This is the Day Which the LORD Hath Made

Friday, November 25, 2011

“This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24 KJV).

What does today’s Scripture mean? Is it talking about today? Many times people quote this verse but they have no idea what it means. As always, we look at the context to determine the meaning, lest we make the Bible say something God never intended it to say.

Notice verse 22: “The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner.” According to Acts 4:10,11, Psalm 118:22 was fulfilled when Israel rejected and crucified her King Jesus Christ on Calvary’s cross: “Jesus Christ of Nazareth… is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner” (cf. 1 Peter 2:7,8). Thus, we are led to conclude that today’s Scripture is foretelling the coming of Israel’s Messiah.

Look at Psalm 118:26 for additional insight: “Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the LORD: we have blessed you out of the house of the LORD.” Does this sound familiar? Was this not what rejoicing Jews shouted when Jesus Christ rode on the colt, the foal of an ass (donkey) on the Sunday before His crucifixion? Yes, it was! “And they that went before, and they that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna; Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord: blessed be the kingdom of our father David, that cometh in the name of the Lord: Hosanna in the highest” (Matthew 21:9; Mark 11:9; Luke 19:38; John 12:13).

Had Israel accepted Jesus as her Messiah-King, that earthly kingdom would have been established. Instead, most Jews rejected Him and demanded His crucifixion. Although God gave Israel a renewed opportunity of repentance in the first one-third of the book of Acts, they still rejected Jesus as King. Today, Israel’s program is postponed, and that earthly kingdom is still future.

In conclusion, today’s Scripture does not describe today (or any day in our dispensation, for that matter). It applied to the Sunday before Jesus’ crucifixion, often called the “Triumphal Entry.”