All the paths of יהוה, are loving and sure (Ps 25:10);
Well I know that I shall see the goodness of יהוה, in the land of the living (Ps 27:13);
Blessed be יהוה, whose unfailing love for me was wonderful (Ps 31:21);
. . . the earth is filled with the unfailing love of יהוה, (Ps 33:5);
יהוה, who saves both [man] and beast, how precious is your unfailing love! (Ps 36:7);
It is יהוה who directs a person’s steps; [he] holds [him] firm and approves of [his] conduct (Ps 37:21);
You, יהוה, will not withhold your tender care for me; may your love and truth forever guard me (Ps 40:11);
Book Two (Pss 41–72)
By day יהוה, grants [his] unfailing love; at night [his] praise is on my lips, a prayer to the God of my life (Ps 42:8);
Arise and come to our aid; for your love’s sake deliver us (Ps 44:26);
God, within your temple we meditate on your steadfast love (Ps 46:9);
. . . [he] chooses for us our heritage, the pride of Jacob whom [he] loves (Ps 47:4);
God, be gracious to me in your faithful love; in the fullness of your mercy blot out my misdeeds (Ps 51:1);
For I trust in God’s faithful love for ever and ever (Ps 52:8);
May God send [his] love, unfailing and sure (Ps 57:3);
My God, in [his] unfailing love, will go before me; (Ps 59:10);
‘Power belongs to God’ and ‘Unfailing love is yours, Lord’ (Ps 62:12);
Your unfailing love is better than life; (Ps 63:3);
Blessed is God who has not withdrawn from me [his] love and care (Ps 66:20);
Book Three (Pss 73–89)
Assuredly God is good to the upright, to those who are pure in heart (Ps 73:1);
Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has [he] in anger withheld [his] compassion (Ps 77:9);
יהוה, show us your love and grant us your deliverance (Ps 85:7);
Lord, you are kind and forgiving, full of love towards all who cry to you (Ps 86:5);
But you, Lord, our God, are compassionate and gracious (Ps 86:15);
The source of all good is in you. (Ps 87:7);
I shall sing always of the loving deeds of יהוה; I said: “Your love will stand firm forever;” (Ps 89:1,2);
Book Four (Pss 90–106)
[יהוה speaks]:’Because his love holds fast to me, I shall deliver him’ (Ps 91:14);
It is good to give thanks to יהוה, to declare your love in the morning and your faithfulness every night (Ps 92:2);
If I said that my foot was slipping, your love, יהוה, continued to hold me up (Ps 94:18);
יהוה loves those who hate evil; [he] keeps [his] loyal servants safe (Ps 97:10);
יהוה has remembered [his] love for Jacob, [his] faithfulness towards the house of Israel (Ps 98:3);
יהוה is good and [his] love is everlasting (Ps 100:5);
As the heavens tower high above the earth, so outstanding is [his] love towards those who fear [him] (Ps 103: 11);
It is good to give thanks to יהוה, for [his] love endures forever (Ps 106:1);
Book Five (Pss 107–145)
Let them give thanks to יהוה for [his] love (Ps 107:8, 15, 21, 31,);
Help me, יהוה, my God; save me by your love (Ps 109:26);
יהוה is gracious and compassionate (Ps 111:4);
Not to us, יהוה, not to us, but to your name give glory for your love, for your faithfulness! (Ps 115:1);
Gracious is יהוה and righteous; our God is full of compassion (Ps 116:5);
Praise יהוה, all the nations, extol [him], all you peoples; for [his] love protecting us is strong, the faithfulness of יהוה is everlasting. Praise יהוה (Ps 117);
Let your love comfort me, as you have promised me, your servant (Ps 119:76);
In your love hear me, and give me life, יהוה, by your decree (Ps 119:149);
For in יהוה is love unfailing, and great is [his] power to save (Ps 130:7);
It is good to give thanks to יהוה, for [his] love endures forever (Ps 136 = the entire psalm);
For your love and faithfulness, I shall praise your name; your love endures forever, יהוה (Ps 138:2, 8);
In the morning let me know of your love, for I put my trust in you (Ps 143:8);
יהוה is gracious and compassionate, long-suffering and ever faithful. יהוה is good to all; [his] compassion rests upon all [his] creatures (Ps 145: 8,9).
Concluding Benediction (Pss 146–150)
יהוה does not delight in the strength of a horse and takes no pleasure in a runner’s fleetness; [his] pleasure is in those who fear [him], who wait for [his] steadfast love (Ps 147:10, 11).
Three, the God who intervened in Israel’s history is praised as the guarantor of the weak. The covenantal demands instruct Israel in the ways of God and the Psalms confess יהוה, their God, to be eternally on the side of the oppressed–Though you would frustrate the counsel of the poor, יהוה is their refuge. If only deliverance for Israel might come from Zion! When יהוה restores [his] people’s fortunes, let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad (Ps 14:6–8);
יהוה is exalted, yet cares for the lowly and from afar [he] takes note of the proud . . . יהוה will accomplish [his] purpose for me. Your love endures forever, יהוה; do not abandon what you have made (Ps 138:6,8).
This confidence in God’s covenant faithfulness is often remarkably intimate–As the eyes of the slaves follow their master’s hand or the eyes of a slave-girl the hand of her mistress, so our eyes are turned to יהוה our God, awaiting [his] favour (Ps 123:2); יהוה is my shepherd . . . goodness and mercy unfailing will follow me all the days of my life (Ps 23);
Guard me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings (Ps 17:8).
Four, the love so often proclaimed in the Psalms is the practical faithfulness of יהוה in the covenant relationship. Through her covenant with יהוה, Israel finds herself caught up in the great redemptive plan of God and its boundless expectations. When one considers the harsh exclusiveness—which was to become Israel’s greatest temptation–even as it remains ours today, it is utterly remarkable how frequently the Psalms speak of God’s plan as embracing all peoples– Let all the ends of the earth remember and turn to יהוה; let all the families of the nations bow before [him]. For kingly power belongs to יהוה ; dominion over the nations is [his] (Ps 22:27);
Of Zion it will be said, ‘this one and that one were born there.’ The Most High [himself] establishes her. יהוה will record in the register of the peoples: ‘this one was born there’ (Ps 87:5,6).
As Israel’s faith developed and matured, the unique power and authority of the God of the covenant and of the nations comes to be celebrated as the Creator of the universe–the One God of All.3 Many times, as a consequence, the Psalms celebrate the Creator’s greatness as manifest in the power and wonder of the material universe. At the word of the Creator all things came to be. The heavens