If Jesus, the Man of Joy, could sing with the shadow of the Cross on His soul, shall we not join the chorus?
As we’ve seen in Psalm 118:5-21, Israel will be saved. Not all, sadly, for many will perish by siding with Anti-messiah. As the Lord said, “I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive” (Jn 5:43). Nevertheless, there will be a Remnant by grace, and “so all Israel will be saved” (Rom 11:26). But their salvation—and ours—comes at a tremendous cost. If we added up the value of every animal sacrificed through the ages, every shekel paid as tribute, every freewill offering, the vast outlay for the tabernacle and temples, multiplied a million times over, it would be a pittance compared to what our redemption actually cost. For our salvation, the richest Person in the universe “became poor” (2 Cor 8:9). And Psalm 118 paints in the details of that scene. It begins with the Rejected Stone (v 22a) who will finally complete the Erected House (v 22b), the Lord’s eternal dwelling, constructed of living stones! He didn’t fit their preconceived notions of Him, but it turns out He is both the Cornerstone and Keystone, who began and will complete all of God’s designs (see Zech 4:7). Marvelous indeed (Ps 118:23)! But we also see that this is the fulfillment of the Passover, what should have been the Expected Day (v 24a), planned from eternity past. It will be the cause of our rejoicing forever (v 24b)! It is also the story of the Accepted King (v 26) who, in spite of the Word’s clear and Projected Light (v 27a), became the Afflicted Lamb (v 27b). The only two bound sacrifices were Isaac and Jesus—type and Antitype—who willingly went to die. And who can miss those Connected Words, the double “my God…my God” of our blessing at such a cost to Him?