Psalm 115
Psalm 115, The LORD Our Help and Shield
Psalm 115 continues the Egyptian Hallel, Psalms 113 to 118, which was sung in connection with the Passover. This means Psalm 115 was likely part of the hymn sung by Jesus and His disciples on the night He was betrayed and arrested, just before He went to Gethsemane and then to the cross.
Matthew 26:30, “And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives.”
Mark 14:26, “And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives.”
This psalm is especially powerful when considered on the lips of Jesus. It begins, “Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory.” No one ever lived this more perfectly than Christ. On the night before His crucifixion, Jesus was moving toward the greatest act of obedience, humility, mercy, truth, and self giving in human history. He would not seek His own comfort, reputation, or escape. He would seek the glory of the Father and the salvation of His people.
Psalm 115 contrasts the living God with dead idols. The LORD is in heaven and does whatsoever He pleases. The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. They have mouths but cannot speak, eyes but cannot see, ears but cannot hear, noses but cannot smell, hands but cannot handle, feet but cannot walk, and throats but cannot mutter. Those who make them become like them. Those who trust in them become spiritually deadened by them.
The psalm then calls Israel, the house of Aaron, and all who fear the LORD to trust in Him because He is their help and shield. It assures the people that the LORD has been mindful of them and will bless them, both small and great. It ends by declaring that heaven belongs to the LORD, the earth He has given to the children of men, and the living must bless the LORD from this time forth and forevermore.
A. The LORD Exalted Above All Idols
Psalm 115:1 to Psalm 115:2, Praise and a Subtle Prayer
Psalm 115:1, “Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth's sake.”
Psalm 115:2, “Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is now their God?”
The psalm begins with one of the purest statements of God centered worship in Scripture, “Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory.” The repetition matters. “Not unto us” is said twice because the human heart is prone to steal glory. Even when God uses His people, the glory belongs to God. Even when His people participate in His work, the honor belongs to His name.
This is the proper posture of all true service. A man may preach, teach, lead, serve, give, fight, build, write, or labor for the kingdom, but if God gives the fruit, the glory belongs to God. The servant is not the Savior. The instrument is not the source of power. The vessel is not the treasure.
1 Corinthians 3:6, “I have planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase.”
1 Corinthians 3:7, “So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth, but God that giveth the increase.”
The psalmist cares first for the glory of God’s name. This is a deep spiritual note. Many prayers begin with man’s welfare, man’s comfort, man’s deliverance, or man’s success. Those things may be legitimate concerns, but they are not ultimate. The highest concern is that God’s name be glorified.
Jesus taught the same priority in prayer.
Matthew 6:9, “After this manner therefore pray ye, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.”
Before the prayer asks for daily bread, forgiveness, protection, or deliverance, it begins with the holiness and honor of God’s name. Psalm 115 has the same order. The glory of God comes first.
The reason for giving glory to God is “for thy mercy, and for thy truth's sake.” Mercy speaks of God’s covenant love, His loyal kindness, His gracious faithfulness toward His people. Truth speaks of His reliability, faithfulness, and the certainty of His Word. God’s mercy gives the promise. God’s truth fulfills the promise. His people deserve no glory, because all blessing rests upon His mercy and truth.
The New Testament reveals mercy and truth fully in Jesus Christ.
John 1:14, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”
John 1:17, “For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.”
Verse 2 gives the implied prayer, “Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is now their God?” The nations mocked Israel because Israel’s God had no visible image. Pagan nations had statues, idols, shrines, and physical representations. Israel’s God was unseen. Therefore, when Israel suffered, the heathen mocked, “Where is now their God?”
This question was not merely an insult against Israel. It was an insult against the LORD. The psalmist prays that God would act for the glory of His own name, so that the nations would have no reason to think He had abandoned His people.
This kind of prayer appears elsewhere in Scripture. Moses appealed to God’s reputation among the nations when interceding for Israel.
Numbers 14:13, “And Moses said unto the LORD, Then the Egyptians shall hear it, for thou broughtest up this people in thy might from among them;”
Numbers 14:14, “And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land, for they have heard that thou LORD art among this people, that thou LORD art seen face to face, and that thy cloud standeth over them, and that thou goest before them, by day time in a pillar of a cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night.”
Numbers 14:15, “Now if thou shalt kill all this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame of thee will speak, saying,”
Numbers 14:16, “Because the LORD was not able to bring this people into the land which he sware unto them, therefore he hath slain them in the wilderness.”
Psalm 115:1 to 2 teaches that God’s people should seek deliverance, blessing, and vindication primarily for the glory of God’s name. The honor belongs not to us, but to the LORD, because of His mercy and His truth.
Psalm 115:3 to Psalm 115:8, Yahweh’s Exaltation Over the Idols of the Nations
Psalm 115:3, “But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.”
Psalm 115:4, “Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands.”
Psalm 115:5, “They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not:”
Psalm 115:6, “They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not:”
Psalm 115:7, “They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat.”
Psalm 115:8, “They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them.”
The heathen ask, “Where is now their God?” Verse 3 answers, “But our God is in the heavens.” The God of Israel is not absent because He cannot be seen in an idol. He is not weak because He is invisible. He is enthroned in heaven. He is above the reach of pagan mockery, above the idols of the nations, above earthly kings, and above all creation.
“He hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.” This is a strong statement of divine sovereignty. God is not limited by idols, nations, armies, circumstances, human opinions, or visible images. He does what He pleases. His will is free, holy, wise, and effectual. No creature can force Him, restrain Him, or counsel Him.
Psalm 135:6, “Whatsoever the LORD pleased, that did he in heaven, and in earth, in the seas, and all deep places.”
Daniel 4:35, “And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing, and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth, and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?”
Verse 4 gives the contrast, “Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands.” The idols may be made of precious materials, but they are still man made. Silver and gold do not make a god. Beauty, cost, craftsmanship, and tradition do not give life to an idol. The idol is beneath the maker because it is the work of men’s hands.
This exposes the absurdity of idolatry. Man makes an object, then bows before the thing he made. He gives worship to what depends on him for existence. He carries what cannot carry him. He protects what cannot protect him. He feeds what cannot give him life. He fears what cannot speak.
Isaiah gives a powerful indictment of this same folly.
Isaiah 44:14, “He heweth him down cedars, and taketh the cypress and the oak, which he strengtheneth for himself among the trees of the forest, he planteth an ash, and the rain doth nourish it.”
Isaiah 44:15, “Then shall it be for a man to burn, for he will take thereof, and warm himself, yea, he kindleth it, and baketh bread, yea, he maketh a god, and worshippeth it, he maketh it a graven image, and falleth down thereto.”
Isaiah 44:16, “He burneth part thereof in the fire, with part thereof he eateth flesh, he roasteth roast, and is satisfied, yea, he warmeth himself, and saith, Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire:”
Isaiah 44:17, “And the residue thereof he maketh a god, even his graven image, he falleth down unto it, and worshippeth it, and prayeth unto it, and saith, Deliver me, for thou art my god.”
Verses 5 to 7 ridicule idols by listing body parts they possess in form but not in function. “They have mouths, but they speak not.” A god who cannot speak cannot reveal truth, command righteousness, comfort the afflicted, rebuke sin, or answer prayer. The living God speaks. Idols do not.
Hebrews 1:1, “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,”
Hebrews 1:2, “Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;”
“Eyes have they, but they see not.” The idol cannot see the distress of its worshipers. It cannot see injustice. It cannot see danger. It cannot see the heart. The LORD sees all things.
Proverbs 15:3, “The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.”
“They have ears, but they hear not.” An idol cannot hear prayer. It cannot hear praise. It cannot hear the cry of the needy. The LORD hears His people.
Psalm 34:17, “The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles.”
“Noses have they, but they smell not.” Pagan worshipers might burn incense before their idols, but the idols cannot smell. They cannot receive worship. They cannot delight in sacrifice. The LORD, by contrast, receives worship according to His Word.
“They have hands, but they handle not.” An idol’s hand cannot rescue, uphold, bless, judge, or create. The LORD’s hand is mighty.
Isaiah 59:1, “Behold, the LORD's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:”
“Feet have they, but they walk not.” An idol cannot come to help. It must be carried. The LORD comes to His people, leads them, and walks among them by covenant presence.
“Neither speak they through their throat.” The idol cannot even mutter. It is not merely silent in articulate speech, it cannot make even a living sound. It is dead.
Verse 8 states the spiritual law, “They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them.” Men become like what they worship. Those who worship dead idols become spiritually deadened. Those who worship blind idols become spiritually blind. Those who worship mute idols become unable to speak truth. False worship deforms the worshiper.
This principle still applies even when idols are not made of silver and gold. Men can idolize money, power, pleasure, sex, comfort, politics, reputation, technology, entertainment, self, or ideology. Whatever takes the place of God begins to shape the soul. A man who worships money becomes cold and calculating. A man who worships pleasure becomes enslaved to appetite. A man who worships power becomes ruthless. A man who worships self becomes small and blind.
The opposite is also true. Those who worship the true God are transformed into His likeness.
2 Corinthians 3:18, “But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the LORD.”
Psalm 115:3 to 8 teaches that the LORD is sovereign in heaven and does what He pleases, while idols are lifeless works of men’s hands. Idolatry is foolish, degrading, and spiritually destructive. Those who trust in idols become like them, but those who trust in the living God are lifted by Him.
B. Israel Called to Trust in the LORD and to Receive His Blessing
Psalm 115:9 to Psalm 115:11, A Call to Trust in the LORD
Psalm 115:9, “O Israel, trust thou in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.”
Psalm 115:10, “O house of Aaron, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.”
Psalm 115:11, “Ye that fear the LORD, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.”
After exposing the emptiness of idols, the psalm calls God’s people to trust in the LORD. “O Israel, trust thou in the LORD.” This is the reasonable response. If idols cannot speak, see, hear, smell, handle, walk, or answer, then God’s people must not envy idolaters or borrow their ways. They must trust in the living God.
The command is not merely to believe that the LORD is trustworthy, but to place confidence in Him. To trust in the LORD is to rely on Him, rest in Him, look to Him, obey Him, and refuse to place ultimate confidence in idols, self, man, nations, armies, money, or human strength.
“He is their help and their shield.” The LORD does what idols cannot do. He helps. He shields. Help means support, aid, rescue, and provision. Shield means defense, protection, and covering in danger. Israel did not need a visible idol. Israel had the living God as help and shield.
Psalm 33:20, “Our soul waiteth for the LORD: he is our help and our shield.”
Psalm 46:1, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”
Verse 10 addresses “the house of Aaron.” The priests were especially called to trust in the LORD. Those nearest to the service of God should lead the way in faith. Ministers, teachers, pastors, and spiritual leaders must not merely tell others to trust God. They must trust Him themselves. Their calling is tied to God’s truth and glory, so unbelief in them is especially shameful.
“O house of Aaron, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.” Priestly service must rest on the LORD, not ritual performance, institutional status, human approval, or religious habit. Those who serve at the altar must trust the God of the altar.
Verse 11 expands the call, “Ye that fear the LORD, trust in the LORD.” This likely includes all reverent worshipers of the LORD, possibly including Gentile God fearers who honored Israel’s God. The call moves from Israel as a whole, to the priestly house, to all who fear the LORD.
This is significant. The blessing of trusting the LORD is not limited to one rank. Israel must trust. Priests must trust. All who fear the LORD must trust. The small and great alike must rely on Him.
The New Testament speaks of Gentile God fearers who honored the God of Israel.
Acts 10:1, “There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band,”
Acts 10:2, “A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway.”
On the night Jesus likely sang this psalm, the call to “ye that fear the LORD” would have looked forward to the great harvest among the Gentiles. Through Christ, the nations would be called to trust in the LORD.
Romans 15:9, “And that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy, as it is written, For this cause I will confess to thee among the Gentiles, and sing unto thy name.”
Psalm 115:9 to 11 teaches that the only sane response to the emptiness of idols is trust in the LORD. He alone is help and shield for Israel, for His servants, and for all who fear Him.
Psalm 115:12 to Psalm 115:13, The Confident Assurance of Those Who Make the LORD Their Help and Shield
Psalm 115:12, “The LORD hath been mindful of us: he will bless us; he will bless the house of Israel; he will bless the house of Aaron.”
Psalm 115:13, “He will bless them that fear the LORD, both small and great.”
The psalmist now moves from command to assurance. “The LORD hath been mindful of us: he will bless us.” Past faithfulness becomes the ground for future confidence. God has been mindful, therefore He will bless. This is a normal pattern in Scripture. What God has done reveals what kind of God He is. His past mercy strengthens faith for future mercy.
To say “The LORD hath been mindful of us” means He has not forgotten His people. He remembers His covenant. He sees their need. He knows their enemies. He hears their prayers. He acts according to His mercy and truth.
This is the opposite of idols. Idols cannot be mindful of anyone. They cannot see, hear, know, remember, or care. The LORD is mindful. He remembers His people.
Psalm 8:4, “What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?”
Psalm 136:23, “Who remembered us in our low estate: for his mercy endureth for ever:”
“He will bless us.” The psalmist repeats blessing again and again. “He will bless the house of Israel; he will bless the house of Aaron. He will bless them that fear the LORD.” The repetition is meant to strengthen confidence. The living God does not merely exist, He blesses. It is His nature, prerogative, delight, and promise to bless His people.
The blessing is pronounced upon the same groups called to trust in verses 9 to 11. Israel is called to trust, and Israel will be blessed. The house of Aaron is called to trust, and the house of Aaron will be blessed. Those who fear the LORD are called to trust, and those who fear the LORD will be blessed.
Verse 13 adds, “both small and great.” No servant of God is too small to be remembered. No believer is beneath His notice. The poor, obscure, weak, young, old, unknown, and unimpressive are not forgotten. The great also need blessing, because status cannot protect the soul. Both small and great depend upon the LORD.
This is a needed encouragement. Men often measure importance by visibility, wealth, title, platform, or power. God blesses those who fear Him, both small and great. The smallest believer who trusts the LORD is known to Him.
Matthew 10:29, “Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.”
Matthew 10:30, “But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.”
Matthew 10:31, “Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.”
Psalm 115:12 to 13 teaches that the LORD remembers and blesses His people. His blessing extends to Israel, the house of Aaron, and all who fear Him, both small and great.
Psalm 115:14 to Psalm 115:15, A Blessing Pronounced
Psalm 115:14, “The LORD shall increase you more and more, you and your children.”
Psalm 115:15, “Ye are blessed of the LORD which made heaven and earth.”
The psalm now pronounces blessing directly, “The LORD shall increase you more and more, you and your children.” In the ancient world, many looked to idols for fertility, harvest, flocks, family growth, and prosperity. Psalm 115 rejects that completely. Increase comes from the LORD.
This blessing includes “you and your children.” God’s blessing is generational. He cares not only for the present people, but also for their children. This does not mean every child automatically walks with God, but it does show that the LORD delights to bless households and generations that fear Him.
Deuteronomy 7:13, “And he will love thee, and bless thee, and multiply thee, he will also bless the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy land, thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep, in the land which he sware unto thy fathers to give thee.”
The word “increase” can include numerical growth, family blessing, fruitfulness, strength, and prosperity under God’s hand. The main point is that blessing does not come from dead idols. It comes from the living LORD.
Verse 15 grounds the blessing in creation, “Ye are blessed of the LORD which made heaven and earth.” The One who blesses is not a local idol, not a powerless statue, not a tribal symbol, and not the work of men’s hands. He is the Maker of heaven and earth.
Because He made heaven and earth, He has power to bless in every realm. He can bless the field, the family, the nation, the home, the priesthood, the small, the great, the present generation, and the children to come. The Maker owns what He blesses.
Genesis 14:19, “And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:”
Genesis 14:20, “And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.”
This also again contrasts the LORD with idols. Idols are made by men. The LORD made heaven and earth. Idols depend on human hands. Human hands depend on God. Therefore, the blessing of the Creator is the only blessing that truly matters.
Psalm 115:14 to 15 teaches that increase comes from the LORD, blessing extends to children, and the blessing rests on the authority of the Creator who made heaven and earth.
Psalm 115:16 to Psalm 115:18, Heaven, Earth, and Praise Forevermore
Psalm 115:16, “The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD's: but the earth hath he given to the children of men.”
Psalm 115:17, “The dead praise not the LORD, neither any that go down into silence.”
Psalm 115:18, “But we will bless the LORD from this time forth and for evermore. Praise the LORD.”
Verse 16 declares, “The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD's.” The LORD reigns over the heavens. This likely includes the visible sky, the starry heavens, and the highest heaven where God manifests His throne. Heaven belongs to Him because He made it and rules over it.
“But the earth hath he given to the children of men.” This refers back to the dominion God gave man in creation. The earth belongs ultimately to the LORD, but He entrusted stewardship and dominion on earth to mankind.
Genesis 1:26, “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness, and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.”
Genesis 1:27, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him, male and female created he them.”
Genesis 1:28, “And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.”
This dominion is a gift, not ownership independent from God. Man is a steward under the Creator. The earth has been given to the children of men for use, cultivation, habitation, labor, and responsible dominion, but not for arrogant exploitation or rebellious independence. Behind the gift is the Giver.
This also means man is accountable for how he uses the earth. He must not worship creation, as pagans do, and he must not abuse creation as though it has no Maker. He must receive it with thanksgiving and steward it under God.
Verse 17 says, “The dead praise not the LORD, neither any that go down into silence.” The point is not to deny conscious existence after death. Scripture elsewhere teaches continued existence after death. The point is that the dead no longer praise the LORD among the living on earth. Their earthly voice falls silent. They no longer testify in the assembly of the living.
This gives urgency to present praise. While we have breath, we must praise the LORD. We should not wait for some later season. We should not allow affliction, fear, discouragement, or delay to silence our praise.
Psalm 146:1, “Praise ye the LORD. Praise the LORD, O my soul.”
Psalm 146:2, “While I live will I praise the LORD, I will sing praises unto my God while I have any being.”
When Jesus sang Psalm 115 on the night before His crucifixion, verse 17 would have carried profound weight. He knew He was going into death. He knew He would soon pass through the silence of the grave. Yet He also knew that through His death and resurrection, the silence would be turned into everlasting praise.
Verse 18 gives the faithful response, “But we will bless the LORD from this time forth and for evermore.” The dead do not praise the LORD among the living, but we who live will bless Him now. The people of God take responsibility to keep praise alive on earth.
“From this time forth and for evermore” means praise begins now and continues forever. There are only two times to praise the LORD, now and forever. This life is the beginning of praise, and eternity is its continuation.
The psalm ends, “Praise the LORD,” or “Hallelujah.” After rejecting human glory, exposing idols, calling Israel to trust, assuring blessing, affirming God’s creation, and committing to endless praise, the only fitting ending is Hallelujah.
Psalm 115 teaches that glory belongs not to us, but to the LORD’s name because of His mercy and truth. The living God is in heaven and does whatever He pleases. Idols are lifeless works of men’s hands, and those who trust them become like them. Israel, the house of Aaron, and all who fear the LORD must trust in Him because He is their help and shield. The LORD remembers and blesses His people, both small and great. He gives increase, blesses children, and rules as Maker of heaven and earth. Therefore, the living must bless the LORD from this time forth and forevermore.
