Shout Praises to The Lord
March 7, 2019
Commentary
Praise plays a great role in Psalms 145-150. Each begins and ends with “Praise the Lord.” The word “praise” occurs 46 times in these six psalms. Praise for the greatness and grace of God is the subject of this psalm. The psalmist vowed to praise God all of his life because the one who made the heavens and the earth is faithful and just to the oppressed of the earth. He shows us where, why, and how to praise God. What does praise do?
1. Praise takes our minds off our problems and shortcomings and focuses them on God.
2. Praise leads us from individual meditation to corporate worship.
3. Praise causes us to consider and appreciate God’s character.
4. Praise lifts our perspective from the earthly to the heavenly.
The Lord is to be praised, not only for His greatness in creation (vv. 1-6), but also in his provision. He shows his loving favor in many ways. He helps the oppressed (v. 7), feeds the hungry (v. 7), sets prisoners free (v. 7), makes the blind to see (v. 8), lifts the fallen (v. 8), loves the righteous (v. 8), watches over aliens (v. 9), sustains the homeless (v. 9), and frustrates the wicked (v. 9).
Application
I want to praise the Lord as long as I live. I want to be more sensitive to His beauty in creation and move from an awareness of His power and might to a warm personal relationship with him.
Psalms 146:1– 10 (NET)
1 Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord, O my soul.
2 I will praise the Lord as long as I live. I will sing praises to my God as long as I exist.
3 Do not trust in princes, or in human beings, who cannot deliver.
4 Their life’s breath departs, they return to the ground. On that day their plans die.
5 How blessed is the one whose helper is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God,
6 the one who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, who remains forever faithful,
7 vindicates the oppressed, and gives food to the hungry. The Lord releases the imprisoned.
8 The Lord gives sight to the blind. The Lord lifts up all who are bent over. The Lord loves the godly.
9 The Lord protects the resident foreigner. He lifts up the fatherless and the widow, but he opposes the wicked.
10 The Lord rules forever, your God, O Zion, throughout the generations to come. Praise the Lord!