Psalms 118:16

16 The hand of God is raised in victory! The hand of God has turned the tide!"

Psalms 118:16 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 118:16

The right hand of the Lord is exalted
Lifted up, very eminent and conspicuous, easily to be observed in the instances before given, and become great and glorious in power; see ( Exodus 15:6 ) . The power of God is superior to all enemies; and is beyond conception and expression; and is able to do for his people above all they are able to ask or think;

the right hand of the Lord doth valiantly:
or "acts powerfully". This is repeated for the confirmation of it, and to show how much the righteous were affected with it, and how desirous they were of glorifying of it; "the right hand of the Lord", being three times mentioned, may have respect to the three divine Persons in the Godhead, whose right hand or power is the same: and as the right hand of the Father has done powerfully in the instances given, so the right hand of the Son has worked mightily in vanquishing all enemies, sin, Satan, death, and the world; in obtaining the salvation of his people, and in raising himself from the dead: and so the right hand of the Holy Spirit has wrought powerfully on Christ, on whom he rested as the Spirit of might, and through whom Christ offered himself to God, and by whom he was raised from the dead; and also in the conversion of sinners, and in helping, assisting, strengthening, and protecting the saints.

Psalms 118:16 In-Context

14 God's my strength, he's also my song, and now he's my salvation.
15 Hear the shouts, hear the triumph songs in the camp of the saved? "The hand of God has turned the tide!
16 The hand of God is raised in victory! The hand of God has turned the tide!"
17 I didn't die. I lived! And now I'm telling the world what God did.
18 God tested me, he pushed me hard, but he didn't hand me over to Death.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.