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His Mercy Endureth Forever |
What is so magnificent about the ever-enduring mercy of God? Sin is so sinful, and God’s wrath is so aggravated under the compulsion of His steep holiness, that regenerate men are brought low, scarcely saved from, and nearly consumed by wrath. See their great complaint in the former verses? They were suffering greatly under wrath so much that it seemed like it was FOREVER! But what is so magnified by saints who are saved from the nearly FOREVER-wrath which consumes most of the called? The few that are spared do exclaim, feelingly, that they do deserve to perish like all the others, nevertheless they do remain alive today to obtain Covenant promises, and why? God’s MERCY ENDURETH FOREVER! It is MERCY that He did not retain anger forever, for this is what justice would have demanded! Nearly a forever-wrath does create, again, near-total annihilation.
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“Who is a God like unto Thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He retaineth not His anger for ever, because He delighteth in mercy” (Mic. 7:18).
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God’s mercy endureth forever, of a truth, beyond the “forever” of wrath! Even though the saints are so exercised by wrath that they woefully exclaim – “will it burn forever?” – the mercy of God will overpass the mark at which wrath extends to, and so, the forever endurance of mercy is magnified in that it lasts beyond the persevering, annihilating wrath of God!
The book of Judges (recorded during the times of “the judges”) contains many centuries of general apostasy. Century to century and judge to judge, there were intermittent periods of slight relief, but God exercised them all with great afflictions and bondages, and with an angry rod. When they began to call upon the name of the Lord – THEN – God would raise up some degree of relief by the hand of an abnormal leader, comparatively incapable to what was established in the glory of former generations. After the judges, then Samuel arose, and God gave Israel a King, of which He said – “I gave thee a king in Mine anger, and took him away in My wrath” (Hos. 13:11). With Saul’s ascension to the throne, Israel was led into many more years of apostasy. In these times, many did “sit in darkness and in the shadow of death”, “being bound” (Ps. 107:10), “afflicted” (Ps. 107:17), brought to “their wits’ end” (Ps. 107:27), and yet, when the people of God returned and sought after Him, especially through the leadership of David and the prophets, then God “brought them out of the darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder” (Ps. 107:14), “He sent His word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions” (Ps. 107:20), “He bringeth them out of their distresses” (Ps. 107:28), and for what Divine reason? Upon the lips of God’s people was, “O give thanks unto the LORD, for He is good: for His mercy endureth for ever” (Ps. 107:1), and four more times, again, “praise the LORD for His goodness” (Ps. 107:8, 15, 21, 31)! The “goodness” of God which is thank worthy and the ever-enduring mercy of God that is praise worthy – these attributes in God do not negate the possibility of God’s people falling into reprobation and eternal demise – but after such perilous times have long transpired upon men, and, lo, a few are arising from the dungeons of affliction and sin, they do have hope to call upon the name of the Lord for salvation BECAUSE of God’s goodness and mercy which endureth forever! God is still willing to save them, to raise them up, to hallow a small remnant! In the days of David’s tribulation they came, all who were “in distress”, “in debt”, and “discontented” by false Christianity’s ungodly rule of darkness and carnality; they “gathered themselves unto” David and “he became a captain over them” (1 Sam. 22:2). By God’s enduring mercy, even though the priests were brutally slain by the demonic cruelty of King Saul, David and those with him arose out of obscurity to establish a season of salvation, as men that have spiritual sight, for a wasted, groping, and blind Israelite nation. David gathered the sheep, defended the helpless, and “fed them according to the integrity of his heart; and guided them by the skillfulness of his hands” (Ps. 78:72). From the pit of castaway wrath, salvation did ascend! Into the desert of overwhelming annihilation, behold what rivers of salvation God did
send! And what praiseworthy attribute of God was on the lips of David and his comrades, after they were graciously brought on high!?
The book of Judges (recorded during the times of “the judges”) contains many centuries of general apostasy. Century to century and judge to judge, there were intermittent periods of slight relief, but God exercised them all with great afflictions and bondages, and with an angry rod. When they began to call upon the name of the Lord – THEN – God would raise up some degree of relief by the hand of an abnormal leader, comparatively incapable to what was established in the glory of former generations. After the judges, then Samuel arose, and God gave Israel a King, of which He said – “I gave thee a king in Mine anger, and took him away in My wrath” (Hos. 13:11). With Saul’s ascension to the throne, Israel was led into many more years of apostasy. In these times, many did “sit in darkness and in the shadow of death”, “being bound” (Ps. 107:10), “afflicted” (Ps. 107:17), brought to “their wits’ end” (Ps. 107:27), and yet, when the people of God returned and sought after Him, especially through the leadership of David and the prophets, then God “brought them out of the darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder” (Ps. 107:14), “He sent His word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions” (Ps. 107:20), “He bringeth them out of their distresses” (Ps. 107:28), and for what Divine reason? Upon the lips of God’s people was, “O give thanks unto the LORD, for He is good: for His mercy endureth for ever” (Ps. 107:1), and four more times, again, “praise the LORD for His goodness” (Ps. 107:8, 15, 21, 31)! The “goodness” of God which is thank worthy and the ever-enduring mercy of God that is praise worthy – these attributes in God do not negate the possibility of God’s people falling into reprobation and eternal demise – but after such perilous times have long transpired upon men, and, lo, a few are arising from the dungeons of affliction and sin, they do have hope to call upon the name of the Lord for salvation BECAUSE of God’s goodness and mercy which endureth forever! God is still willing to save them, to raise them up, to hallow a small remnant! In the days of David’s tribulation they came, all who were “in distress”, “in debt”, and “discontented” by false Christianity’s ungodly rule of darkness and carnality; they “gathered themselves unto” David and “he became a captain over them” (1 Sam. 22:2). By God’s enduring mercy, even though the priests were brutally slain by the demonic cruelty of King Saul, David and those with him arose out of obscurity to establish a season of salvation, as men that have spiritual sight, for a wasted, groping, and blind Israelite nation. David gathered the sheep, defended the helpless, and “fed them according to the integrity of his heart; and guided them by the skillfulness of his hands” (Ps. 78:72). From the pit of castaway wrath, salvation did ascend! Into the desert of overwhelming annihilation, behold what rivers of salvation God did
send! And what praiseworthy attribute of God was on the lips of David and his comrades, after they were graciously brought on high!?
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“O give thanks unto the LORD; for He is good; for His mercy endureth for ever.” – 1 Chronicles 16:34
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God’s mercy endureth forever beyond the endurance of wrath, and now, by God’s good graces, David is able to ascend into the courts of God and praise Him before the newly established ark (1 Chron. 15)! So now, in 1 Chronicles 16, David writes the psalm that they sang to God in this day! After the establishment of the Davidic reign, and then, after the establishment of God’s reign – the ark of the Covenant in its place – it was then that David appointed singers to ever stand before the ark of God – “to give thanks to the LORD, because His mercy endureth for ever” (1Chron. 16:41)! Amazing! Furthermore, David charged all of Israel to pray and praise God this exact way, saying – “O give thanks unto the LORD; for He is good; for His mercy endureth for ever.” David commanded Israel seek after a further and more excellent salvation to be wrought in Israel beyond what is presently obtained, and that Israel should pray before God – “And say ye, Save us, O God of our salvation, and gather us together, and deliver us from the heathen, that we may give thanks to Thy holy Name, and glory in Thy praise” (1 Chron. 16:34-35). The scattering of Israel amidst the heathen powers evidenced that the Divine wrath of God was kindled, and that sin was frustrating God’s promises. “The LORD’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you, that He will not hear” (Isa. 59:1-2).
Reader, please review Leviticus 26 & Deuteronomy 28 to understand the Old Covenant promises of God, so that when the psalmist or prophets did write about circumstances wherein one of the promises was not being fulfilled, then you will recognize it and understand that this is because the wrath of God was reacting to the presence of sin in an individual, or in the corporate body of Israelites. Take for example the promise in Deuteronomy 28:7: “The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.” By this we can understand that if Israel was defeated in battle, it was because of the wrath of God responding to the sin of Israel, like it was written again – “The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies: thou shalt go out one way against them, and flee seven ways before them: and shalt be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth” (Deut. 28:25).
When saints like David are in need of salvation from the heathen, they know that it is a sure reward to those who are worthy to receive the fulfillment of the promises of God. David instructed the people to pray, “save us, O God of our salvation, and gather us together, and deliver us from the heathen, that we may give thanks to Thy Holy Name, and glory in Thy praise” (1 Chron. 16:35). His appeal to God for salvific mercy was not for His own sake, or that God would pity them, no, not this! But he prayed that God would love His name and save them for this reason – that “[they] may give thanks to [His] Holy Name, and glory in [His] praise”! Do you pray this way? David had in mind sovereign mercy; do you see it? This is the primary way the psalmists did appeal to God for pity and salvation.
Reader, please review Leviticus 26 & Deuteronomy 28 to understand the Old Covenant promises of God, so that when the psalmist or prophets did write about circumstances wherein one of the promises was not being fulfilled, then you will recognize it and understand that this is because the wrath of God was reacting to the presence of sin in an individual, or in the corporate body of Israelites. Take for example the promise in Deuteronomy 28:7: “The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.” By this we can understand that if Israel was defeated in battle, it was because of the wrath of God responding to the sin of Israel, like it was written again – “The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies: thou shalt go out one way against them, and flee seven ways before them: and shalt be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth” (Deut. 28:25).
When saints like David are in need of salvation from the heathen, they know that it is a sure reward to those who are worthy to receive the fulfillment of the promises of God. David instructed the people to pray, “save us, O God of our salvation, and gather us together, and deliver us from the heathen, that we may give thanks to Thy Holy Name, and glory in Thy praise” (1 Chron. 16:35). His appeal to God for salvific mercy was not for His own sake, or that God would pity them, no, not this! But he prayed that God would love His name and save them for this reason – that “[they] may give thanks to [His] Holy Name, and glory in [His] praise”! Do you pray this way? David had in mind sovereign mercy; do you see it? This is the primary way the psalmists did appeal to God for pity and salvation.
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“I have declared Thy faithfulness and Thy salvation” – Psalm 40:10
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David was in great straits! He felt as though he was suffocating underneath his own iniquities, and furthermore, heathen men were encroaching upon him (40:12-15). David knew that an alien victory against Israelite armies resulted from God’s wrath in response to personal or corporate sin. This psalm recounts how David found deliverance from this “horrible pit” that he was in, and he says – “I waited patiently” and the Lord “heard my cry” (40:1)! What was David’s cry? Not that he could never fall, nor was it that mercy and love from God could never discontinue or be withheld. On the contrary, David cried – “withhold not Thou Thy tender mercies from me, O LORD: let Thy lovingkindness and Thy truth continually preserve me” (40:11). Again David cried, “make no tarrying, O my God” (40:17). David understood the faithfulness of God and declared it to the great congregation (40:10); therefore in this psalm, he demonstrated a correct interpretation of God’s faithfulness. How is it that Christianity has a completely different understanding of God’s faithfulness? Death-like circumstances are described in 40:1-2, 12, so much so that David said – “therefore my heart faileth me.” David was pursuing God’s faithfulness for the performance of unfulfilled promises, by the appeasement of Divine wrath from its breaching powers, which means, David was seeking safety while yet in real danger.
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“Thy faithfulness” – Psalm 88:11
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God’s faithfulness is in view for the psalmist of Psalm 88, but for what cause? At this moment, the psalmist confessed to God, “Thy wrath lieth hard upon me, and Thou hast afflicted me with all Thy waves…Mine eye mourneth by reason of affliction: LORD, I have called daily upon Thee, I have stretched out My hands unto Thee. Wilt Thou shew wonders to the dead? Shall the dead arise and praise Thee? Selah. Shall Thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? Or Thy faithfulness in destruction? Shall Thy wonders be known in the dark? And Thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness? But unto Thee have I cried, O LORD; and in the morning shall my prayer prevent Thee. LORD, why castest Thou off my soul? Why hidest Thou Thy face from me? I am afflicted and ready to die from my youth up: while I suffer Thy terrors I am distracted. Thy fierce wrath goeth over me; Thy terrors have cut me off” (Ps. 88:7-16). This man of God was drowning in an outpouring of wrath and Divine displeasure, and it was taking him to the point where he was “ready to die!” Thus his appeal was, “shall Thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? Or Thy faithfulness in destruction” (Ps. 88:11)!? His main appeal for perseverance was, “Don’t let me die, for Your Name will die with me!” At this point he was not experiencing the faithfulness of God which performs the Covenant promises, but rather, the wrath of God performing its curses, and thus he sought the promises of God through soul-travailing intercessions.
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“Hear my prayer, O LORD, give ear to my supplications: in Thy faithfulness answer me, and in Thy righteousness” – Psalm 143:1
“Quicken me, O LORD, for Thy Name’s sake: for Thy righteousness’ sake” – Psalm 143:11 |
David had the faithfulness and righteousness of God in correct interpretation. During the time that he wrote this psalm, he was surrounded by “enemies” which did “afflict [his] soul” (Ps. 143:12), to the point where David was recognizing that God was hiding His face from him in wrath (Ps. 143:7), and therefore “the enemy” had, David says, “smitten my life down to the ground; he hath made me to dwell in darkness, as those that have been long dead” (Ps. 143:3). David knew that if he abode here in this spiritual avalanche of wrath, he would be soon swallowed up by death, and thus he said – “Hear me speedily, O LORD: my spirit faileth: hide not Thy face from me, lest I be like unto them that go down into the pit” (Ps. 143:7). David recognized that God was entering into judgment with him according to his sins, or the sins of Israel, and David understood that if God did not have sovereign mercy, if wrath took its course according to the judgment of holy justice, then, like all the others, David would come to a full end in total annihilation. Even so, David prayed – “in Thy faithfulness answer me, and in Thy righteousness. And enter not into judgment with Thy servant: for in Thy sight shall no man living be justified” (Ps. 143:1-2). David knew that God’s faithfulness and righteousness would be declared forever, but this did not mean that none had ever perished who were formerly saved, but that of the many who were saved and then fell away, not all were judged and destroyed, and these saints, with a chosen multitude in the future, will be the object of God’s final and forever righteousness and faithfulness, to perform all of the promises in the END of days. David just wanted to be a part of this holy and elect number who makes it to the END.
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“All Thy commandments are faithful: they persecute me wrongfully; help Thou me” – Ps. 119:86
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Again in Psalm 119:86, the psalmist reached forth for the promises of God, hoping that he, by them, would be saved. When he wrote the psalm, lo, he was being brought to a near annihilation under God’s wrath, as David was, and thus he said – “My soul fainteth for Thy salvation: but I hope in Thy word. Mine eyes fail for Thy word, saying, When wilt Thou comfort me? For I am become like a bottle in the smoke; yet do I not forget Thy statutes. How many are the days of Thy servant? when wilt Thou execute judgment on them that persecute me” (Ps. 119:81-84)? Again, the faithfulness of God does not mean that none can perish, or that some cannot be brought under God’s wrath presently, and so the psalmist sought the performance of God’s promises with heart-rending intercessions.
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When most people reckon the faithfulness of God in their life, they do it with mental assent, according to the text that they see written on a page, as if to just quote it, but they do not walk out in the very substance of grace, virtue, and power that the promise of God does provide. They are aloof to this like a drunken man, like a man “beholding his natural face in a glass: for he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was” (James 1:23-24). This is a deception! “But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed” (James 1:25). Consequentially, men and women love the promises of God – they sing about them, memorize them, recite them – and lo, they are as powerless as a man without a promise. When I read of biblical men of sound and right conviction, I see that they were on an earnest and fervent pursuit to obtain the performance of Covenant promises, and therefore, with undying energy, they watched to see if any promise was under a present-tense breach, which meant that assaults of outbreaking wrath did exercise individual persons or the corporate nation. Also, I find that they were exercised by God’s wrath until it made them say, “My flesh trembleth for fear of Thee; and I am afraid of Thy judgments” (Psalm 119:120).
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If mercy is the central theme of the Bible, then let us understand also that the near annihilation of God’s people is the central theme of the Bible which unlocks the mysteries of mercy – for this is the very point of praise in: “His mercy endureth forever!” |
When these men spoke of, declared, preached on, praised, and prayed for the faithfulness of God, they were not reckoning that they were spiritually safe, always saved, and continually “ok” just where they resided! People reckon the promises of God in a way which they feel means that they have no need to seek after their performance. They do not fear that the wrath of God is a threat to saving promises, and so, they have no fear of the present condition they are in, even if it is damnable. They are lulled to sleep by their heresies of grace, or should I say their heresies of God’s faithfulness, so that they don’t even know what a damnable condition is, or how to recognize it according to the NT promises. If you do arise into a persevering salvation in the course of your faith, it is by the sovereign grace of God, but it is NOT because God was never angry with you in all the days of your salvific pilgrimage. It is because God’s mercy endureth forever, but this does not mean that wrath did not ever burn and pursue after your death and destruction! When you understand the near-annihilating wrath of God, then there will be nothing left that is better to say, but, “His mercy endureth forever,” when indeed, finally, you are carried into a salvific position of grace.
When the Temple was built and finished in the days of Solomon, then they brought up the ark of God and put it in the most holy place, and after the priests left the holy place, they and the Levites did sound with the instruments of music “as one” man – “to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the LORD; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised the LORD, saying, For He is good; for His mercy endureth for ever: THAT THEN the House was filled with a cloud, even the House of the LORD; so that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the House of God” (2 Chron. 5:13-14). It is so compelling and soul-humbling for me to see how the Lord loves, foremost of all, this very phrase – “His mercy endureth for ever.” There is no other statement of praise that is so repeated in all of scripture! If mercy is the central theme of the Bible, then let us understand also that the near annihilation of God’s people is the central theme of the Bible which unlocks the mysteries of mercy – for this is the very point of praise in God’s ever enduring mercy!
The Levites praised God with these divinely chosen words, and after Solomon’s sermon and the prayer of dedication – “Fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the LORD filled the House…And when all the children of Israel saw how the fire came down, and the glory of the LORD upon the House, they bowed themselves with their faces to the ground upon the pavement, and worshipped, and praised the LORD, saying, For He is good; for His mercy endureth for ever” (2 Chron. 7:1-3)! Forevermore it is praised, generation to generation, for – “the priests waited on their offices: the Levites also with instruments of musick of the LORD, which David the King had made to praise the LORD, because His mercy endureth for ever” (2 Chron. 7:6).
David and now Solomon, with their generations, did praise the Lord for His ever-enduring mercies, and David praised the Lord in the psalm written in 1 Chronicles 16:8-36. In this psalm, David looked upon the promises of the Abrahamic Covenant and praised God for their verity, and for them he also prayed, but this, and the fact that He is praising God that “His mercy endureth for ever” (1 Chron. 16:34), did not mean that none had ever failed the grace of God or come short of the Abrahamic Covenant promises! So also Jehoshaphat, a pursuer of the Covenant given to David, even he praised God as he sought the establishment of the Davidic promises with the very same glory of praise – “Praise the LORD; for His mercy endureth for ever” (2 Chron. 20:21) – but this was as he was trying to climb out of the distress of apostasy that he and his generation were born into. He was in the midst the battle when he lifted up this cry! “And when they began to sing and to
praise, the LORD set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten” (2 Chron. 20:22). Another time of biblical revival like unto Jehoshaphat was in the days of Ezra, and they all, at the laying of the Temple foundation did shout and praise with the same words of perfect praise!
When the Temple was built and finished in the days of Solomon, then they brought up the ark of God and put it in the most holy place, and after the priests left the holy place, they and the Levites did sound with the instruments of music “as one” man – “to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the LORD; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised the LORD, saying, For He is good; for His mercy endureth for ever: THAT THEN the House was filled with a cloud, even the House of the LORD; so that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the House of God” (2 Chron. 5:13-14). It is so compelling and soul-humbling for me to see how the Lord loves, foremost of all, this very phrase – “His mercy endureth for ever.” There is no other statement of praise that is so repeated in all of scripture! If mercy is the central theme of the Bible, then let us understand also that the near annihilation of God’s people is the central theme of the Bible which unlocks the mysteries of mercy – for this is the very point of praise in God’s ever enduring mercy!
The Levites praised God with these divinely chosen words, and after Solomon’s sermon and the prayer of dedication – “Fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the LORD filled the House…And when all the children of Israel saw how the fire came down, and the glory of the LORD upon the House, they bowed themselves with their faces to the ground upon the pavement, and worshipped, and praised the LORD, saying, For He is good; for His mercy endureth for ever” (2 Chron. 7:1-3)! Forevermore it is praised, generation to generation, for – “the priests waited on their offices: the Levites also with instruments of musick of the LORD, which David the King had made to praise the LORD, because His mercy endureth for ever” (2 Chron. 7:6).
David and now Solomon, with their generations, did praise the Lord for His ever-enduring mercies, and David praised the Lord in the psalm written in 1 Chronicles 16:8-36. In this psalm, David looked upon the promises of the Abrahamic Covenant and praised God for their verity, and for them he also prayed, but this, and the fact that He is praising God that “His mercy endureth for ever” (1 Chron. 16:34), did not mean that none had ever failed the grace of God or come short of the Abrahamic Covenant promises! So also Jehoshaphat, a pursuer of the Covenant given to David, even he praised God as he sought the establishment of the Davidic promises with the very same glory of praise – “Praise the LORD; for His mercy endureth for ever” (2 Chron. 20:21) – but this was as he was trying to climb out of the distress of apostasy that he and his generation were born into. He was in the midst the battle when he lifted up this cry! “And when they began to sing and to
praise, the LORD set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten” (2 Chron. 20:22). Another time of biblical revival like unto Jehoshaphat was in the days of Ezra, and they all, at the laying of the Temple foundation did shout and praise with the same words of perfect praise!
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“And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the LORD, they set the priests in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals, to praise the LORD, after the ordinance of David king of Israel. And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto the LORD; because He is good, for His mercy endureth for ever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid” (Ezra 3:10-11).
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Are all of these events historically significant to you? It should enthrall you that such a seal of Divine pleasure and approval is given to this single praise of God. Oh! How much do we owe to the mercy of God!? Now, do you long to tell your Master His praise – “His mercy endureth for ever!” Do you want to learn to sing it in meter to God? Oh, to join the happy throngs of faithful men who sang in generations past, to sing this happy song of God’s everlasting mercy which does, all things, outlast! Lo, and behold, at the beginning of FOREVER, look at the consummating praise which shall be sung at the fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant, when it finally has its mysterious establishment at the second coming of Christ:
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“The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the Bridegroom, and the voice of the Bride, the voice of them that shall say, Praise the LORD of hosts: for the LORD is good; for His mercy endureth for ever: and of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I will cause to return the captivity of the land, as at the first, saith the LORD” (Jer. 33:11).
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The Lord’s mercy endures forever to establish His Covenant of salvation in its final consummation, and therefore men praise God that His mercy and faithfulness endure forever EVEN if, at present, mercy is not presently establishing the Covenant of salvation for regenerate individuals who are born into a backslidden generation. Do you believe that? Ezekiel 20 is like no other chapter in the whole of scripture, but by theme and purpose, there are many other chapters which are devoted to communicate the exact same theme at hand! Such chapters are Nehemiah 9, Deuteronomy 7, Psalm 89, and Psalm 106. By now you know the content of these chapters, but look with me at the very shocking attributes of God in view which I have yet to highlight!
Remember that Deuteronomy 7 addresses the Abrahamic Covenant promises, Psalm 89 the Davidic Covenant promises, and Nehemiah 9 and Psalm 106 address both the Abrahamic and Davidic promises. Each chapter is devoted to communicate how the promises have been breached in the former generation or generations (Deut. 7, Neh. 9, Psalm 106), and/or the promises have been and are being breached at the present generation (Psalm 89, Psalm 106). Furthermore, Psalm 89 and Psalm 106 are entirely devoted to the acknowledgment of the promises of God in the Covenants, which means that the psalmists rehearse what God said comparatively to what God did, but most importantly, these psalms are an intercessory lamentation for the Covenants that were presently breached, broken, cast off, and destroyed in their day; thus they cried out for salvation, but what is so amazing about the psalms is that they still praised the Lord for His faithfulness and mercy in that
it is FOREVER ENDURING while they were in the midst of a breach of promise, while wrath was breaking forth, and they are bewildered in perplexity!
Remember that Deuteronomy 7 addresses the Abrahamic Covenant promises, Psalm 89 the Davidic Covenant promises, and Nehemiah 9 and Psalm 106 address both the Abrahamic and Davidic promises. Each chapter is devoted to communicate how the promises have been breached in the former generation or generations (Deut. 7, Neh. 9, Psalm 106), and/or the promises have been and are being breached at the present generation (Psalm 89, Psalm 106). Furthermore, Psalm 89 and Psalm 106 are entirely devoted to the acknowledgment of the promises of God in the Covenants, which means that the psalmists rehearse what God said comparatively to what God did, but most importantly, these psalms are an intercessory lamentation for the Covenants that were presently breached, broken, cast off, and destroyed in their day; thus they cried out for salvation, but what is so amazing about the psalms is that they still praised the Lord for His faithfulness and mercy in that
it is FOREVER ENDURING while they were in the midst of a breach of promise, while wrath was breaking forth, and they are bewildered in perplexity!
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PSALM 89 -THE DAVIDIC COVENANT -
“I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known Thy faithfulness to all generations. Fro I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever: Thy faithfulness shalt Thou establish in the heavens” (Psalm 89:1-2). “And the heavens shall praise Thy wonders, O LORD: Thy faithfulness also in the congregation of the saints” (Psalm 89:5). “O LORD God of hosts, who is a strong LORD like unto Thee? Or to Thy faithfulness round about Thee” (Psalm 89:8)? “But My faithfulness and My mercy shall be with him: and in My Name shall his horn be exalted” (Psalm 89:24). |
Amazing! Is it not? They were singing of the mercy and faithfulness of God, but they had no idea where it was, and they were in the utter agony and oblivion over how it was gone, how it failed, and the Covenant Throne was fallen. The praise does acknowledge a faith though, beyond the NOW, faith in a FOREVER which shall inevitably arise. Would it rise again in their lifetime? They didn’t know…just like the praises of God which Habakkuk uttered in chapter 3, they pled – “in wrath remember mercy.” They desired mercy in that hour for themselves, that God would not pass them by, that they might be hid in the day of wrath, but even though they lived on in a doomed generation, they still sang and praised the Lord for the incorruptible, everlasting, and sure salvation!
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Habakkuk 3:16-19
“When I heard, my belly trembled; my lips quivered at the voice: rottenness entered into my bones, and I trembled in myself, that I might rest in the day of trouble: when he cometh up unto the people, he will invade them with his troops. Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation. The LORD God is my strength, and He will make my feet like hinds' feet, and He will make me to walk upon mine high places. To the chief singer on my stringed instruments.” |
This is amazing to me! “Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought His judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD'S anger” (Zeph. 2:3). When you enter your church assembly and “sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever,” what is so forever and faithful about the mercy of God that you are singing about? To the psalmists, it is not that those of the regenerate multitude can never fall away from or fail to obtain the promises of salvation, but it is that God will eventually and finally, in a great consummation, fulfill all the promises in the final resurrection, and thence changelessly, in this, forevermore.
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PSALM 106 -THE ABRAHAMNIC & DAVIDIC COVENANT-
“Praise ye the LORD. O give thanks unto the LORD; for He is good: for His mercy endureth for ever” (Ps. 106:1). |
This psalm is like as Psalm 89. Please read Psalm 106:4-5, 47-48. The psalmist expressed his fervent appeal for salvation, because he was presently under the wrath of God. He prayed for salvation, hoping that God may repent and remember the Covenant for him. The last verses of the psalm are prayers for saving grace, but unlike other psalms, this one does not end with a confident reckoning or a triumphant proclamation that God has heard, or will hear his prayer unto salvation. The psalm ends without any evidence that the man is confident that he is, or will be, saved. Therefore, even while he was presently under the wrath of God, to my amazement, the psalmist’s opening line was – “His mercy endureth for ever!” This is the exact same opening used in Psalm 89. The psalmist desired for God to remember His Covenant (Lev. 26:42), which also is meant to include the man’s personal salvation therein. The psalmist rehearsed how God’s mercies had been magnified in past circumstances where God’s people were wayward and backsliding (like as the law commands that a man should do, see Psalm 78:5-7)…but specifically, the psalmist rehearsed the multitude of mercies which are in God, how the psalmist said, “we have sinned with our fathers, we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly” (Ps. 106:6) from the beginning of the Abrahamic Covenant, and after salvation in the Abrahamic Covenant, they “tempted God” to their great destruction, so much so that God “should destroy them” and did destroy many (Ps. 106:23), and yet, by the riches of His glorious mercy, God “saved” (Ps. 106:8) at the first, passed over great judgments presently and progressively, and continued to save a remnant, but lo, it was because Moses “stood before Him in the breach to turn away His wrath” (Ps. 106:23). After Moses’ death (Ps. 106:33), it appears that the psalmist traced the future generations through Joshua, through the Judges, and up into and through the Davidic Covenant, until the final dispersion (I conjecture), and the psalmist recognized how many times Israel rebelled and deserved total annihilation (Ps. 106:34-43)…but God did not totally annihilate, and He did rather hear and save His people when they were laden with “affliction,”, and from there lifted up the intercessory “cry” for salvation (Ps. 106:44). The psalmist recognizes that this cry and answer of God for salvation was the praise of God’s glory, that He “remembered for them His Covenant, and repented according to the multitude of His mercies” (Ps. 106:45). For this reason, being instructed by the near annihilation and scarce salvation of God’s people throughout the centuries, the psalmist praised God’s mercy, that it is a great “multitude” of mercies that “endureth for ever” (Ps. 106:45, 1)! Therefore the psalmist had hope that, though he was not presently saved, God may repent from destroying wrath and save him as he called upon Him. Therefore the psalmist ended the psalm with this uplifted cry – “Save us, O LORD our God, and gather us from among the heathen, to give thanks unto Thy Holy Name, and triumph in Thy praise. Blessed be the LORD God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting: and let all the people say, Amen. Praise ye the LORD” (Ps. 106:47-48). What is so good about God, what is thankworthy and praiseworthy, insomuch that it can be said – “His mercy endureth for ever” (Ps. 106:1)? NOT ALL of the regenerate people God are castaways! Nay, shockingly, a small remnant is spared for present and/or consummating salvation! “They shall inherit the land for ever…” (Isa. 60:21)! Is that what is amazing about the grace of God to you?
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Deuteronomy 7 -THE ABRAHAMIC COVENANT-
“because the LORD loved you…” – Deut. 7:8 “because He would keep the oath which He had sworn unto your fathers…” – Deut. 7:8 “He is God, the faithful God” – Deut. 7:9 “which keepeth Covenant and mercy” – Deut. 7:9 |
This faithfulness of God is mentioned in reference to the following: the parents of the audience that God was herein speaking to did fall away from their salvation and were lost, and God’s mercy in its promised oath and covenant-keeping faithfulness were magnified in this very specific way – that the generation in Covenant with God was raised up for salvation in the stead of their parents! Israel did rather deserve total annihilation! God desired, and spoke to accomplish, a total annihilation of them (Numbers 14:11-12), but He did not do this, because He is an oath and Covenant-keeping God of mercy and faithfulness! Now, what is so loving, merciful, faithful, and oath-keeping about God? It is that some, even that anyone, even a small remnant of the whole multitude of regenerate persons were saved, in your generation, and/or in the end of time, and it is not that none can be lost, or fall away, who were of the number that were formerly saved! Furthermore, God forewarned this generation that if they did not obey His commandments which secured holiness from the Canaanite nations (see Deut. 7:11-12, 1-5, 25-26), even these people who are the remaining and preserved remnant, He would destroy “suddenly” (Deut. 7:4).
You see, God had made a name for Himself in the castaway-wrath He had shown to the former generation, and He intended to keep the fame of this Name, that He – “repayeth them that hate Him to their face, to destroy them: He will not be slack to him that hateth Him, He will repay him to his face” (Deut. 7:10). This is why Moses titled the offspring of this reprobated generation with such downgrading terms, saying – “Behold, ye are risen up in your fathers’ stead, an increase of sinful men, to augment yet the fierce anger of the LORD toward Israel” (Num. 32:14). Moses warned them, “if ye turn away from after Him [God], He will yet again leave them [Israel] in the wilderness; and ye shall destroy all this people” (Num. 32:15). Moses affirmed the surety of God’s reprobating wrath as a dangerous potential, if indeed they sin in this way. Moses said – be sure of your eternal security? – NO! – He said, “be sure your sin will find you out” (Num. 32:23)! Turning back to Deuteronomy 7, see how the language here spoke very specifically that God would keep His Covenant and oath to the magnification of His mercy and faithfulness by keeping the next generation alive, and even they are warned of reprobation. Later generations came to understand the mercy and faithfulness of God by this very example in Deuteronomy 7. You can see this in their prayers, praises, and prophetic books, uttering the exact same meaning that is taught in Deuteronomy 7. Through the centuries of experience with God’s Covenants, the people of God come to confess all the attributes of God as titles to His Name – NOT JUST MERCY! They said, the Lord is “The Great, The Mighty, and The Terrible God, Who keepest Covenant and mercy” (Neh. 9:32)! Nehemiah 9 is a comprehensive summary of centuries of Church history, and, as a foreground that sets the stage for the glory of God’s everlasting, Covenant keeping mercy, Nehemiah rehearses centuries of near annihilation. Oh! It is the multitude of God’s Covenant-keeping mercies that salvific mercy is even available at all for latter generations, even after God did reprobate former generations…thus God is “terrible” and merciful, and lo, behold, He has “goodness and severity” (Rom. 11:22)!
Amazingly, to the staggering of my soul into astonishment and worship, the ever enduring mercy of God is praised in backslidden generations even while there is no manifestation of mercy and no sign of relenting wrath, and lo, the promises remain breached! Why is this? How happy I am to declare to my reader their secret! These brethren of old did know that, one day, though it is not their day, the promises will be fulfilled, or in other words, though wrath is burning now it will not burn forever. Wrath seems like it burns forever, but Oh! God’s mercy endures forever! Yea, there is a greater and longer lasting energy than wrath, at least for God’s chosen people, and that is, “His mercy endureth for ever!”
You see, God had made a name for Himself in the castaway-wrath He had shown to the former generation, and He intended to keep the fame of this Name, that He – “repayeth them that hate Him to their face, to destroy them: He will not be slack to him that hateth Him, He will repay him to his face” (Deut. 7:10). This is why Moses titled the offspring of this reprobated generation with such downgrading terms, saying – “Behold, ye are risen up in your fathers’ stead, an increase of sinful men, to augment yet the fierce anger of the LORD toward Israel” (Num. 32:14). Moses warned them, “if ye turn away from after Him [God], He will yet again leave them [Israel] in the wilderness; and ye shall destroy all this people” (Num. 32:15). Moses affirmed the surety of God’s reprobating wrath as a dangerous potential, if indeed they sin in this way. Moses said – be sure of your eternal security? – NO! – He said, “be sure your sin will find you out” (Num. 32:23)! Turning back to Deuteronomy 7, see how the language here spoke very specifically that God would keep His Covenant and oath to the magnification of His mercy and faithfulness by keeping the next generation alive, and even they are warned of reprobation. Later generations came to understand the mercy and faithfulness of God by this very example in Deuteronomy 7. You can see this in their prayers, praises, and prophetic books, uttering the exact same meaning that is taught in Deuteronomy 7. Through the centuries of experience with God’s Covenants, the people of God come to confess all the attributes of God as titles to His Name – NOT JUST MERCY! They said, the Lord is “The Great, The Mighty, and The Terrible God, Who keepest Covenant and mercy” (Neh. 9:32)! Nehemiah 9 is a comprehensive summary of centuries of Church history, and, as a foreground that sets the stage for the glory of God’s everlasting, Covenant keeping mercy, Nehemiah rehearses centuries of near annihilation. Oh! It is the multitude of God’s Covenant-keeping mercies that salvific mercy is even available at all for latter generations, even after God did reprobate former generations…thus God is “terrible” and merciful, and lo, behold, He has “goodness and severity” (Rom. 11:22)!
Amazingly, to the staggering of my soul into astonishment and worship, the ever enduring mercy of God is praised in backslidden generations even while there is no manifestation of mercy and no sign of relenting wrath, and lo, the promises remain breached! Why is this? How happy I am to declare to my reader their secret! These brethren of old did know that, one day, though it is not their day, the promises will be fulfilled, or in other words, though wrath is burning now it will not burn forever. Wrath seems like it burns forever, but Oh! God’s mercy endures forever! Yea, there is a greater and longer lasting energy than wrath, at least for God’s chosen people, and that is, “His mercy endureth for ever!”
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God’s Love in Creation:
Verses 5-9 |
God’s Salvific Love in the Abrahamic Covenant:
Verses 10-20 |
The Past, Present, & Final Possession of the Land:
Verses 21-24 |
Psalm 136:1-26
(1) O give thanks unto the LORD; for He is good: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(2) O give thanks unto the God of gods: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(3) O give thanks to the Lord of lords: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(4) To Him Who alone doeth great wonders: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(5) To Him that by wisdom made the heavens: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(6) To Him that stretched out the earth above the waters: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(7) To Him that made great lights: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(8) The sun to rule by day: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(9) The moon and stars to rule by night: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(10) To Him that smote Egypt in their firstborn: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(11) And brought out Israel from among them: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(12) With a strong hand, and with a stretched out arm: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(13) To Him which divided the Red sea into parts: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(14) And made Israel to pass through the midst of it: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(15) But overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red sea: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(16) To Him which led his people through the wilderness: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(17) To Him which smote great kings: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(18) And slew famous kings: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(19) Sihon king of the Amorites: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(20) And Og the king of Bashan: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(21) And gave their land for an heritage: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(22) Even an heritage unto Israel his servant: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(23) Who remembered us in our low estate: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(24) And hath redeemed us from our enemies: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(25) Who giveth food to all flesh: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(26) O give thanks unto the God of heaven: for His mercy endureth for ever.
In every verse, the psalmist exalts this single phrase of praise, for, behold, it is to most perfectly describe the gracious powers in God which motivate a continued salvation! He speaks of the goodness of God in creation – mankind in their created beginning – the goodness of God in the salvation of Israel from Egypt unto the possession of the land, past, present, and final, and he praises the situation of need which God attended to with saving mercy – “Who remembered us in our low estate: for His mercy endureth for ever: And hath redeemed us from our enemies: for His mercy endureth for ever” (136:23-24) – all the way to newly created mankind in their end. Therefore, adjure thee, ye saints! As you wrestle for perfection in our holy pursuit for present progressive salvation in God, let us learn to pray as David prayed, wrestle as David wrestled, and win Covenant graces as David won them, and let us so conclude the chapter of our present troubles like him, and, lo, also the end of our lives – “(7) Though I walk in the midst of trouble, Thou wilt revive me: Thou shalt stretch forth Thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies, and Thy right hand shall save me. (8) The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me: Thy mercy, O LORD, endureth for ever: forsake not the works of Thine own hands” (Psalm 138:7-8).
(1) O give thanks unto the LORD; for He is good: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(2) O give thanks unto the God of gods: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(3) O give thanks to the Lord of lords: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(4) To Him Who alone doeth great wonders: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(5) To Him that by wisdom made the heavens: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(6) To Him that stretched out the earth above the waters: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(7) To Him that made great lights: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(8) The sun to rule by day: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(9) The moon and stars to rule by night: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(10) To Him that smote Egypt in their firstborn: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(11) And brought out Israel from among them: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(12) With a strong hand, and with a stretched out arm: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(13) To Him which divided the Red sea into parts: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(14) And made Israel to pass through the midst of it: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(15) But overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red sea: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(16) To Him which led his people through the wilderness: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(17) To Him which smote great kings: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(18) And slew famous kings: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(19) Sihon king of the Amorites: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(20) And Og the king of Bashan: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(21) And gave their land for an heritage: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(22) Even an heritage unto Israel his servant: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(23) Who remembered us in our low estate: for His mercy endureth for ever:
(24) And hath redeemed us from our enemies: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(25) Who giveth food to all flesh: for His mercy endureth for ever.
(26) O give thanks unto the God of heaven: for His mercy endureth for ever.
In every verse, the psalmist exalts this single phrase of praise, for, behold, it is to most perfectly describe the gracious powers in God which motivate a continued salvation! He speaks of the goodness of God in creation – mankind in their created beginning – the goodness of God in the salvation of Israel from Egypt unto the possession of the land, past, present, and final, and he praises the situation of need which God attended to with saving mercy – “Who remembered us in our low estate: for His mercy endureth for ever: And hath redeemed us from our enemies: for His mercy endureth for ever” (136:23-24) – all the way to newly created mankind in their end. Therefore, adjure thee, ye saints! As you wrestle for perfection in our holy pursuit for present progressive salvation in God, let us learn to pray as David prayed, wrestle as David wrestled, and win Covenant graces as David won them, and let us so conclude the chapter of our present troubles like him, and, lo, also the end of our lives – “(7) Though I walk in the midst of trouble, Thou wilt revive me: Thou shalt stretch forth Thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies, and Thy right hand shall save me. (8) The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me: Thy mercy, O LORD, endureth for ever: forsake not the works of Thine own hands” (Psalm 138:7-8).