[0:00] Have you ever played Cluedo? If I search in the midst of my distant memory, I can remember at least a few occasions when I did so. And those of you who have played the game will know that the aim of the game is to establish who killed Dr. Black. I couldn't actually remember that. I had to Google that to just refresh my memory about Cluedo. But Mr. Black is the game's perpetual victim, and there are a number of possibilities as to the perpetrator of this heinous crime.
[0:39] Miss Scarlet, Colonel Mustard, Mrs. White, Reverend Green, shock horror, Mrs. Peacock, or Professor Plum. And it's all a bit of a mystery, and the aim of the game is to establish who was responsible. But not all deaths are so mysterious, or the perpetrators so difficult to establish.
[1:06] On a daily basis, we are aware of, we hear of deaths, where it's very clear who the perpetrators are, who is responsible for a given death. Just this past weekend, we had the death of the Taliban leader in Pakistan. No great mystery who are responsible for his death. Leaving aside any moral judgments about it, it's very clear there's not many who have drones that they can use to achieve their ends. No mystery as to those responsible. What about Jesus? Who killed Jesus? And there also we can say that this isn't a great mystery. The Gospels provide us with more than just clues. The whole sorry episode is described for us in disturbing detail. In the passages we've read, there's one word that recurs in connection with Jesus' death, and it's the word translated in two ways in the accounts. Same word, but translated in two ways. Sometimes it's translated handed over, and sometimes it's translated betrayed. But in the original, it's the same word. But as I say, obviously they're related in the English translations that are employed. And this is a word that recurs. And this word, handed over in relation to the death of Jesus, really points to those we might call the intellectual authors of Jesus' death, you know, as opposed to those responsible for the physical execution. The soldiers killed Jesus in that sense. But there are those, and a number, who are described as having handed over Jesus, as I say, pointing to their responsibility in that sense.
[3:15] And that language of identifying those or describing those who handed over Jesus does also highlight what what we might call a deeper question about the whole episode. And that is the question, who's in charge? Who governs the events that lead to Jesus' death? Now, in that light, there are two questions that I want us to consider as we look at the two passages that we've read in Matthew and Luke and make occasional reference also to John's gospel. Two questions. And the two questions are as follows. First of all, who think they're in charge? Responsible, if you wish, for the death of Jesus. Who think they're in charge? And then the supplementary question, or the following question, who is actually in charge? Now, having done that, having answered these two questions or attempted to do so, we'll then spend a little time considering some of the implications of what we discover concerning who is in charge. So, first of all, who think they're in charge or responsible for the death of Jesus? And in the passages that we've read in Matthew and Luke's gospel, there are three actors who stand out as responsible in some way, in some sense, in some real sense, responsible, all of whom could lay claim to being in charge, all of whom might have indeed boasted of being in charge, some perhaps more vociferously than others. And who are these three actors? Well, the three that are identified are Satan, Judas, and then a group of people, the chief priests and elders of the people, as they're described for us in Matthew's gospel. The precise language that is used to describe this group of people isn't always exactly the same. But this group of people, also identified as responsible. So, what I want to do is to consider each of these actors in turn, and as we do, note the initiative that they take and also endeavor to establish or suggest the motivation that drives them to do what they do. So, these are those who think they're in charge, who consider that they're responsible for this eventual outcome that Jesus dies, that Jesus is killed. And we want to think about them and what is the initiative that they took and why they did so. First of all, then, what can we say concerning Satan? In the passage in Luke's gospel, we read there in verse 3 of chapter 22, "...then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the twelve." Then Satan entered Judas.
[6:24] Now, leaving aside for the moment what that involves, it's quite perplexing language in many ways. What does that mean, that He entered Judas? What does that look like? Was Judas aware that this was happening?
[6:40] Could anybody see what was happening? It is perplexing, the language that is used to describe what happens. But it's very clear that it's describing something real that happened. Satan entered Judas. But leaving aside precisely what that means for the moment, we will come back to it when we consider Judas as one of the authors of the death of Jesus, what is clear is that Satan is taking the initiative, certainly taking an initiative. He is acting deliberately and proactively in entering Judas. And what is his purpose in so doing?
[7:22] Well, that is very clear. And the following verse makes clear the purpose that lies behind Satan entering Judas. We can go on and read what happens next. Reading from verse 3, Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the twelve, and Judas went to the chief priests and the authors of the temple guard, and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus. The purpose that lies behind Satan entering Judas is that Satan entering Judas is clear that Judas would go and negotiate with the chief priests a price for the head of Jesus, that Jesus would be handed over to death. And in the account, as Luke relates it to us, there is a direct causal link between Satan's actions and Jesus being handed over to death.
[8:22] And so we can, and we must, identify Satan as, in a very real sense, responsible for the death of Jesus. He entered Judas. And when we think about this matter of what does this say to us about who's in charge? Well, I'm sure that Satan, as he did what he did, consider that he was in charge. He imagined that he was the malevolent and powerful, invisible hand governing the events as they unfold and lead to Jesus hanging from the cross.
[9:03] And one can almost imagine, not that one would want to do much imagining about what Satan thinks or imagines, but in as much as we would dare to do so, I can almost imagine Satan's sense of smug satisfaction as he witnesses Judas negotiating a price for Jesus' head. And he thinks, well, that's my work.
[9:28] I've done what I intended to do. I'm achieving the goal that I have set out for myself. Who's in charge? Who is taking the initiative? Who is ultimately responsible? Well, thus far, from what we have seen, we might imagine that Satan is in charge. What can we say about his motivation? Why does he do what he does?
[9:53] Well, we can't dwell on this. Well, we can't dwell on this, but we can say what needs to be said briefly. He hates God. He rebelled against God in the beginning, and he remains the one who stands or prowls in vicious and permanent opposition to God and God's purposes in favor of man. A personal being who exists who hates God and who opposes God and who opposes God's people. And his instinct is to kill and to destroy. He has been, to quote the words of Jesus himself, he has been a murderer from the beginning. And Satan, faced with Jesus, the eternal Son of God, the promised Messiah, the one who had come to save his people from his sins, faced with Jesus, blinded by hatred. And I think we can speak in those terms of being blinded by hatred, because had he only realized what he was doing, surely he would have held back. But blinded by hatred, he seeks and, in some sense, secures Jesus' death. So, Satan could lay claim to being the intellectual author of the death of Jesus. Satan could lay claim to being in charge of the events that unfolded that led to Calvary. But we said that there was a second actor in this drama, and that is Judas. Is Judas the one responsible for the death of Jesus? Judas also takes the initiative.
[11:41] The language used in the passages that we've read, the chain of events described, point to a deliberate and considered decision on the part of Judas to hand over Jesus. Notice the language that is used in Matthew chapter 26 and in verse 14, Then one of the twelve, the one called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and asked, What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?
[12:16] There is nothing here that speaks of compulsion. Nobody is pushing Judas to do this. There's no undue pressure being brought to bear. Satan is involved in some sense, as we've already noticed in the language that's used. But the language that Matthew uses here is the language that describes one who is acting of his own volition on his own initiative, doing what he has chosen carefully to do.
[12:45] Equally, Luke uses language that is similar in that regard. In verse 4 of chapter 22, And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard, and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus. There's more detail here. Even the reference to the temple guard speaks of how they were entering into the details. The temple guard were, of course, the men who would physically arrest Jesus. So, not only does he speak to the chief priests who would decide on the price to be paid, he speaks with those who would actually be involved in physically taking hold of Jesus. All these details are being discussed and arranged and considered, and Judas does this consciously and in a considered way.
[13:31] This isn't something that he does on the spur of the moment. It's not something that's driven by some moment of madness. No, he carefully and decidedly takes an initiative to betray Jesus, to hand Jesus over.
[13:48] And of course, Jesus himself, as we've already been commenting with the children, recognizes that Judas is indeed the one who is taking the initiative, or certainly taking an initiative. He identifies him there at the Last Supper, unequivocally, Yes, it is you.
[14:11] Well, that's certainly the language that we have, the description that we're given, but perhaps a question that might be posed that might be posed, and this will bring us back to what we've just mentioned in the passing about Satan entering Judas. We might ask the question, is Judas really responsible? Yes, he did what he did, but is he not, in the light of what Luke says about Satan entering Judas, is Judas not, perhaps, the unwitting tool? We might even speak of him as a victim of Satan. He's the big player here. He's the one who enters Judas, and it would appear, or it might appear, forces him to do what he does. What fault can be attributed to Judas, given that the gospel records for us that Satan entered into Judas, or entered Judas? Well, I think we can say, on the basis of the evidence, on the basis of the accounts before us, some of which we've already commented on, that there is nothing unwitting about what Judas does.
[15:19] Judas must take personal responsibility for Satan entering him. The Bible is clear. If we resist the devil, what happens? You know what happens. If we resist the devil, we're told, we're promised, the devil will flee from us. And so, if the devil entered Judas, then it's very clear that he certainly was not resisting him. Far from it. He has left an open door for the devil. He's left an open door for Satan to enter in. However we understand what that actually involved. Maybe it's difficult for us to understand exactly what that involved. There was, without doubt, a clear predisposition on the part of Judas to do Satan's bidding. He collaborated willingly, even if it was not knowingly. It may be that Judas wasn't even aware of what was happening in that sense or in that dimension of Satan's involvement. But nonetheless, he was a willing collaborator with Satan. He certainly couldn't blame Satan for his actions, and of course, that is true for us, if we would be so foolish as to try and do so. But let's move on to the question of motivation. Why does Judas do this? Why does Judas hand over Jesus? And in answering that question, I think it's wise to stick with the evidence that we can find in the passages before us. And the evidence that we're given in the text is evidence that points to his greed and his love of money. The manner in which Matthew describes it is perhaps the most explicit, because there we read and we're led to understand, we're told, that this really was what drove him. In verse 15 of Matthew chapter 26, what do we read? That he went to the chief priests and asked. So, as Judas doing the asking, what are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you? It couldn't be clearer. You know, this isn't something where he's been approached and he's being lured or he's being tempted or somebody's come and said, oh, there could be some good money for you in this. No, he goes and he says, what will you give me? If he had been driven by other motivations and the subject of money had come up and he had said, oh, well, I might as well make some money out of this. No, he goes and he says, what will you give me? What are you willing to pay for what I can hand over to you? Now, I think the question can be asked, and it's maybe quite an intriguing question, whether there were other contributing factors that led Judas to do what he did. Was he disappointed by
[18:17] Jesus? Had he another notion as to what the mission of Jesus would be? And when it was clear that Jesus was not going down the route that he would have wanted, a route of securing an earthly kingdom where he would have been an important part of the inner circle, we can speculate. And it may be that there were other contributory factors that explain why Judas did what he did, but what the text tells us. And there we must remain if we want to be on solid ground, is that he was driven by the financial reward that would be his by handing over Jesus. And of course, when we think about this character Judas, even the name Judas conjures up in our minds this image of this character that the lowest of the low, and just about everybody, believers and unbelievers alike, we can stand in superior judgment over Judas.
[19:21] How could he do such a thing? And as I say, even somebody who's not a Christian and who reads the account says, well, wasn't that a terrible thing that somebody who was his friend or claimed to be his friend would do? And we can look down in judgment upon him. But I wonder if we are immune from the temptation of placing material gain before and above loyalty to Jesus. You see, there are many ways of doing that that don't involve thirty coins of silver, that don't involve handing Jesus over to his death.
[19:57] But there are many ways where we can place material gain, our own physical comfort above loyalty to Jesus. So, Judas is the second actor who could claim responsibility for the death of Jesus in the passages that we've read. But let's move on to the third actor, in this case a group of people, the chief priests and elders of the people. Might we conclude that they ultimately are responsible for the death of Jesus? Well, they too take the initiative. The offer that Judas makes is, we're told, a source of delight to the chief priests. But well before Judas appears, they had taken their own decisions and set events in motion. For that we need to just turn quickly to John's Gospel and chapter 11. In John chapter 11 and verse 57. You see, if we only had the passages that we've read, we might imagine that, well, the initiative was all of Judas, and the chief priests will simply in an opportunistic way say, oh, here's a chance to get rid of this Jesus. Well, let's take this opportunity. But that is not the story. That's not what's going on. In John chapter 11 and verse 57, we see very clearly that they'd already decided that this was something that they needed to do. Even in the passages we've read, that's clear. But in terms of the timing of the events, in John we have decisions taken well before
[21:32] Judas approaches them. And we can just read that verse, verse 57 of chapter 11 of John's Gospel. John's Gospel we read, But the chief priests and Pharisees had given orders that if anyone found out where Jesus was, he should report it so that they might arrest him. So, the word had already gone out from this group of people. And I say this group of people, as the different accounts unfold, it wouldn't have been exactly the same group of people on each occasion. But these group of people, where certainly the chief priests are ever-present in terms of being mentioned. So, they'd already decided that this is what they wanted to do. And I wonder, and I don't think we could know the answer to this, but I wonder, might Judas have heard of their intentions? If they had put the word out that they wanted people to let them know about the whereabouts of Jesus, or if they were in a position to hand Jesus over, perhaps this is something that Judas knew about. But why do they want to kill Jesus?
[22:43] What is the motivation that drives them? Might it have been religious zeal? We're told that they were the chief priests, references made to Pharisees and to those who had religious titles.
[23:00] In John's Gospel, indeed, there is reference to the Pharisees. It's possibly significant, and I don't think we can go further than use that tentative language. It's possibly significant that in the accounts of the actual plotting, the accounts that we've read in Luke and Matthew's Gospel, the arrest and the death of Jesus, there is little, perhaps no reference to the Pharisees.
[23:26] The Pharisees' opposition to Jesus was intense. It was deep-seated. But in their case, I think we can say that it was grounded in misplaced religious zeal, like Saul of Tarsus, implacably opposed to the church and to Christians. But the reason he was so opposed was because of his zeal, but a zeal not according to knowledge. But the men we read of in Matthew's Gospel and Luke's Gospel who are plotting and who in their own way secure the death of Jesus, though they may have occupied religious positions, Christians are really operating as political operators in what they're doing on this occasion.
[24:18] They're driven more by what we could call political considerations and ultimately driven not by religious zeal, however misplaced it might be, but by self-interest. And again, John helps us to identify that as being the case. In John's Gospel in chapter 11 and verses 47 and 48, there's a very helpful description of what is driving them as far as their motivations are concerned. We read there in verse 47 under the heading there of this plot to kill Jesus, then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin. What are we accomplishing, they asked. Here is this man performing many miraculous signs. If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him." Now, up to that point, we might say, well, there's some religious zeal in their concerns about the people believing in a false Messiah, but then what do they say?
[25:15] And then the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation. You see, there their true colors come out. These are political operators that say we can't afford to have some Messiah figure appearing and causing a big stir because then the Romans will come, and what will happen? They'll take away our place. See, though they were part of an oppressed nation, they were a privileged part of this oppressed nation. They had many privileges that went with their association with the oppressor.
[25:47] And so, they want to get rid of Jesus, not because of any religious zeal, but because they're playing politics. How can we guard our interests? And they see this as the way of guarding their own self-interest. This is what drives them in seeking to get rid of Jesus.
[26:07] Now, again, as we did with Judas, we can look on in self-righteous dismay. You know, how could they do this? Well, again, perhaps we ought to beware. In our own lives, in our own workplace, in our own families, in our own day-to-day activity, we are all tempted to play politics in a negative sense of that word. I'm not suggesting that politics per se is a bad thing to be involved in, but to play politics in that sense, to act as a function of perceived self-interest. And when we do act in that way, it's remarkable how quickly moral judgment is obscured, and the matter of right and wrong morphs into shades of gray. And it happens all the time. People ignore what is right and do what is wrong. They imagine that things aren't as clear-cut as they actually are because they're being driven by self-interest. And that self-interest obscures the panorama. And we're all guilty of that in some measure.
[27:19] But let's move on in the time that we have left to ask the next question, more briefly, but in many ways much more fundamentally. Who's really in charge? Who's really in charge of these events that are unfolding? There are those who could claim, perhaps with some justice or with some reason to be in charge—Satan and Judas, the chief priests—but who's really in charge? And the answer, though it is not hard to find, it's no less critical that we clearly acknowledge. We've noticed in the course of the message this morning how the verb to hand over is repeated in the accounts on separate occasions, some of which we've read and some of which we've not read. Judas agrees to hand over Jesus or betray Jesus. The chief priests, in due course, hand over Jesus to Pilate. Pilate, in due course, hands over to the people and the soldiers. But where does this deathly relay race begin? Well, we've read in
[28:22] Matthew 26 and verse 2 what Jesus says before he is handed over. When Jesus had finished saying all these things, he said to his disciples, As you know, the Passover is two days away, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified. Where did this begin? Who is, if you wish, the intellectual author of Jesus being handed over? When and where was this determined? Well, it was determined in eternity, in the eternal and gracious purposes of God. Hence, Jesus' precise knowledge of the course of events unfolding. He'd been involved in determining these events. It is Jesus who is in charge. He is the one who has determined and controls everything that happens, everything that happens. Even in that verse where he describes what is going to happen, we notice how he is in complete control of the outcome.
[29:29] As you know, the Passover is two days away, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified. He knows that this is what is going to happen. This is not the first time. On other occasions, he had predicted his death with great detail. He's aware of and is determining the means by which his death will come about. He speaks of the Son of Man being handed over, the very language that repeats itself on so many occasions. Indeed, interestingly, that same language we find in Peter's sermon at Pentecost, in Acts chapter 2 and verse 23, a verse that is often read for good reason to explain what is going on.
[30:14] This man, Jesus, was handed over to you. Notice the language. Was handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge. And you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. Jesus knows of and is controlling the outcome, the means, the very time when these things occur. It's interesting there in the passage in Matthew's Gospel, you have two time references regarding the subsequent death of Jesus, one that's very precise and one that is more vague. Who is the one who has the precise reference? Well, of course, it's Jesus. Verse 2, as you know, the Passover is two days away, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified. Contrast that with the high priests and the elders of the people. In verse 5, they're speaking about Jesus dying also, but what do they say? But not during the feast, they said. Or there may be a riot among the people. Their decision is that this death would take place later. But Jesus says, I'm going to decide when this happens.
[31:19] I already have decided when this is going to happen. I'm in charge. You think you're in charge, plotting and scheming and working out when would be the best time. But I've already decided. I'm in charge.
[31:33] Jesus is no heroic but ultimately helpless victim. Jesus handed himself over to death. Jesus said, why did he do so? Why would he do such a thing? What was his motivation?
[31:48] Well, where to begin? But we can confidently assert that his motivation was loyalty and love, loyalty to his Father. He came to do his Father's will and love for sinners, for you and me.
[32:02] He handed himself over to die in our place. We've made the distinction, loyalty to his Father and love for us. But really, on reflection, we can speak of loyalty and love both to his Father and to us.
[32:20] The Son is loyal to his Father in fulfilling the Father's will, but he does so out of the love that he bears to his Father. And his actions on our behalf are driven by love, yes indeed, but also by loyalty, because we are part of his covenant people. And he is committed to us, and his loyalty to us explains what drives him, the motivation that would lead him to do what he did, hand himself over to death in our place. And this, of course, is what we will remember and celebrate as we gather around the Lord's table this coming Sunday. We will remember and celebrate that Jesus handed himself over to death in our place, driven by his love for us, his love for his Father, his loyalty to God, and his loyalty to us his covenant people. Well, these are the facts as they're portrayed for us in the passages that we've read.
[33:25] But from these facts, and very briefly, emerge implications that can be identified for us, practical implications. And we can identify them by posing three questions. The three questions are these. Is God always in charge? The events that we've looked at are a dramatic instance, you might say, of God's minute and absolute charge, when it's very clear that God is in charge of every detail of what is going on. It's very clear. We can identify other examples of that in the Bible. Perhaps if we were to turn to the Old Testament, the example that is often referred to, and with good reason, is the example of Joseph, and how Joseph, when his brothers are concerned as to what will happen when their father dies, and maybe Joseph will take revenge on them for what they've done, what does Joseph say to them? You intended it for evil, but God ordered it for good, for the saving of many people. So, there again, you see God so clearly in charge of events, and in charge of the actions, even of evil men, though not morally responsible for them.
[34:47] But is God always in charge? And the answer we have to answer to that, and we gladly answer to that, is yes. He's always in charge. And for us as believers, that should be a reason to take heart that our God reigns. He is always in charge. And though the devil roars, and the enemies of the gospel scheme and plot and seem to gain great victories, and we can lament that, and we should be saddened by that, nonetheless, we are saddened in the context of a sure and unshakable confidence that our God reigns, that He is in charge. A second question that draws out another implication. If God is in charge, are we responsible for our evil actions?
[35:38] What about Satan and Judas and the chief priests and the incident that we've been considering? Are they just pawns in a macabre game of cosmic chess doing what the chess master determines that they have to do, impotent in the face of a greater design? That is not the manner in which the Bible portrays their actions or our actions. We are morally responsible for our actions. The passage that we read in Acts makes that so explicitly clear. We can read it again in the context of this question in Acts chapter 2 and verse 23.
[36:22] This man, Jesus, was handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge. Unapologetic is Peter in identifying God as the one who is responsible for what has happened in a very real sense. And yet, what does he go on to say? What does Peter go on to say? And you, with the help of wicked men, men who acted wickedly and were morally responsible for their wicked actions, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. And he continues. Now, it may be, indeed, it is difficult for us to to understand how these truths come together. But the fact that it's difficult for us to understand doesn't excuse us from accepting that both things are true, that God is in charge and that we are morally responsible. Both these things are clearly true. And you say, well, I don't understand how that can be. Well, don't understand. You know, we can't understand the designs of God. We're the clay. He's the potter. In the measure that the Bible helps us to understand, then by all means, let's seek to understand. But they are true regardless of whether we understand. God is in charge. But we, you and me, are morally responsible for the actions that we take. And then one final implication that we can draw out with another question. If God is in charge, how are we, how are you to submit to His charge, to His government, to His sovereignty? You see, the reality is that you are subject to His charge, whether you recognize it or not, whether you believe in Him or not. You can be an atheist and you're still subject to His charge. The question isn't whether you are subject to Him. The question is how are you subject to Him? You can be subject to Him obliviously. You know, Judas and the chief priests and scheming and plotting, they didn't realize that they were subject to God's overruling and what they were doing. They were oblivious to that. And yet they were subject to Him. You can be subject to Him reluctantly or rebelliously. I'm not sure in the case of Satan, in his confused mind and thinking, if indeed that's a way we can speak of Him. There is a recognition. I think there is. There clearly is. When you hear the demons addressing Jesus, there's a recognition, albeit a reluctant recognition, that he is subject to God. And yet his subjection to God is reluctant. It's rebellious.
[39:01] Well, that's another way you can be subject to God. Rebelliously, reluctantly, grudgingly. But how much better, how much more blessed to be subject to God, joyfully and willingly, as Jesus was subject to His Father, joyfully and willingly. Is that not the way that we ought to be?
[39:26] Is that not the best way to be subject to God? You are subject to God, like it or lump it. How are you subject to God? Grant that it would be. God grant that it would be. That it would be joyfully and willingly. Let us pray. Heavenly Father, we come to you, and we acknowledge that you are indeed the God who rules over all, the God who is sovereign over history, sovereign over our lives, sovereign over all that occurs. And as your people, this is a source of comfort and security to know that this is so. We recognize that you govern over us, and that any attempts that we make to rebel are foolish, are foolish, are foolish, and do not take away from your government over us. And so, we do pray that by your Spirit, you would help us to evermore know what it is to live in joyful submission to you, in willing submission to a God who loves us, to a God who cares for us, to a God who has provided so wonderfully for us in the person of Jesus to be our Savior. Help us then so to bow down before you, and we pray in Jesus' name. Amen.
[40:59] We'll sing again as we draw our service to a close, and we'll sing from Psalm 18. In sing psalms, Psalm 18, and we'll sing from verse 46.
[41:15] Psalm 18, from verse 46. We'll sing these verses to the tune at Duke Street, and we'll sing through to the end of the psalm. The Lord lives, praise be to my rock. My Savior God exalted me. He has avenged me, and subdued me, and subdued rebellious peoples under me. Psalm 18, verses 46 through to the end of the psalm.
[41:37] And we'll stand to sing. Psalm 18, verses 46 through to the end of the psalm. We'll sing. Psalm 18, verses 46 through to the end of the psalm. We'll stand to sing. Psalm 18, verses 47 through to the end of the psalm. We'll sing.
[41:54] This is the tune of the psalm. We'll sing. We'll sing. With a new spring of sundry You see me from my enemies Exalted me above my foes You rescued me from my attempt Whose soul I bid down to the foes There for a mountain of nations, Lord Your praise and song I will proclaim
[42:59] Before the peoples of the world I'll sing the glory of your name In your king-play victories Your loving kindness you will pour On David, your aloited one At his descendants, evermore Now may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all now and always.
[43:56] Amen.