Why Is “He Who Comes in the Name of the Lord” Blessed?
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Many Christians love the book of Psalms. Throughout our lives, we read and speak the Psalms both in joyful praise to our Lord and in times of trouble. Studying and praying through the Psalms teaches us how to praise, trust, beseech, and rejoice in the Lord. And through them all, we see a focus on the promises of the coming Messiah.
It’s fitting Jesus quoted Psalms more than any other Old Testament book. One of the Psalms quoted in all four Gospels is Psalm 118:26(a), which says, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!” (Matthew 21:9; 23:39; Mark 11:9; Luke 13:35; John 12:13).
What Are the Psalms?
The Psalms are Hebrew poetry, and the title of the book comes from the Greek Septuagint. The word Psalms alludes to a connection with music. Basically, the psalms are Israel’s olden hymn book, and they are often referred to as the Psalter.
The Psalms integrate what we can call poetic theology, both in their proclamation of God’s sovereignty and in Israel’s history. The worldview is one centered on the Lord God, no matter which human servant He used to pen each one. Theological themes include man’s sin, God’s righteousness, holiness, and sovereignty, His providence, and His future promises. Their purpose is to teach us how to properly worship and praise God in all seasons of life. Psalm 150 is a fitting end to the book as it tells us to, “Let everything that has breath praise the LORD! Praise the LORD!”
James M. Hamilton (Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) wrote, “No other body of poetry has as its [principal] author God’s chosen king, whose line of descent traces back through Judah to Abraham, and further still to Shem, Noah, and Adam. Nor can any other poetic or literary tradition lay claim to the fact that King David, in writing of his own experience with God in the world, simultaneously wrote as a type of the one to come, Jesus, the world’s best and only hope.”
What Is the Context of Psalm 118:26?
Psalm 118 is a portion of the heartfelt six-psalm praise to God titled the “Egyptian Hallel” (Psalms 113-118). Hallel also means “praise” in Hebrew, and this section of the Psalms focuses on the Jewish exodus from Egypt. These psalms were sung during Passover, Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot). Understandably, the Passover Psalms are accorded greater prominence, for they distinctly celebrate the Jews’ exodus from Egypt. Psalms 115-118 were traditionally sung after the Passover meal, and it is highly likely Jesus and His disciples sang Psalm 118 before they left the Upper Room on the night He was betrayed (Matthew 26:30; Mark 14:26).
This psalm has an unnamed author, but it’s inferred a royal person leads this song of praise — a person who endured individual deliverance in a military setting. He now celebrates by addressing the Lord God with praise. Verse 14 says “The Lord is my strength and my defense; He has become my salvation.”
Pastor John MacArthur writes, “It seems reasonable to propose that Moses possibly wrote this beautiful psalm to look back in worship at the historical Passover and look ahead in wonder to the spiritual Passover in Christ.”
Verses 1-4 proclaim the Lord’s love endures forever; great praise is offered to Him.
Verse 5 begins with a recounting of what happened to the writer and his response, and within each verse is a praise to God, who brought him into a “spacious place” (verse 5), who was with him (verse 6), and who gave the writer victory (verse 10). God’s sovereignty is a focus in verses 6, 8, 14, 15 and 16.
The author then exalts God by saying he will “proclaim what the Lord has done” (verse 17). In verses 18-21, we see the Lord chastened the psalmist severely, but not to death. The author desires entrance to the “gates of the righteous” so he may “give thanks to the Lord,” for He had become his salvation.
Verse 22 begins a section which includes verses quoted in the New Testament and speaks of the path from rejection to righteousness. God gave them triumph and a metaphoric distinction as people like the cornerstone of a holy edifice. Jesus quoted this verse in Matthew 21:42, Mark 12:10, and Luke 20:17, because He is the chief Cornerstone upon which salvific victory rests.
Verse 23 gives all honor to the Lord God for His work. Jesus quotes this verse in Matthew 21:42 and Mark 12:11.
Verses 27-29 further extol the Lord God by proclaiming He is God and by speaking of how they will praise and thank Him.
What Does It Mean "Blessed Is He Who Comes in the Name of the Lord"?
In its immediate context, this verse is surrounded by praise to God for a military victory and worship of Him as sovereign Lord who is God, and who is the Grantor of success. The author also praises Him for granting them entrance into His house (the temple).
In its greater context, this Psalm is one of the Egyptian Hallel psalms which are read during the Feasts of Pentecost, Tabernacles, and Passover.
The overarching context of the Bible is about Jesus and God’s redemptive plan throughout history. Verse 26 refers to those who enter the house of the Lord who are blessed, for they come in His name and for His glory. We see this in the second part of verse 26, “We bless you from the house of the LORD.” The greater meaning is brought to light when Jesus enters Jerusalem during His last earthly week. Jesus taught that the people of Israel would not view Him again until they could honestly proclaim this blessing to Him at His second advent (Matthew 23:39; Luke 13:35). Those are daunting words for the Jews unless they accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, and on His terms alone.
Why Does Jesus Quote This Verse in Matthew?
Matthew wrote his Gospel to a Jewish audience and his main purpose served to exalt Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah and King of Israel.
Zechariah 9:9 foretells how the King would arrive in Jerusalem.
“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem!Behold, your King is coming to you;
He is just and having salvation,
Lowly and riding on a donkey,
A colt, the foal of a donkey.”
Jesus quoted this verse in Matthew 21:5 when He said, “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your King is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.'”
Matthew 21:9 is telling. “Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying: ‘Hosanna to the Son of David!’ ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!' Hosanna in the highest!” (Matthew 21:9, emphasis added). Because He did not come as they expected, less than a week later they shouted, “Let Him be crucified!” (Matthew 27:23).
Jesus Himself is the One who comes in the name of the Lord, as foretold in Psalm 118:26. Hosanna is a celebratory word which means “save us now,” and it’s through these Hallel Psalms the word found its beginning in the preceding verse 25. “LORD, save us!” The Gospel writers recorded the crowds shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” Son of David is a Messianic title pointing to God’s promise of salvation through His anointed King. The people expected a mounted warrior king who would remove their yoke of Roman oppression.
Peace comes only when people surrender to Jesus as Lord and Savior. Jesus came to testify to the truth and His truth — His very nature brings division (Luke 12:49-53). Dr. R.C. Sproul interprets Luke 12:51 as “All human history will be divided by Me.” Why? Because a person is either for Him or against Him. No neutral ground exists.
Jesus also came in the name of the Lord to accomplish His will (John 4:34; 17:6). No one else could provide what He provides as the true and faithful Israel—salvation (Hosea 11:1; Matthew 2:13–16; 3:13–17).
What Does This Verse Mean for Us Today?
A seminary student could write a dissertation on this question (and many probably have).
The Psalms are a rich treasure for us, and when we come upon one with specific implications about Jesus Christ, we are treated to a stunning look at how Almighty God brought the knowledge and record of Jesus to us throughout the Scriptures.
Psalm 118:26 is no exception. In it we see a portion of the scarlet thread of Scripture and how the history of God’s creation intimately involves Jesus Christ, from beginning to end. Augustine of Hippo declared “The new is in the old concealed; the old is in the new revealed.” Without the Psalms – and much more the entire Old Testament – we would miss the “rest of the story.”
Quite a bit of the Old Testament includes prophecy, and the Lord Jesus fulfilled over 300 prophecies. That’s stunning (and true!).
We are given cause to rejoice and be awestruck by God’s faithfulness, love, plan of redemption, and His holiness and sovereignty. He’s given us much to learn through even this one verse. Jesus is He who comes in God’s name, and He is blessed. We find out why throughout the rest of the Bible, which cements His truth.
Source
ESV Bibles. The MacArthur Study Bible (p. 4201). Crossway. Kindle Edition.
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/azerberber
