O Give Thanks
There are those among us who dislike modern worship choruses that have repetitive lines. They sardonically refer to them as “7-11 songs.” You sing seven words eleven times. I confess I’m not a fan of many of these types of songs either. Nevertheless, I have to admit that the Bible’s hymnbook, Psalms, has a few 7-11ers in it too. Psalm 136 is one such song with a repetitive line.
The New King James Version (linked above) translates it as “His mercy endures forever.” The English Standard uses, “His steadfast love endures forever.” Another translation goes with, “His faithful love endures forever.” The differences don’t point to translation disagreements but to the difficulty of saying what the original means with one English phrase.
It does mean mercy and it does mean steadfast love. It means God’s steadfast love experienced in and through His mercies. The Psalmist walks us through the ways that God has demonstrated His steadfast love and mercy. He reminds us of creation, the Exodus, and His deliverances of His people throughout their history.
The point of the Psalm is that all we have to do is look around us, observe the mighty works of God in this world and our lives, and realize that these are all demonstrations of His love. His love is steadfast, faithful, and enduring. His love is expressed in His works of mercy.
Today, make a conscious effort to give thanks. Look at all that you have now, all the deliverances of God including your own Exodus, your salvation from sin, and give thanks for all these expressions of God’s steadfast love. Look at life, see what God has done, and say, “I thank you, Lord, because you love me with your mercy.
