Hallel is Hebrew for “praise.” The Hallel Psalms (113 to 118) (sometimes “the Lesser Hallel”) give praise to the God of gods. They have been at the center of Jewish praise and worship for over 3,000 years. (Note 1)

Psalm 136, referred to as The Great Hallel, continues the refrain from Psalm 118: “His steadfast love endures forever.”

On this Sabbath, let us raise our praise to our God:

“Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of gods, for His steadfast love endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for His steadfast love endures forever;
to Him who alone does great wonders, for His steadfast love endures forever;
to Him who by understanding made the heavens, for His steadfast love endures forever;
to Him who spread out the earth above the waters, for His steadfast love endures forever;
to Him who made the great lights, for His steadfast love endures forever;
the sun to rule over the day, for His steadfast love endures forever;
the moon and stars to rule over the night, for His steadfast love endures forever.”
Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his steadfast love endures forever. Psalm 136:1-9, 26 ESV (Note 2)

At its core, God’s steadfastness springs from His love for us. Chesed love. Chesed (also hesed) (Hebrew), or agape (Greek), is unconditional extravagant love. Chesed is one of the attributes of God’s character, maybe the attribute since His love encompasses all His other attributes (God is love). Chesed is the compulsion to give and to love without limit those who have no merit. Chesed love cannot be defined or experienced apart from the fullness of God’s character. It is a supernatural, multifaceted love that is only realized, practiced, and experienced through God. Although not the same as human love, it can be experienced by humans (Jonathan and David, 1 Samuel 18:3; Ruth and Boaz, Ruth 3:10).

God’s chesed love is why God never gives up on His children, even though they repeatedly fall into idolatry and sin. It is the reason He sent His only Son on a rescue mission.

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good. His steadfast love endures forever. (Note 3)

Note 1: An exceptionally good explanation of the Hallel Psalms is found at Got Questions here.
Note 2: A beautiful and good explication of the Great Hallel was given by Pope Benedict on October 19, 2011. It is found here.
Note 3: We urge you to read Psalms 113-118, 136, and read in full the material referenced in Notes 1 and 2. His steadfast love endures forever.