Psalm 118 ~ This is the Gate of the Lord

East Gate or called Beautiful Gate, today called Gate of Mercy


East Gate

Psalm 118

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
for his steadfast love endures forever!

2 Let Israel say,
“His steadfast love endures forever.”
3 Let the house of Aaron say,
“His steadfast love endures forever.”
4 Let those who fear the Lord say,
“His steadfast love endures forever.”

5 Out of my distress I called on the Lord;
the Lord answered me and set me free.
6 The Lord is on my side; I will not fear.
What can man do to me?
7 The Lord is on my side as my helper;
I shall look in triumph on those who hate me.

8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord
than to trust in man.
9 It is better to take refuge in the Lord
than to trust in princes.

10 All nations surrounded me;
in the name of the Lord I cut them off!
11 They surrounded me, surrounded me on every side;
in the name of the Lord I cut them off!
12 They surrounded me like bees;
they went out like a fire among thorns;
in the name of the Lord I cut them off!
13 I was pushed hard, so that I was falling,
but the Lord helped me.

14 The Lord is my strength and my song;
he has become my salvation.
15 Glad songs of salvation
are in the tents of the righteous:
“The right hand of the Lord does valiantly,
16 the right hand of the Lord exalts,
the right hand of the Lord does valiantly!”

17 I shall not die, but I shall live,
and recount the deeds of the Lord.
18 The Lord has disciplined me severely,
but he has not given me over to death.

19 Open to me the gates of righteousness,
that I may enter through them
and give thanks to the Lord.
20 This is the gate of the Lord;
the righteous shall enter through it.
21 I thank you that you have answered me
and have become my salvation.
22 The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.
23 This is the Lord's doing;
it is marvelous in our eyes.
24 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.
27 The Lord is God,
and he has made his light to shine upon us.
Bind the festal sacrifice with cords,
up to the horns of the altar!

28 You are my God, and I will give thanks to you;
you are my God; I will extol you.
29 Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
for his steadfast love endures forever!

Photo of the Western Tunnel towards the Temple Mount

Gates.

If you could pick an adventure. Charles Warren  was the first to go underground to find the archaeology and walk among and touch and breathe and see with his eyes the Temple. The stones had been thrown down nad he was the first to see millenniums of what was left of God's Temple Jesus said would fall. He was the one to research Jack the Ripper and was called and chosen to dig all around the Temple Mount.

No one has found the original East Gate, the Gate called Beautiful Gate. Today, built in 6th century A.D, is called Gate of Mercy. Why is the original gate missing or not found? A really good reason would be:


Ezekiel 44:1-3
Then he brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary, which faces east. And it was shut. 2 And the Lord said to me, “This gate shall remain shut; it shall not be opened, and no one shall enter by it, for the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered by it. Therefore it shall remain shut. 3 Only the prince may sit in it to eat bread before the Lord. He shall enter by way of the vestibule of the gate, and shall go out by the same way.

Are gates important? 182 times in the Bible.




A city gatekeeper - a prominent citizen, judging the trustworthiness of the traveler and a representative to speak wisely.

Mali, Africa where Christians have been shot at and killed while screaming "Allah is God" - very univited to return.

In both the Old and New Testament a lot of towns were built to keep out invaders - the unrighteous. So many gates because the people were unsure. Only in the days of St. Paul's Basilica were they beginning to come out of the fortified cities. The Church open for evening prayer led to a greater trust. The full name of St. Paul's Basilica is St. Paul's Basilica Outside the Walls.

 

Matthew 13

44“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
45“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, 46who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
†

What shall we say of  the Pearly Gate?  Revelation 21 tells us Heaven has 12 gates named after the Tribes of Israel. And each gate is one large pearl.  And what is like that one huge Pearl??? Jesus had a regular rock rolled from His Tomb. A Father - Like God the Almighty - remembers what His Son has Given.


Because of Jesus.
The Grace and Grace of Jesus:

Revelation 21:25-27
On no day will its gates ever be shut


God does not need Gates. His Gates are open.




Father God,
Open our hearts to being Your's.

Challenge, Call and Charge us to follow the specific plan of being on Your Path. We need Your Righteousness to call up our faith.

We give You, Father, Jesus and Holy Spirit great Thanks for Your gifts. Help us to be part of Your's Son's Body with effectiveness. We want and ask You to be firstborn among those of Salvation.

We ask for You to bless and keep us, shine Your Face upon us, be gracious to us, lift up Your countenance upon us, bless us with Peace, cover us in the Name of Jesus. We ask for Your blessings of predestination to be firstborn. Thank You for Your calling. For Your Justification and for the Glorification of Jesus each day and for eternity.

Help us to be in gratitude for our blessings, because You are for us.

The Lord, The Lord, The Marvelous Lord Jesus.

Father God, when we ask Jesus the Christ, Your only Son, to live in us and be part of us. When we believe in our heart and confess with our mouth," You are Lord"; You stretch out Your arms again for us. Amen.

♔ Lord Jesus Saves †