung “antiphonally” by two distinct groups in worship. One portion of the congregation would make one of the statements or phrases and the other part would respond with the refrain, "His love endures forever." I’m guessing it sounded something similar to a cappella refrain in Bohemian Rhapsody (sorry, couldn’t think of a better example).
Here is a modern orchestral interpretation of Psalm 136.
Ross, Allen , John Walvoord. "Psalm 136." Bible Knowledge Commentary Old Testament: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Bible Knowledge). Acambaro: Victor, 1985. 889. Print.
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