John Calvin Commentary Psalms 102:12

"But thou, O Jehovah, wilt abide for ever; And thy memorial [name] unto all generations." — Psalms 102:12 (ASV)

And you, O Jehovah! will dwell forever. When the prophet, for his own encouragement, sets before himself the eternity of God, it seems, at first sight, to be a far-fetched consolation. For what benefit will accrue to us from the fact that God sits immutable on His heavenly throne, when, at the same time, our frail and perishing condition does not permit us to continue unmoved for a single moment?

And, what is more, this knowledge of the blessed repose enjoyed by God enables us better to perceive that our life is a mere illusion. But the inspired writer, recalling the promises by which God had declared that He would make the Church the object of His special care, and particularly that remarkable article of the covenant, “I will dwell in the midst of you” (Exodus 25:8), and trusting to that sacred and indissoluble bond, has no hesitation in representing all the godly, though languishing in a state of suffering and wretchedness, as partakers of this celestial glory in which God dwells.

The word memorial is also to be viewed in the same light. What advantage would we derive from this eternity and immutability of God’s being, unless we had in our hearts the knowledge of Him, which, produced by His gracious covenant, begets in us the confidence arising from a mutual relationship between Him and us?

The meaning then is: “We are like withered grass; we are decaying every moment; we are not far from death, or rather, we are, as it were, already dwelling in the grave. But since You, O God! have made a covenant with us, by which You have promised to protect and defend Your own people, and have brought Yourself into a gracious relation to us, giving us the fullest assurance that You will always dwell in the midst of us, instead of desponding, we must be of good courage. And although we may see only ground for despair if we depend upon ourselves, we should nevertheless lift up our minds to the heavenly throne, from which You will eventually stretch forth Your hand to help us.”

Whoever is moderately acquainted with the Sacred Writings will readily acknowledge that whenever we are besieged by death in various forms, we should reason in this way: As God continues unchangeably the same—“without variableness or shadow of turning”—nothing can hinder Him from aiding us. And this He will do, because we have His word, by which He has laid Himself under obligation to us, and because He has deposited with us His own memorial, which contains in it a sacred and indissoluble bond of fellowship.