Psalm 150

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“Praise the Lord! Praise God in His sanctuary; praise Him in His mighty heavens!” All human beings and angels should certainly worship God. Not only has the Lord accomplished very powerful and wonderful works, He simply is great—obviously far above every other so-called “god.”

Every worshiper of the Lord in the days of Old Testament Israel could well have used all their capacities of reason and speech in detailed consideration of the attributes of the Almighty. After thinking about God's incomparable power, justice, and love, each one among the thousands of His people could have profitably turned to careful thoughts regarding the Lord's astounding works of providence. These important ideas should have led each of His children to the most sincere activities of heartfelt devotion.

Even among the Gentiles, God could not have remained unknown to all those who were willing to hear reason's voice as they considered the marvels of creation. Anyone with a stringed instrument or a trumpet, any among the people groups of the earth who could join hands with others and dance, would surely have had many reasons to sing to the glorious Author of Life.

Nonetheless, we are told in Romans 1:18 that human beings, “by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.” This rightly provokes a response of divine indignation. Yet the Lord is merciful. He works within the unrighteous who are dead in their sins, bringing many to a saving knowledge of the Son of God. Jews and Gentiles finally embrace the truth of the Lord of Redemption who gave Himself in His death so that His people might live forever. If we ever needed a further reason to make the worship of the Lord our highest priority in life, surely this costly salvation that has come to us through Jesus should be enough to lead every believer to the fullest obedience and trust. This important message in Psalm 150 is a fitting way to complete the wisdom that we find in the Psalter. Above all the other precious truths that have been sung by Israel and the church over these many centuries, this final verse is of the highest importance, for we were made to worship God. “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!”

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Lord God, there is no one like You. We will praise You for who You are and for what You have done. We will praise You with all that we are and all that we have. We will praise You with energy and excellence, for You have granted to us every good gift for the praise of Your glory. We will praise You, O Lord, forever and ever.

Psalm 149

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“Praise the Lord! Sing to the Lord a new song, His praise in the assembly of the godly!” God called Israel together for worship. They were told to “be glad” in their Maker. “Let the children of Zion rejoice in their King!” They were not consumers evaluating the various offerings of competing divinities auditioning for their support. They owed their joyful allegiance to the Lord alone.

Their celebration in God included not only singing, but also skillful playing of instruments and dancing. Why would any group of people lift up their voices in song to their God? Why would they be so bold as to join hands with their neighbors and dance for the enjoyment of an unseen King? These activities were an expression of complete devotion. They worshiped the Lord with exuberance because He was so worthy of their praise.

Not only was Israel called to rejoice in the Lord, but God also was committed in taking “pleasure in His people.” He had chosen them as the recipients of His eternal affection. He had made them beautiful, adorning them “with salvation.”

With the “high praises of God” in their “throats,” they were to go forth in battle against the Lord's enemies. While the progress of the kingdom of God in our day is not based on taking away the lives of our adversaries, we are engaged in serious spiritual warfare. We are called to take every thought captive, and to make wise use of the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God.

One day the Lord will use His church as agents of His final justice. We know that the Judge of all the earth will do what is right. We will celebrate the righteousness of all that our God does when He comes to win the final victory over evil men and angels. Until that day it is our privilege to go to the ends of the earth with the saving message of the cross of Christ. We seek to be faithful stewards of the mysteries of grace as we present the gospel to those who may have never heard of the Lord's saving love.

As people respond to the faithful preaching of God's good Word, they are drawn to the Savior who died for their sins. It is right for them to join the chorus of the faithful and to make melody to God. It is good to rejoice in the Lord as we “sing to the Lord a new song.”

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Father, fill our hearts with a melody of joy and grant our tongues holy words according to Your richest and fullest benediction upon Your people. We will sing of Your great nature and Your wonderful works. We will sing to You a new song. Even now in the day of pain and discipline we will honor You. You have granted to us the miracle of rejoicing, though our hearts are sad in the loss of some good gift. Surely everything You take away will be granted again to our longing eyes in new and better ways one day. The blessing that we seem to have lost, or something even more wonderful, will be our destiny in Christ, for You will be our all in all. Thank You for Your love and Your perfect promises.

Psalm 148

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“Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise Him in the heights! Praise Him, all His angels; praise Him, all His hosts!” Israel needed to know that even the angels in the highest realms were supposed to worship God. The glorious spheres that filled the skies—the sun, the moon, and all the starry host—could also be called upon to perform their sacred duties. They too were reminded that they should shine with joy for the glory of their Maker.

Why should unseen angels and far-off stars join all of creation in glorifying God? “He commanded and they were created.” They did not spring out of nothingness. The Lord made every creature and they all continued to exist by His “decree.” Perhaps Israel could not hear the words that the stars would say to their Lord. Yet God's people knew that it was only right that all the great works of creation should bless the Name of the eternal Lord of the universe.

Mountains, trees, beasts, and birds existed for the pleasure of the Almighty. Certainly human beings all over the earth needed to give honor to the God who gave them amazing capabilities of reason and communication. Should mighty kings be so arrogant that they imagined it beneath themselves to worship the Lord? Could young men and women be excused from taking their place in the assembly of the righteous because they were too busy with the gifts of creation to spend time singing to the Creator?

May it never be! Jehovah must be exalted forever. His majesty “is above earth and heaven.” His people in particular should always rejoice in their God since He “has raised up a horn” of salvation for them. By the blast of His trumpet He calls them to worship and brings them victory over their enemies. Those who are “near to Him” know that He has rescued them from foes who were too strong for them. With the proclamation of the saving message of Jesus to the very ends of the earth, many have come to understand that the rights and duties of praise are not just for “the people of Israel.” His “saints” include many millions who were once far away from the land of the Jews. They have now discovered what a blessing it is to call upon the Name of the God of Jacob.

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

O God in Heaven, we worship You together with all the heavenly beings and all of Your creation in earthly realms. Your decrees are perfect and shall be perfectly accomplished. All that You have made will serve Your wise and holy purposes. You will display the greatness of Your glory at just the right time. We shall be near You forever in the majesty of Your Son.

Psalm 147

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“Praise the Lord! For it is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting.” Of all the people groups on the face of the earth, the Lord chose the descendants of Jacob to be the first who were to have a lifestyle built around the privilege of praising Jehovah. Eventually He established a city, Jerusalem, which included a permanent place of national worship, and He gathered “the outcasts of Israel” so that they might be near Him. There He promised to give them health for their souls. In that solemn place of devotion, He made a way for their deepest wounds to be healed. The God who determined the number of the stars was prepared to lift up the humble among His chosen people, and to cast “the wicked to the ground.”

“The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him.” How big and how diverse would that group eventually be? The Almighty has always provided for the stability of the vast expanse of His creation. Everything that was necessary for a fruitful atmosphere and bountiful land and seas came forth from His kind hand, not just for a small territory in the Middle East, but for the entire earth. The one who gave food to “young ravens that cry” revealed to Israel that they were of greater value to Him than the birds of the air. He had prepared a wonderful future for those “who hope in His steadfast love.” Could that mercy eventually be extended to Gentiles?

The elect of the Lord would not ultimately be limited to the Jews. All who would one day call upon the Name of Israel's God would be saved. He would be a Father to a great host of beloved children. He would grant to them a new Jerusalem that would never be taken away. There they would be safe and would enjoy His great provision without end.

Why then start His plan for salvation with only one people group? During the time of preparation for a future Messiah, it was the Lord's good will to form one holy people who would be different from all the other nations. They would be given His Law and His Word. They would be taught how to approach Him in customs of worship that were appropriate for that era of waiting. Eventually a Savior for the world would come from the Jews. Then the message of His good news for all of humanity would go forth from the old Jerusalem to the very ends of the earth. A vast new “Zion” would be formed from those who would believe in the Word that would come to them over the course of so many years.

The God who gives the gift of snow upon the mountaintops of every continent has now sent forth His holy message of peace through His Son. In days of old it could rightly be said of God's special arrangement with the Jews, “He has not dealt thus with any other nation.” Eventually the time came for a much larger harvest of faithful worshipers. Now a vast new kingdom is learning Jehovah's Law and embracing His sovereign provision for mercy through Jesus, the Son of God. It is “fitting” after these many centuries of gospel proclamation that every people group on earth should sing the songs of Israel and join with many Jews in sincere devotion. Together we testify before Almighty God that it is indeed “pleasant” to praise the Lord.

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

O Lord, You know how sad we are in the day of death and loss, but You will bind up the deep wounds in our hearts. You lift us up to Your heavenly sanctuary even now in Christ our King. You continue to feed and to care for us, even though we cannot stop crying. You bless us and help our children, even when we do not understand what You are doing. You accomplish Your will in the heavens above and over all the lands and seas. You give us Your holy Word from heaven, and provide a Redeemer in the person of Your Son. Thank You for Your greatness and Your glory, and for the Comforter who has come to help us.

Psalm 146

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“Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, O my soul! I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.” Every worshiper in Israel was to have a lifelong commitment to the Almighty. This devotion was not to be merely the quiet dedication of sincere hearts. The voices of God's people were to be lifted up together in singing.

Commitment to the Lord was not only about saying “yes” to Him. It included the rejection of any pretend Lord who insisted on being worshiped as a god. Israel could thank the Lord for the gift of good kings, but the people were not to put their ultimate trust in “princes.” Only God could save them. Every other being was created by the Lord. Jehovah alone was the Creator.

The “God of Jacob” would always do what was just and good. He was able and willing to help the weak. When this one true God came in person, He shined forth through His mighty works as the very Jehovah that was the hope of Israel. He opened the eyes of the blind. He gave food to the hungry. He cared for the desperate widow who had lost her only son. When this Son of God returns in glory, He will surely execute “justice for the oppressed.”

Today it may appear that the immoral and incompetent will win the day and that those who wait for good government will be forever disappointed. Nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus will bring the way of the wicked “to ruin.” His kingdom will not be temporary. “The Lord will reign forever, your God, O Zion, to all generations. Praise the Lord!”

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Father God, we praise You throughout our days on earth and even beyond this present age. Our hope is in You, Our Creator God, the Sustainer of all things. Your heart, O God, is perfect. Your will for Your people is wonderful. We need not fear man, or give in to foolish fears. You are the God of Your children forever and ever.

Psalm 145

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“I will extol You, my God and King, and bless Your Name forever and ever.” David announced to the Lord his dedication to daily worship. “Every day I will bless You and praise Your Name forever and ever.” David was not being forced into a duty that was unpleasant to his soul. He was deeply impressed with the glory of God. “Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised.”

Every generation in Israel had the privilege of passing on the message of the Lord's majesty to the young people who were with them. They could “speak of the might of Your awesome deeds.” They were teaching their children and grandchildren central truths of life when they sang of the goodness and righteousness of the Lord.

The psalms of Israel and the hymns of the church throughout the centuries recount for us the character of the Almighty. “The Lord is gracious and merciful.” These words are not just a mantra to memorize. They are a summary of what the Lord's people have understood about Him based on His dealings with His people so richly presented to us in the Bible. “The Lord is good to all, and His mercy is over all that He has made.”

It is the delight of the godly to proclaim the wonders of the Lord throughout the earth. One lifetime is too brief to make known among all the people groups of the world the mighty deeds of God and the glorious splendor of the resurrection kingdom that Jesus has inaugurated. Our praise of the Lord will go beyond our brief lifespan here below. The Lord's kingdom is everlasting. “Your dominion endures throughout all generations.”

One day we will see and experience the fuller glory of His reign. In our current condition in this fading world, we cry out to our God for His help. He knows our weakness. He “upholds all who are falling.”

We have a Friend at the right hand of the Father. Through Him we offer up our petitions to God. “The Lord is near to all who call on Him.” The Son of David who died for us is also the Christ who is in us by His Holy Spirit. He carries us through our moments of present distress. One day we will appear before Him in glory.

“The Lord preserves all who love Him, but all the wicked He will destroy.” A day of final judgment has been imminent since the closing of the Scriptures. How much more so today when the message of Jesus has reached every nation on the face of the earth. Let us join the redeemed from all over the globe who worship the Lord. “My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord, and let all flesh bless His holy name forever and ever.”

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

O Lord Our God, we praise you now, and we will never stop praising You. We will speak of Your greatness from generation to generation. There is so much to sing about in Your presence. Your goodness and mercy should never be ignored. Your might and Your truth are displayed in Your care for Your children. You are building a wonderful Kingdom. You are near to us, and we call upon You with great delight. We love You, O God. May all the earth magnify Your Name forever.

Psalm 144

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“Blessed be the Lord, my rock, who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle.” David's life was characterized by warfare. He understood that his battles were part of his spiritual calling. The Lord was the one who prepared David for his life as a warrior. The Almighty was the God who was his protection and who secured for him every victory.

Yet what was mankind that God should even give any thought to them? Human beings are so temporary when compared with their Creator. But David could not afford to go into battle without the strength of the Lord going before him. He needed the eternal God to fight on his behalf from heaven. Otherwise strong “foreigners whose mouths speak lies” would have brought about the king's demise.

What could David possibly give back to the Lord for His heavenly support over the course of so many earthly battles? David would lift up his voice in praise to the Almighty. He would bring God sincere worship.

The king knew that the Lord alone could carry him through the challenges of this life. He was aware that his sons and daughters would only prosper according to the will of the King of kings. He understood that every blessing came to him from on high. “Blessed are the people to whom such blessings fall! Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord!”

New Testament believers need to give serious consideration to the words of this godly warrior from of old. Like David, we too are involved in battle. The Captain of our salvation has fought for us through His atoning death. Now He calls us forward to fight the good fight in His name.

We are not going out into the fields of Canaan to slay Philistines or Moabites. Jesus calls us to give our lives in a very different kind of warfare. We still stand in critical need of heavenly support. Our Lord stands with us in every godly endeavor. At just the right time, the Son of God will return, and He will bring a new Kingdom that will never fail.

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Glorious Lord, You use us in the thick of battle. You have trained our souls for a very significant spiritual war. You are here with us. You have given us the Word, that we might live by Your grace. We will be careful to follow Your anointed King. What will we do in the day when the blessings we long for the most seem so far from us? We will still turn to You and trust You. You are the Lord God, and You will help us.

Psalm 143

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“Hear my prayer, O Lord!” David cried out to God for mercy. He was counting on the Lord's faithfulness and righteousness. Yet he also needed God to show him compassion, since he knew that no one alive was perfectly righteous before the Almighty.

David was not merely engaging in philosophical speculation about the relationship between a divine being and a less than perfect man. He was in trouble from real enemies who were seeking his destruction. He said to God, “My spirit faints within me.” As he contemplated his challenging situation he said, “My heart within me is appalled.”

David remembered earlier times in his life. What were the old days like for David? He did not say. He only recorded the fact that his consideration of the past led him to worship the Lord and to long for God's presence. “My soul thirst for You like a parched land.”

This great author of so many wonderful psalms was not a man of infinite spiritual strength. He had an awareness of his limits, and he knew that he was about to break. “My spirit fails!” As he spent his evening crying out to the Lord, he hoped for a very speedy deliverance. “Let me hear in the morning of Your steadfast love, for in You I trust.” Perhaps in the morning light he would know better what the Lord wanted him to do. “Make me know the way I should go.”

David needed the work of God's Spirit in his time of greatest distress. God had a plan for His beloved servant, but he would only know what he should do if the Lord Himself would lead him “on level ground.”

Some might have sought the comforting presence of God only to follow their own desires. This was not David's intention. “Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God!”

Would David fail the Lord? There can be no doubt that this godly man did greatly sin against the Lord he loved. One of his descendants would eventually come who would sit on the throne over the kingdom of heaven forever. About that Son of David, the Father Himself would say, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him.” (Matthew 17:5) Jesus would never disappoint His Father.

This Jesus, our perfect Messiah, was “pierced for our transgressions.” (Isaiah 53:5) He was “cut off out of the land of the living.” (Isaiah 53:8) He died to save us, but now He lives forever as the King of a resurrection world. One day He will come again in judgment. Those enemies who will not receive His mercy will be counted as His adversaries. They will be “cut off” from the communion of all who have eternal peace in Christ. The Lord, who is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, will come in glory. He will make a distinction between those who have been His friends and those who have ultimately spurned His grace.

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Father God, is there yet a powerful help for us today? You know our sin, and You know the vigor of the enemy who has come against us. We want You. We remember Your word and study it with diligence, seeking a way out of our great trouble. You are God, even our God, and You will bring our souls out of danger at just the right time. You will turn our enemies away from Your humble servants in the day of their hot pursuit, for You care for Your beloved children. Even if we die, we shall surely live in Your presence forever.

Psalm 142

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“With my voice I cry out to the Lord.” David's prayer to the Lord was full of the intensity of a man who understood that God's answer to his petition was a matter of life and death. He needed the Lord's mercy.

His enemies had laid a trap for him. Though David was an expert at hiding, the Lord knew exactly where to find him. No one else could save this chosen servant of God. If the Lord would be David's friend, no additional support would be necessary. God plus no one else is more than enough.

Yet without the Lord, David was convinced that he would never be able to make it. He knew that his persecutors were just too strong for him. Like a prisoner who heard the footsteps of his executioners coming toward him, David needed an amazing turn of events.

Could any of us trust in the Lord in such a situation? Like Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, could we still say, “Not My will, but Yours, be done,” when we saw the faces of those who would lead us to our death?

Our God is worthy of trust even when all hope may seem to be gone. It is always right to give thanks to His Name, for He alone can carry us beyond the grave into His heavenly kingdom. Like David, and especially like our Savior who died for our sins, we can commit ourselves into the loving and powerful hands of the Almighty in every circumstance.

It is the grace of the Lord at such a profound moment of need to give the gift of praising Him to His beloved children. In the loneliness of an imminent death we find ourselves surrounded by a great cloud of unseen heavenly witnesses encouraging us in the resolve of faith. What a great time to sing David's words of hope: “The righteous will surround me, for You will deal bountifully with me.”

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Lord God, hear our cry in the time of trouble. You see our weakness. Our help is not among the sons of men. You alone can rescue us. Pick us up in the day of our despondent condition. Cause the righteous to surround us with peace, that we may know Your bountiful love.