John Calvin Commentary Psalms 102:18

"This shall be written for the generation to come; And a people which shall be created shall praise Jehovah." — Psalms 102:18 (ASV)

This shall be registered for the generation that is to come; the Psalmist further magnifies the fruit of his people's deliverance, to encourage himself and others in the hope of obtaining the object of their prayers. He intimates that this will be a memorable work of God, the praise of which will be handed down to succeeding ages.

Many things are worthy of praise but are soon forgotten; however, the prophet distinguishes between the salvation of the Church, for which he prays, and common benefits. By the word register, he means that the history of this deliverance would be worthy of a place in the public records, so that its remembrance might be transmitted to future generations.

In these words, there is a beautiful contrast between the new creation of the people and the present destruction—a contrast that interpreters improperly overlook. When the people were expelled from their country, the Church was, in a way, extinguished. Her very name might seem to be dead when the Jews were mixed among the Gentile nations and no longer formed a distinct and united body.

Their return was, therefore, like a second birth. Consequently, the prophet rightly expects a new creation. Although the Church had perished, he was convinced that God, by His wonderful power, would make her rise again from death to renewed life.

This is a remarkable passage, showing that the Church is not always preserved in such a way that she visibly continues to survive; instead, when she seems to be dead, she is suddenly created anew whenever it pleases God. Therefore, let no desolation that befalls the Church deprive us of the hope that, just as God once created the world out of nothing, so it is His distinctive work to bring forth the Church from the darkness of death.