The moon and stars to rule by night: for his mercy endureth for ever.
Psalm 136 calls God’s people to give thanks unto Jehovah because He is good, and because His mercy endureth for ever (v.1). The refrain is repeated through creation, redemption, deliverance, warfare, provision, and worship. The Spirit teaches us to see the mercy of God everywhere His works reveal His goodness toward His people. He made the heavens by wisdom (v.5). He stretched out the earth above the waters (v.6). He made great lights (v.7). He made the sun to rule by day (v.8). Now He names the quieter lights of the night: “The moon and stars to rule by night.” Even the night sky preaches enduring mercy.
“The moon and stars.” These are not gods, powers, or rulers independent from Jehovah. They are His works. Moses wrote that God made two great lights, the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night; He made the stars also (Genesis 1:16). The brevity of that last phrase is holy majesty: “he made the stars also” (Genesis 1:16). What overwhelms man’s eyes is nothing too great for God’s hand. He tells the number of the stars and calls them all by their names (Psalm 147:4). The moon and stars are vast to us, but they are servants to Him.
This corrects all creature worship. Moses warned Israel not to lift up their eyes unto heaven, behold the sun, moon, and stars, and be driven to worship them (Deuteronomy 4:19). Men in darkness have often adored the lights rather than the Maker of the lights. Psalm 136 gives the right use of the moon and stars: they should not be worshipped, but they should lead us to give thanks to the LORD who made them. Creation is never a rival to God. It is a witness for God. “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament sheweth His handywork” (Psalm 19:1).
“To rule.” God appointed order in creation. The moon and stars do not hang in the heavens without purpose. They rule by God’s ordinance. In Genesis, God set lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night, to be for signs, seasons, days, and years, and to give light upon the earth (Genesis 1:14-18). Their rule is not personal authority against God, but appointed service under God. The moon keeps its place because God appointed it. The stars hold their courses because God governs them. He brings out their host by number, calls them all by names, and by the greatness of His might not one faileth (Isaiah 40:26).
This rule by night shows the wisdom of God. The day has the sun, but the night is not left abandoned. God did not make darkness a lawless void. He placed lights there also. The moon marks seasons, for He appointed the moon for seasons (Psalm 104:19). The stars mark the heavens with beauty, order, and testimony. Job was asked whether he could bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, loose the bands of Orion, bring forth Mazzaroth in his season, guide Arcturus with his sons, or know the ordinances of heaven (Job 38:31-33). Man cannot rule the night sky. Jehovah can.
“By night.” The night itself belongs to God. “The day is thine, the night also is thine: thou hast prepared the light and the sun” (Psalm 74:16). Darkness may trouble man, but it does not trouble God. The night does not hide from Him, for darkness and light are both alike to Him (Psalm 139:11-12). This is comfort. God’s mercy is not only for bright hours. It rules the night also. When men sleep, He neither slumbers nor sleeps (Psalm 121:4). When fear rises in darkness, His appointed lights still declare that He governs.
Night has many uses under God’s mercy. It gives rest to weary bodies, for sleep is a gift from the LORD to His beloved (Psalm 127:2). It humbles men by ending their labor for a time and reminding them they are not God. It displays wonders hidden by the brightness of day, so that David could consider the heavens, the work of God’s fingers, the moon and stars which He ordained (Psalm 8:3). It measures time, orders seasons, cools the earth, and draws the eyes upward. The world may call these natural cycles; faith calls them mercy.
“For his mercy endureth for ever.” The refrain must not be treated as an afterthought. The moon and stars rule by night because His mercy endureth for ever. Creation itself is mercy. Order is mercy. Light in darkness is mercy. Seasons are mercy. The stability of the heavens is mercy. God could have left the night black, terrifying, and trackless. Instead, He furnished it with the moon and stars. He gave lesser lights for lesser hours, and even those lesser lights are enough to testify that He is good.
The refrain also teaches the constancy of mercy. The moon waxes and wanes, but God’s mercy does not. Stars appear and disappear from our sight, but God’s mercy does not pass away. Clouds may hide the night sky, but they do not remove the lights above them. So affliction may hide felt comfort, but it does not end the mercy of Jehovah. Jeremiah confessed, “It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed,” and then added, “They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22-23). Psalm 136 adds that they continue through the night.
This verse should train the believer’s eyes. Look up at the moon and stars and learn thanksgiving. Do not let familiarity steal worship. Men have seen the night sky since the beginning, but common mercy is still mercy. The same God who slew Sihon king of the Amorites and Og king of Bashan for His people also set the moon and stars to rule by night (vv.9,19-20). His mercy thunders on the battlefield, and His mercy shines quietly in the heavens. He is not less merciful when He orders the sky than when He overthrows kings.
Jesus Christ brings the mercy of this verse into fuller light. The God who made the moon and stars sent His Son as the true Light into the world (John 1:9). Christ declared, “I am the light of the world,” and promised that he who follows Him shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life (John 8:12). The created lights rule the natural night by God’s appointment; Christ gives light to those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death (Matthew 4:16). The moon and stars testify to mercy in creation, but the Son of God reveals mercy in redemption.
Psalm 136:9 therefore calls for grateful worship under the night sky. The moon is not by accident. The stars are not independent powers. The night is not outside God’s rule. Jehovah made them, ordered them, named them, and appointed them for service. Let the saint give thanks when the sun is gone and the heavens are quiet. The God who rules by day also rules by night. The moon and stars shine as witnesses that His mercy endureth for ever.
The moon and stars to rule by night: for his mercy endureth for ever.
Psalm 136 calls God’s people to give thanks unto Jehovah because He is good, and because His mercy endureth for ever (v.1). The refrain is repeated through creation, redemption, deliverance, warfare, provision, and worship. The Spirit teaches us to see the mercy of God everywhere His works reveal His goodness toward His people. He made the heavens by wisdom (v.5). He stretched out the earth above the waters (v.6). He made great lights (v.7). He made the sun to rule by day (v.8). Now He names the quieter lights of the night: “The moon and stars to rule by night.” Even the night sky preaches enduring mercy.
“The moon and stars.” These are not gods, powers, or rulers independent from Jehovah. They are His works. Moses wrote that God made two great lights, the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night; He made the stars also (Genesis 1:16). The brevity of that last phrase is holy majesty: “he made the stars also” (Genesis 1:16). What overwhelms man’s eyes is nothing too great for God’s hand. He tells the number of the stars and calls them all by their names (Psalm 147:4). The moon and stars are vast to us, but they are servants to Him.
This corrects all creature worship. Moses warned Israel not to lift up their eyes unto heaven, behold the sun, moon, and stars, and be driven to worship them (Deuteronomy 4:19). Men in darkness have often adored the lights rather than the Maker of the lights. Psalm 136 gives the right use of the moon and stars: they should not be worshipped, but they should lead us to give thanks to the LORD who made them. Creation is never a rival to God. It is a witness for God. “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament sheweth His handywork” (Psalm 19:1).
“To rule.” God appointed order in creation. The moon and stars do not hang in the heavens without purpose. They rule by God’s ordinance. In Genesis, God set lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night, to be for signs, seasons, days, and years, and to give light upon the earth (Genesis 1:14-18). Their rule is not personal authority against God, but appointed service under God. The moon keeps its place because God appointed it. The stars hold their courses because God governs them. He brings out their host by number, calls them all by names, and by the greatness of His might not one faileth (Isaiah 40:26).
This rule by night shows the wisdom of God. The day has the sun, but the night is not left abandoned. God did not make darkness a lawless void. He placed lights there also. The moon marks seasons, for He appointed the moon for seasons (Psalm 104:19). The stars mark the heavens with beauty, order, and testimony. Job was asked whether he could bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, loose the bands of Orion, bring forth Mazzaroth in his season, guide Arcturus with his sons, or know the ordinances of heaven (Job 38:31-33). Man cannot rule the night sky. Jehovah can.
“By night.” The night itself belongs to God. “The day is thine, the night also is thine: thou hast prepared the light and the sun” (Psalm 74:16). Darkness may trouble man, but it does not trouble God. The night does not hide from Him, for darkness and light are both alike to Him (Psalm 139:11-12). This is comfort. God’s mercy is not only for bright hours. It rules the night also. When men sleep, He neither slumbers nor sleeps (Psalm 121:4). When fear rises in darkness, His appointed lights still declare that He governs.
Night has many uses under God’s mercy. It gives rest to weary bodies, for sleep is a gift from the LORD to His beloved (Psalm 127:2). It humbles men by ending their labor for a time and reminding them they are not God. It displays wonders hidden by the brightness of day, so that David could consider the heavens, the work of God’s fingers, the moon and stars which He ordained (Psalm 8:3). It measures time, orders seasons, cools the earth, and draws the eyes upward. The world may call these natural cycles; faith calls them mercy.
“For his mercy endureth for ever.” The refrain must not be treated as an afterthought. The moon and stars rule by night because His mercy endureth for ever. Creation itself is mercy. Order is mercy. Light in darkness is mercy. Seasons are mercy. The stability of the heavens is mercy. God could have left the night black, terrifying, and trackless. Instead, He furnished it with the moon and stars. He gave lesser lights for lesser hours, and even those lesser lights are enough to testify that He is good.
The refrain also teaches the constancy of mercy. The moon waxes and wanes, but God’s mercy does not. Stars appear and disappear from our sight, but God’s mercy does not pass away. Clouds may hide the night sky, but they do not remove the lights above them. So affliction may hide felt comfort, but it does not end the mercy of Jehovah. Jeremiah confessed, “It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed,” and then added, “They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22-23). Psalm 136 adds that they continue through the night.
This verse should train the believer’s eyes. Look up at the moon and stars and learn thanksgiving. Do not let familiarity steal worship. Men have seen the night sky since the beginning, but common mercy is still mercy. The same God who slew Sihon king of the Amorites and Og king of Bashan for His people also set the moon and stars to rule by night (vv.9,19-20). His mercy thunders on the battlefield, and His mercy shines quietly in the heavens. He is not less merciful when He orders the sky than when He overthrows kings.
Jesus Christ brings the mercy of this verse into fuller light. The God who made the moon and stars sent His Son as the true Light into the world (John 1:9). Christ declared, “I am the light of the world,” and promised that he who follows Him shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life (John 8:12). The created lights rule the natural night by God’s appointment; Christ gives light to those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death (Matthew 4:16). The moon and stars testify to mercy in creation, but the Son of God reveals mercy in redemption.
Psalm 136:9 therefore calls for grateful worship under the night sky. The moon is not by accident. The stars are not independent powers. The night is not outside God’s rule. Jehovah made them, ordered them, named them, and appointed them for service. Let the saint give thanks when the sun is gone and the heavens are quiet. The God who rules by day also rules by night. The moon and stars shine as witnesses that His mercy endureth for ever.