Psalms

Chapter 118

The LORD Is on My Side

This psalm opens and closes with thanksgiving for the LORD's enduring steadfast love, but in between it traces the path from distress to public praise. Israel, the house of Aaron, and all who fear the LORD are summoned to confess mercy; an afflicted worshiper testifies that the LORD answered, defended, disciplined, and saved; then the psalm moves toward the gates of righteousness, the rejected stone made the cornerstone, and the blessing of the one who comes in the name of the LORD.

Psalm 118 gathers many of Book V's dominant themes into a single festival song: covenant mercy, trust over human power, deliverance from hostile nations, temple thanksgiving, and joy in the LORD's saving reversal. As the great closing movement of the Egyptian Hallel, it serves as both communal liturgy and personal testimony, showing how rescue ripens into procession, praise, and renewed allegiance.

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Psalms 118

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vv. 1-29

The LORD Is on My Side

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G¹ive thanks to the LORD, for He is good; ²Let Israel say, ³Let the house of Aaron say, ⁴Let those who fear the LORD say,

⁵In my distress I called to the LORD, ⁶The LORD is on my side; I will not be afraid. ⁷The LORD is on my side; He is my helper. ⁸It is better to take refuge in the LORD ⁹It is better to take refuge in the LORD

¹⁰All the nations surrounded me, ¹¹They surrounded me on every side, ¹²They swarmed around me like bees, ¹³I was pushed so hard I was falling, ¹⁴The LORD is my strength and my song, ¹⁵Shouts of joy and salvation resound in the tents of the righteous: ¹⁶The right hand of the LORD is exalted! ¹⁷I will not die, but I will live ¹⁸The LORD disciplined me severely,

¹⁹Open to me the gates of righteousness, ²⁰This is the gate of the LORD; ²¹I will give You thanks, for You have answered me, ²²The stone the builders rejected ²³This is from the LORD, ²⁴This is the day that the LORD has made;

²⁵O LORD, save us, we pray. ²⁶Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD. ²⁷The LORD is God; ²⁸You are my God, and I will give You thanks. ²⁹Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good;

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01vv. 1-29The LORD Is on My SideThe psalm begins with a repeated call to thank the LORD for his enduring steadfast love, then moves through distress, deliverance, and victory into a liturgical procession toward the gates of righteousness. Along the way it contrasts trust in the LORD with reliance on people or princes, celebrates the LORD's right hand in battle, declares the rejected stone to be the cornerstone, asks for salvation and blessing, and closes by returning to thanksgiving.