Opening Prayer
God my Father in Heaven, thank you that your Word shows me there is nothing for which I cannot trust you, nothing that is too great or too small for you to do.
Read PSALMS 116, 117
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
Psalm 116
1 I love the Lord, for he heard my voice;
he heard my cry for mercy.
2 Because he turned his ear to me,
I will call on him as long as I live.
3 The cords of death entangled me,
the anguish of the grave came over me;
I was overcome by distress and sorrow.
4 Then I called on the name of the Lord:
“Lord, save me!”
5 The Lord is gracious and righteous;
our God is full of compassion.
6 The Lord protects the unwary;
when I was brought low, he saved me.
7 Return to your rest, my soul,
for the Lord has been good to you.
8 For you, Lord, have delivered me from death,
my eyes from tears,
my feet from stumbling,
9 that I may walk before the Lord
in the land of the living.
10 I trusted in the Lord when I said,
“I am greatly afflicted”;
11 in my alarm I said,
“Everyone is a liar.”
12 What shall I return to the Lord
for all his goodness to me?
13 I will lift up the cup of salvation
and call on the name of the Lord.
14 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all his people.
15 Precious in the sight of the Lord
is the death of his faithful servants.
16 Truly I am your servant, Lord;
I serve you just as my mother did;
you have freed me from my chains.
17 I will sacrifice a thank offering to you
and call on the name of the Lord.
18 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all his people,
19 in the courts of the house of the Lord—
in your midst, Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord.[a]
Footnotes
- Psalm 116:19 Hebrew Hallelu Yah
Psalm 117
1 Praise the Lord, all you nations;
extol him, all you peoples.
2 For great is his love toward us,
and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.
Praise the Lord.[a]
Footnotes
- Psalm 117:2 Hebrew Hallelu Yah
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
‘Draw near and take the body of the Lord / and drink his holy blood for you outpoured. / … our souls refreshed, we offer thanks to God.’1
Think Further
The psalmists rarely speak of love for God, let alone open with it. This is despite the truth that love for God is our best response to the ever-faithful One who seeks, saves, protects, and nourishes us. These two psalms are part of the Hallel (‘praise’) psalms which Jews recite during the Passover, no doubt because Psalm 116 responds three times to God’s saving us from death. In my church, Psalm 116 is set for Maundy Thursday, the day on which we recall the Last Supper when Jesus transformed the bread and wine of the Passover meal into that profound symbol, that perpetual memorial of his body and blood, about to be given for us.
Jews still use Psalm 116 to remember the exodus, the blood on the lintels that saved them from death. The most powerful Christian symbol lies in verses 12 and 13, leaping unbidden from the page: ‘What shall I return to the Lord for all his goodness to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord.’ The best thing we can do for Jesus is to accept the cup of salvation he offers. We do this symbolically when we take, consecrate, break and give the bread, and drink the wine, the symbolic cup of salvation. Later in our Mark readings, Jesus speaks of the cup of suffering. We must never forget that the cup of salvation is also the cup of suffering. That is the essence of the message which we take into the world.
The little gem of Psalm 117 shines brightly. Paul used it to show that the gospel was meant for all people.2 As the psalm proclaims, this message is forever. God endures forever and so do those who drink the cup of salvation.
Apply
We can ask Jesus, Lord of the cup of salvation, to take us, consecrate us, break us, and distribute us. He will send us out into the world as his witnesses.
Closing prayer
Loving Savior, it amazes me that you would pay the price for my salvation. It confounds me that you would choose to use me—with all of my frailties—and send me to be your witness. You have called me and you are sending me; help me to be faithful.
Last Updated on November 3, 2024 by kingstar
