Psalm 105:1-15 NKJV
105 Oh, give thanks to the Lord!
Call upon His name;
Make known His deeds among the peoples!
2 Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him;
Talk of all His wondrous works!
3 Glory in His holy name;
Let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the Lord!
4 Seek the Lord and His strength;
Seek His face evermore!
5 Remember His marvelous works which He has done,
His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth,
6 O seed of Abraham His servant,
You children of Jacob, His chosen ones!
7 He is the Lord our God;
His judgments are in all the earth.
8 He remembers His covenant forever,
The word which He commanded, for a thousand generations,
9 The covenant which He made with Abraham,
And His oath to Isaac,
10 And confirmed it to Jacob for a statute,
To Israel as an everlasting covenant,
11 Saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan
As the allotment of your inheritance,”
12 When they were few in number,
Indeed very few, and strangers in it.
13 When they went from one nation to another,
From one kingdom to another people,
14 He permitted no one to do them wrong;
Yes, He rebuked kings for their sakes,
15 Saying, “Do not touch My anointed ones,
And do My prophets no harm.”
In today’s reading, the Psalmist calls upon the nation of Israel to give thanks to God, with rejoicing, for His deeds on their behalf, deeds which He faithfully performed in fulfillment of the covenant He had made with their fathers. The Israelites are to remember these deeds, rejoice in them, give thanks for them, and recount them to all the nations of the earth.
The Psalmist practices what he preaches. This lengthy Psalm recounts the Lord’s saving deeds for Israel, starting with the covenant He made with Abraham and culminating in the conquest of Canaan by Abraham’s descendants some 400 years later. In today’s verses, the Psalmist recounts how God made a covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, promising to give the land of Canaan to their offspring, and how He preserved their families as they wandered about the land, not permitting the Egyptians, or Abimelech, or any of the other peoples to do them harm.
The Psalmist refers to this land-covenant as an “everlasting covenant.” It’s important to remember that the word for “everlasting” in Hebrew has to be understood by its context. It usually doesn’t mean “lasting for all eternity.” Sometimes it just means “lasting for a very long time.” God certainly fulfilled the covenant to give the land of Canaan to the offspring of Israel, and He allowed them to hold onto it for a very long time, some 1,500 years. And they would have continued to hold onto it, if they had not rejected the greater part of this covenant, the part which promised the coming of the Christ, the Seed of Abraham, who would be a blessing to all the families of the earth.
Those who believe in Jesus Christ have been brought into a new covenant by God. And we who are heirs of this covenant have even more reason to remember, rejoice in, give thanks for, and recount God’s saving deeds on our behalf. In fact, this is the purpose of the liturgical Church Year, to recount continually the saving deeds of our God which center on the Gospel of Christ Jesus, our Lord, so that all may hear, believe, and rejoice.
Let us pray: O Lord, we remember Your wondrous works, especially the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus, and Your gift of Holy Baptism. We seek You and Your strength. We seek Your face evermore. Amen.