Psalm 117

          ¹ Praise the Lord, all you nations;

              extol him, all you peoples.

          ² For great is his love toward us,

              and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.

          Praise the Lord.

The Revised Common Lectionary (RCL) Psalter daily reading is Psalm 117.  It has the distinction of being the shortest chapter in all of scripture.  That does not make it insignificant.  It is a Psalm of invitation as well as praise.  In Advent, when we consider the coming of Israel’s Messiah who became the Savior of the whole world, we see a foretaste of God’s plan in this hymn.  It is not the few, or the many, but “all nations” and “all people” who receive the invitation to praise the One True God.  It is also the entirety of the human race to which God’s love and faithfulness are pledged forever.