Praising Scripture - Dec 30

Introduction...

PSALM 147:1-11 The Hallelujah Psalms
（Memorization Scripture: vv.10-11）
1 Praise the Lord!

For it is good to sing praises to our God;
For it is pleasant, and praise is beautiful.
2 The Lord builds up Jerusalem;
He gathers together the outcasts of Israel.
3 He heals the brokenhearted
And binds up their wounds.
4 He counts the number of the stars;
He calls them all by name.
5 Great is our Lord, and mighty in power;
His understanding is infinite.
6 The Lord lifts up the humble;
He casts the wicked down to the ground.
7 Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;
Sing praises on the harp to our God,
8 Who covers the heavens with clouds,
Who prepares rain for the earth,
Who makes grass to grow on the mountains.
9 He gives to the beast its food,
And to the young ravens that cry.
10 He does not delight in the strength of the horse;
He takes no pleasure in the legs of a man.
11 The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him,
In those who hope in His mercy.
……
19 He declares His word to Jacob,
His statutes and His judgments to Israel.
20 He has not dealt thus with any nation;
And as for His judgments, they have not known them.

Praise the Lord!


[sharing]

The first verse of this psalm could read as : ‘how wonderful to sing hymns, how joyful to give proper praises.’ (—— Tyndale Bible Commentary). Indeed, we have so many reasons to praise God! But we often don’t know how to praise Him. So, let’s learn to praise the Lord from the psalmist.

First, the psalmist gives thanks to God who counts the number of the stars yet takes care of the little ons—heals, binds up, support, redeem, gathers, and build up, to make us His people, His country becomes our country, and His home becomes our home!

God reigns over all. He protects and provides for all He creates. But He desires human beings to glorify Him as God. He does not delight them relying on themselves rather than God as “The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him, in those who hope in His mercy.”

Then, the psalmist continue elaborating that this God of immeasurable power and wisdom, besides being in charge of the whole universe, He graciously gives us His laws to lead us. “He declares His word to Jacob, His statutes and His judgments to Israel. He has not dealt thus with any nation.” Without the instructions from His word and statues, we are but arrogant, forgetful and ignorant people who easily fall into the trap of being conceited and drifting away from God’s heart. His love and mercy are are far better than we could even imagine.

Come, let us praise this almighty, merciful and thoughtful God! （NY)