In this Psalm, we learn that when we proclaim Hallelujah, which translates to “Praise the Lord,” we should respond with praise upon hearing the words, “Confess to the Lord” (Psalm 116:1). Our adoration for God can be conveyed in no simpler terms than these: “For He is good.” It seems nothing can rival the solemnity of this succinct confession, for God's goodness is an extraordinary attribute. The Son Himself, when called the Good Teacher by someone misunderstanding His true divine nature and viewing Him merely as human, responded, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, and that is God” (Mark 10:17-18). This statement implies that to acknowledge Him as good is to recognize Him as God. This revelation is directed to a redeemed people freed from all toil and false worship, and from any ties to the wicked, liberated by God's grace, who not only refrains from returning evil for evil but instead responds with goodness. Thus, it is fitting to add, “Because His mercy endures forever.”
Let Israel now profess that God is good, and that His mercy is everlasting (Psalm 116:2). Let the house of Aaron likewise declare His eternal mercy (Psalm 116:3). Indeed, let everyone who fears the Lord affirm His mercy is everlasting (Psalm 116:4). I trust, dear friends, that you grasp the meaning of the house of Israel and the house of Aaron, as both belong to those who hold reverence for the Lord. These groups encompass both the humble and the exalted, as expressed joyfully in another psalm. It is reason for rejoicing to recognize our unity in God's grace, who is good, and whose mercy is everlasting; for they called out, “That the Lord may multiply you and your children,” so that to the Israelites who believed in Christ, joined by the apostles who acted as the first, there may arise a multitude from the Gentiles for the glory of the perfect and obedience of the little ones. Thus, when we unite in Christ, we become one flock under the one Shepherd, and as part of His body, we together can proclaim, “I called upon the Lord in trouble, and the Lord heard me” (Psalm 116:5). While our afflictions may be confined to narrow paths, the great way we tread is boundless. Who will accuse God's chosen ones of anything? (Romans 8:33).
The Lord is my helper; I will not fear what man can do to me (Psalm 116:6). Are mere humans the sole adversaries of the Church? After all, what is a man, devoted merely to flesh and blood, but flesh and blood? The Apostle states our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities and powers, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 6:12); that is, against the devil and his angels, whom he refers to elsewhere as the prince of the power of the air (Ephesians 2:2). So, hear this: The Lord is my Helper; consequently, I will disregard my foes (Psalm 116:7). Regardless of their origin—whether from wicked humans or malignant spirits—through the assistance of the Lord to whom we sing praises, they shall be held in contempt.
Yet when my enemies are held in derision, let not a friend appear before me as a good man urging me to place my hope in him, for it is better to trust in the Lord than in man (Psalm 116:8). Nor should I consider anyone, even if they might be deemed a good angel, as someone in whom I must place my trust: for no one is good but God alone (Mark 10:18). Even when men and angels come to our aid driven by genuine love, it is ultimately through Him who made them good that such kindness flows. Therefore, it is better to trust in the Lord than in princes (Psalm 116:9). For even angels are termed princes, as evidenced in Daniel’s words, “Michael, your prince” (Daniel 12:1).
All nations surrounded me, but in the name of the Lord, I cut them down (Psalm 117:10). I was besieged on every side; notwithstanding, in the name of the Lord, I prevailed against them (Psalm 117:11). This speaks to the trials and triumphs of the Church; and when answering how she could triumph over such great adversity, it reflects back on the initial experience within. The phrase “all nations” is notably absent here because it was solely the act of the Jews against Christ, whose body—the persecuted body of Christ—endured for whom all was accomplished through mortal suffering alongside immortal power.
They swarmed around me like bees swarm a hive; they blazed like fire among thorns, yet in the name of the Lord, I vanquished them (Psalm 117:12). The sequence of words mirrors the sequence of events. It resonates that our Lord, the Head of the Church, was beset by His persecutors as bees surround a hive. The Holy Spirit artfully illuminates what those ignorant of their actions inflicted upon Him. While bees produce honey within the hive, the Lord's persecutors, unknowingly, rendered Him even sweeter through His Passion; that we might taste and see how sweet the Lord is, who died for our sins and rose for our justification (Romans 4:25). Furthermore, the fire that consumed resembles His Body, the marginalized believers, encircled by all nations, gathered from every corner. They endured the destruction of sinful flesh and dreadful trials amid the flames of persecution. Their retribution may come by virtue of the evil ones perishing, joining the community of Christ; or because others, neglecting the grace extended by Him who called them, will ultimately confront the reality of their Judge.
I was pushed like a heap of sand, causing me to fall, yet the Lord upheld me (Psalm 117:13). Although there are many believers, their numbers may seem akin to countless grains of sand united as one; but what is humanity compared to His greatness? “What is man that You remember him?” He did not claim that “the multitude of Gentiles could not surpass my ranks,” but rather declared, “The Lord has sustained me.” The persecution faced by the Gentiles did not topple the congregation of faithful united in their belief.
The Lord is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation (Psalm 116:14). Who, then, falls when driven, except those who rely on their own strength and praise? No one falters in a conflict unless their strength and praise diminish. Hence, he whose strength and praise derive from the Lord does not fall, just as the Lord does not fall. This is why He became their salvation—not because He became something new, but because in believing in Him, they became transformed; and He became their salvation upon their turning to Him, which He was not when they turned away.
The voice of joy and salvation resounds in the dwellings of the righteous (Psalm 117:15); where those who vehemently oppose their bodies perceive only misery and ruin. They remain oblivious to the inner joy of the saints rooted in their eternal hope. Hence, the Apostle states, “I grieve, but I always rejoice” (2 Corinthians 6:10), and again asserts, “We rejoice in our sufferings” (Romans 5:3).
The right hand of the Lord has performed great deeds (Psalm 117:16). What mighty deeds, you ask? The right hand of the Lord has exalted me. It elevates the lowly, divinizes the mortal, transforms weakness into strength, manifests glory from humility, brings forth victory from suffering, extends aid, and raises from despair; that the true salvation of God may be revealed to those who suffer, proving the salvation of men worthless to the persecutors. These are indeed great acts; but why are you surprised? Take note of what is reiterated: the right hand of the Lord has completed these great acts.
I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord (Psalm 117:17). Conversely, those who sow desolation and death all around believed they could extinguish the Church of Christ. Yet behold, He now proclaims the Lord's deeds. Christ remains the glory of the blessed martyrs. Though defeated, He triumphed over His tormentors; enduring suffering with patience, loving those who turned against Him.
Yet let us ponder why the Body of Christ, the Holy Church, the chosen people, have faced such humiliations. The Lord has chastised and disciplined me, but He has not let me perish (Psalm 116:18). Let not the arrogant wicked presume to believe their influence is maintained; they would have none had it not been granted to them from above. Often, a father will instruct his sons through the most worthless servants; even as he establishes an inheritance for the former, he restricts the latter. What, therefore, is this inheritance? Is it gold, jewels, vast estates? Observe how we enter into it and learn its true nature.
“Open to me,” he pleads, “the gates of righteousness” (Psalm 117:19). Thus, we learn of a gate. What lies beyond? “That I may enter in and give thanks unto the Lord.” This is a proclamation of praise, filled with wonder, directed to the house of God, manifesting joy and a celebration of thanks; this is the eternal blessedness of the righteous, who dwell in the house of the Lord and praise Him forever.
But consider how they enter through the gates of righteousness. “This is the gate of the Lord,” declares the righteous man; “the righteous shall enter therein” (Psalm 116:20). Let no wicked person enter this Jerusalem that accepts no unclean soul, where it is written, “Outside are the dogs” (Revelation 22:15). It is sufficient that throughout my long journey, I was among the tents of Kedar; I endured the company of the wicked to the end, yet this is the gate of the Lord: the righteous shall enter.
“I confess to You, O Lord, for You have heard me, and have become my salvation” (Psalm 116:21). How often has the acknowledgment of one who does not reveal his wounds to the healer, but thanks Him for the health bestowed upon him, proven commendable. Yet the Physician Himself is Salvation.
But who is this we speak of? “The stone which the builders rejected” (Psalm 116:22); this became the chief cornerstone, uniting the two to create in Himself a single new man, thus establishing peace, reconciling both to God in one body (Ephesians 2:15-16), that is, the circumcised and the uncircumcised.
“The Lord has done this” (Psalm 117:23); namely, the Lord has made Him the chief cornerstone. Although He would not have assumed that role without suffering, it was not through those who persecuted Him that He became so. The builders rejected Him, yet within the sanctuary that the Lord established, He became the cornerstone turned down. And this is astonishing in our sight: to the eyes of the inner man, to those who believe, hope, and love; it is not perceived in the eyes of the flesh, which look down upon Him, scoffing at Him as a mere human, thereby rejecting Him.
“This is the day that the Lord has made” (Psalm 117:24). This man recalls what was uttered in the earlier psalms: “Since He has inclined His ear to me, I will call upon Him as long as I live,” referring to the times past; hence he says, “This is the day that the Lord has made,” the day in which He has granted me salvation. It is the day of which it is said, “In an acceptable time I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you” (Isaiah 49:8), namely, the day when the Mediator became the chief cornerstone. Therefore, let us rejoice and be glad in Him.
“Save me, O Lord; prosper my path, O Lord” (Psalm 116:25). For it is the day of Salvation that I plead for deliverance; because, having returned from long travels, I now find myself apart from those who despised the world, with whom I was once at ease, who turned against me without cause as I attempted to speak with them; thus, prosper my path as we return, for You have become our Way.
THEOSIS