Today’s Passage: Psalm 117
This is the shortest psalm in the whole book, just two verses, and it does not waste a word. It calls out to all nations and all peoples to praise the LORD, and then it gives them the reason: His loving devotion toward us, and His faithfulness that lasts forever. There is no story to work through here and no trouble to answer. The praise itself is the meal.
As you read, hold this: Praise the LORD, all you nations. His faithfulness endures forever.
Context Two lines, the whole earth
There is no heading here, no author named, no crisis to answer. The psalm simply opens its mouth and calls, and the call goes out at once to every nation and every people. Israel is not asked first. The whole earth is asked first.
Psalm 117:1-2 (BSB)
¹ Praise the LORD, all you nations! Extol Him, all you peoples! ² For great is His loving devotion toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Hallelujah!
Two commands go out to two audiences, all nations and all peoples, and then comes that small hinge of a word, For. The reason the psalm gives is His and not theirs: His great loving devotion toward us, and a emunah, pronounced eh-moo-NAH. Strong's H530, faithfulness, steadiness, firmness, reliability. It means firmness, a steadiness that holds and does not give way. Beside it stands חֶסֶד (hesed), H2617, His loving devotion, and it is great toward us. So the nations are called to praise, not because of anything true of them, but because of what is true of Him: a great hesed, and an emunah that never runs out. that endures forever. That little word us does not narrow the call or fence it in. It hands the nations their reason to sing. Hallelujah.
Study notes Paul heard the call
When Paul reaches for this psalm, he sets its line inside a whole chain of songs about the nations coming in. The Gentiles were always part of the call. He is not adding some nation the psalm had forgotten.
"And again: “Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and extol Him, all you peoples.”" Romans 15:11 (BSB)
He does not have to stretch the psalm to make it fit. He simply quotes it, because the door had been standing open all along. It is the same gospel, carried from the psalm to the apostle: praise the LORD, all you nations, for His faithfulness endures forever.
Praise the LORD, all you nations. His faithfulness endures forever.