Psalms 117-118 from my new book:

A NEW LOOK AT THE OLD PSALMS

Praying the Psalms: a modern interpretation

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I present here a new perspective on the psalms. I have rewritten them from a New 
Testament Christ-centered point of view. I did not try to capture the poetry of the 
psalms – I leave that to more gifted writers – but I attempted to capture their message
with a more modern interpretation.

God bless,

John

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Psalm 117

E

xalt the Lord, all you nations. Worship him, all peoples of the world, for God’s will is to save everyone. He cares for all the earth’s inhabitants with the same love and compassion he showed to the Jewish nation. And his truth — the spirit of Christ — will abide forever in those who believe in him. Alleluia!⁶²

Psalm 118

L

et us thank the Lord for his love, compassion, and unending faithfulness. Let all those who worship the Lord proclaim his mercy and acknowledge his eternal loyalty to his covenant.

When I was in distress, I called upon the Lord, and he helped me. What can man do to me with God by my side? My enemies have no power over me because I trust in the Lord and not in men or rulers.

I was fenced in by the wicked, like a honeycomb surrounded by bees. They fumed with anger, but I defeated them with the Lord’s help. I was assaulted and humiliated, almost to the point of falling, but the Lord strengthened me, and now I praise him for saving me.

The righteous celebrate the saving power of God, for he gave me the victory. I did not die, but lived to give glory to God for all he had done for me. Yes, he did chastise me because I had gone astray, but he allowed me to live. Now I see the light of his truth, embrace it, and thank him for it. All his faithful ones will cling to his truth. Thank you, Lord, for answering my prayer and saving me.

Jesus himself was attacked and disgraced by his own people, yet he became the foundation of God’s Church on earth. This was the Father’s doing, and it was a sight to behold, just as when he raised Christ from the dead, and we were so happy.

Save us, Lord, and help us to live life abundantly. Blessed is the one who professes his faith in you. Your Church praises you, for you are our God and have revealed yourself to us in your Son. As we once spread our palms to welcome Jesus to Jerusalem, we celebrate his resurrection by acknowledging that he is our Lord and our God. We exalt him and give him thanks for our salvation.

Let us thank the Lord for his love, compassion, and unending faithfulness. Let all those who worship the Lord proclaim his mercy and acknowledge his eternal loyalty to his covenant. Amen. Alleluia!⁶³

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Cover image: Christ the Saviour (Pantokrator)." Web. 25 Sept 2016.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Spas_vsederzhitel_sinay.jpg
"Creative Commons License." Web. 18 May 2016.
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

⁶²John Brook, The School of Prayer. (Collegeville: The Liturgical Press, 1992), 220.

⁶³The Orthodox Study Bible. (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2008), 760..

This book and other books I have written are posted for your reading pleasure at Booksie.

Scriptural quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, 

copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois
60189. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2016 by John P. Gross. All rights reserved. Reproduction of this material must 

be done in its entirety with the copyright notice intact. This book is not for sale, but is 

offered to the public free of charge for the glory of God.