The Unblinking Refrain of Reality Text: Psalm 136:1-3
Introduction: Liturgy as Worldview Warfare
We live in a world that is tone deaf to reality. Our generation is adept at manufacturing its own truths, its own moralities, and its own gods. These truths shift like sand, these moralities are as fluid as water, and these gods are as flimsy as cardboard. The modern project is an attempt to build a civilization on the foundation of a feeling, a vibe, a momentary consensus. But a civilization built on a feeling cannot stand; it is a house built on a swamp. It will inevitably sink into the mire of its own contradictions.
Into this cacophony of self-expression, Psalm 136 enters not as a suggestion, but as a great, crashing cymbal of objective truth. This is what is called the Great Hallel, a psalm of high praise, and it is structured as a corporate, liturgical response. It is a call and response, a divine catechism set to music. The leader makes a declaration about God, and the people respond with the unblinking, unyielding, glorious refrain: "For His lovingkindness endures forever."
This is not mindless repetition. This is worldview formation. This is how you build a culture. You do it by repetition, by liturgy, by embedding the foundational truths of the universe so deep into the hearts of a people that it becomes the very rhythm of their lives. The secular world understands this perfectly well. They have their own liturgies, their own repeated refrains: "love is love," "my body, my choice," "follow your heart." They chant these things until they appear to be self-evident. But they are not self-evident; they are declarations of war against the God who is.
Psalm 136 is our counter-liturgy. It is the Christian's response to the chaos. It is the great, central, immovable fact of all existence. Whatever else is happening, whatever empires are rising or falling, whatever philosophies are in vogue, whatever troubles assail you, there is one bedrock reality that never changes, never falters, and never fails: His lovingkindness endures forever. This psalm teaches us not just what to believe, but how to believe it, how to declare it, and how to build a world upon it.
The Text
Give thanks to Yahweh, for He is good,
For His lovingkindness endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of gods,
For His lovingkindness endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
For His lovingkindness endures forever.
(Psalm 136:1-3 LSB)
The Foundation of All Gratitude (v. 1)
The psalm opens with the most fundamental command, grounded in the most fundamental reality.
"Give thanks to Yahweh, for He is good, For His lovingkindness endures forever." (Psalm 136:1)
The command is to "give thanks." This is not a suggestion for the piously inclined. It is the baseline duty of every creature who draws breath. Ungratefulness is the original sin of a world gone mad. Paul tells us in Romans 1 that the downward spiral of civilization begins right here: "For although they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks" (Rom. 1:21). An ungrateful heart is the fertile soil for every idolatry and perversion that follows. Therefore, the first act of rebellion is ingratitude, and the first act of worship is gratitude.
And to whom do we give thanks? To Yahweh. This is God's covenant name. This is not some generic, philosophical "first cause." This is the God who makes promises and keeps them. This is the God who binds Himself to His people. And the reason for our thanks is twofold. First, "for He is good." Goodness is not an abstract concept; it is the very essence of God's nature. He is the standard of goodness. Things are not good because we like them; they are good because they conform to His character. In a world that wants to call evil good and good evil, this is a revolutionary declaration. God is good, period. End of argument.
And this goodness is expressed in the great refrain: "For His lovingkindness endures forever." The word here is hesed. This is one of the most important words in the entire Old Testament, and it is notoriously difficult to translate. It is a rich, thick, covenantal word. It means loyal love, steadfast mercy, unfailing kindness, covenant faithfulness. It is a love that is not based on the loveliness of the beloved, but on the sworn oath of the lover. God's hesed is His absolute, unbreakable commitment to His covenant people. It is the promise that He will never, ever let them go, no matter how much they stumble. This is not a sentimental feeling; it is a rock-ribbed, ironclad commitment. And it endures forever.
The Folly of All Idolatry (v. 2)
The second verse escalates the claim, confronting every rival deity in the cosmos.
"Give thanks to the God of gods, For His lovingkindness endures forever." (Psalm 136:2)
This is a direct polemical assault on polytheism. The ancient world was crammed with gods. There were gods of the hills, gods of the sea, gods of the harvest, gods of the bedroom. Every nation had its pantheon, and every family had its household idols. These gods were capricious, petty, and often wicked. They were magnified, super-powered versions of fallen humanity. They demanded appeasement, but they offered no hesed. Their favor was fickle and had to be constantly earned through frantic ritual and sacrifice.
The psalmist declares that Yahweh is the "God of gods." This is not to say that other gods have a real, ontological existence. As Paul says, "an idol has no real existence" (1 Cor. 8:4). Rather, it is to say that whatever men set up as an object of worship, whatever they give their ultimate allegiance to, Yahweh is infinitely superior. Whether your "god" is Baal, or money, or sex, or political power, or your own autonomous self, Yahweh is the God over that god. He is in a different category altogether.
And the reason to give Him thanks is the same. His hesed endures forever. The gods of the pagans, both ancient and modern, offer no such security. Their promises are empty because they are powerless. The god of materialism cannot love you. The god of self-esteem cannot forgive you. The god of political utopia cannot save you. They are all dumb idols that cannot speak and have no power to deliver on their promises. Only Yahweh, the God of gods, has made a covenant of loyal love, and only He has the power to keep it for all eternity.
The Futility of All Rebellion (v. 3)
The third verse completes the introductory triad by asserting God's absolute sovereignty over all earthly power.
"Give thanks to the Lord of lords, For His lovingkindness endures forever." (Psalm 136:3)
If the second verse was a shot at false religion, this verse is a shot at false politics. The world is full of "lords," men who wield power and authority. Pharaoh, Caesar, Nebuchadnezzar, presidents, prime ministers, and petty tyrants, they all strut and fume on the stage of history for their brief moment. They issue decrees, they raise armies, and they demand allegiance. They believe they are in charge.
But the psalmist reminds us that Yahweh is the "Lord of lords." He is the ultimate authority. Every earthly ruler holds his position only by the divine permission of the one true King. As Jesus told Pilate, "You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above" (John 19:11). Daniel told Nebuchadnezzar that "the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will" (Dan. 4:25). All human authority is delegated and derivative.
This is a profoundly political statement. It means that no king, no state, no government has the final say. When an earthly lord commands what God forbids, or forbids what God commands, our duty is clear. We obey the Lord of lords. And our ultimate confidence is not in princes or in parliaments, but in the fact that His hesed endures forever. The lords of this world make treaties and break them. They offer security and then deliver tyranny. Their reigns are temporary, and their power is fleeting. But the Lord of heaven and earth has established a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and His covenant faithfulness is the only true security in a world of political turmoil.
The Unchanging Refrain in Christ
For the Christian, this psalm is sung with a depth and clarity that the Old Testament saint could only anticipate. We know the ultimate expression of God's goodness and His hesed. The Apostle John tells us that "God is love" (1 John 4:8), and Paul tells us how that love was demonstrated: "God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Rom. 5:8).
Jesus Christ is the everlasting hesed of God made flesh. He is the goodness of God personified. He is the ultimate revelation of Yahweh, the one who is good. He is the "God of gods," before whom every idol must fall. At the name of Jesus, every knee will bow, and every tongue confess that He is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Phil. 2:10-11). And He is the "Lord of lords." He has a name written on His robe and on His thigh: "KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS" (Rev. 19:16).
The entire story of redemption, from the exodus to the cross, is the story of God's enduring hesed. Every act of creation and providence, every act of judgment and salvation, is another reason for the people of God to join the chorus. When we look at the cross, we see the ultimate reason to give thanks. There, the goodness of God confronted the evil of our sin. There, the God of gods defeated the false gods of sin and death. There, the Lord of lords triumphed over the powers of darkness.
And so we take up this ancient liturgy and we make it our own. In our corporate worship, in our family devotions, in the quiet of our own hearts, we learn the rhythm of reality. We declare to ourselves, to our children, to the world, and to the demonic powers, that whatever else may be true, this is the foundational truth: God is good. He is the only God. He is the only Lord. And His lovingkindness, His hesed, His covenant faithfulness demonstrated and sealed in the blood of His Son, endures forever. Amen.