Psalm Chapter 136

Psalm 136: The Mercy That Will Not Stop Singing

There is something almost reckless about this psalm — twenty-six times it repeats the same refrain, "for his mercy endureth for ever," as though the poet feared we might forget between one line and the next. But that is precisely the point. This is not a hymn that delivers its message and moves on; it is a hymn that pounds the same nail until it holds. Creation, exodus, conquest, daily bread — the psalmist sweeps through the entire story of God's dealing with His people, and at every turn the chorus answers back like a congregation that cannot help itself. One begins to suspect that the repetition is not for God's benefit but for ours. We are the sort of creatures who need to hear the same mercy announced twenty-six times before we begin to believe it might actually apply to us. And perhaps the most staggering verse is nearly the last: "Who remembered us in our low estate." Not in our glory, not in our usefulness — in our low estate. That is the mercy that endureth for ever.

00:00 Give Thanks to the Lord of Lords
01:00 The Exodus Remembered
02:00 Remembered in Our Low Estate