Ps. 89.28 (the forever)

Forever / I will keep my loyal-love for him
my covenant obligation to him / is steadfast. 

These two lines work like an acrostic: A: Forever; B: I will keep my loyal love for him; B1: My covenant obligation to him; A1: is steadfast. A first thing to note is that the term ‘forever’ has been employed already a couple of times. Indeed, it inaugurates the psalm: “I want to sing forever of Yhwh’s deeds of loyal-love” (vs. 1); Yhwh’s loyal-love is “built to last forever” (vs. 2); Yhwh will “establish your [David’s] offspring forever” (vs. 4). As we saw when reflecting on verses 2 and 4, the ‘forever’ of Yhwh is a heavenly reality made present to earth through David. “Forever” is, in a way, the ‘presence of God’; it is the heavenly realm. It is what the Temple makes accessible and it is, now, what we see David makes accessible as well. I do not think it an exaggeration to say that this ‘forever’ is one aspect of the ‘face of God’ that every biblical man yearns to see. Which leads to the second observation—the ‘forever’ of Yhwh’s loyal-love is made parallel to the ‘steadfastness’ of his covenant obligation. In other words, Yhwh’s ‘forever’ is not a type of static state, or thing, on Yhwh’s part but a constant being-for-his-anointed. In this psalm, he does not grant David power over his enemies or ‘over the waters’. Rather, Yhwh is the one who accomplishes these things on behalf of his ‘firstborn’. His loving attention for his firstborn will not waiver and, as we have seen, this ‘attention’ is the bridge over which Yhwh’s heavenly power will pass to earth, through David. Yhwh, through David, will reign on earth as he does in heaven. In line with what we said in our first observation—this is the personal, being-for, of Yhwh; it is his ‘face’. Through David, Yhwh’s ‘face’ will be toward the world.