Most believers have read Psalm 117 a hundred times and never stopped at it. It’s the shortest chapter in the Bible, easy to rush past on the way to Psalm 118.

But read it slowly: “Praise Hashem, all you nations; extol Him, all you peoples, for great is His steadfast love toward us.”

The nations aren’t being praised. They’re not the ones being saved. They’re being called to praise God for what He has done for the Jewish people. Which raises a question that I don’t think gets asked enough: who exactly are these nations? Who are the people outside the covenant who look at what God is doing for Israel and respond with genuine praise?

If you’re an evangelical Christian who loves Israel, who reads the prophets and sees them being fulfilled in real time, who feels something stir when you hear Hatikvah or see the Israeli flag: that verse is about you.

This Wednesday, April 22, at 12 PM EDT, Israel365 Action and HaYovel are hosting an online Hallel for Israel’s Independence Day. Rabbi Pesach Wolicki, Tommy Waller, and musician Lazer Lloyd will lead Jews and Christians together through the ancient Psalms of praise, 11 AM CDT, 12 PM ET, 7 PM Israel time.

Tommy Waller said this week that Israel’s Independence Day should be celebrated by every Christian, because the state’s existence is the fulfillment of what Moses and every prophet after him promised.

He’s right. And there’s something significant about being invited to say so out loud, in Hebrew, with Jews, on the day Israel marks its 78th year.

You don’t have to resolve every theological question about the modern state to show up. You just have to believe what the Bible says about this land and these people. If you do, Wednesday’s event isn’t just a nice interfaith gesture. It’s Psalm 117 happening in real time.

Register. Be one of the nations.

Wednesday, April 22. 11 AM CDT / 12 PM EDT / 7 PM Israel. Register here.