Psalm 105:4-7; antiphon, Psalm 105:8—In the
Introit for Sunday, we pray, He remembers His covenant forever, the word
that He commanded, for a thousand generations. This psalm is an exhortation
to Israel to worship and trust in the Lord because of all His saving acts in
fulfillment of His covenant with Abraham to give His descendants the land of
Canaan.
Psalm 105 – The Lord’s Blessing on His People
Whoever
arranged and ordered the psalms placed Psalm 105 and Psalm 106 together
purposefully. This and the following psalm are companions. They reveal the two
sides of the relation between God and His people during a long period. This one
sings the song of His faithfulness and power; while the next tells the sad
story of repeated failure and rebellion on the part of His people.
The first
15 verses of Psalm 105 are also found in 1 Chronicles 16:8-22 and presented
there as a composition of David, written and sung for the bringing of the Ark
of the Covenant into Jerusalem. We can therefore conclude that though this
psalm is not here specifically attributed to King David, he is the author of
it. [2]
Faith in God’s Promises
As Jesus continues during Lent to
Jerusalem to suffer and die, we are reminded that there is a reason for it: our
salvation. The motive for this sacrifice is God’s love. While we were yet
sinners, Christ died for us out of love for God and us. How does this affect
us? Faith is the receptive agent, which brings to us the benefits of God’s
love. In the Gospel, faith in the crucified Christ brings us eternal life.
Abraham by faith in God’s promise is blessed (Old Testament Lesson Genesis 12:1-9).
Paul uses Abraham (Epistle Lesson Romans 4:1-8; 13-17)
as an example of faith, which brought him and us the righteousness of God. The
Prayer continues the theme: “Lead them
again to embrace in faith the truth....” In Psalm 105, it is implied that
the eye of the Lord is upon those who in faith respect God not because of the believer’s
faith but because the word and the Lord’s covenant which He remembers.
Collect
for Psalm 105: God
our Father, through the death and resurrection of your Son you have fulfilled
the promise to Abraham, Joseph and Moses to redeem the world from slavery and
to lead us into the Promised Land. Grant us living water from the rock and
bread from heavens that we may survive our desert pilgrimage and praise you
forever, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen [3]
[2] https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/psalm-105
[3] Collect for Psalm 105, For All the Saints, A Prayer Book For and By the Church, Vol. III © 1995 The American Lutheran Publicity Bureau, Delhi, NY
[4] Ibid, Collect for Monday of the week of Lent 1,
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