Psalms 118:23 — Meaning and Application

Heart Emotional Intelligence

Sometimes your life feels anything but “marvellous.” It feels confusing, unfair, or painfully ordinary. So when Psalm 118 says, “This is the LORD’s doing; it is marvellous in our eyes,” it can almost hurt to read. You might think, “Lord, what about *this*—this loss, this disappointment, this waiting? Is that Your doing too?” This verse sits in a psalm of deliverance after deep trouble. The “marvellous” didn’t show up in the middle of the storm; it was recognized after God carried the psalmist through it. You’re allowed to say, “I don’t see the marvel yet.” That honesty belongs in God’s presence. From my heart to yours: this verse is not a demand to pretend everything is wonderful. It’s a gentle reminder that God is quietly weaving a story bigger than what you can see today. Some of His works are only recognized in hindsight, when you look back and realize, “I should have been crushed—but I wasn’t. I was held.” For now, you can simply pray: “Lord, I don’t see the marvel yet, but hold me until I do.” And He will.

Mind Theological Wisdom

“This is the LORD’s doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.” Here the psalmist pauses, almost as if to catch his breath, and names the true source of the great reversal just described—the rejected stone becoming the chief cornerstone (v. 22). The focus shifts from human agency to divine initiative. In Hebrew, the emphasis falls on “Yahweh”: *From the LORD this has come to be.* The victory, the vindication, the unexpected turning of the story is not the product of human strength, strategy, or merit. This verse trains your vision. It invites you to look at God’s work in history—and in your own life—and learn to say, “This is the LORD’s doing.” What once seemed like defeat, marginalization, or rejection becomes, in God’s hands, the very place of His display of glory. “Marvellous in our eyes” suggests not mere polite admiration but stunned, worshipful amazement. When the New Testament applies this passage to Christ (Matt 21:42; Acts 4:11), it shows the ultimate fulfillment: the crucified and rejected Messiah established as the cornerstone of God’s saving plan. Your call is to recognize God’s hand in the unexpected and respond with awe, not self-congratulation.

Life Practical Living

“This is the LORD’S doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.” In real life, this verse is a corrective to two common mistakes: taking credit and taking control. You work hard, make wise choices, push through conflict—and that’s good. But when a door opens you never could have forced, a relationship is restored that was “over,” a bill is paid from an unexpected source, or your heart changes in a way you couldn’t manufacture—that’s not just skill. That’s the Lord’s doing. Practically, this verse calls you to: 1. **Name God’s fingerprints.** In your marriage, career, finances, or parenting, stop and ask, “What has God done here that I could not?” Then say it out loud, even if only in prayer. 2. **Let wonder interrupt worry.** You spend huge energy trying to manage outcomes. This verse invites you to step back and say, “If God can do *that*, I don’t have to control *this*.” 3. **Respond with stewardship, not pride.** When God does something marvellous, your job isn’t to boast—it’s to protect it, nurture it, and use it for His purposes. Recognize His doing. Treat it as marvellous. Then live like it was a gift, not an achievement.

Soul Eternal Perspective

When you read, “This is the LORD’s doing; it is marvellous in our eyes,” you are standing on holy ground between what you can explain and what only God can do. This verse invites you to recognize that the most important movements in your life and eternity are not your achievements, but God’s interventions. Salvation itself—your forgiveness, your new heart, your future resurrection—is “the LORD’s doing.” You did not engineer your way into grace; you were mercifully drawn into it. Look back over your story: the doors that should have stayed shut but opened, the sins that should have destroyed you but didn’t, the moments when despair should have finished you yet somehow didn’t have the final word. These are not accidents. They are quiet signatures of the same God who raised Christ from the dead. To call it “marvellous” is to worship in wonder, not to understand in full. Let this verse train your eyes: ask God to show you where His unseen hand has been at work. As you notice His doing, your heart will loosen its grip on control and tighten its grip on trust.