Psalms 77:8
Is his mercy clean gone for ever? doth his promise fail for evermore?
Original Language Analysis
לָנֶ֣צַח
for ever
H5331
לָנֶ֣צַח
for ever
Strong's:
H5331
Word #:
2 of 7
properly, a goal, i.e., the bright object at a distance travelled towards; hence (figuratively), splendor, or (subjectively) truthfulness, or (objecti
חַסְדּ֑וֹ
Is his mercy
H2617
חַסְדּ֑וֹ
Is his mercy
Strong's:
H2617
Word #:
3 of 7
kindness; by implication (towards god) piety; rarely (by opposition) reproof, or (subject.) beauty
Cross References
2 Peter 3:9The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.Romans 9:6Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel:Numbers 14:34After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise.Numbers 23:19God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?
Historical Context
God's chesed is His covenant commitment demonstrated supremely in the exodus (Exodus 15:13, 20:6). His promises to Abraham, Moses, and David formed Israel's confidence. Yet historical catastrophes—Egyptian bondage, wilderness wandering, Assyrian invasion, Babylonian exile—seemed to contradict these promises. The prophets insisted chesed never ceases (Lamentations 3:22, Isaiah 54:10). The New Testament reveals God's ultimate chesed in Christ (John 1:14, Ephesians 2:4-7).
Questions for Reflection
- What is the significance of questioning whether God's <em>chesed</em> (covenant love) can fail?
- How do you respond when circumstances seem to contradict God's explicit promises?
- How does the cross demonstrate that God's <em>chesed</em> and promises are eternally secure?
Analysis & Commentary
Is his mercy clean gone for ever? (הָאָפֵס לָנֶצַח חַסְדּוֹ). Chesed (חֶסֶד)—God's covenant loyalty, steadfast love, faithful kindness—is central to Hebrew theology. Aphes (אָפֵס) means to cease, come to an end, be exhausted. Can chesed—God's defining attribute—simply terminate? The question is theologically shocking yet psychologically honest.
Doth his promise fail for evermore? (גָּמַר אֹמֶר לְדֹר וָדֹר). Gamar (גָּמַר) means to complete, finish, or cease. Omer (אֹמֶר) is God's spoken word or promise. Le-dor va-dor (לְדֹר וָדֹר) means "generation to generation." Could God's word—which is "for ever settled in heaven" (Psalm 119:89)—actually fail across generations? The psalmist articulates what many believers feel but fear to say: What if God breaks His word?