Psalm 118:16

Psalm 118:16, in plain English

God's power—described as His 'right hand'—is exalted and active, doing mighty things on behalf of His people.

Why it's here

The right hand in Scripture symbolizes power and authority. This verse repeats the idea from verse 15, hammering home that God's strength is real and active.

Who's speaking

The psalmist and the celebrating community, emphasizing God's power

Where it sits in the story

The 'right hand of God' appears throughout Scripture as the instrument of God's action—parting seas, defeating enemies, raising Jesus from the dead.

The scholarly reading

The affirmation escalates and repeats: God's power is exalted, and it manifests in mighty deeds.

Language and setting

Verse 16 repeats and intensifies verse 15, following the parallelistic technique that structures the entire psalm. The doubling emphasizes that God's right hand represents both exaltation (His elevated status) and manifestation (visible mighty deeds). This repetition would create a crescendo effect in liturgical recitation, building emotional and theological intensity. By verse 16, the psalm has established a complete arc: distress, deliverance, testimony, and celebration.

Voice

The community, intensifying their celebratory affirmation.

Significance

This exaltation of God's hand echoes earlier passages like Exodus 15:6 (the Song of the Sea) and anticipates New Testament emphasis on Christ's exaltation at God's right hand (Hebrews 1:3).

14The LORD is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation.

15Shouts of joy and salvation resound in the tents of the righteous: “The right hand of the LORD performs with valor!

16The right hand of the LORD is exalted! The right hand of the LORD performs with valor!”

17I will not die, but I will live and proclaim what the LORD has done.

18The LORD disciplined me severely, but He has not given me over to death.

Read all of Psalm 118 — Open the gates of righteousness. The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. Jesus claimed this verse for Himself.