This psalm, set for the second week of the Easter season in Year C, is appropriately a psalm of thanksgiving and celebration.  It seems very likely that it was chosen at this time because of its strong connections with the Easter season in the early church, and its use in early Christian theology.

The verses set for today start in the middle of the psalm.  Having set out a significant threat to Israel in vv. 10–13, the psalmist now turns to the celebration of the victory that God has won.  In vv. 10–13, the psalmist portrays a situation of being surrounded by hostile nations, and of being pushed hard, facing defeat.  The Lord, the psalmist proclaims, has come to the rescue.

The verse that begins today’s reading calls to mind God’s saving actions in Israel’s past.  Verse 14 is an echo of Exodus 15: 2, from a poem often called the “Song at the Sea.”  In echoing this earlier song, the psalmist calls to mind God’s power to rescue shown in the crossing of the Reed Sea.  With this section setting out a military threat in vv. 10–13, then followed by a recall of the destruction of the Egyptian army in v. 14, it seems most likely that the psalm was originally one for the celebration of an unexpected military victory.

In this psalm, the victory seems to be liturgically celebrated. Certainly vv. 19–20 indicate that a procession is in place, with the gathered crowd seeking entry through the “gates of righteousness” to give thanks to the Lord (cf. Ps 24:7-10).  This element of procession is continued in v. 27, suggesting the procession forward to the altar.  This is, then, a triumphal entry into the temple in order to give thanks to God.  The repeated refrain at the beginning and the end of the psalm (vv. 1, 29) also may be a liturgical element, indicating the people’s response.

The psalm alternates between first person singular (an “I” section, see vv. 17–24) and first person plural (a “we” section, see vv. 24 and 25).  Given that the psalm is celebrating a military victory, and deliverance from the surrounding nations, it seems most likely that the first person section involves the king, or another representative person speaking on behalf of the people, making this arguably one of the royal psalms in Israel, special psalms based around the role of the king in Israel and in Israel’s religion.

We can no longer discern which victory in particular is celebrated in the psalm, although many possibilities have been suggested, from as early as David, or possibly king Hezekiah when Jerusalem was saved from siege (701 BCE, see 2 Kgs 18-19), or even a post-exilic situation (like the rebuilding of the temple in 520-515 BCE, see Ezra 1-6), or possibly even a victory of the Maccabees (2nd cent. BCE, see 1 Maccabees).  The psalm has been associated within Judaism with the feast of the Tabernacles or Booths.  It certainly seems to be a psalm that was open to being used in a variety of settings over the ages.

It is fitting, then, that it is taken up in the Christian context of the great celebration of Easter. There are many elements of the psalm that have been taken up in Christian interpretation and theology, some of which emerged within the church very early.  Verses 26–27 were taken up in the context of Jesus’ procession into Jerusalem with palms, celebrated in the churches on Palm Sunday (cf. Matt 21:8-9; Mark 11:8-9; Luke 19:38; John 12:12-13). Verses 22 and 23 became important early, with the saying being applied to Jesus (see Matt 21:42; Mark 12:10; Luke 20:17; Acts 4:11; 1 Peter 2:7, and suggested in Ephesians 2:20-21).  The saying itself: “The stone that the builders rejected, has become the chief cornerstone”, was probably originally a proverb, commenting on something thought to be useless, or which was rejected, becoming of great value.  The “chief cornerstone” is a central part of the foundations of a building, and is always chosen with great care. Its position at a critical corner means that it is foundational to the integrity of all of the walls coming into the corner. If it is faulty, the building is unsound. From the frequency of the New Testament references, this passage was seen to be a particularly apt description of Jesus’ place and role; rejected by his own community, becoming the foundation for the newly emerging Church.

It is tempting also to associate vv. 17 and 18 to the Easter narrative.  “I shall not die, but live, and recount the deeds of the Lord”, is certainly a verse to recall thoughts of resurrection. This is an interpretation, however, that is difficult to maintain, given that v. 18, “The Lord has punished me severely, but he did not give me over to death”, indicates clearly that the psalmist is not intending to describe a situation of actual death followed by resurrection, nor yet a state of immortality, but rather a near death experience, of being punished severely, but not handed over to death.

This psalm, so long applied within the Christian tradition, is an excellent psalm of celebration and thanksgiving, and one which speaks richly within the Church as we worship in the Easter Season. Just as it called worshippers long ago to enter “the gate of the Lord” (v. 20) and celebrate, so we are now called to come and give thanks for God’s saving action in Jesus “who comes in the name of the Lord”.

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