Thanksgiving for the Lord’s Favor.
A Psalm of David.
138 I will give You thanks with all my heart;
I will sing praises to You before the gods.
2 I will bow down toward Your holy temple
And give thanks to Your name for Your lovingkindness and Your [a]truth;
For You have magnified Your [b]word [c]according to all Your name.
3 On the day I called, You answered me;
You made me bold with strength in my soul.4 All the kings of the earth will give thanks to You, O Lord,
When they have heard the words of Your mouth.
5 And they will sing of the ways of the Lord,
For great is the glory of the Lord.
6 For though the Lord is exalted,
Yet He regards the lowly,
But the haughty He knows from afar.7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will [d]revive me;
You will stretch forth Your hand against the wrath of my enemies,
And Your right hand will save me.
8 The Lord will accomplish what concerns me;
Your lovingkindness, O Lord, is everlasting;
Do not forsake the works of Your hands.
David is giving thanks here, for one of the many times God had rescued him, or helped him win a battle, or possibly for all of it. There is throughout and attitude of humility, as David bows down in v. 2. And even though God makes him “bold with strength”, the glory of God is so much greater, that humility is the only appropriate response.
Even for “All the kings of the earth”, there is no one who can rival God, and they all ought to give thanks (and all will at some point, if they have not already). As the psalm concludes, we gain more perspective and should be yet more in awe, for we are the “work of His hands” and God does not forsake us, no matter how small we may feel.
Yet, it is not all silver lining, for in v. 6 we are reminded that “the haughty He knows from afar.” You might say, God can smell the stench of their pride, from a long way off. And there is plenty of that to go around these days–probably always has been truthfully. It is easy for us to get puffed up, to look at what we think we’ve accomplished, and give ourselves a little pat on the back.
When we look at something great that has happened then, we have two choices. We may rightfully thank God and humble ourselves, knowing that it is not of our own doing. Or, we can take great pride in the “work of our hands” and God will take care of the humbling for us. I know which I would rather choose, and I hope you remember also to give God the glory for your success!