Great Are the Works of the Lord
He has caused His wonders to be remembered; the LORD is gracious and compassionate. Psalm 111:4 · Berean Standard Bible
God deliberately made sure His people wouldn't forget the amazing things He's done, and this reveals His nature: He's kind and deeply moved by compassion for others.
Notice the word 'caused'—God didn't just do these wonders and leave; He ensured they'd be remembered and passed down. This is intentional. And the psalmist connects this to God's character traits: graciousness and compassion aren't just words, they're what motivate His actions.
The psalmist, now moving into the personal dimension of God's character.
Throughout Scripture, God commands remembrance—remember the Exodus, remember the parting of the sea, remember the covenant. These aren't mere nostalgia; they're anchors for faith in hard times.
God actively ensures His miraculous deeds are remembered and celebrated, revealing His compassionate nature through these acts.
The concept of memorial (זכרון, zikaron) was central to Jewish cultic practice—not merely as psychological recollection but as existential participation in past divine acts made present through remembrance. The combination of wonder-works (נפלאות, niflaot) with graciousness (חסד, hesed) presents God's power as fundamentally merciful rather than arbitrary or tyrannical.
The worship leader affirming the community's responsibility to remember and transmit God's mighty deeds through liturgical recitation and instruction.
This recalls the Passover and Exodus traditions—God's deliberate instruction to 'remember' becomes an ongoing performative practice. It prefigures the Christian memorial practices of Eucharist and baptism, where past redemptive acts become liturgically efficacious in the present.
2Great are the works of the LORD; they are pondered by all who delight in them.
3Splendid and majestic is His work; His righteousness endures forever.
4He has caused His wonders to be remembered; the LORD is gracious and compassionate.
5He provides food for those who fear Him; He remembers His covenant forever.
6He has shown His people the power of His works by giving them the inheritance of the nations.
Read all of Psalm 111 — An acrostic of praise — each line beginning with the next Hebrew letter. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
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