What does it mean that "His mercy endures forever" (Jeremiah 33:11 and Psalm 136)?

We have then in these two parts the fulfilment, in Israel's joy before Jehovah, of the covenant made with the fathers, following after His mighty works; and the call addressed to the nations to come up to the place of His glory. We have next this form of words, "His mercy endures for ever," declaring that in spite of all the faults, all the sins, and all the unfaithfulness of Israel, Jehovah's mercy has stood firm. It will be when the Lamb, the true ark of the covenant and the real David, shall be upon Mount Zion, even before He assumes the character of Solomon, that this will be fully demonstrated. Accordingly, since David, this has been sung (compare ver. 41; 2 Chron. 5:13; Ezra 3:11; Jer. 33:11).

This Psalm takes up the well-known Israel's chorus, "For his mercy endureth for ever." The present occasion of their praises, proved that "mercy endureth for ever," and that that mercy had really gone on unceasingly, and had preserved them through their rebellions, and remembered them, as said in Deuteronomy, "in their low estate," and "redeemed" them from the hand of their enemies. It still takes up the Almighty Sovereignty of God Jehovah, and takes up the same elements of praise, but adds Israel's sense of mercy, and that its having endured for ever enabled Israel to take up this very praise now. "He remembered us in our low estate" - then indeed it is that praise really comes out from a humble spirit, and mercy known now, and known in unchanging favour in personal blessing, gets more glorious and lovely, because a love which flowed from itself, not caused by the Spirit, is added to the praises as the sinner's only basis for them all. It is a beautiful expression of this. And the mind, thus taught, recounts them all with happy particularity - power, wisdom, skill, grandeur of governance in the objects formed in their proper order. Judicial and mighty power in deliverance to His people - for the Creator looks at them (and they are immediately associated with Creation in its blessing) who did everything in controlling power over creation for them - distinctive in judgment, Israel passed through, Pharaoh overthrown - who led them with unceasing care where there was no way, and smote their enemies when they would have checked their entrance into their inheritance, giving their possessions to them, His people - and, after all, "Redeemed them from their low estate, for indeed his mercy endureth for ever" - and then blessed in Providence all the race of man, and the animal creation too, for to this his mercy reached, "The God of Heaven, whose mercy endureth for ever."

This Psalm opens with what may be termed the refrain of Israel's national song — at least from the time of Solomon's temple (see 2 Chr. 5:13); and the song which proclaims that "His mercy endureth for ever" is surely a song for eternity. And it is exceedingly beautiful to notice how the Psalmist connects the mercy of the Lord with the whole of Israel's relationships and history. Thus in verses 2-4 it flows from what God is as the God of gods, the Lord of lords, and as the doer of great wonders; i.e. what God is in His absolute supremacy, and in His almighty power. From verses 5-9 God as Creator is celebrated, and for His mercy. Next it is as Redeemer. (vv. 10-15.) And whether it be in judgment upon Egypt, bringing Israel out with a strong hand and a stretched-out arm, or in the overthrow of Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea, it is the thought of His enduring mercy that fills the hearts of His people, and produces their song. So in every subsequent stage of their history. Thus, in verse 16, the ascription is to Him who led His people through the wilderness; in verses 17-20, to Him who delivered them from their foes by the way; and then, in verses 21, 22, who put them in possession of their land. The One who had brought them out had also brought them in, for His mercy endureth for ever. The next two verses (23, 24) sum up all the past. God had remembered His people in their low estate (in Egypt), and had redeemed them from all their enemies, from that time until in the enjoyment of their heritage. And verse 25 looks onward to the millennium, and anticipates the supply of the need of all flesh, when mercy will be the theme of their song — as much then as now. The Psalm concludes with celebrating the God of heaven — God in the universal range of His power and authority. And still it is, "His mercy endureth for ever."

Thus from first to last, and during all the interval from first to last, in creation (and we can go further back still — even to God's purposes of grace in Christ before the foundation of the world), in our redemption, our guidance through the wilderness, our deliverance from our enemies, our being put into possession of all that God has secured for us in Christ, whether now, or when we are for ever with the Lord, it is and will be nothing but mercy, so that we may adopt Israel's song, and cry unceasingly, "O give thanks unto the Lord; for He is good, for His mercy endureth for ever." E. D.

This psalm presents the response of Israel to the call to praise of the previous psalm. The first half of each verse presents the theme of praise; the second half the refrain of praise, “For His loving-kindness endures for ever.” Every stage of Israel's history is recounted to make manifest that throughout their checkered history the loving-kindness of the Lord had endured.

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 favours 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. The answer is that human beings are so easy-going and complacent in accepting the wonderful mercies of God without being thankful. And further, the history of Israel is mainly in view in this Psalm, and they were a people under the law, and forgetful of the fact that the law only brought condemnation on them, whereas all the good things they enjoyed reached them on the ground of God’s mercy.

Of first importance is the fact of who He is, which always precedes what He has done. To begin with, He is good, in contrast to all others, for "there is none who does good, no, not one" (Rom. 3:12). Because it is God's very nature to be good, therefore everything He does is good, even though it may mean dreadful judgment for the ungodly. "His mercy endures forever." This is repeated in every verse of this psalm, for it is a fact that needs to be learned well, and will be learned in the millennium.

"Thus says the Lord; again there shall be heard in this place, which ye say shall be desolate without man and without beast, even in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem that are desolate, without man, and without inhabitant, and without beast, 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 endures 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, says the Lord." (Ver. 10, 11.) As surely as He had previously threatened and was now accomplishing His threat to take from them the voice of mirth and of gladness, of the bridegroom and of the bride, so does He assure, in the face of appearances and natural results and forebodings of desolation but too suitable to guilt, that the sounds of joy should be renewed in their land, and not of nature only but the voice of them that say His praise and bring appropriate sacrifice into His house.

Psalm 136 celebrates a blessed principle in connection with Zion, the place of sovereign grace in power. Our having the place of praise and thanksgiving depends on this, that His mercy endures for ever. Ichabod had been written on Israel; the ark, where the blood was to be placed on the day of atonement that Israel might have a place with God, was taken - as far as Israel went, lost. But God's mercy endures for ever, and David, so soon as he sets the ark on Zion, establishes this song there, celebrating the alone Jehovah, the Creator and wonder - doer of His people. His mercy does endure for ever for us. Christ and the Father's love in every way secure our blessing and ourselves for it. But while glory awaits us, and He will confirm us to the end, we possess that in which He confirms us, even eternal life as His children. The life we have and know it; the inheritance we have nothing of as yet, but are assured of and being kept for it. And in this wilderness we can abundantly say, His mercy endureth for ever. But it is only along the road we say it, because we have eternal life. Only if a soul wanders from Him and is restored, it can say with special application that His mercy endures for ever.

As a remnant who had escaped they occupied this divine platform, and sang the praise of Jehovah: "O give thanks unto the Lord for He is good, for His mercy endureth for ever." That chorus had been sung in the bright day of David's success: when he brought up the Ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite to Jerusalem (1 Chron. 16:41). It had again resounded when the house of the Lord at Jerusalem was filled with the cloud and glory of His manifested presence in the days of Solomon. (2 Chron. 5:13.) When the glory and brightness and successes of those days had passed away, and the failure and ruin of Israel was complete, the returned remnant could raise the very same old note of praise, "O give thanks unto the Lord for He is good, for His mercy endureth for ever." (Ezra 3:11.) They had been faithless, but He was faithful. The fathers of Israel who had seen the house of the Lord before the captivity, could weep when they thought of the unfaithfulness of the people. The younger ones could sing with joy when they celebrated the faithfulness of the Lord. The weeping and the rejoicing were both good — to weep was right, when they thought of the failure of the people to Jehovah; but to rejoice was right, when they thought of the faithfulness of God!

Reaching verse 8, we pass on to the second year of their return and find them setting forward this work, so that the foundations of the house were actually laid. This provoked a very moving scene, in which both joy and sorrow were mingled. There was joyful praise and thanksgiving to God, according to the 'ordinance of David king of Israel', as was indeed fitting. In Psalm 136 it is stated of God twenty-six times that 'His mercy endures for ever', and this they now acknowledged in regard to themselves as representing Israel. It was the confession that no merit on their side had led to the revival in which they had part. It was all on the ground of God's mercy. Every revival, granted by God, in the sad history of Christendom, has been based upon the mercy of God, without merit on our side. Let us never forget this.