Summer Psalms - Psalms of Thanksgiving

 

Readings.   Psalm 118, Matthew 21: 1-11

  

The Bible talks a lot about “giving thanks”—but what if some of that meaning is lost on us today?

 I suspect that most of us were taught “the magic words” when we were young - “please” and “thank you”.   Words that meant adults would give us stuff.   Words that we use almost without thinking – it is impolite not to and it gets noticed, if not commented upon, if we don’t.

 To us, thanksgiving is an expression of gratitude.   We say “thanks” - sometimes before we have really had a chance to think about what we’re thankful for.   It’s the polite thing to do, like saying “bless you” after a sneeze (or “God bless you,” for extra spirituality points).

So we skim over the bits about ‘giving thanks’ in the Bible – of course we are thankful, we have said so (probably).   But like so many familiar words, we can say them without meaning, perhaps even whilst thinking about something else.

 But ‘thankfulness’ is a big deal in the Bible.   In fact, it’s one of the specific things that we’re told to do.   Paul, writing his final instructions to the Thessalonians:

“…give thanks in all circumstances…”


In fact, that is part of a longer sentence:

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

1 Thess 5: 16-18 

 This is one of the ways God expects us to live.

 

Sometimes it can be hard to find the words.   As I have said over the last few weeks, the Psalms give us words we can use; they speak for us as much as to us.   This was true for Psalms of praise and Psalms of lament.   It is also true when it comes to giving thanks.

 

There are a number of Psalms that can be grouped together as “Psalms of Thanksgiving”.

When we read them, we might think of them as very similar to the Psalms of Praise we heard about two weeks ago.

 They do express ‘thanks’ and ‘praise’ almost interchangeably, often for some specific act of deliverance the Psalmist has experienced.   In fact, in Hebrew, the words for ‘thank’ and ‘praise’ are closely related. ‘Todah’ means thanksgiving, while ‘Yadah’ refers to praise, often expressed through raising hands in gratitude.

 ‘Todah’ appears 32 times in the Old Testament.   It's used for both thanksgiving offerings (Leviticus 7:12) and verbal expressions of gratitude, e.g. Psalm 100:4

Enter his gates with thanksgiving
    and his courts with praise;
    give thanks to him and praise his name.


Here, gratitude is the doorway to God's presence.

 In modern Hebrew, 'todah' is the standard way to say 'thank you.'   But ‘todah’ carries a depth that 'thank you' doesn't.   Its root means 'to throw, to cast' — thanksgiving in Hebrew is literally casting your gratitude toward God like an offering.

 So we can say that a difference between Psalms of Thanksgiving and Psalms of Praise is

·        Psalms of Praise express praise to God, whereas

·        Psalms of Thanksgiving speak about what God has done.

The aim of these Psalms of Thanksgiving is not only to praise God; they are a form of witness to what God has done.  They are declaring before others

“our God has done this… he has rescued us”.

 In fact, these Psalms of Thanksgiving may be more closely related to Psalms of Lament, which speak in hope of what God will do.   Last week I talked about Psalms of Lament moving from despair to life and then to promises, publicly expressing thanks in expectation of God’s deliverance.   The Psalms of Thanksgiving look at what God has done.   They are specific, a response to God saying “look what our God did”

 

These Psalms of Thanksgiving are mainly written from the point of view of an individual, with just a few regarded as communal thanksgivings.

 They follow a structure:

·        Starting with God, often with a declaration of intent to give thanks.

·        They then talk about the previous state they were in, how they prayed for help and what God did

·        Before concluding with a call to praise God

 

Psalm 118 is an example of an individual thanksgiving, but is a bit more complicated – It refers to deliverance by God from 3 troubles:

·        A personal deliverance

·        Deliverance from a conflict with a foreign nation

·        Deliverance from captivity or slavery

 The speaker can be thought of as a representative figure, an army commander or king, speaking on behalf of the nation, who then responds to the victory.

 The New Testament references the Psalms; Some scholars believe that Psalm 118 may have been the hymn the gospels refer to that the disciples sang at the Last Supper.   Psalms 113 to 118 are still recited verbatim by some Jews on certain Jewish holidays, including Passover, as an act of praise and thanksgiving.

Jesus applied words of the Psalms to himself.   Matthew 21: 42 (NIVUK)

Jesus said to them, ‘Have you never read in the Scriptures:

‘“The stone the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone;
the Lord has done this,
    and it is marvellous in our eyes”?

Jesus used this phrase from Psalm 118: 22-24

In our reading from Matthew (21: 9), as Jesus enters Jerusalem ahead of the Passover, the crowd cried

‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’


Here, the crowd took words of Psalm 118: 26 and used them about Jesus.   The words of the Psalm were literally coming true in front of them, so they shouted “Hosanna”, meaning “save, we pray”.

Words of praise coming from a place of thankfulness.


What about today?

What about us?

What do psalms of thanksgiving, like Psalm 118, have to teach us?

 

1. They help us recognise the importance of being thankful

Psalm 118 begins and ends with thanksgiving.

Verse 1

1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
    his love endures for ever.

Verse 29

29 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
    his love endures for ever.


It encourages us to remember who God is and what God has done, rather than focusing only on what is going wrong.

 

2. They encourage us to remember God's faithfulness

The first 4 verses repeat why we give thanks -  because of the love of God

1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
    his love endures for ever.

2 Let Israel say:
    ‘His love endures for ever.’
3 Let the house of Aaron say:
    ‘His love endures for ever.’
4 Let those who fear the Lord say:
    ‘His love endures for ever.’


Remembering God's love, His past faithfulness can give us confidence for the future.

 

3. They remind us that we don't face life alone

The Psalm repeatedly speaks about God as the source of help and protection.   This encourages us to turn to God rather than relying entirely on our own strength.

6 The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid.
    What can mere mortals do to me?
7 The Lord is with me; he is my helper.
    I look in triumph on my enemies.


Thanksgiving is not dependent on having a perfect life.   It is a way of remembering God's goodness in both good and difficult circumstances.  

Its message for us today could be summed up as: Remember what God has done, trust Him in what you are facing, and give thanks for His enduring love.

We might not feel very thankful, particularly when times are dark, when we are facing difficulties.   But again the Psalms give us words we can use, just as the writer of Hebrews did:

So we say with confidence,

‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.
    What can mere mortals do to me?’

Hebrews 13: 6

Psalm 118:

8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord
    than to trust in humans.
9 It is better to take refuge in the Lord
    than to trust in princes.

 

The writer describes experiencing distress and opposition, yet still declares confidence in God rather than anything or anyone else

They give hope during difficult times.

This is important today because thanksgiving does not mean pretending that problems don't exist.   Rather, the Psalm teaches that we can acknowledge our difficulties while still trusting that God is with us.


5. Perhaps, most importantly, giving thanks changes our perspective

Thanksgiving shifts our attention from “What am I missing?” to “What have I received?”

Thanksgiving is an antidote to complaining.

It’s how we are created to live – being thankful, so it is good for us and our mental health.

It puts us in the right place to come before God.

 

The Psalms are full of reminders of what God has done.

Believing this, we can then give thanks – whatever our circumstances – because our God is with us, loving us, all the time.

 

Revd Kevin

 All Bible references are from New International Version - UK (NIVUK) Holy Bible, New International Version® Anglicized, NIV® Copyright © 1979, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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