Psalms 118: Strength as a State of Consciousness

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Quick Insights

Gratitude is the primary posture that realigns consciousness from fear to abundance.
Calling from distress and receiving an answer is an image of the imagination expanding into freedom and possibility.
Adversaries are inward projections—tight, swarm-like thoughts—that can be extinguished by a sustained, vivid sense of inner authority.
Rejected ideas, when assumed and persistently imagined as true, become the cornerstone of a transformed life.

What is the Main Point of Psalms 118?

The chapter speaks to a simple inner law: a sustained, grateful assumption of goodness reconfigures perception and creates an expanded field in which resistance dissolves and new realities are born. When one calls inwardly from a place of constriction and imagines the answer as already given, that imaginative act opens a larger space, reveals strength, and replaces fear with confident expectancy. The drama of enemies surrounding the self is the drama of limiting beliefs crowding the imagination; the way through is to occupy the inner throne with thanksgiving and a firm sense of being upheld, so that the refused or neglected idea is accepted and becomes the foundation of experience.

What is the Spiritual Meaning of Psalms 118?

The opening refrain of thanksgiving is not merely a ritual but an active aligning: mercy that endures is the sustaining feeling that underwrites imagination. To say 'thank you' inwardly invokes a continuity of benevolence that steadies attention. This steadiness is what answers the cry of distress; the call is heard because the one calling has already chosen to trust the creative power of feeling and imagery rather than external outcomes. The promised 'large place' is the psychological expansion that follows when constricted attention is replaced by a vivid sense of relief and spaciousness, and with that expansion the perceived limitations of circumstance begin to fall away. The text's battle language—compassed about, a swarm like bees, quenched as fire—maps inner conflict: transient anxieties, accusatory thoughts, and the louder egoic judgments. These are not ultimate facts but scenes played in the imagination that can be countered by imagining a victorious end. Belief that an inner ally is on one's side turns the posture from defensive to active; that right hand which does valiantly is the will energized by feeling, capable of reshaping scenes until they correspond to the chosen state. Chastening and correction appear as necessary refinements that test persistence; they are not condemnation but feedback that helps refine the image until it functions as a living cause. The transformation of the rejected stone into the cornerstone points to a spiritual principle of rehabilitation within consciousness: what was denied by the outer world or by previous thinking can be reclaimed and elevated into the foundation of a new identity. This requires imaginative persistence and a willingness to inhabit the end state inwardly, to see the self already established where formerly it felt excluded. The repeated insistence that this is 'the day' reinforces the immediacy of creative responsibility — the present moment is the only operative arena for imagination to produce its effects, and rejoicing in it accelerates the materialization of inner decrees.

Key Symbols Decoded

Gates and entrances are thresholds of acceptance inside the psyche: to be 'opened' into righteousness is to pass from anxious wanting into settled receiving. When the inner gate admits the feeling of having already been heard and favored, the mind shifts from petition to proclamation and the worldview reorients around the assumed wish fulfilled. The right hand evokes the active faculty of will united with feeling; valor is not brute force but the steady practice of imagining the desired outcome with conviction and calm persistence. The stone refused by builders is the idea or identity rejected by others and by one's former self, which, when embraced imaginatively, becomes the structural element that supports a new life. Images of swarming enemies and consuming fire are vivid metaphors for mental agitation and self-criticism. Bees suggest stinging opinions that cluster around a vulnerable center, while the fire of thorns describes how such agitation appears impressive yet quickly collapses when met by a composed, enduring inner state. Mercy enduring forever is the continuous background tone of imagination kept alive by gratitude; it is the underlying conviction that sustains creative acts and renders transient opposition powerless. The house, priestly voices, and nations can be read as aspects of communal and solitary consciousness: the parts that affirm, the rituals that sustain feeling, and the broader beliefs that either support or oppose the new inner decree.

Practical Application

Begin with a practiced moment of gratitude that is felt, not only thought. Sit quietly and allow an inner 'thank you' to expand until the body loosens and breath deepens; notice how this shifts the tone of inner speech. Bring to mind a present constriction — a fear, lack, or imagined opponent — and imagine a scene of resolution as if the desired outcome has already occurred: the gate opens, the stone is acknowledged and placed as cornerstone, the right hand acts with calm courage. Hold that scene with sensory detail for a few minutes each day, especially upon waking and before sleep, allowing the feelings attendant to the fulfilled state to permeate the mind. When anxious voices return, treat them as temporary images and do not argue with their content; instead, return to the rehearsed scene and speak inwardly from the position of the fulfilled self. Persist until the old reactions lose intensity; chastening becomes less a punishment and more a cue to refine the image. Live and move as if the inner declaration were already effective, noticing small shifts in action and opportunity as evidence. Over time, this disciplined imaginative practice reshapes perception so that the mercy and salvation once petitioned for are experienced as the steady background of daily life.

The Resilient Song of Gratitude and Deliverance

Psalm 118 read as a psychological drama unfolds entirely within human consciousness. The characters, places, and acts are not events in external history but personifications of attitudes, choices, and capacities of awareness. Read this way, the psalm becomes a living map of how imagination creates reality, how inner states awaken or silence the outer world, and how the creative power at the center of our being operates when it is claimed and sustained.

The opening summons to give thanks because mercy endures forever immediately names gratitude as a foundational state. Mercy here is not an external kindness but the constant creative favor of consciousness toward its own imagined identity. When a person takes up the posture of gratitude, they align attention with the sustaining power that brings imagined states into manifestation. The repeated call to let Israel, the house of Aaron, and those who fear the LORD declare that mercy endures is a progressive psychology: the ordinary self, the ritual mind, and the devout or humble aspect of awareness are all invited to testify to an enduring inner law. This is not rote worship; it is the disciplined rehearsal of an assumption that, when faithfully felt, displaces contrary beliefs.

I called upon the LORD in distress; the LORD answered me, and set me in a large place becomes the pivotal psychological event. Distress represents contraction, the narrowness of sensory identification. Calling upon the LORD is the act of turning attention inward, invoking the I AM presence, the imagining faculty that answers with expanded possibility. Being set in a large place describes the felt result of this inward turn: consciousness widens, restriction dissolves, and the field of potential opens. In practical terms this is the exact moment that imagination takes precedence over mere sensation and memory; by assuming a larger inner scene, the individual experiences relief and new options.

The LORD is on my side; I will not fear encapsulates trust as a deliberate posture. Fear is the natural mind's response to perceived threats from fleshly circumstances. To say the LORD is on my side is to claim that one is being sustained by the inner selfhood. What can man do unto me then becomes a rhetorical dismissal of external coercion when the inner assumption is solid. The psalm moves quickly from the inward appeal to an affirmation of invulnerability — not in an arrogant way, but as a description of the psychological reality created by the sovereign use of imagination.

The verses that speak of compassing and surrounding enemies, of being like bees and quenched as the fire of thorns, dramatize the persistent, buzzing thoughts and hostile opinions that attempt to destabilize the assumed state. These are not people out there but habit-formed patterns within consciousness that surround and harass the assumed identity. The repeated assertion that in the name of the LORD these enemies will be destroyed points to the operative technique: to employ the identity phrase I AM as the commanding power. Naming the inner state and acting from it neutralizes the intrusive swarm of doubts; imagination acting as commander turns what once threatened into fuel for conviction.

Thou hast thrust sore at me that I might fall: but the LORD helped me captures the testing of the assumption. Challenges surface to prove the sincerity and stability of the new inner state. The LORD helping is not an external rescue but the inner I AM sustaining the assumption through feelings and images that shore up confidence. The right hand of the LORD doeth valiantly and is exalted becomes a powerful image for the active faculty of imagination. The right hand, in inner language, is the operative power that gives form to thought. When imagination is deliberately harnessed, it performs valiantly; it becomes the practical agent that crafts outward correspondences.

I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the LORD reads as psychological resurrection. Die and live here speak to identities. The old self that accepted limitation appears to die as the new assumed self comes alive. Declaring the works of the LORD means telling of the inner creative acts now objectified in consciousness and, subsequently, in experience. The psalmist insists that chastening did not bring abandonment; rather, discipline refined the faith that brings rebirth.

Open to me the gates of righteousness is a vivid portrayal of attention as gatekeeper. Gates are thresholds of perception. To ask them to open is to demand entry into the domain of right imagining. Passing through the gate of righteousness is entering a state of uncontradicted assumption, a disciplined field where the imagination moves unopposed by the mocking crowd. The psalmist will go into them and praise; the movement into praise is the movement into inner occupancy of the desired state where gratitude functions as the sustaining climate.

The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner is among the most direct statements about creative reversal. The rejected stone is the inner I AM or the particular imagined self that the habitual mind discounts. The builders are the habitual forces, the collective reasoning that discards any image that threatens established identity. Yet that rejected image, once assumed and sustained, becomes the cornerstone of a new life. This psychological paradox is the pattern of creative transformation: what the world calls unfit or impossible, when owned and vivified in the imagination, becomes the structural foundation of a new reality.

This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. The present moment is named as the creative day. Creativity functions only now; imagining is an act that always takes place in the present. Rejoicing is the inner signal to the creative faculty that the assumption is welcomed and thereby accelerated into external expression. Save now, I beseech thee, O LORD; send now prosperity gives the prayer form its true living sense: not pleading for a future rescue but commanding present experience by present feeling. The urgency of now is the psychology that turns wish into fact, for imagination is always instantaneous when fully assumed.

Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the LORD reads as recognition of the one who speaks from I AM. Coming in that name is to act and speak from the inner authority, to represent the assumed state outwardly. Being blessed out of the house of the LORD is the signature of inner-originated success; the world must align with the inner pronouncement. God is the LORD which hath shewed us light, and bind the sacrifice with cords unto the horns of the altar — this ritual language again points inward: sacrifice is what the outer ego must give up, cords represent discipline, and the altar horns are the points of attention where offering is made. One binds the sacrifice, that is, one holds steady the imagined offering until it is accepted by consciousness itself.

Repetition of O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever returns the reader to the technique that sustains creation: persistent grateful assumption. Mercy enduring forever is the promise of consistent imaginative practice. It is not the fickle favor of externals but the steady goodwill of the creative I AM when invited and honored.

Taken as a whole, Psalm 118 provides a concise psychological manual. The arc is clear: recognize contraction, call inward, assume the I AM presence, repel the swarming doubts by sustained naming and feeling, pass through the gate of disciplined attention, occupy the present moment with rejoicing, and allow the rejected inner identity to be raised to cornerstone status. The interplay of distress and deliverance, of compassing enemies and exalted right hand, dramatizes the inner attrition between habit and imagination. The remedy in every verse is the same: do not argue with the current facts of the senses; instead, embody the desired state now, and let imagination, exercised as the right hand, accomplish what sense denies.

In practice this Psalm instructs: when you find yourself constricted, deliberately call upon the inner presence, form a single vivid scene that implies fulfillment, assume you are the person in that scene, and sustain the feeling of it without looking for outer proof. Close the gates to the mocking crowd of negative thoughts, take only the faithful ideas as disciples within that inner room, and persist in thanksgiving. The stone the world rejected will become the headstone of your new life, and the mercy you name will endure as your creative instrument. Thus, the psalm turns from prayer to technique, from lament to art. It teaches that reality is not primarily a sequence of external events but the unfolding testimony of states of consciousness that are imagined, inhabited, and made enduring.

Common Questions About Psalms 118

What is the main message of Psalm 118 and how does Neville Goddard interpret it?

Psalm 118 is a hymn of thanksgiving and deliverance that celebrates mercy, answered prayer, and a moved heart set free, where the psalmist declares victory, praises God’s steadfast mercy, and points to a paradoxical reversal—the rejected stone becoming the cornerstone (Psalm 118:22,24). In the experiential teaching associated with Neville, the psalm reads as an inner drama of consciousness: the “LORD” names the creative imagination that answers your call and enlarges your state. The main message becomes practical: assume the state of the fulfilled desire, rejoice in that inner victory, and watch outer circumstances rearrange themselves to conform to the predominant imagined state.

How can I use Psalm 118 with the law of assumption to manifest specific outcomes?

Use Psalm 118 as a living description of the state you must assume: recall the psalmist’s cry that the LORD answered in distress and set him in a large place (Psalm 118:5), and take that as your imagined fact. Enter a relaxed, reverie state and vividly scene the end result as already accomplished, speaking inwardly or silently the lines that affirm deliverance and thanksgiving; feel the emotion of gratitude as if the desire is fulfilled. Repeat this assumption nightly or whenever you return to quiet, hold the state until it feels real, then release attachment and act from that inner assurance.

Are there Neville Goddard lectures, PDFs, or YouTube readings that focus on Psalm 118?

Many recordings and transcripts of Neville’s lectures and readings explore themes found in Psalm 118—thanksgiving, the answered prayer, and the rejected stone made cornerstone—though he may not always label a lecture by that psalm’s number; searching for recordings or PDFs using terms like 'Neville Goddard Psalm 118,' 'rejected stone cornerstone Neville,' or 'Neville on assumption and thanksgiving' will surface audio, lecture transcripts, and YouTube readings. Look for reputable channels that provide original recordings or scanned transcripts, and use the words of the psalm as practice aids rather than as literal commands, testing the teachings by applying the imaginative method in your own experience.

What does 'the stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone' mean in Neville's teaching on consciousness?

The rejected stone becoming the cornerstone (Psalm 118:22) symbolizes the single assumption or consciousness you may have overlooked—your true imaginative I—that, when accepted and lived in, becomes the foundation of your life. In Neville’s teaching, the builders are the outer opinions, doubts, or authorities that dismiss your inner assumption; when you insist upon and dwell in the chosen state, that formerly rejected assumption reorders reality and becomes the essential cause of your affairs. Practically, honor and persist in the imaginative conviction you want; what others reject will become central once it is sustained in your awareness.

How do I practice a Neville-style guided imagination using Psalm 118 verse 24 ('This is the day the Lord has made')?

Begin by calming body and mind until you approach the state akin to sleep, then take Psalm 118:24 as your present-tense anchor and imagine a compact scene that proves the day is already made for you: see, hear, and feel one small completed proof of your desire, then rejoice inwardly as the psalm invites. Repeat simple sensory details and the phrase 'This is the day the Lord has made' while sustaining gratitude and confidence; let the feeling of fulfillment dominate for several minutes, then drift off or resume activity without anxiety. Regular practice impresses the assumption on the subconscious and attracts outer evidence.