Here’s another copycat psalm, this one repeating whole lines from yesterday’s song. The big difference is that it’s a call and response, with a line that loses its meaning through repetition.
This psalm recounts YHWH’s triumphs on behalf of His people: Creation, the Exodus, military victories over Pharaoh of Egypt, King Sihon of the Amorites and King Og of Bashan (no joke).
And then there’s the line about YHWH that’s repeated over and over and over again: “For His mercy endures forever.” But what does that line mean? Would Pharaoh, Sihon and Og agree?
What, then, is mercy “[t]o Him who made great lights … [t]he sun to rule by day … [t]he moon and stars to rule by night”? After all, day and night are relative depending on where you stand.
Repeatedly, David’s psalms have shown that YAH was merciful only to David himself, mooning over the liar, rapist, murderer and king when He should have been more like the merciless sun.