Psalm 136:2

O give thanks unto the God of gods: for his mercy endureth for ever.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(2, 3) God of gods . . . Lord of Lords.—From Deuteronomy 10:17.

Benson Commentary

Psalm 136:2-3. O give thanks unto the God of gods — Who is infinitely superior to all that are called gods, whether angels, or princes, or idols: the God whom angels adore, from whom magistrates derive their power, and by whom all pretended deities are and shall be conquered; unto the Lord of lords — The Sovereign of all sovereigns; or. as the word אדני, adoni, imports, the supporter of all supports, the stay, basis, or foundation of all creatures.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

136:1-9 Forgetful as we are, things must be often repeated to us. By mercy we understand the Lord's disposition to save those whom sin has rendered miserable and vile, and all the provision he has made for the redemption of sinners by Jesus Christ. The counsels of this mercy have been from everlasting, and the effects of it will endure for ever, to all who are interested in it. The Lord continues equally ready to show mercy to all who seek for it, and this is the source of all our hope and comfort.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

O give thanks unto the God of gods - See Deuteronomy 10:17. The supreme God; the God superior to all that is called God, or that is adored by the nations of the earth; above all to whom the name God is ever applied.

For his mercy... - The ground of praise here is, that it is a characteristic of the supreme God that he is a merciful Being; that there is blended in his character eternal mercy with infinite power. Mere power might fill us with dread; power mingled with mercy, and able to carry out the purposes of mercy, must lay the foundation for praise.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

PSALM 136

Ps 136:1-26. The theme is the same as that of Psalm 135. God should be praised for His works of creation and providence, His deliverance and care of His people, and judgments on their enemies, and His goodness to all. The chorus to every verse is in terms of that of Ps 106:1; 118:1-4, and was perhaps used as the Amen by the people, in worship (compare 1Ch 16:36; Ps 105:45).

1-3. The divine titles denote supremacy.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

The God of gods; who is infinitely superior to all that are called gods, whether angels, or princes, or idols.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

O give thanks unto the God of gods,.... Not only of the gods of the Gentiles, who are by name and not by nature gods; or of civil magistrates, who are so called, and seem to be designed in the next verse; but the angels, as Aben Ezra and Kimchi. Christ, our Immanuel, is the God of them, the object of their worship and adoration, being their Creator and Preserver, Psalm 97:7. So the Heathens say (r) of the Maker of all things, him you may properly call the God of gods, the Supreme and Best; this title Janus has with them (s);

for his mercy endureth for ever; in the preservation of those excellent creatures from apostasy, when many of their species fell; and in the continuance and confirmation of them in the state in which they were created; and in making use of them as ministering spirits to the heirs of salvation; and as a guard about them while they live, and at death to convey their souls to heaven.

(r) Hierocles in Carm. Pythagor. p. 10. (s) Macrob. Saturnal. l. 1. c. 9.

Geneva Study Bible

O give thanks unto the God of gods: for his mercy endureth for ever.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

2. O give thanks unto the God of praises (Psalm 22:3), for &c.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 2. - Oh give thanks unto the God of gods: for his mercy, etc. The phrase, "God of gods," occurs first in Deuteronomy 10:17. It was one very familiar to the Assyrians and Babylonians ('Religions of the Ancient World,' pp. 56, 60, 68, etc.). In the Bible it is used by Joshua (Joshua 22:22), Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 2:47), Daniel (Daniel 11:36), and this psalmist. It sanctions a secondary use of the word "God," such as is found also in Psalm 82:6; Psalm 96:4; Psalm 97:7, 9; Psalm 138:1. Psalm 136:2

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

Like the preceding Psalm, this Psalm allies itself to the Book of Deuteronomy. Psa 136:2 and Psalm 136:3 (God of gods and Lord of lords) are taken from Deuteronomy 10:17; Psalm 136:12 (with a strong hand and stretched-out arm) from Deuteronomy 4:34; Deuteronomy 5:15, and frequently (cf. Jeremiah 32:21); Psalm 136:16 like Deuteronomy 8:15 (cf. Jeremiah 2:6). With reference to the Deuteronomic colouring of Psalm 136:19-22, vid., on Psalm 135:10-12; also the expression "Israel His servant" recalls Deuteronomy 32:36 (cf. Psalm 135:14; Psalm 90:13), and still more Isaiah 40:1, where the comprehension of Israel under the unity of this notion has its own proper place. In other respects, too, the Psalm is an echo of earlier model passages. Who alone doeth great wonders sounds like Psalm 72:18 (Psalm 86:10); and the adjective "great" that is added to "wonders" shows that the poet found the formula already in existence. In connection with Psalm 136:5 he has Proverbs 3:19 or Jeremiah 10:12 in his mind; תּבוּנה, like חכמה, is the demiurgic wisdom. Psalm 136:6 calls to mind Isaiah 42:5; Isaiah 44:24; the expression is "above the waters," as in Psalm 34:2 "upon the seas," because the water is partly visible and partly invisible מתּחת לארץ (Exodus 20:4). The plural אורים, luces, instead of מארות, lumina (cf. Ezekiel 32:8, מאורי אור), is without precedent. It is a controverted point whether אורת in Isaiah 26:19 signifies lights (cf. אורה, Psalm 139:12) or herbs (2 Kings 4:39). The plural ממשׁלות is also rare (occurring only besides in Psalm 114:2): it here denotes the dominion of the moon on the one hand, and (going beyond Genesis 1:16) of the stars on the other. בּלּילה, like בּיּום, is the second member of the stat. construct.