PSALM 118:1-2,19-29
As we come to the last of the Psalms in this Lenten period, we see that this psalm was written for a festival procession to help celebrate some national deliverance. At the same time most of the psalm 118 can easily be used in thanksgiving by an individual for something good that he or she has experienced and it resembles Psalm 116.
Although the representatives of the nation have come together in Psalm 118, it would seem to be the king who leads the procession. In response to prayer and without allies he has beaten off the enemy attack and won the victory in the name of the Lord.
The procession reaches the gates of the city or possibly the Temple enclosure, and the king ceremonially asks the guards, or the priests, for admission. The response is the opening of the gates for the righteous king. We will have no difficulty seeing it as reflecting the great drama of the triumphal entry into Jerusalem. As pilgrims approached Jerusalem from the east, they descended the Mount of Olives to the Kidron Valley, then mounted a long stairway to the
eastern gates of the Temple Mount. Because it was so sacred, the temple was protected on all sides by walls with strong gates that could be opened to admit worshipers as necessary. But only those who purified themselves by a ritual bath could enter the temple itself. Hence the references in verses 19-20. The popular Christian anthem, "Open the Gates of the Temple"
is based on these verses.
The verses that follow were recognized by Jews and by Jesus as messianic. David, and subsequent kings of his line, foreshadowed the final righteous King of Davidic descent. David seemed to be a rejected nobody when he was an outlaw in the later days of Saul’s reign, when Saul was trying to build up the nation, but he became the chief cornerstone. Now this day celebrates his triumph, and it is commemorated by later kings. The expression ‘Save us’ in verse 25 has been translated into Greek and English as HOSANNA. It is believed that the procession had been carrying leafy branches and is bringing them to surround the altar with its projecting horns at the four corners.
We can see how Jesus was identified by himself and others with his King Messiah, when he rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday and entered the Temple Courts. The people shouted their Hosannas, and blessed him as the Messianic Son of David who came in the name of the Lord. They carried branches as they went to meet him, some of which they spread on the road before him. He was welcomed in the Temple but not by the priests, their place was taken by children.
When his authority was challenged, Jesus quoted this psalm, identifying himself with the rejected stone, which became the chief stone of the building.
As we may have notice listening to the Psalm of the past weeks in Lent, The Book of Psalms is a collection of songs expressing different moods and experiences of people, and even though the psalms were written a long time ago, they still speak of the same emotions and yearnings that we experience today. This psalm expresses thanksgiving and joy. It was created as a personal hymn of thanks to God for the delivery from a difficult situation. It was also expanded to contain the nation’s gratefulness for God’s action in their common life. It was used by the people of Israel in different ways. The Feast of the Tabernacles being one of these celebrations. If there was a wonderful reason to celebrate, it would be that of God giving freedom to his people and freeing them from the oppression of Egypt. However, as you might remember, they had not been happy at the time. They cursed Moses, moaned about not having enough food and shelter, they rebelled against God who was behind their current misery as they saw it then. A joyful celebration such as the Feast of Tabernacles would have had a deeper meaning. On the surface it was a song of praise of a people who looked back at their own story celebrating freedom. But it was also the time they admitted that they were wrong in their perceptions and actions. They rejoiced and gave thanks to God who was with them and had not abandoned them despite the fact that they were willing to abandon him.
Despite the people’s lack of imagination and trust in God, God was with them and was there for them all the time. Surely that was a reason to celebrate? Don’t we have a reason to celebrate today even with all the bad things around us all in this world; God is with us and will continue to be with us in all the good and the bad. Surely this alone is a reason to celebrate. A reason to shout out: ‘O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his steadfast love endures forever!’
And so this is what we join in doing today, when we celebrate Palm Sunday. We rejoice at the way people recognised and celebrated Jesus. But in the background as we might think about it later we know that people of old and even today do not recognise Jesus. We can rejoice in the Lord’s Day and be glad in it. Despite our failures and foolishness, God is faithful. We all can look back at our Christian history and our personal stories too and in the face of our guilt, but more
Importantly, we can embrace the fact of God’s love and forgiveness and is a permanent presence in our lives and the lives of others. That God accepts us. In God, we can become the cornerstone not a rejected nobody. In God, we have hope! Should we not then rejoice saying with the psalmist: ‘O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his steadfast love endures forever!’
Prayer: Father, help us to rejoice and sing with the Psalmist in all situations, good and bad. When we are lost for words, help us to use these wonderful psalms as our own praise to you. Amen.
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