Psalm 118 is the last psalm and climax of the Egyptian Hallel (Psalms 113-118), sung by the Jews at Passover to remember their deliverance from bondage in Egypt. By the end of the psalm, we’ll see how it was fulfilled perfectly in the events of Palm Sunday and Passion Week. So while Jews may use this psalm to recall God’s grace to them, Christians through the ages have also recognized its relevance to their own experience of God’s gracious deliverance. In fact, this was the favorite psalm of Martin Luther, the great 16th century Protestant reformer. He wrote, “When emperors and kings, the wise and the learned, and even saints could not aid me, this psalm proved a friend and helped me out of many great troubles. As a result, it is dearer to me than all the wealth, honor, and power of the pope, the Turk, and the emperor. I would be most unwilling to trade this psalm for all of it.” Psalm 118 begins by summoning God’s people to praise Him for His timeless love (v 1-4), then records the testimony of one rescued by God’s timely help (v 5-9). The true scale of the conflict emerges as we see the faithful believer “surrounded” by “all nations.” Like swarming bees or a crackling fire, the enemy is pressing in with dangerous fury (v 10-13). But salvation comes by God’s mighty hand, and the righteous respond with songs of praise (v 14-18). No wonder Luther found immense comfort in this psalm! As he bravely took his stand on gospel truth, Luther constantly encountered dangerous threats and fierce opposition. Often lonely and despised, he learned “it is better to take refuge in the LORD” than to trust in humans, including any prince (v 8-9). When the psalmist asks, “What can man do to me?” (v 6; cf 56:4), our first response might be, “A lot!” Men can oppress, slander, hurt, maim, and murder us!—as they have done to countless Christian martyrs through the centuries. But the point is not what people are capable of inflicting on others. The point is this: although evil people can do very evil things, we do not need to live in fear, because God is always with us to preserve us, and He rules over all. There are 31,174 verses in the Bible and verses 8-9 of Psalm 118 are exactly in the middle. Significantly, they teach us to put our trust in God rather than man. While we may not feel physically threatened by others, perhaps we build our lives on their approval or work too hard to gain influential friends. When we forget the gospel, our feelings of self-worth rise and fall according to the evaluation of people. We rest secure only as we take refuge in Christ Jesus. For further meditation: