Psalms 118:24-26 This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. 25 Save us, we pray, O LORD! O LORD, we pray, give us success! 26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD! We bless you from the house of the LORD.
Matthew 23:37-39 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! 38 See, your house is left to you desolate. 39 For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’”
Psalm 118:24 is not merely about enjoying a new day — it is a prophetic declaration of a divinely appointed moment. “This is the day the LORD has made” speaks of a kairos moment in history when heaven and earth converge. It points to the day when Messiah would be revealed, salvation would walk into Jerusalem, and God’s covenant plan would take a dramatic step forward. This is not the casual celebration of a sunrise — it is the joyful response to God’s redemptive unfolding.
Verse 25, “Save us, we pray, O LORD!” — Hoshiana na! — is the cry that echoed through the streets of Jerusalem as Yeshua (Jesus) rode in on a donkey. The people cried out for deliverance, quoting this very verse, though many did not realize that salvation had already come to them in the flesh. That same cry is lifted every year on Hoshana Rabbah, the final day of Sukkot, when worshipers encircle the altar pleading for salvation, rain, and revival. It is followed by Simchat Torah, the rejoicing in the Word of God — a celebration Yeshua embodied as the Word made flesh.
Tragically and prophetically, on October 7, 2023, as Jews around the world danced with the Torah scroll on Simchat Torah, Israel was struck by war. And before the IDF entered Gaza, soldiers were praying Psalm 118:25: “Hoshiana na — Save us, we pray, O LORD! Grant us success!” The cry of the ancient psalm became a modern wartime prayer. It was not staged — it was spiritual. The plea of the people of Israel in their hour of need echoed the same cry once shouted before Yeshua in Jerusalem.
But the story is not over. Yeshua’s words in Matthew 23:37–39 reveal a prophecy yet to be fulfilled. After weeping over Jerusalem’s rejection of Him, He declared: “You shall not see Me again until you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’” That’s Psalm 118:26 — the very next verse. The world has heard Israel cry out verse 25. Now, all creation groans, waiting for her to declare verse 26 — the key that unlocks His second coming. When Israel cries out in recognition of Yeshua as the One sent by the Father, heaven will respond, and the King will come.
We are standing between verses — between the cry of “Save us, O LORD” and the declaration “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!” The first has already been spoken. The second is coming — and it will shake the heavens. This is not a time for passive faith. This is the day the LORD has made — not just for rejoicing, but for revelation. The gates are open. The cries are rising. The King is near. Join the cry. Prepare the way. And pray with urgency that Israel will finish the song she began. When she sings verse 26, the sky will split, and Yeshua will come — not as the rejected cornerstone, but as the crowned King. Maranatha!
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]With war drums beating even more intensely in Iran and Syria, we’ve received numerous phone calls and emails expressing their concerns — and understandably so! Nevertheless, even in this climate of anxiety, we are preparing to enter into Shabbat (the Hebrew word for Sabbath) this afternoon. And as we do, we are remembering again, the deep lesson of God’s entering into His rest following the six creation days.
We found an interesting story in an old copy of “Our Daily Bread”: In 1883 in Allentown, New Jersey, a wooden Indian — the kind that was seen in front of cigar stores — was placed on the ballot for Justice of the Peace. The candidate was registered under the fictitious name of Abner Robbins. When the ballots were counted, Abner won over incumbent Sam Davis by 7 votes. A similar thing happened in 1938. The name Boston Curtis appeared on the ballot for Republican Committeeman from Wilton, Washington. Actually, Boston Curtis was a mule. The town’s mayor sponsored the animal to demonstrate that people know very little about the candidates. He proved his point. The mule won!
Some of the wealthiest individuals in the United States are real estate developers. They make their money by buying a piece of property that is terribly run down, seemingly useless, without any value to the naked eye and reforming it completely, making it look brand new! These businessmen are not as much interested in what is on the property as they are interested in the land it’s on!
You may recall a few months ago we sent out an unspoken prayer request on behalf of the ministry without giving any details. At the time, among many other things going on, we went in for an ultrasound and the doctor told us that he wasn’t able to see a nose bone. He went on to say that this was a likely indication that the baby had Downs Syndrome and strongly suggested we get some tests done. When Rivka politely told him that we wouldn’t need any tests and that even if the baby did have Downs, he is a gift from God and there was no way we would abort him, the doctor was taken aback. He insisted that we would be causing an injustice to allow a baby to be born with a defect such as this. And believe it or not, two other doctors agreed.
A sailor who was shipwrecked on a desert island was captured by some of the natives of that island. They carried him off on their shoulders to their village, where he was sure he would end up being the main course. But instead, they put a crown on his head and made him king. He was enjoying all the attention he was receiving but was growing a little suspicious. He started making inquiries and discovered that their custom was to crown a stranger king for a year and at the end of that year the crowned king would be sent to a deserted island where he was allowed to starve to death.
At any time, how receptive your heart is will determine your response to God’s word. If your heart has been trampled, and harden by bitterness and unforgiveness, then receiving God’s message for you will become more difficult. If your heart is like shallow soil on top of a rock, then your mind comprehends God’s truths, yet these truths do not penetrate your heart to make a real difference in your actions. Or if you are concerned about the riches of this life, then your focus is on the here and now, and these pursuits prevent God’s Word from taking hold and producing quality fruit. But a heart that is on good soil, receives the Word, applies the Word, and in due time bring forth abundant fruit! This is God’s desire for you — to have a heart cultivated on good soil!
This is one of my favorite promises in the Bible — that God turns mourning into dancing! He takes away the anguish of being clothed in sadness and replaces it with gladness. However, notice what God doesn’t do — simply stop your mourning and make it disappear. No, He transforms it…into joy!