His Mercy Endures Forever

May 2022 — Grace & Truth Magazine


His Mercy Endures Forever

Scripture is never marked by needless repetition. Psalm 136 contains far more repetition than any other portion of God’s holy Word. It consists of 26 verses, each of them ending with the words ( NKJV ), “His mercy endures forever,” coupled with an exhortation repeated several times to “give thanks” to the Lord or to God (vv.1-3,26).

There will be no need whatever to stimulate the saints in glory to render their thanks, for there will be nothing to hinder the outburst of praise. The notes of praise will never die nor diminish throughout the ages of eternity. But it is different here on earth, and we do well to bear in mind the exhortations of this beautiful psalm, for the repetition that marks it is far from being needless.

The prominent word “mercy” is connected in this psalm with compassion on the one hand and needs to be met on the other – divine compassion meeting human needs. In the New Testament we find divine mercy extending its favors far beyond human needs. But when the mercy contemplated in the psalm is rightly understood, it leads to an outflow of thanksgiving.

Why, we may ask, are these comforting words repeated no less than 26 times? There must be a reason, and that an urgent one. It is because human beings are so easy-going and complacent, or lax and unconcerned, in accepting the wonderful mercies of God, that they are often unthankful. Further, the history of Israel is mainly in view in this psalm, and they were under the law and forgetful of the fact that it only brought condemnation on them, whereas all the good things they enjoyed reached them on the ground of God’s mercy. We too live our lives day by day as debtors to the mercy of God.

An infidel was having dinner with his Christian brother. Annoyed that his brother had first given thanks for the food, he brought his fist down with a blow on the table, exclaiming, “I’m not indebted to your God for the food I eat. I work hard, earn wages and pay for what I eat.”

His brother replied to the effect that not all the money in the world could purchase a single grain of wheat unless God had created it, giving it the power to reproduce itself and then to sustain human life when used as food. He created the sun which ripens the grain, and gave water, as rain, to bring it to maturity. This and more showed how hopelessly shallow his unthankful spirit was. Alas! countless multitudes are unthankful. Scripture warns us that one of the signs of the last days is that of men being “unthankful, unholy” (2 Tim. 3:2).

Does Scripture say anything on this subject? Yes. We read of food being “sanctified by the word of God and prayer” (1 Tim. 4:5). In Genesis 9:3 we find how an ample food supply was placed at man’s disposal by the word of God. Sad indeed it is, if this sanctification is not completed in Christian households by prayer, as the food so mercifully provided is used.

But let us look at the lessons to be learned from Psalm 136, which was written in Old Testament times and is full of allusions to the history of the children of Israel. There is mention of God’s wisdom in creation, in the heavens and the earth, in making the sun to rule the day and the moon by night. To Noah was given the assurance, “While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, and day and night shall not cease” (Gen. 8:22). If this promise were not kept, how devastating it would be!

The psalmist recounted God’s amazing mercy to Israel when they were but slaves in Egypt, delivering them from their misery and slaying the firstborn of the Egyptians. No gentler blow would have broken the stubborn will of Pharaoh. Defenseless as the children of Israel were in themselves, with a strong hand He brought them out, overthrowing Pharaoh and his armies in the Red Sea.

Psalm 136:16 summarizes Israel’s wilderness journey. We know that manna descended from heaven, and water from the smitten rock followed them, although these things are not mentioned in this short verse. The psalmist reminded them of how God led them into the land of their possession, overthrowing great kings to place His people there. He had told Abraham that when the iniquities of the Amorite nations should come to the full, Abraham’s descendants would be brought into the land. The divine promise was fulfilled.

Was ever a story such as this told in all the history of the world? We need not wonder that Israel was called upon to render thanks to God for such abundant and continuing mercy. But are we Christians as mindful as we should be of the many and abundant mercies that are bestowed upon us? We fear that we are not. And, we must never forget that great as are the mercies we receive in matters pertaining to this life, we have them yet more abundantly in a spiritual way.

The apostle Paul, in Romans 12:1, entreated the saints “by the mercies of God” to present their bodies “a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God.” He was alluding to the great spiritual benefits that are conferred by the gospel when it is received in faith. Whether Jew or Gentile, we are blessed on the ground of mercy. We have been blessed “with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ” (Eph. 1:3).

God has blessed us thus in the abundance of His mercy. This was not only that we may be moved to offer gratefully our thanks to Him, but also that we might respond to the exhortation “ye should show forth the praises of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Pet. 2:9).

By A. J. Pollock (adapted)

Son of God! with joy we praise Thee, on the Father’s throne above; All Thy wondrous work displays Thee, full of grace and full of love! Lord, accept our adoration – for our sins Thou once wast slain; Through Thy blood we have salvation, soon shall share Thine endless reign.
God, in Thee His love unfolding, shows how vast, how rich His grace; Blest our lot, with joy beholding all His glory in Thy face. Oh! the mercy which hath blessed us, purposed thus ere time began, Mercy which in Thee hath kept us, mercy vast, like heaven’s span. —Samuel P. Tregelles (1813–1875)