Continued: Psalm One Hundred Seventeen / One Hundred Eighteen


In the two installments of this series on Psalms 117 and 118 which have already appeared, we have seen a vision of Israel converted and praising God. At the same time she calls upon the world to accept Jehovah, the God of the Universe, as its God and to worship Him along with her. We have also seen in the first four verses of Psalm 118 the call that goes forth to the entire nation of Israel to come and worship God. This call has certain underlying assumptions. It will also find its fulfillment in the great evangelistic program to give the truth to all Israel, which is being done at the present time.

We are now ready to investigate verse 5 through 19 which the nation sang, as we have already seen, in its approaching the Holy City. In her doing this, she constituted a pageant, setting forth in a symbolic manner the return of the nation to God in the end of the age and its being accepted by Him.


C. The processional

A church processional is always very impressive, but the pilgrims going to Jerusalem from year to year and approaching the Holy City as they sang this Hallel presented a most striking lesson, not only for the people of Israel, but for the whole world.

1. The start—a retrospect

When the preparations for a journey have been made and one actually starts on a pilgrimage, one's heart is thrilled. Every time I go to Jerusalem, as I leave our shores, my heart is thrilled in anticipation at the thought of seeing the Holy City, even as it is now in its downtrodden condition. What must be the thrill that will come to the nation of Israel, as she penitently turns from everything earthly and in a spiritual sense sets her face toward the Holy City, the new Jerusalem that will come down out of heaven from God and will rest upon earth in the Holy Land. In response to his faith, which was based upon the promises of God, the Lord granted Abraham a vision of this heavenly Jerusalem. He was therefore willing to leave the land of his nativity and all of his childhood surroundings to go to a place where eventually the vision of the new Jerusalem will become a reality.

"By faith he became a sojourner in the land of promise, as in a land not his own, dwelling in tents, with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: for he looked for the city which hath the foundations, whose builder and maker is God. By faith even Sarah herself received power to conceive seed when she was past age, since she counted him faithful who had promised; wherefore also there sprang of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of heaven in multitude, and as the sand, which is by the sea-shore, innumerable.

These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them greeted them from afar and having confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things make it manifest that they are seeking after a country of their own. And if indeed they had been mindful of that country from which they went out, they would have had opportunity to return. But now they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed of them, to be called their God; for he hath prepared for them a city" (Heb. 11:9-16).

Where there is no vision, the people perish. Where there is a real vision, the people move forward in anticipation of the same. Thus the preaching of the message of the truth to Israel, which we have seen in our investigation of Psalm 118:1-4, will present to her this vision of her future glory when she will be established in the land of the fathers.

a. The deliverance from Egypt

As the pilgrims started on their way on the annual visit to Jerusalem which constitutes this pageant, they looked back to the birth of the nation:

"Out of my distress I called upon Jehovah: Jehovah answered me and set me in a large place" (vs. 5). 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 led 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.

b. Israel on Jehovah's side

"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 verses 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 struck 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.

c. The benefit of trusting Jehovah

"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 verses 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 were 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.

2. On the way

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.

a. The nations rising against Israel

"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 the 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 supernatural 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.

b. The Antichrist

"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 of 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 of "the willful king" mentioned in 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 the 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.

c. Divine assistance

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 of their Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. Seeing therefore by faith the outcome, they speak of it as a reality. The Lord never disappoints genuine faith.

III. The end of the journey

"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.

a. Israel conscious of Divine assistance

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.

b. The right hand of Jehovah

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.

c. The assurance of continued life and service

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).

d. Israel's interpretation of God's dealing with her

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.




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