Hesed

    This entry is a tribute to Tito Dennis and Tita Beth. Psalm 100:5 is their Wedding Anniversary Verse. To grasp what the verse entails in relation to marriage, it is imperative to include the entire chapter. The commentary is supplied by the cited sources in the Bibliography. The marriage section is based on careful analysis and observation of the author.

Psalm 100

1. Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
2. Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
3. Know that the Lord is God.
    It is He who made us, and we are His;
    we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
4. Enter his gates with Thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
5. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Commentary

    Verse 1, The first verse invites the congregation to "shout" for YHWH. It emphasizes the action that needs to be done by the people which the phrase "all the earth" refers to. 

    Verse 2, Not only to shout but also to "worship" which the second verse adds as the command to the people and this time "with gladness". It describes how the people worship God and the manner, and posture of how they perform their acts of worship which is an outflow of the intimate relationship with God.1 Both the first 2 verses highlight the imperative2 command of "Shouting" and "Worshipping". Verse 1 contains the "who's"3 doing the "shouting" and verse 2 contains the "how" to "worship" the Lord. Most of the public is aware that worship can be done in a variety of ways. One of the most common ways of worshipping both in the past and the present is through "singing" which is explicit in the second part of the second verse.  

    Coming to the Lord to worship and praise him with joy is not a requirement. But rather it is the result of having the Holy Spirit’s empowerment inside mankind.4 The emotional aspect of being human involves the joy that God had imputed upon them “when they are gripped by the divine presence.”5 It is not something manufactured by humans alone before coming to the presence of the Holy God.

    Verse 3, In the middle, focuses on the identity of God. It answers the question "Who is God?" The phrase “he made us” does not refer to the creation account in Genesis but rather God’s action of claiming Israel as priests through Abraham, redeeming them from Egypt, and how they return from exile.6 It is more of the proven intervening acts of God through the lives of his chosen people not him being the “creator God”.

    In a society where there are false gods competing with Israel’s faithfulness to one Lord, God is the universal7 Lord. In the second part of verse 3, the sheep illustration is also used. It will be easy for the original reader of the Psalm to vividly imagine the shepherd taking care of the sheep in the fields. The normal way of life during those times is different from our world today. When we wake up we see cars and buildings. When they wake up they see sheep, cattle, rivers, fields, mountains, and birds, it is highly rural.

    The sheep do not usually sing songs to the shepherd. But I wonder if they worship their shepherds? Or in the sheep's minds, how do they usually give or offer something to the shepherd? Is there another reason why the author of this Psalm used the sheep illustration?

    In verse 4, Another element is introduced, the "gate". As the people worship they actually are entering the Lord's presence8 with praise in the form of gratitude. Approaching God involves thanksgiving. Thanksgiving and praise repeat twice in the verse.

    Verse 5, Discloses the main reason9, motivation, and intention of approaching God with joyful songs, worship, praise, and thanksgiving which is "Who he is" because he is good. Part of his attribute as good is an ever-enduring love and his faithfulness which is for eternity. These are the “three aspects of goodness, loyal love, and faithfulness”10 that were repeated throughout other Psalms whenever the community praised God. The main focal point of worship is God's goodness and his everlasting attributes of love and faithfulness. Scholars would agree that this Psalm is written in post-exilic times and “he remains faithful to his people because he has covenanted to do so.”11 The steadfast love and faithfulness that is talked about in verse 5 are “mentioned in the context of the proclamation of God’s reign (see also Ps 86:15; 89:2, 14, 49; 92:2; 117:2)”12 Since God is our shepherd our “only proper response is joyful gratitude and praise.”

Marriage

The most commonly used bible passages in sermons relating to marriage can be found in Paul’s epistles, particularly in Ephesians 5 and 1 Cor 13. Rarely or if not a Psalm is used specifically Psalm 100. Psalm 100 revealed what kind of love does the divine being have for his people. It endures and lasts throughout generations.
The beauty of the NT imagery of Christ’s interaction with the people, the church is what Christ had already done on the cross, “just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her” (Eph 5:25). It is past-focused. On the other hand, Psalm 100 refers to the attribute of divine love that is present and future-oriented. No matter what happens it will never be broken because it endures. Both testaments showcase different facets of God’s love to people which would be their model for human relationships, specifically marriage.
As stated in the commentary God’s reign is the overarching theme of this kind of love. Without God in the picture, the love that the couple has for one another would be temporal and not enduring. Outside of God’s design and intention for marriage, a married couple is doomed to fail because God is not the center. People might see not Christian couples and are still happy, but it does not mean that they have the inner peace and eternal joy that God can only provide in marriage.
With Psalm 100:5 as a reminder, God’s reign and love that supply the married couple will always be sufficient even for generations to come. There would be struggles, trials, and challenges that the couple will face but God is faithful not only to preserve the marriage but also to make it victorious. 

Footnotes:

1 Rolf A. Jacobson, “Psalm 100: Praise the One True God,” in The Book Of Psalms, ed. Robert L. Hubbard, Jr., (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2014), 737.

2 Ibid., 735.

3 Ibid., 736.

4 Ibid., 738.

5 Ibid., 738.

6 Ibid., 738.

7 Ibid., 735.

8 Ibid., 735.

9 A. A. Anderson, Psalms (73-150), The New Century Bible Commentary (Grand Rapids: Marshall, Morgan & Scott, 1981), 700.

10 Marvin E. Tate, Psalms 51-100, WBC (Dallas: Word, 1990), 538.

11 Tremper Longman III and David E. Garland, Psalms: Volume 5., The Expositor’s Bible Commentary (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2008), 743.

12 J. Clinton McCann, JR., “The Book of Psalms,” in The New Interpreter’s Bible A Commentary in Twelve Volumes: Volume IV, ed. Leander E. Keck (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1996), 1079.

Bibliography

Anderson, A. A. Psalms (73-150), The New Century Bible Commentary. Grand Rapids: Marshall, Morgan & Scott, 1981. 

Jacobson, Rolf A. “Psalm 100: Praise the One True God.” in The Book Of Psalms, ed. Robert L. Hubbard, Jr., 734-740. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2014.

Longman III, Tremper and David E. Garland. Psalms: Volume 5. The Expositor’s Bible Commentary. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2008.

McCann, J. Clinton, JR. “The Book of Psalms,” in The New Interpreter’s Bible A Commentary in Twelve Volumes: Volume IV, ed. Leander E. Keck. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1996, 1079.

Tate, Marvin E.  Psalms 51-100, Word Biblical Commentary. Dallas: Word Books Publisher, 1990.