Welcome all. Thank you for reading along with us today, as we delve into Psalms 113-118. While this collection contains many powerful verses, we will spend most of our conversation focusing on the shortest psalm, Psalm 117. Tomorrow, we will begin our two-day examination of the expansive Psalm 119, but for now, let’s turn our attention to these two concise verses:
“Praise the Lord, all you nations; extol him, all you people. For great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the Lord.” (Ps. 117:1-2, NIV)
That is the entirety of Psalm 117. To be even more concise, we need to focus on the pivotal fourth word: “all.”
God’s Inclusive Plan
This single word, “all,” encapsulates the very essence of the Gospel message. From the dawn of creation, God’s intention was for all nations to worship Him. While He chose Israel as His conduit, even in Deuteronomy 32:43, He declares that “all the nations should rejoice” (Deut. 32:43, NIV). It would be contrary to His nature to desire destroying all people who were not of Jewish descent.
Throughout much of Israelite history, they operated under the belief that they alone were His chosen people. We see this resistance in the New Testament, as they fought against the Apostle Paul when he ventured out to share the Gospel with the Gentiles.
Yet, Jesus died for all people. His salvation saves anyone who trusts in it. Whether they are male or female, rich or poor, black or white, Greek or Jew—there is no room for prejudice within the Kingdom of Heaven.
A Stark Warning: The Consequence of Unbelief
However, amidst this universal invitation, we also hear a stark warning in Psalm 118, verses 10-12. Three times, God warns the nations outside Israel, those who surround and attack her, that He “will cut them down” (Ps. 118:10-12, NIV).
More specifically, anyone who worships idols, as described in Psalm 115:4-8, will be at risk (Ps. 115:4-8, NIV). This extends even to the Israelites who do not trust in Jesus as their Lord and Savior; they too will face peril.
End-Times Prophecy Unfolding
It is important to consider the current volatility of the nations in the Middle East as conflicts escalate. We know from Revelation 16:14-16 that all the nations around Israel will join to harm her: John saw “the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horse and his army” (Rev. 19:19, NIV). These are end-time prophecies that appear to be forming before our eyes.
Ezekiel 38-39 speaks of specific nations that God will draw together to attack Israel. (Ezek. 38-39) This is not coincidental; it is part of God’s grand plan of redemption for the world. Ultimately, it leads to a time when “every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord” (Phil. 2:10-11, Isa. 45:23).
Our Urgent Call to Action
Those days are approaching, I believe. But we must remember, God does not want any to perish, but for all to come to repentance (2 Pet. 3:9).
Therefore, we must look at Psalm 117 and heed its urgent call to each of us. Let us pray and share our testimonies so that “all the nations, all the peoples” will know how great His love for us is. We must let them know He died for our sins, was buried, and rose on the third day according to the Scriptures (1 Cor.
It is a hard concept for a hateful world to grasp, but the Bible teaches that “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8, NIV). The time is short; all nations need to extol Him and worship the One true God. He is worthy of all praise.
