Get Ready
When you think about God what are the predominant images that come to mind? Do you tend to focus on God’s power, or his wisdom, or his righteousness? Or are you more likely to envision his mercy, or his graciousness and forgiveness, or his love?
The Word
145 Praise. Of David
I will extol you, my God and King,
and bless your name forever and ever.
2 Every day I will bless you,
and praise your name forever and ever.
3 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;
his greatness is unsearchable.
4 One generation shall laud your works to another,
and shall declare your mighty acts.
5 On the glorious splendor of your majesty,
and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.
6 The might of your awesome deeds shall be proclaimed,
and I will declare your greatness.
7 They shall celebrate the fame of your abundant goodness,
and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.
8 The Lord is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 The Lord is good to all,
and his compassion is over all that he has made.
10 All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord,
and all your faithful shall bless you.
11 They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom, and tell of your power,
12 to make known to all people your mighty deeds,
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures throughout all generations.
The Lord is faithful in all his words, and gracious in all his deeds.
14 The Lord upholds all who are falling,
and raises up all who are bowed down.
15 The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food in due season.
16 You open your hand, satisfying the desire of every living thing.
17 The Lord is just in all his ways, and kind in all his doings.
18 The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.
19 He fulfills the desire of all who fear him;
he also hears their cry, and saves them.
20 The Lord watches over all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.
21 My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord,
and all flesh will bless his holy name forever and ever.
150 Praise for God’s Surpassing Greatness
Praise the Lord!
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty firmament!
2 Praise him for his mighty deeds;
praise him according to his surpassing greatness!
3 Praise him with trumpet sound;
praise him with lute and harp!
4 Praise him with tambourine and dance;
praise him with strings and pipe!
5 Praise him with clanging cymbals;
praise him with loud clashing cymbals!
6 Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord! NRSV
Get into the Word:
1. How does the psalmist begin this psalm? What does he say about God? Why does he bless and praise God’s name [see Notes]?
2. What attributes of God does the writer talk about? Why do you suppose he chose these character-
istics? Would you have chosen different attributes?
3. How does the psalmist describe God’s relationship with people? Why is this important to the author? Why is it important to us today?
4. How do people respond to God’s greatness? What should they tell others about God? About his actions? About his kingdom?
5. What does the psalmist focus on at the end of this psalm? What images of God’s goodness does he use? How does he describe God’s relationship with his people?
6. What is Psalm 150 about? How does the writer begin this psalm? Why does the writer praise God? Who all should praise God?
7. What should people use when they praise God? What might we use today in addition to those in the psalm?
Get Personal:
When you pray do you open by praising God or do you start right in with requests?
Notes . . .
145:1. Extol — “praise loudly,” “acclaim.”
Psalms uses four Hebrew words for praise, each with its own meaning:
- “Hallel” focuses on God’s greatness.
- “Yadah” is related to the Hebrew verb for “confess” and focuses on Gods goodness (often in contrast to our weaknesses).
- “Zamar” refers to praise through singing or use of musical instruments.
- “Sabah” includes the idea of love in praise for who God is and what he has done for us.
- Incidentally, “Hallel” is the first part of “Hallelujah” – literally “Praise to God.”
Psalm 145 is an acrostic. Each verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet (although the actual text between verses 13 and 14 is missing in the Hebrew Bible; the second part of v. 13 does appear in the Greek Septuagint, Latin Vulgate and some other translations as the 14th verse).
Bless your name — Jews believe a person’s name contains his or her character and attributes, so David is praising God for who he is.
145:4. One generation — God’s greatness extends throughout time.
Laud — an older word for praise (as in “applaud”).
145:7. Goodness . . . — David shifts from God’s power and actions to four key aspects of his character: goodness, righteousness, graciousness and mercy.
145:8. God is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love — this affirmation appears six times in the Old Testament [Exodus 34:6; Neh 9:17; Psalm 86:15; 103:8; Joel 2:13; Jonah 4:2].
145:10. Faithful — often translated “saints.”
145:14. Upholds . . . — David gives examples of God’s faithfulness and graciousness [v. 13]: he upholds and raises up people in trouble; he provides food; he satisfies our desires; he is “just” and “kind;” he responds to us when we pray; he saves us.
150:1. Firmament — the same word as Genesis 1:6, (there translated “dome”) – refers to something that is expansive or spread out.
150:5. Clanging cymbals — the Hebrew word actually means “loud.”
150:6. Everything that breathes — the psalmist calls on the entire creation to praise the creator.
Memory Verse
The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love,
[Psalm 145:8].
Next Lesson
Proverbs 3: Trusting and honoring God.
