Praise Yah! Praise Yahweh from the heavens! Praise him in the heights!
Praise him, all his angels! Praise him, all his army!
Praise him, sun and moon! Praise him, all you shining stars!
Praise him, you heavens of heavens, you waters that are above the heavens.
Let them praise Yahweh’s name, for he commanded, and they were created.
He has also established them forever and ever. He has made a decree which will not pass away.
Praise Yahweh from the earth, you great sea creatures, and all depths;
lightning and hail, snow and clouds; stormy wind, fulfilling his word;
mountains and all hills; fruit trees and all cedars;
wild animals and all livestock; small creatures and flying birds;
kings of the earth and all peoples; princes and all judges of the earth;
both young men and maidens; old men and children:
let them praise Yahweh’s name, for his name alone is exalted. His glory is above the earth and the heavens.
He has lifted up the horn of his people, the praise of all his saints, even of the children of Israel, a people near to him. Praise Yah!
John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv1, 3, 5, 7, 11, 14 1. Praise Jehovah from the heavens He seems here…
1. Praise Jehovah from the heavens He seems here to include the stars as well as the angels, and, therefore, heaven itself, the air, and all that is gendered in it; for afterwards a division is made when he first calls upon angels, then upon the stars, and the waters of the firmament. With regard to the angels, created as they were for this very end — that they might be instant in this religious service, we need not wonder that they should be placed first in order when the praises of God are spoken of. Accordingly, in that remarkable vision which Isaiah describes, (Isaiah 6:3,) the cherubim cry out — “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Hosts.” And in several other places of Scripture the angels are represented as praising God by such ascription’s. How, then, can zeal like theirs stand in need of exhortations? Or, if they require to be incited, what can be more unseemly than that we, who are so sluggish in the service, should assume the part of exhorting them to their duty? David, then, who did not equal the angels in zeal, but came far behind them, was not qualified to be an exhorter to them. But neither did this enter into his purpose; he would simply testify that it was the height of his happiness and desire to join in sacred concert with elect angels in praising God. And there is nothing unreasonable that, in order to stir himself up in the praises of God, he should call as companions upon the angels, although these run spontaneously in the service, and are fitter to lead the way. He calls them, in the second part of the verse — the armies of God; for they stand always ready to receive his orders. “Ten thousand times ten thousand surround his throne,” as Daniel says, (Daniel 7:10.) The same name is applied also to the stars, both because they are remarkable for the order which maintains among them, and because they execute with inconceivable quickness the orders of God. But the angels are here called armies, upon the same account as elsewhere principalities and powers, inasmuch as God exerts his power by their hands.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 11, 14 Because they are members of the same body, he…
Because they are members of the same body, he setteth them before our eyes, which are most willing hereunto, and by their prompt obedience teach us to do our duty.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv1–14 Psa 148:1 Praise ye the LORD. Praise ye the…
Psa 148:1 Praise ye the LORD. Praise ye the LORD from the heavens: praise him in the heights.
Ver. 1. Praise the Lord] And again, "Praise ye the Lord"; and so often, in this the rest of the hallelujatical psalms. In praising God the saints are unsatisfiable, and would be infinite (as his perfections are infinite), so that they make a circle (as one phraseth it), the beginning, middle, and end whereof is hallelujah.
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From the heavens: praise him in the heights] Or, high places. As God in framing the world began above and wrought downward, so doth the psalmist in this his exhortation to all creatures to praise the Lord.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 13, 14 From the heavens; all the host of heaven, which…
From the heavens; all the host of heaven, which he particularly expresseth in the following verses.
In the heights; in those high and heavenly places.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On vv1, 7 We, in this dark and depressed world, know but…
We, in this dark and depressed world, know but little of the world of light and exaltation, and, conversing within narrow confines, can scarcely admit any tolerable conceptions of the vast regions above. But this we know,
I. That there is above us a world of blessed angels by whom God is praised, an innumerable company of them. Thousand thousands minister unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stand before him; and it is his glory that he has such attendants, but much more his glory that he neither needs them, nor is, nor can be, any way benefited by them. To that bright and happy world the psalmist has an eye here, Psa 148:1, Psa 148:2. In general, to the heavens, to the heights. The heavens are the heights, and therefore we must lift up our souls above the world unto God in the heavens, and on things above we must set our affections. It is his desire that God may be praised from the heavens, that thence a praising frame may be transmitted to this world in which we live, that while we are so cold, and low, and flat, in praising God, there are those above who are doing it in a better manner, and that while we are so often interrupted in this work they rest not day nor night from it. In particular, he had an eye to God's angels, to his hosts, and calls upon them to praise God. That God's angels are his hosts is plain enough; as soon as they were made they were enlisted, armed, and disciplined; he employs them in fighting his battles, and they keep ranks, and know their place, and observe the word of command as his hosts. But what is meant by the psalmist's calling upon them, and exciting them to praise God, is not so easy to account for. I will not say, They do not heed it, because we find that to the principalities and powers is known by the church the manifold wisdom of God (Eph 3:10); but I will say, They do not need it, for they are continually praising God and there is no deficiency at all in their performances; and therefore when, in singing this psalm, we call upon the angels to praise God (as we did, Psa 103:20), we mean that we desire God may be praised by the ablest hands and in the best manner, - that we are pleased to think he is so, - that we have a spiritual communion with those that dwell in his house above and are still praising him, - and that we have come by faith, and hope, and holy love, to the innumerable company of angels, Heb 12:22.
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II. That there is above us not only an assembly of blessed spirits, but a system of vast bodies too, and those bright ones, in which God is praised, that is, which may give us occasion (as far as we know any thing of them) to give to God the glory not only of their being, but of their beneficence to mankind. Observe,
1. What these creatures are that thus show us the way in praising God, and, whenever we look up and consider the heavens, furnish us with matter for his praises. (1.) There are the sun, moon, and stars, which continually, either day or night, present themselves to our view, as looking-glasses, in which we may see a faint shadow (for so I must call it, not a resemblance) of the glory of him that is the Father of lights, Psa 148:3. The greater lights, the sun and moon, are not too great, too bright, to praise him; and the praises of the less lights, the stars, shall not be slighted. Idolaters made the sun, moon, and stars, their gods, and praised them, worshipping and serving the creature, because it is seen, more than the Creator, because he is not seen; but we, who worship the true God only, make them our fellow-worshippers, and call upon them to praise him with us, nay, as Levites to attend us, who, as priests, offer this spiritual sacrifice. (2.) There are the heavens of heavens above the sun and stars, the seat of the blessed; from the vastness and brightness of these unknown orbs abundance of glory redounds to God, for the heavens of heavens are the Lord's (Psa 115:16) and yet they cannot contain him, Kg1 8:27. The learned Dr. Hammond understands her, by the heavens of heavens, the upper regions of the air, or all the regions of it, as Psa 68:33. We read of the heaven of heavens, whence God sends forth his voice, and that a mighty voice, meaning the thunder. (3.) There are the waters that are above the heavens, the clouds that hang above in the air, where they are reserved against the day of battle and war, Job 38:23. We have reason to praise God, not only that these waters do not drown the earth, but that they do water it and make it fruitful. The Chaldee paraphrase reads it, Praise him, you heavens of heavens, and you waters that depend on the word of him who is above the heavens, for the key of the clouds is one of the keys which God has in his hand, wherewith he opens and none can shut, he shuts and none can open.
2. Upon what account we are to give God the glory of them: Let them praise the name of the Lord, that is, let us praise the name of the Lord for them, and observe what constant and fresh matter for praise may be fetched from them. (1.) Because he made them, gave them their powers and assigned them their places: He commanded them (great as they are) out of nothing, and they were created at a word's speaking. God created, and therefore may command; for he commanded, and so created; his authority must always be acknowledged and acquiesced in, because he once spoke with such authority. (2.) Because he still upholds and preserves them in their beings and posts, their powers and motions (Psa 148:6): He hath established them for ever and ever, that is, to the end of time, a short ever, but it is their ever; they shall last as long as there is occasion for them. He hath made a decree, the law of creation, which shall not pass; it was enacted by the wisdom of God, and therefore needs not be altered, by his sovereignty and inviolable fidelity, and therefore cannot be altered. All the creatures that praised God at first for their creation must praise him still for their continuance. And we have reason to praise him that they are kept within the bounds of a decree; for to that it is owing that the waters above the heavens have not a second time drowned the earth.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv1–14 Praise ye the Lord,.... Or, hallelujah: which, in some…
Praise ye the Lord,.... Or, hallelujah: which, in some versions, and with some interpreters, is the title of the psalm; expressive of the subject matter of it, the praise of the Lord; and is an exhortation of all creatures to it;
praise ye the Lord from the heavens; that is, those that are of the heavens; let their praises of the Lord, of his perfections, works, and benefits, resound from thence; the angels of heaven particularly, who have their habitation and residence there, and sometimes descend from thence on special business, by the order and appointment of their great Creator and Master: so the Targum,
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"praise the Lord, ye holy creatures from heaven.''
Though some take the phrase, "from heaven", to be descriptive of the Lord, the object of praise, who is the Lord from heaven; the character of Christ, the second Adam, Co1 15:47; who is from above; came down from heaven to do the will of God; and was in heaven, as to his divine Person, while here on earth in human nature, working out the salvation of men; for which he justly deserves the praise of all in heaven and in earth. But as all creatures are distinguished in this psalm into celestial and terrestrial, called upon to praise the Lord; this seems to be the general character of the celestial ones, persons, bodies, and things; as the phrase "from the earth", Psa 148:7, includes all in the terraqueous globe;
praise him in the heights; either in the highest heavens where he dwells, or with the highest notes of praise that can be raised; see Psa 149:6. The Targum is,
"praise him, all the hosts of angels on high:''
or the high hosts of angels: but these are particularly mentioned in Psa 148:2.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv1, 4, 6, 7, 8, 13, 14 An exhortation to all creatures in heaven and earth,…
An exhortation to all creatures in heaven and earth, man especially, to praise God, ver. 1-14.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 The psalmist calls on all the creation to praise…
PSALM CXLVIII
The psalmist calls on all the creation to praise the Lord. The
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angels and visible heavens, 1-6;
the earth and the sea, 7;
the meteors, 8;
mountains, hills, and trees, 9;
beasts, reptiles, and fowls, 10;
kings, princes, and mighty men, 11;
men, women, and children, 12, 13;
and especially all the people of Israel, 14.
NOTES ON PSALM CXLVIII
This Psalm has no title: but by the Syriac it is attributed to Haggai and Zechariah, and the Septuagint and the AEthiopic follow it. As a hymn of praise, this is the most sublime in the whole book.
Verse 1. Praise ye the Lord from the heavens] The Chaldee translates, "Praise the Lord, ye holy creatures from the heavens. Praise him, ye armies of supreme angels. Praise him, all ye angels who minister before him." מן השמים min hashshamayim signifies whatever belongs to the heavens, all their inhabitants; as מן הארץ min haarets, Ps 148:7, signifies all that belongs to the earth, all its inhabitants and productions.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, 11, 13 Psa 148:1-2. Praise ye the Lord — Bishop Lowth,…
Psa 148:1-2. Praise ye the Lord — Bishop Lowth, speaking of the origin of this divine ode, observes, “that it had its birth from the most pleasing affections of the human soul, joy, love, admiration.” “If we contemplate man,” says he, “newly created, such as the sacred Scriptures exhibit him to us, endued with the perfect power of reason and speech; neither ignorant of himself nor of God; conscious of the divine goodness, majesty, and power; no unworthy spectator of the beautiful fabric of the universe, the earth, and the heavens; can we suppose that, at the sight of all these things, his heart would not so burn within him, that his mind, carried away by the warmth of his affections, would, of its own accord, pour itself forth in the praise of his Creator, and glow into that impetuosity of speech, and that exultation of voice, which almost necessarily follows such emotions of mind. This seems to have been exactly the case with the contemplative author of this beautiful Psalm, wherein all created things are called upon to celebrate together the glory of God. Praise ye the Lord, &c., a hymn which our Milton, by far the most divine of poets, after the sacred ones, hath most elegantly imitated, and very aptly given to Adam in paradise: see Paradise Lost, book 5. ver. 153, &c. Indeed, we can scarcely conceive rightly of that primeval and perfect state of man, unless we allow him some use of poetry, whereby he might worthily express, in hymns and songs, his piety and affection toward God.” See the 25th Prelection. Praise the Lord from the heavens — Let his praises be begun by the host of heaven, which he particularly expresses in the following verses. Praise him in the heights — In those high and heavenly places. Praise ye him, all his angels — He invites the angels here, and inanimate creatures afterward, to praise God, not as if the former needed, or the latter were capable of receiving his exhortation, but only by a poetical figure, the design whereof was, that men, by this means, might be more excited to this duty. Praise him, all his hosts — The angels, as in the former clause, called hosts, here and 1Ki 22:19, on account of their vast number, excellent order, and perfect subjection to their general the Lord of hosts.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv1–14 Praise ye the Lord - See the notes at…
Praise ye the Lord - See the notes at Psa 146:1.
Praise ye the Lord from the heavens - On the part of the heavens. Let those who dwell in heaven begin the song.
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Praise him in the heights - All that are in the heights; to wit, in the highest parts of the universe, or the heavens.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures 1864 · Public Domain On v1 Psalms 148
Psalms 148
1 Praise ye the Lord.
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Praise ye the Lord from the heavens:
Praise him in the heights.
2 Praise ye him, all his angels:
Praise ye him, all his hosts.
3 Praise ye him, sun and moon.
Praise him, all ye stars of light.
4 Praise him, ye heavens of heavens,
And ye waters that be above the heavens.
5 Let them praise the name of the Lord:
For he commanded, and they were created.
6 He hath also stablished them for ever and ever:
He hath made a decree which shall not pass.
7 Praise the Lord from the earth,
Ye dragons, and all deeps:
8 Fire, and hail; snow, and vapour;
Stormy wind fulfilling his word:
9 Mountains, and all hills;
Fruitful trees, and all cedars;
10 Beasts, and all cattle;
Creeping things, and flying fowl:
11 Kings of the earth, and all people;
Princes, and all judges of the earth:
12 Both young men, and maidens;
Old men, and children:
13 Let them praise the name of the Lord:
For his name alone is excellent;
His glory is above the earth and heaven.
14 He also exalteth the horn of his people,
The praise of all his saints:
Even of the children of Israel, a people near unto him.
Praise ye the Lord.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
Contents and Composition.—All heavenly creatures are to praise from heaven the name of Jehovah (Psa_148:1-4), for God has created them, and granted to them perpetual existence, within firmly established limits (Psa_148:5-6). And all earthly creatures are to do the same from earth (Psa_148:7-12), because Jehovah is exalted alone above everything in heaven and upon earth, and has exalted His peculiar people (Psa_148:13-14).
The two halves are in structure and course of thought parallel throughout, except that each of the last two verses consists of three lines. In the former half the praise is to be directed to God as the Creator and the Lord of nature; in the latter as the Controller of the destinies of all creatures, and as the God of help and salvation for His people. The individualizing of the departments of creation and instancing of creatures that exist in each, illustrate the all-comprehensiveness of God’s dominion, and the universal obligation to praise God, which lies naturally upon every creature, after its kind and according to the manner of its special sphere of life. The poetical figure of personification is not unusual in the Prophets and Psalms. Delitzsch thinks that the Psalm is intended to set forth the truth that the glorious transformation of nature in connection with the transformation of mankind, through the Church, shall become a clear mirror of the Divine glory, and a living, thousand-tongued hymn of praise. But this idea is imported into the text; for in the first half the ground of praise is different from that presented in the second, and nowhere is there any allusion to the universal significance which the experiences of the Church have with relation to the whole of created life. The comparison with Rom_8:18 f., and the related passages in Isaiah is not quite suitable. The conjecture that the Psalm was composed at the accession of Aristobulus to the throne, B. C. 107 (Hitzig), is far-fetched. [The view assigned above to Delitzsch has been held from an early period. It was held by Hilary (quoted by Perowne) in a somewhat different form. On the beauty of this and of similar Hebrew anthems, see Isaac Taylor, Spirit of the Hebrew Poetry, pp. 157, 158.—J. F. M.]
Psa_148:1-6. Heights are here the heights of heaven (Job_16:19; Job_25:2; Job_31:2), as the place whence the praise issues forth. It is not the Church above (Delitzsch) that is named thereafter; but the angels are mentioned first as messengers of God, then the host of heaven generally, one portion of which comprises the angels (Jos_5:14; 1Ki_22:10), and the other the stars (Deu_4:19). The latter may be alluded to here in connection with the sun and moon, but they are elsewhere (e.g.Job_38:7) also connected with the angels. Next the heavens of heavens (Deu_10:14; 1Ki_8:27; Neh_9:6; Psa_68:34; Sir_16:18) are introduced. This expression does not apply to the third (2Co_12:2) or the seventh (Rabbins) heaven, but is equivalent to the heights of the heights, the highest and sublimest parts. Finally, the water above the heavens, after Gen_1:7, is invoked. The Septuagint have inserted in Psa_148:5 b. the second member of Psa_33:6. The heavenly bodies and the angels are not to change the positions which God has assigned them, but retain them for ever (Psa_111:8), nor overstep the limits imposed upon them. This thought is given in Job_14:5; Job_38:10; Jer_5:22; Psa_104:9 (Delitzsch, Hupfeld). That God does not interfere with this law, is expressed in a different manner in Jer. 30:31; Jer_33:20 (Hitzig). That the law does not pass away, but is eternal (Septuagint, Itala, Jerome, Kimchi, Maurer, Ewald), is proper to the thought, but does not agree with the usage of עָבַר, when employed with חֹק. [Hengstenberg: “The law is, according to the parallel passages, the sphere of being, which is appointed to each part of the creation, and in which it is held by the Divine omnipotence; as, for example, the stars must pursue their course, the upper and lower waters must remain continually distinct.”—J. F. M.] [Translate Psa_148:7 a.: Yea, sea monsters, etc.]
Psa_148:7-12. The vapor (Psa_148:8) is not mist, as the vapor of the heights (Rabbins, Geier, et al., De Wette), but smoke answering to fire [as snow to hail.—J. F. M.] The cedars (Psa_148:9) represent the forest-trees in distinction from fruit-trees. The birds (Psa_148:10) have the same appellation as in Deu_4:17, comp. Gen_8:14; Eze_39:17.
Psa_148:13-14. The exaltation of God’s name is single, incomparable (Isa_2:11; Psa_72:18 [E. V.: His name is excellent]. His glorious testimony of Himself is above heaven and earth (Psa_8:2). Psa_148:14 b. does not mean that the exaltation of the horn, i.e., the gift of strength and power tends to the renown of his people (Isa_61:11; Isa_62:7), as though תְּהִלָּה were the second object (Hengstenberg), but that it is the subject of the praise of God on the part of the saints (Septuagint, Jerome, Kimchi, Luther, Calvin), who are the people near to God as His kingdom and inheritance, the holy (Deu_4:7) and priestly (Lev_10:3) nation.
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL
He who knows the majesty of God, is not only to acknowledge it, and submit himself to it, but also to proclaim what he knows and maintains concerning it.—The Creator and Lord of the universe is also the Deliverer and Helper of His people; hence it is the highest duty of the Church to set forth to the world how great a blessing it is to be near to God.—Unreasoning creatures praise God by their being, upon which the law of the Divine will is impressed; what they do unconsciously, we are to do intelligently and voluntarily, and while we give to God the glory that is His due, obtain blessing for ourselves.
Starke: Men should not be turned away from God by inferior creatures, but be stirred up to know and praise Him. No creature is so great and none so small, as that it should not animate and encourage them to His praise.—When God commands the inferior creatures, they execute His bidding at once; man alone is disobedient and refractory.—The third petition of the Lord’s prayer is offered up by many, but very few seek to act in accordance with it.—A blind man does not know how to make the right use of those things that are the most beautiful to the sight, and an unenlightened man may gaze upon the greatest works of nature and not think once of God, their almighty Creator.—All created things must serve believers, if we only have the favor of God; but all creation must be opposed to us, if God is angry.—No period of life should be spent without praising God, who portions out His blessings during them all.—Kings and princes should be God’s praise, and all in authority His glory, for they are God’s vicegerents.—If we are to continue to praise God rightly, we must be truly united to Him and come near to Him.
Frisch: God’s creatures have a threefold voice. The first is: accept, O man! the blessings which thy Creator conveys to thee through us. The second is: render, O man! to Him the thanks that are due. The third is: beware, O man, lest thou give occasion to our Creator, by sin and ingratitude towards Him, to employ us against thee.—Taube: When men find engraved everywhere the royal signature of God, they may be expected to learn that the name of the Lord alone is exalted. But this is given only to those who have the deeper, the profoundest experience in their own hearts of Jehovah’s name, of the revelation of salvation, of the mercy of redemption. And such mercy is experienced by Israel, the people near to God, through long paths of humiliation, and yet blessed paths of grace.
[Matt. Henry: When, in singing this Psalm, we call upon the angels to praise God, as we did in Psa_103:20, we mean that we desire God to be praised by the ablest hands, and in the best manner, and that we have a spiritual communion with those that dwell in His house above, and are still praising Him, and that we are come, by faith, hope, and holy love, to the innumerable company of angels, Heb_12:22.—All the creatures that praised God at first for their creation, must praise Him still for their continuance. And we have reason to praise Him that they are kept within the bounds of a decree, for to that it is owing that the waters above the heavens have not a second time drowned the earth.—Those that will not fulfil God’s word, but rise up in rebellion against it, show themselves to be more violent and head-strong than the stormy winds; for they fulfil it.—Barnes (Psa_148:12): Those in the morning of life; just entering upon their career; just forming their character; with ardor, elasticity, cheerfulness and hope: let them consecrate all this to God; let all that is in them of the buoyancy of their feelings, of the melody of their voices, of their ardor and vigor, be employed in the praise and service of God. Old men, with what remains of life, and children, with all that there is of joyousness—let all unite in praising God. Life as it closes, and life as it begins, let it all be devoted to God.—J. F. M.]
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 13, 14 hosts--(compare Psa 103:21).
hosts--(compare Psa 103:21).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 14 1. Praise ye the Lord—Hebrew, Hallelujah. The praise of…
1. Praise ye the Lord—Hebrew, Hallelujah. The praise of Jehovah is in the intelligent and devout rehearsal of his acts, in their wisdom, power, and goodness.
From the heavens—His abode and throne, from whence come all deliverances. Thus, Psa_18:16 : “He sent from above, he took me,” etc. Psa_102:19-20, etc. The address is to them that stand around the throne of God.
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In the heights—This is undoubtedly to be taken tropically for the highest ranks of glory and honour. In this sense God is “most high,” (Psa_56:2; Mic_6:6,) and the dignitaries of earth are called the “high ones” that are “on high,” Isa_24:21. The psalmist begins his call for praise with those highest in rank and dignity, without specifying the kind of beings intended. In the next verse he distinguishes them by a general classification.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14 1. from the heavens] The anthem of praise is…
1. from the heavens] The anthem of praise is to ring out from heaven above, and to be answered from the earth below (Psa_148:7).
in the heights] Of heaven (Job_16:19; Job_25:2).
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1–6. Let the heavens and all that is in them praise Jehovah their Creator.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv1, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14 (1) From the heavens . . . in the…
(1) From the heavens . . . in the heights.—Some would render ye of the heavens, but the parallelism is in favour of the Authorised Version. “Heavens” and “heights” in this verse, and “angels” and “hosts” in the next, are analogously parallel. The heights contain the heavens (comp. Job_16:19; Job_25:2), as the hosts embrace the angels or messengers of God (Jos_5:14); the larger term being in such case placed synthetically last. The prepositions thus keep their full meaning. From the heavens, or from a choir in the heights, comes the burst of angelic praise.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv1–14 THIS psalm has been well called "the joy-song of…
THIS psalm has been well called "the joy-song of creation." Israel, having received a signal manifestation of the Divine power (ver. 14), calls on all things in heaven and earth to praise Jehovah. In respect of heaven, commencement is made with the angels, from whom the writer descends to the sun and moon, the stars, the spacious firmament, and the clouds that float in it and above it (vers. 2-4). In respect of earth, the writer begins with the lowest parts the deep sea, and the monsters dwelling therein whence he makes a sudden ascent to the highest parts the atmosphere and the manifestations peculiar to it lightning, hail, snow, vapor, stormy wind; hence he again comes back to solid earth mountains, hills, trees, beasts, creeping things, and flying fowl (vers. 7-10). Lastly, the discourse touches on man, and calls on him to join in the chorus of jubilation (vers. 11-13). Professor Cheyne remarks that "in this psalm and in the De Profundis we seem to touch the opposite ends of the gamut of emotion." In the one we have the dirge of the Church; in the ether, its "Hallelujah Chorus." Metrically, two strophes of six verses each (vers. 1-6, 7-12) are followed by one of two (vers. 13, 14), assigning the motive for the entire psalm.
Praise ye the Lord. Praise ye the Lord from the heavens; i.e. beginning at the heavens, making them the primary source from which the praises are to be drawn (comp. ver. 7). Praise him in the heights; in excelsis (Vulgate). In the upper tenons, or the most exalted regions of his creation.
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Vers. 1-14. The tribute of creation.
The psalmist writes in a very jubilant strain; his mood is that of exultation. The sunshine of prosperity is on his path, and consequently the spirit of sacred joy is in his heart, and words of praise upon his lips. He calls upon the whole universe to pay its tribute of praise to Jehovah. This includes
I THE HEAVENLY INTELLIGENCES. (Ver. 2) It is in full accord with all that we read in both the Old and the New Testament that we think of the angels of God of every rank and order (Col_1:16) as uniting in the high offices of adoration and thanksgiving. They, with their loftier intelligence, their nearer access, and their larger experience of the Divine goodness, must have a deeper and fuller sense than we have of the greatness and excellency of God.
II ALL INANIMATE CREATION. Things in heaven (vers. 3, 4), and things on earth (vers. 7-10). All these things were created by his power (ver. 5), are sustained at his word (ver. 6), are regulated and kept within their bounds by his laws (ver. 6), discharge the varied offices he has given them to fulfill (ver. 8), and thus they speak his praise. Even the fire and hail, which seem to be principally destructive, and even the stormy wind, which seems to be uncontrolled and capricious, do the Divine bidding and contribute their part in the service of nature.
III ALL MANKIND. (Vers. 11, 12)
(1) Those who are accustomed to receive honor rather than to bestow it (ver. 11) kings and judges of the earth;
(2) those whose hearts are full of earthly hopes and loves, and whose lives are crowded with all pleasurable activities:
(3) those who have tasted the sweets and enjoyed their portion of earthly life, to whom little is left but quietude and endurance;
(4) those whose minds are only just opening to the thought of the spiritual and the Divine, young men and maidens, old men and children; all mankind should look up from earth to heaven, from those about them to the Father of their spirits, and sing his praise with reverent lip. No human life is at all complete without praise; no human character deserves esteem in which reverence and gratitude do not form an essential part. But above all others, so far as our knowledge goes, are to be counted
IV HIS REDEEMED ONES. (Ver. 14) Israel had been humbled; its "horn" had been degraded to the very dust; it had lost its heritage; it had dwelt in a "strange land" of servitude, far from the house and the home of God. Now it had been restored. Jerusalem had been rebuilt; its walls again surrounded it; its worship had revived; the ransomed of the Lord had returned; it was once more a people "near" to Jehovah, gathering in his house, and realizing his near presence with them. Let Israel lift up its voice of praise above every other. We, too, are God"s redeemed ones. From the bondage of sin we have been restored; we have been redeemed not with silver or gold, but "with the precious blood of Christ;" we have been brought out "into the glorious liberty of the children of God;" we have been raised up to "sit in heavenly places in Christ Jesus"; (Eph_2:6) we have such hopes in our heart as the psalmist sang not of; we are a people "near" in every sense to our God and Savior, having freest access to his presence and very dear to his heart. What praise should come from our lips, from our souls, from our lives!
HOMILIES BY R. TUCK Vers. 1-5. Nature"s praise-voices.
In this psalm, as in all the poetry of the Old Testament, there is nothing of the idea of something Divine in nature, or even of a Divine voice speaking through nature; all beings are simply creatures, knowing and praising him who made them. All nature has reason to praise the Creator who called it into being, and gave it its order so fair and so established, and poetically the universe may be imagined full of adoring creatures. With the psalmist"s point of view that of Wordsworth should be carefully compared. To a Hebrew the conception of a spirit in nature would have been at least germinal idolatry. What we have to keep in view, in reading the nature-psalms, is that kind of impression which high and sublime things universally make on all simple souls on ordinary men, not on the unusual poet. In these verses the nature-things that are above us are wholly in the psalmist"s view. And the great things of the firmament sun, moon, stars, clouds, lightnings, etc. produce an impression on men everywhere which is unique. The same impression is never produced by anything on the earth; not even by awe-inspiring mountains, or wild wind-driven sons. There is a quietness of impression from nature"s above things. The movements are so restfully sublime, so steadily continuous. Nothing ever disturbs them; sun and moon and stars go on their way, no matter what happens in the earth-spheres. In all ages, and still, the impression of nature"s above things is the impression of God. The untutored savage feels it as truly as the devout Christian. That impression made man find in the sun the presentation of God to human apprehension. But it is to be specially noticed that the impression of God which nature"s above things bring to us, excites us to praise him. The awe it brings draw us near to him; the revelation of him that it makes to us satisfies us in him, fills us with joy in him, so that we must praise. R.T.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Charles H. Spurgeon 1885 · Public Domain On vv1–14 The song is one and indivisible. It seems almost…
The song is one and indivisible. It seems almost impossible to expound it in detail, for a living poem is not to be dissected verse by verse. It is a song of nature and of grace. As a flash of lightning flames through space, and enwraps both heaven and earth in one vestment of glory, so doth the adoration of the Lord in this Psalm light up all the universe, and cause it to glow with a radiance of praise. The song begins in the heavens, sweeps downward to dragons and all deeps, and then ascends again, till the people near unto Jehovah take up the strain. For its exposition the chief requisite is a heart on fire with reverent love to the Lord over all, who is to be blessed for ever.
Ver. 1. Praise ye the LORD. Whoever ye may be that hear this word, ye are invited, entreated, commanded, to magnify Jehovah. Assuredly he has made you, and, if for nothing else, ye are bound, upon the ground of creatureship, to adore your Maker. This exhortation can never be out of place, speak it where we may; and never out of time, speak it when we may.
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Praise ye the LORD from the heavens. Since ye are nearest to the High and Lofty One, be ye sure to lead the song. Ye angels, ye cherubim and seraphim, and all others who dwell in the precincts of his courts, praise ye Jehovah. Do this as from a starting point from which the praise is to pass on to other realms. Keep not your worship to yourselves, but let it fall like a golden shower from the heavens on men beneath.
Praise him in the heights. This is no vain repetition; but after the manner of attractive poesy the truth is emphasized by reiteration in other words. Moreover, God is not only to be praised from the heights, but in them: the adoration is to be perfected in the heavens from which it takes its rise. No place is too high for the praises of the most High. On the summit of creation the glory of the Lord is to be revealed, even as the tops of the highest Alps are tipped with the golden light of the same sun which glads the valleys. Heavens and heights become the higher and the more heavenly as they are made to resound with the praises of Jehovah. See how the Psalmist trumpets out the word "PRAISE." It sounds forth some nine times in the first five verses of this song. Like minute-guns, exultant exhortations are sounded forth in tremendous forcePraise! Praise! Praise! The drum of the great King beats round the world with this one notePraise! Praise! Praise! "Again they said, Hallelujah." All this praise is distinctly and personally for Jehovah. Praise not his servants nor his works; but praise HIM. Is he not worthy of all possible praise? Pour it forth before HIM in full volume; pour it only there!
Ps 148:1-150:6. The last three Psalms are a triad of wondrous praise, ascending from praise to higher raise until it becomes "joy unspeakable and full of glory" exultation which knows no bounds. The joy overflows the soul, and spreads throughout the universe; every creature is magnetized by it, and drawn into the chorus. Heaven is full of praise, the earth is full of praise, praises rise from under the earth, "everything that hath breath" joins in the rapture. God is encompassed by a loving, praising creation. Man, the last in creation, but the first in song, knows not how to contain himself. He dances, he sings, he commands all the heavens, with all their angels, to help him, "beasts and all cattle, creeping things and flying fowl" must do likewise, even "dragons" must not be silent, and "all deeps" must yield contributions. He presses even dead things into his service, timbrels, trumpets, harps, organs, cymbals, high sounding cymbals, if by any means, and by all means, he may give utterance to his love and joy. John Pulsford.
Whole Psalm. In this splendid anthem the Psalmist calls upon the whole creation, in its two great divisions (according to the Hebrew conception) of heaven and earth, to praise Jehovah: things with and things without life, beings rational and irrational, are summoned to join the mighty chorus. This Psalm is the expression of the loftiest devotion, and it embraces at the same time the most comprehensive view of the relation of the creature to the Creator. Whether it is exclusively the utterance of a heart filled to the full with the thought of the infinite majesty of God, or whether it is also an anticipation, a prophetic forecast, of the final glory of creation, when at the manifestation of the sons of God, the creation itself also shall be redeemed from the bondage of corruption (Ro 8:18-23), and the homage of praise shall indeed be rendered by all things that are in heaven and earth and under the earth, is a question into which we need not enter. J.J. Stewart Perowne.
Whole Psalm. Milton, in his Paradise Lost (Book 5, line 153, & c.), has elegantly imitated this Psalm, and put it into the mouth of Adam and Eve as their morning hymn in a state of innocency. James Anderson.
Whole Psalm. Is this universal praise never to be realized? is it only the longing, intense desire of the Psalmist's heart, which will never be heard on earth, and can only be perfected in heaven? Is there to be no jubilee in which the mountains and the hills shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands? If there is to be no such day, then is the word of God of none effect; if no such universal anthem is to swell the chorus of heaven and to be reechoed by all that is on earth, then is God's promise void. It is true, in this Psalm our translation presents it to us as a call or summons for every thing that hath or hath not breath to praise the Lordor as a petition that they may praise; but it is in reality a prediction that they shall praise. This Psalm is neither more nor less than a glorious prophecy of that coming day, when not only shall the knowledge of the Lord be spread over the whole earth, as the waters cover the sea, but from every created object in heaven and in earth, animate and inanimate, from the highest archangel through every grade and phase of being, down to the tiniest atom young men and maidens, old men and children, and all kings and princes, and judges of the earth shall unite in this millennial, anthem to the Redeemer's praise. Barton Bouchier.
Ver. 1. Praise ye the Lord, etc. All things praise, and yet he says, "Praise ye." Wherefore doth he say, "Praise ye", when they are praising? Because he delighteth in their praising, and therefore it pleaseth him to add, as it were, his own encouragement. Just as, when you come to men who are doing any good work with pleasure in their vineyard or in their harvest field, or in some other matter of husbandry, you are pleased at what they are doing, and say, "Work on", "Go on"; not that they may begin to work, when you say this, but, because you are pleased at finding them working, you add your approbation and encouragement. For by saying, "Work on", and encouraging those who are working, you, so to speak, work with them in wish. In this sort of encouragement, then, the Psalmist, filled with the Holy Ghost, saith this. Augustine.
Ver. 1. The thrice repeated exhortation, "Praise...Praise ...Praise", in this first verse is not merely imperative, nor only hortative, but it is an exultant hallelujah. Martin Geier.
Ver. 1. From the heavens: praise him in the heights. Or, high places. As God in framing the world begun above, and wrought downward, so doth the Psalmist proceed in this his exhortation to all creatures to praise the Lord. John Trapp.
Ver. 1. Praise him in the heights. The principle applied in this verse is this, that those who have been exalted to the highest honours of the created universe, should proportionately excel in their tribute of honour to him who has exalted them. Hermann Venema.
Ver. 1. Bernard, in his sermon on the death of his brother Gerard, relates that in the middle of his last night on earth his brother, to the astonishment of all present, with a voice and countenance of exultation, broke forth in the words of the Psalmist Praise the Lord of heaven, praise him in the heights!
Whole Psalm.
1. What is implied in the invitation to the natural creation to praise God.
a) That praise is due to God on its account.
b) That it is due from those for whose benefit it was created.
c) That it is a reproof to those who do not praise God who are actually capable of it. "If these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out."
2. What is implied in the invitation to innocent beings to praise God. "Praise ye the Lord from the heavens. Praise ye him all his angels, praise ye him all his hosts": Ps 148:1-2.
a) That they owe their creation in innocence to God.
b) That they owe their preservation in innocence to him.
c) That they owe the reward of their innocence to him.
3. What is implied in the invitation to fallen beings to praise God: "Kings of the earth and all people", etc.: Ps 148:11-13.
a) That God is merciful and ready to forgive. "Not willing that any should perish", etc. They would not be called upon to praise God if they were irrecoverably lost. Our Lord would not when on earth accept praise from an evil spirit.
b) That means of restoration from the fall are provided by God for men. Without this they would have no hope, and could offer no praise.
4. What is implied in the invitation to the redeemed to praise God: Ps 148:14.
a) That God is their God.
b) That all his perfections are engaged for their present and eternal welfare. G.R.
Ver. 1. Praise ye the Lord.
1. The Voiceof Scripture, of nature, of grace, of duty.
2. The Ear on which it rightly fallsof saints and sinners, old and young, healthy and sick. It falls on our ear.
3. The Time when it is heard. Now, ever, yet also at special times.
4. The Response which we will give. Let us now praise with heart, life, lip.
Ver. 1. (second and third clauses).
1. The character of the praises of heaven.
2. How far they influence us who are here below.
3. The hope which we have of uniting in them.
Psalms 148:2*
Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv1, 3, 8, 9, 12, 13, 14 Praise ye the Lord from the heavens.
Psa_148:1-14
Praise ye the Lord from the heavens.
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The great, the greater, and the greatest: -
I. The great. Sun, moon, stars, etc.
1. How boundless in variety.
2. How immeasurable in extent.
II. The greater.
1. Rational and responsible existences.
(1) Angelic existences.
(2) Human existences.
2. This moral universe is greater than the non-moral.
(1) It reflects more of God. It mirrors His spirituality, His freedom, His conscience, etc. There is more of God seen in one holy soul than in the whole stellar universe. This moral universe is greater because--
(2) The non-moral is but the symbol, the instrument, the tenement, the garment of the moral. Great as is the non-moral universe, what is it without moral mind? A theatre without a spectator, a school without a pupil, a temple without a worshipper, a house without a tenant.
III. The greatest. What is the greatest? The Lord. His name alone is excellent; His glory is above the earth and heaven. Greatest because--
1. He is the Author of all.
2. He is the stability of all.
3. He is the law of all. The whole universe is His will in action. (David Thomas, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Expositor's Bible 1887 · Public Domain On v1 Psalms 148
Psalms 148
THE mercy granted to Israel (Psa_148:14) is, in the psalmists estimation, worthy to call forth strains of praise from all creatures. It is the same conception as is found in several of the psalms of the King (Psalms 93-100), but is here expressed with unparalleled magnificence and fervour. The same idea attains the climax of its representation in the mighty anthem from "every creature which is in heaven and on the earth, and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them," whom John heard saying, "Blessing and honour and glory and power unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb forever and ever." It may be maintained that this psalm is only a highly emotional and imaginative rendering of the truth that all Gods works praise Him, whether consciously or not. but its correspondence with a line of thought which runs through Scripture from its first page to its last-namely, that, as mans sin subjected the creatures to "vanity," so his redemption shall be their glorifying-leads us to see prophetic anticipation, and not mere poetic rapture, in this summons pealed out to heights and depths, and all that lies between, to rejoice in what Jehovah has done for Israel.
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The psalm falls into two broad divisions in the former of which heaven, and in the latter earth, are invoked to praise Jehovah. Psa_148:1 addresses generally the subsequently particularised heavenly beings. "From the heavens" and "in the heights" praise is to sound: the former phrase marks the place of origin, and may imply the floating down to a listening earth of that ethereal music; the latter thinks of all the dim distances as filled with it. The angels, as conscious beings, are the chorus leaders, and even to "principalities and powers in heavenly places" Israels restoration reveals new phases of the "manifold wisdom of God." The "host" (or hosts, according to the amended reading of the Hebrew margin) are here obviously angels, as required by the parallelism with a. The sun, moon, and stars, of which the psalmist knows nothing but that they burn with light and roll in silence through the dark expanse, are bid to break the solemn stillness that fills the daily and nightly sky. Finally, the singer passes in thought through the lower heavens, and would fain send his voice whither his eye cannot pierce, up into that mysterious watery abyss, which, according to ancient cosmography, had the. firmament for its floor. It is absurd to look for astronomical accuracy in such poetry as this; but a singer who knew no more about sun, moon. and stars, and depths of space, than that they were all Gods creatures and in their silence praised Him, knew and felt more of their true nature and charm than does he who knows everything about them except these facts.
Psa_148:5-6 assign the reason for the praise of the heavens-Jehovahs creative act, His sustaining power and His "law," the utterance of His will to which they conform. Psa_148:6 a emphatically asserts, by expressing the "He," which is in Hebrew usually included in the verb, that it is Jehovah and none other who "preserves the stars from wrong." "Preservation is continuous creation." The meaning of the close of Psa_148:6 b is doubtful, if the existing text is adhered to. It reads literally "and [it?] shall not pass." The unexpressed nominative is by some taken to be the before mentioned "law," and "pass" to mean cease to be in force or be transgressed. Others take the singular verb as being used distributively, and so render "None of them transgresses." But a very slight alteration gives the plural verb, which makes all plain.
In these starry depths obedience reigns; it is only on earth that a being lives who can and will break the merciful barriers of Jehovahs law. Therefore, from that untroubled region of perfect service comes a purer song of praise, though it can never have the pathetic harmonies of that which issues from rebels brought back to allegiance.
The summons to the earth begins with the lowest places, as that to the heavens did with the highest. The psalmist knows little of the uncouth forms that may wallow in ocean depths, but he is sure that they too, in their sunless abodes, can praise Jehovah. From the ocean the psalm rises to the air, before it, as it were, settles down on earth. Psa_148:8 may refer to contemporaneous phenomena, and, if so, describes a wild storm hurtling through the lower atmosphere. The verbal arrangement in Psa_148:8 a is that of inverted parallelism, in which "fire" corresponds to "smoke" and "hail" to "snow." Lightning and hail, which often occur together, are similarly connected in Psa_18:12. But it is difficult to explain "snow and smoke," if regarded as accompaniments of the former pair fire and hail. Rather they seem to describe another set of meteorological phenomena, a winter storm, in which the air is thick with flakes as if charged with smoke, while the preceding words refer to a summers thunderstorm. The resemblance to the two pictures in the preceding psalm, one of the time of the latter rains and one of bitter winter weather, is noticeable. The storm wind, which drives all these formidable agents through the air, in its utmost fury is a servant. As in Psa_107:25, it obeys Gods command.
The solid earth itself, as represented by its loftiest summits which pierce the air; vegetable life, as represented by the two classes of fruit-bearing and forest trees; animals in their orders, wild and domestic; the lowest worm that crawls and the light-winged bird that soars, -these all have voices to praise God. The song has been steadily rising in the scale of being from inanimate to animated creatures, and last it summons man, in whom creations praise becomes vocal and conscious.
All men, without distinction of rank, age. or sex, have the same obligation and privilege of praise. Kings are most kingly when they cast their crowns before Him. Judges are wise when they sit as His vicegerents. The buoyant vigour of youth is purest when used with remembrance of the Creator; the maidens voice is never so sweet as in hymns to Jehovah. The memories and feebleness of age are hallowed and strengthened by recognition of the God who can renew failing energy and soothe sad remembrances; and the childs opening powers are preserved from stain and distortion, by drawing near to Him in whose praise the extremes of life find common ground. The young mans strong bass, the maidens clear alto, the old mans quavering notes, the childs fresh treble, should blend in the song.
Psa_148:13 gives the reason for the praise of earth, but especially of man, with very significant difference from that assigned in Psa_148:5-6. "His name is exalted." He has manifested Himself to eves that can see, and has shown forth His transcendent majesty. Mans praise is to be based not only on the Revelation of God in Nature, but on that higher one in His dealings with men, and especially with Israel. This thief reason for praise is assigned in Psa_148:14 and indeed underlies the whole psalm. "He has lifted up a horn for His people," delivering them from their humiliation and captivity, and setting them again in their land. Thereby He has provided all His favoured ones with occasion for praise. The condensed language of Psa_148:14 b is susceptible of different constructions and meanings. Some would understand the verb from a as repeated before "praise," and take the meaning to be "He exalts the praise [i.e., the glory] of His beloved," but it is improbable that praise here should mean anything but that rendered to God. The simplest explanation of the words is that they are in apposition to the preceding clause, and declare that Jehovah, by "exalting a horn to His people," has given them especially occasion to praise Him. Israel is further designated as "a people near to Him." It is a nation of priests, having the privilege of access to His presence; and, in the consciousness of this dignity, "comes forward in this psalm as the leader of all the creatures in their praise of God, and strikes up a hallelujah that is to be joined in by heaven and earth" (Delitzsch).
William Robertson Nicoll, ed., The Expositor's Bible (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1887–1910) — public domain. 65 of 66 books (1 Corinthians is not separately keyed, as that volume carries no machine-parseable verse references); section-level commentary keyed to the opening verse. Introductory and overview sections not keyed to a specific passage are excluded.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v1 “In this splendid anthem the Psalmist calls upon the…
INTRODUCTION
“In this splendid anthem the Psalmist calls upon the whole creation, in its two great divisions (according to the Hebrew conception) of heaven and earth, to praise Jehovah. Things with and things without life, beings rational and irrational, are summoned to join the mighty chorus. The Psalm is an expression of the loftiest devotion, and embraces at the same time the most comprehensive view of the relation of the creature to the Creator. Whether it is exclusively the utterance of a heart filled to the full with the thought of the infinite majesty of God, or whether it is also an anticipation, a prophetic forecast, of the final glory of creation, when, at the manifestation of the sons of God, the creation itself shall also be redeemed from the bondage of corruption (Rom_8:18-23), and the homage of praise shall indeed be rendered by all things that are in heaven and earth and under the earth, is a question into which we need not enter The former seems to my mind the more probable view; but the other is as old as Hilary, who sees the end of the exhortation of the Psalm to be, ‘Ut ob depulsam sœculi vanitatem creatura omnis, ex magnis officiorum suorum laboribus absoluta, et in beato regno œtenitatis aliquande respirans, Deum suum et lœta prœdieat et quieta, et ipsa secundum Apostolum to gloriam beatœ œternitatis assumpta.’
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“The psalm consists of two equal parts—
“I. The praise of God in heaven (Psa_148:1-6).
“II. The praise of God on earth (Psa_148:7-12).”—Perowne.
GOD’S PRAISE IN THE HEAVENS
(Psa_148:1-6)
The opening verse of the Psalm “is not to be restricted merely to the angels. It is the prelude comprising all afterwards enumerated, angels, sun, and moon,” stars, highest heavens, and waters above the heavens. Notice—
I. The praise of God by heavenly beings.
“Praise ye Him, all His angels; praise ye Him, all His hosts.” “His hosts” we understand as signifying His angels, as in 1Ki_22:19. The expression indicates
(1.) Their immense number. “The number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands” (Rev_5:11).
(1.) Their disciplined order. Like a vast army they execute the commands of the Lord, their great Leader. The praise which they offer to God is—
1. Voluntary. They are intelligent beings, and possess moral freedom; and their worship is free, fervent, and joyous. The hosts of stars praise God without will; the hosts of angels praise Him in full and hearty exercise of their will.
2. Constant. The praise of God is the vital breath of their being. “Their worship no interval knows.” “They have no rest day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy,” &c. And yet they ever rest; for all their service is refreshing and rapturous.
3. Thorough. They praise God with all their powers,—with their songs and their services; with their lips and their lives; with their reverent adoration (Isa_6:2-3), and their ready obedience (Psa_103:20-21; Dan_9:21-23).
I. The praise of God by heavenly bodies.
“Praise ye Him, sun and moon,” &c. (Psa_148:3-6). “The heaven of heavens” is the highest heavens. “The waters above the heavens” are, we think, the clouds. (Comp. Gen_1:7.) Thus in the first member of Psa_148:4 the highest region of heaven is spoken of, and in the second member the lowest region of heaven. These heavenly bodies and places are called upon to praise Jehovah because they were,
1. Created by Him. “Let them praise the Name of Jehovah; for He commanded, and they were created.” How great is the power that created all these, and that with such perfect ease I He merely uttered His commands; and they came at once into existence. (Comp. Gen_1:3; Psa_33:6; Psa_33:9.)
2. Sustained by Him. “He hath also stablished them for ever and ever.” Perowne: “And He made them to stand (fast) for ever and ever.” The stability and permanence of the heavenly bodies are owing to the omnipotent will of God. He commands, and they stand fast. “By Him all things consist.”
3. Governed by Him. “He hath made a decree which shall not pass.” Perowne: “ ‘He hath given them a decree, and they transgress it not:’ lit., ‘And none of them transgresses it;’ for the verb is in the singular, and therefore distributive.… The verb is never used elsewhere of the passing away of a law, but always of the transgression of a law.” “The law,” says Hengstenberg, “is the sphere of being which is appointed to each part of creation, and in which it is held by the Divine omnipotence; as, for example, the stars must pursue their course, the upper aud lower waters must remain continually distinct.” He has marked out the orbits in which the heavenly bodies “move; He has so bound them that they perform their revolutions with unerring accuracy in the very path which He has prescribed. So accurate are their movements that they can be predicted with exact precision; and so uniform, that any succession of ages does not vary or affect them.”
In thus fulfilling their course, and answering so perfectly the design of their Creator, they praise Him. As a faithful and masterly rendering of The Messiah is the most eloquent tribute to the splendid genius of Handel; as St. Paul’s cathedral is the grandest memorial of Sir Christopher Wren; so the stability and order, the serviceableness and beauty of God’s creations praise Him. They exhibit His power, and wisdom, and goodness, &c. “All Thy works shall praise Thee.” “The heavens declare the glory of God,” &c. (See Exposition of Psa_19:1-6; Psa_145:10.)
III. The interest of godly men in God’s praise in the heavens.
The devout Psalmist calls upon the heavenly beings and bodies to praise Jehovah. We may not infer from this that they need any incitements from us to awaken their praise to God; but it is an evidence that pious souls would have Him praised universally. “When we call upon the angels to praise God,” says Matthew Henry, “we mean that we desire God may be praised by the ablest hands and in the best manner,—that we are sure it is fit He should be so,—that we are pleased to think He is so,—that we have a spiritual communion with those that dwell in His house above and are still praising Him,—and that we have come by faith, and hope, and holy love, to the ‘innumerable company of angels.’ ”
GOD’S PRAISE ON THE EARTH
(Psa_148:7-14)
Let us consider—
I. The variety of God’s praise on earth.
“Praise Jehovah from the earth, ye dragons, and all deeps,” &c. The Psalmist calls upon every province of our world and every variety of life to celebrate the praise of God. He summons—
1. The inorganic creation. “Fire and hail, snow and vapour, stormy wind fulfilling His word; mountains and all hills.” “Mountains and hills” are mentioned probably because they are the most conspicuous objects on earth, and rise nearest to the heavens. The “stormy wind” is named, because in its wild course it seems to spurn all law, and to defy all control, and yet it fulfils the will of God and faithfully performs His behests. The “fire” is probably the lightning, and the “vapour” is not mist, but smoke, answering to fire as snow answers to hail.
2. The vegetable creation. “Fruitful trees, and all cedars.” Fruit-trees are mentioned in distinction from forest trees, and because of their usefulness. “The cedars are named because they especially proclaim the creative power of God through their greatness and majesty; on which account they are called the cedars of God in Psa_80:10.”
3. The animal creation. “Praise Jehovah from the earth, ye dragons and all deeps.… Beasts, and all cattle, creeping things, and flying fowl.” The sea-monsters are named in particular, because “by their gigantic size they more especially proclaim the omnipotence of God’s creative power. The same end is served by the description of leviathan in the Book of Job.” By “beasts and all cattle” the poet probably intended to set forth wild and tame beasts; “those which roam the forests, and those which have been domesticated for the service of man.” “Creeping things and winged fowl” “are grouped together for a reason similar to that for which fruitful trees and cedars, and beasts and cattle, are grouped together, to embrace the whole. The expression embraces the loftiest and lowest; those which ascend farthest above the earth, and those which creep upon its surface.”
All these—the whole of the inorganic, of the vegetable, and of the animal creation—are summoned by the Psalmist to praise God. According as they fulfil the purposes for which they were created they may be said to unite in the great chorus of praise to God, inasmuch as in their sphere and measure they manifest the power, and wisdom, and goodness of God. (See Exposition of the preceding verses, and of Psa_19:1-6; Psa_145:10.)
4. The rational creation. “Kings of the earth, and all peoples,” &c. (Psa_148:11-13) Perowne: “Man is mentioned last, as the crown of all. The first step (see Psa_148:7) and the last are the same as in Genesis 1.” The Psalmist clearly intends to include all men in His summons to praise God.
(1.) Persons of all ranks. “Kings of the earth, and all people; princes, and all judges of the earth.” The rulers and the ruled; those who have much authority and those who have none; the high and the low. Those high in position and in authority are under special obligations to praise God, and those in the lowest position are not exempt from this obligation.
(2.) Persons of both sexes. “Young men and maidens.” Men by their strength and skill, women by their trust and tenderness, &c., must praise God.
(3.) Persons of all ages. “Both young men and maidens; old men and children.” “Those in the morning of life,” says Barnes, “just entering on their career; just forming their character—with ardour, elasticity, cheerfulness, hope;—let them consecrate all this to God:—let all that there is in the buoyancy of their feelings, in the melody of their voices, in their ardour and vigour, be employed in the praise and the service of God. Old men, with what remains of life, and children, with all that there is of joyousness—let all unite in praising God. Life as it closes, life as it begins, let it all be devoted to God.”
As the unreasoning creation praises God unconsciously, the rational creation should praise Him intelligently and voluntarily. By the songs of their voices, by the affections of their hearts, by the adoration of their spirits, and by the obedience of their lives, all men should praise God.
II. The universality of God’s praise on earth.
The Psalmist calls for universal praise. In the first part of the Psalm he summons all the heavens and the heavenly bodies, and in the latter part of the Psalm everything upon earth, to join the grand anthem to the honour of God. The lower ranks of creation never fail to praise God. “The material world, with its objects sublimely great or meanly little, as we judge them; its atoms of dust, its orbs of fire; the rock that stands by the seashore, the water that wears it away; the worm, a birth of yesterday, which we trample under foot; the streets of constellations that gleam perennial overhead; the aspiring palm-tree fixed to one spot, and the lions that are sent out free;—these incarnate and make visible all of God their natures will admit,” and thus they praise Him. Man alone fails in the tribute of praise to God. But this summons to universal praise may be regarded as a declaration of—
1. God’s right. The homage of the universe is due to Him.
2. The good man’s desire. The cry of the heart of the godly man is, “Be Thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; Thy glory above all the earth.” “Give unto the Lord, O ye kindreds of the people,” &c. (Psa_96:7-9).
3. A fact which will be realised in the future. “All the ends of the world shall remember,” &c (Ibid. Psa_22:27). “All the earth shall worship Thee,” &c. (Ibid. Psa_66:4). “The earth shall be full of the knowledge,” &c. (Isa_11:9). “Unto Me every knee shall bow,” &c. (Isa_45:23; Rom_14:11).
III. The rationality of God’s praise on earth.
It is manifestly and sublimely reasonable that universal worship should be offered to God. The Psalmist adduces certain reasons for praising Him.
1. The glorious majesty of God. “Let them praise the Name of Jehovah; for His Name,” &c.
(1.) His majesty is supreme. “His Name alone is exalted.” “Who in the heaven can be compared unto Jehovah?” &c. (Psa_89:6)
(2.) His majesty is universal. “His glory is above the earth and heaven.” As His majesty is universally manifest, His praise also should be universal.
2. The great goodness of God.
(1.) In bestowing prosperity upon His people. “He also exalteth the horn of His people,—the praise of all His saints.” The lifting up of their horn is the bestowment of power and prosperity upon His people. The line, “a praise for all His saints,” is of doubtful interpretation. Perowne: “This may either be
(1) in apposition with the whole previous sentence, viz., the lifting up of the horn is ‘a praise,’ a glory to His beloved (comp. Isa_61:3-11; Isa_62:7); or
(2) in apposition with the subject of the previous verb, God Himself is ‘a praise (i.e., object of praise) to,’ &c. So the LXX., ὓμνος, Jerome, laus. So the P. B. V. gives the sense: ‘All His saints shall praise Him.’ ” The latter seems to us the more probable interpretation. God had so blessed His people that praise to Him was especially binding upon them, and appropriate from them.
(2.) In bringing His people near to Himself. “The children of Israel, a people near unto Him.” The Israelites were blessed spiritually above other nations. “Unto them were committed the oracles of God.” “Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory,” &c. “But now in Christ Jesus ye” (Gentiles) “who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.” In these things we have the most cogent reasons for praise to God. That man should praise Him is more than reasonable; it is obligatory; it is sacredly binding. Not to praise Him is to manifest an utter want of reverence, and to be guilty of basest ingratitude. “Praise ye the Lord.”
A SUMMONS TO UNIVERSAL PRAISE
(Psa_148:11-13)
We regard these verses as suggesting three aspects of God’s revelation of Himself:—
I. As adapted to persons of all ranks, and of the most varied duties.
“Kings of the earth, and all people; princes, and all judges of the earth.” God’s revelation of His mind and will must be adapted to these, or this summons to praise Him would be unreasonable. It is so adapted—
1. Because of its provision for the needs which they have in common. Kings and their subjects alike need pardon, long for immortality, &c. God reveals these, and the conditions upon which they may be obtained.
2. Because of its provision for the needs which pertain to their respective ranks and duties. It has messages for both kings and subjects, rich and poor, &c.
II. As adapted to persons of all ages.
“Both young men, and maidens; old men, and children.” He reveals Himself as moral Governor, wise and kind Father, infallible Guide, abiding and unchanging Friend, &c. “Children” can understand fatherhood; “young men and maidens” need guidance; “old men” can appreciate the Friend that knows neither change nor death; and to all beings of conscience moral government is intelligible.
III. As fitted to inspire the praises of persons of all ranks and ages.
“Let them praise the Name of Jehovah; for,” &c. Men of all ranks and ages are here called to praise God, because of—
1. The incomparable excellence of His character. “For His Name alone is exalted.”
2. The conspicuous display of His majesty. “His glory is above the earth and heaven.” And, we may add—
3. Because He confers rich and abundant blessings upon persons of all ranks and ages. No man can refuse to praise Him without incurring the guilt of blackest ingratitude. With heart, and voice, and life, let us praise the Lord.
A PEOPLE NEAR UNTO THE LORD
(Psa_148:14)
“A people near unto Him.”
I. They are near to Him because they are reconciled to Him by faith in Christ
II. They are near to Him because they live in habitual communion with Him.
III. They are near to Him because they seek conformity to Him.
IV. They are near to Him because they enjoy His protection.
V. They are near to Him because they shall be with Him for ever.—George Brooks.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Sermon Bible 1900 · Public Domain On v1 (with Rev 15:3)
Psa 148:7
(with Rev 15:3)
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The highest forms under which we can now think are art-forms: the proportions of statuary and architecture, the colour of painting and music. The former are limited, and address a mere sense of beauty; but music addresses the heart, and has its vocation amongst the feelings, and covers their whole range. Hence music has been chosen to hold and express our conception of moral perfection. Nor is it an arbitrary choice, but is made for the reasons that music is the utterance of the heart, it is an expression of morality, and it is an infinite language. Before the sneer at heaven as a place of endless song can prevail, it must undo all this stout logic of the human heart. We so represent it because when we frame our conception of heaven or moral perfection we find certain things, and when we look into the nature and operation of music we find the same things; namely, obedience, sympathy, emotion, and adoration.
I. Obedience. The idea that is fastest gaining ground in all departments of thought is that of the reign of law—law always and everywhere, and nothing without its range. But under what art-form shall we express this? for expression we must have. There is an exactness in the laws of harmony that makes obedience to them specially fine and so fit to be a type of it.
The pleasure we feel in music springs from the obedience which is in it, and it is full only as the obedience is entire.
II. Music is, beyond all other arts, the expression and vehicle of sympathy. No other art, no other mode of impression, equals music in its power to awaken a common feeling. The orator approaches it, but he deals chiefly with convictions; and conviction is a slow and hard path to feeling, while music makes a direct appeal. The united action of the full chorus and orchestra is a perfect transcript, down to the last and finest particular, of perfected human society.
III. Music as an expression of feeling is a prophecy of that grander exercise of our nature for which we hope. It is the nature of feeling to express itself. Thought may stay behind silent lips; but when it becomes feeling, it runs to expression. Music is an illustration of this law of our emotions, and is the natural expression of deep feeling. History all along culminates in song. The summits of Jewish history from Miriam to David are vocal with psalms. In some supernal sense, music will be the vocation of humanity when its full redemption is come. The summit of existence is feeling, the summit of character is sympathy, and music is the art-form that links them together.
IV. Music is the truest and most nearly adequate, expression of the religious emotions, and so becomes prophetic of the destiny of man as a religious being. Music is creatively designed for religion, and not for anything else. It lends itself to almost every human feeling, down to the vilest, but always with suppression of its power. It is not until it is used for the expression of that wide range of feeling which we call religious that it discloses its full powers. Music is the art-path to God, in whom we live, and move, and have our being.
T. T. Munger, The Appeal to Life, p. 309.
References: Psa 149:2.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xvi., No. 963; Ibid., Morning by Morning, p. 266. Psa 149:4.—G. Brooks, Outlines of Sermons, p. 98; Sermons for Boys and Girls, p. 115; Spurgeon, Evening by Evening, p. 120.
Psa 148:8
I. "Fulfilling His word." Somehow or other, then, His word is fulfilled in the devastation and disfigurement of that which His own hands have made; and the agent which inflicts it obeys some law as regular as that which governs the motion of a planet, although with more complex conditions. In the view of Him who sees all that has been, that is, that will be, there is beyond the immediate present the illimitable future; and in some way this present ruin most assuredly is preparing for that future. And, still more, behind the seen and the visible world there is the world invisible and moral; and, in ways which we do not suspect as yet, its high requirements may be, must be, thus provided for.
II. As we pass from the physical and inanimate world and enter the human, the spiritual, and the moral, the storm and wind become metaphorical expressions, having, however, real counterparts in the passions and the agency of man. Here, too, as elsewhere, we watch them fulfilling God’s word. (1) The State is exposed to the storm of invasion and the storm of revolution. (2) The Church is exposed to the storm of persecution and of controversy. (3) The individual life is assailed by outward troubles and by inward storms of difficulty and doubt as to religious truth. Loyalty to known truth is the warrant of endurance among all the trials that may await us, that endurance which transforms the very fiercest blast into tender fulfilment of God’s word of promise to those who are the special objects of His love.
H. P. Liddon, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxv., p. 25.
Reference: Psa 148:11-13.—Homiletic Quarterly, vol. ii., p. 261.
Psa 148:12
I. Think what it is to praise the Lord. Praise is the heart singing. When the love of our hearts is set on Jesus, the gladness goes with us everywhere: at home or at school, at work or at play.
II. Notice some reasons why we should all thus praise the Lord. (1) Because He has loved us and given Himself for us. (2) We are the only creatures in the world that can praise Him. (3) Praise is the only thing we can give to the Lord. (4) Loving praise is the only thing that can satisfy our loving Lord. (5) Everybody ought to praise the Lord now, because it is the happy work that we shall do in heaven.
M. G. Pearse, Sermons for Children, p. 121.
References: Psa 148:12.—H. Jones, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxviii., p. 70. Psa 148:12, Psa 148:13.—G. Dawson, Sermons on Daily Life and Duty, p. 64. Psa 148:14.—G. Brooks, Outlines of Sermons, p. 138; Spurgeon, Evening by Evening, p. 261.
The Sermon Bible, ed. William Robertson Nicoll (1888–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
F. W. Grant 1903 · Public Domain On v1 The full praise of heaven and earth.
The full praise of heaven and earth.
1. The full praise of heaven and earth is now invoked, beginning with heaven. There is no hint of the human praises which will resound in heaven; except we find it in the blank place left at the commencement, where indeed our place is, and of which the expression "in the heights" may well remind us. God is going to show even to principalities and powers in heavenly places the exceeding riches of His grace and His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus,who are blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ (Eph 1:7, Eph 1:3). How it should affect our souls to realize that in us the value of the work of Christ is to find fullest expression; as those who are, as angels cannot be, members of Christ Himself, and His joint-heirs. What "joy unspeakable and full of glory" must it awaken in every heart taught by the Holy Ghost to enter beforehand into the place prepared for us, and what worship should not our hearts and lives already pour forth, as we think of it.
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Then come the glorious ranks of angels, the constant ministers of God’s blessed will, the "hosts" that range themselves constantly in their appointed places, in intelligent sympathy with the commands they execute.
Then we descend to sun and moon and stars, the material things which, however, by that very fact enter into the sphere of what is visible to us, and become symbols and witnesses of higher things.
In the fourth place we find, according to most, not a further descent, but the contrary; and in this way the "waters that are above the heavens" are considered to be some immense unknown reservoir of waters which lies beyond the firmament. "The Scriptures, from the first page to the last," says Delitzsch, "acknowledge the existence of celestial waters, to which the rain-waters stand in the relation; as it were, of a finger-post pointing upwards (Gen 1:7)." But the "waters above the firmament" of the fourth day are simply those stored up in the clouds, and can be nothing else; and the connection here, with the general descent in the address otherwise, would make one suppose, what the numerical structure would seem to confirm, that only the earth-heavens are intended in the verse. The use of the expression "heaven of heavens," however, is a difficulty of which I have no explanation; and the truth may lie in another direction.
The reason for praise is given in the next verses. By Jehovah’s word they were created, and they abide before Him in the place His decree has allotted to them, impossible to be traversed or to fail.
2. We have now the lower sphere of earth, in which the call for praise is as universal. Here we begin with what is strangest and least known; the monsters and the deeps (to which, I suppose, they belong). We have next the contrary and conflicting products of the atmosphere: fire, which, as electricity, is associated with hail; snow, which soon becomes vapor; the stormy wind, which, though it may seem in revolt from established order, none the less does perfectly the will of God. The mountains and hills, on the other hand, are types of solidity; while the trees for the first time introduce us to organized things. We have next fleshly life, -higher, and, in proportion; frailer; and then responsible man; and in his various characters of responsibility. Finally, here, too, the defined places in which they are set in relation to one another, and their time-limits on either hand.
3. All these are called to praise; for Jehovah’s Name is exalted, and He exalts the people that are brought near to Him. Israel are, upon earth, this special people.
F. W. Grant, The Numerical Bible (4th ed., 1903) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. R. Dummelow 1909 · Public Domain On v1 This is the 'Gloria in Excelsis' of the Psalter,…
This is the 'Gloria in Excelsis' of the Psalter, wherein all created things, animate and inanimate, are called upon to praise Jehovah.
1. From the heavens] i.e. angels and the heavenly bodies.
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4. Waters that be above the heavens] So God divided the waters: see Gen_1:6, Gen_1:7.
6. Which shall not pass] RM'which none shall transgress.'
8. Vapours] smoke or steam: cp. Psa_119:83.
13. Excellent] RV 'exalted.'
14. RM 'a horn for his people, a praise for all his saints,' i.e. the giving victory to God's people ('exalting the horn') is a subject of praise.
J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On v2 (See Scofield "Heb 1:4") .
angels
(See Scofield "Heb 1:4") .
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v1 Hallelujah by All Creatures to the God of Salvation.
Hallelujah by All Creatures to the God of Salvation.
A song of praise, even more extensive in its scope than the preceding, all heavenly creatures being called upon to join with the beings on earth to give all honor and glory to Jehovah, especially for exalting His people.
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v. 1. Praise ye the Lord, the hallelujah being addressed at once to the highest sphere of creation. Praise ye the Lord from the heavens, all the inhabitants of the heavens being called upon to send forth their voices in joyful praise of Jehovah; praise Him in the heights, from the heights of heaven.
v. 2. Praise ye Him, all His angels, the messengers of the supreme Ruler of the universe; praise ye Him, all His hosts, the armies of the God of Sabaoth.
v. 3. Praise ye Him, sun and moon, the largest and most important light-bearers; praise Him, all ye stars of light, created to give light upon the earth.
v. 4. Praise Him, ye heavens of heavens, the very highest heaven, or the fullness of the heavens, as the abode of Almighty God, and ye waters that be above the heavens, beyond the firmament, Gen 1:7.
v. 5. Let them praise the name of the Lord, setting forth in grateful songs His wonderful essence and attributes; for He commanded, and they were created, Gen 1:1-6; Psa 33:6-9.
v. 6. He hath also stablished them forever and ever, firmly set them in their place, subject only to the power of His changing hand; He hath made a decree which shall not pass; for the laws of nature, as fixed by God, are not subject to change at the whim of the creatures, but the stars must pursue their course, the sun must rise at his appointed time, and all other creatures are guided altogether by the will of the Lord, as manifested in the decrees governing all nature. The psalmist now turns to the creatures of the earth.
v. 7. Praise the Lord from the earth, ye dragons, the mighty monsters of the sea, and all deeps, the great oceans;
v. 8. fire and hail; snow and vapors, especially the smoke of volcanoes, all of these being phenomena which impressed the people of Canaan all the more since they occur but rarely in that country; stormy wind fulfilling His word, for even the destructive agencies of nature are subject to His command or go forth only by His permission;
v. 9. mountains and all hills; fruitful trees, those of the orchards, and all cedars, representing the forest trees;
v. 10. beasts, the wild animals, and all cattle, the domestic animals; creeping things, all reptiles and amphibians, and flying fowl;
v. 11. kings of the earth, the individual kings of the various nations, and all people, human beings as divided into nations; princes and all judges of the earth, those in charge of the administration of justice;
v. 12. both young men and maidens; old men and children, men of every age and of both sexes:
v. 13. let them praise the name of the Lord, proclaiming Him as He has revealed Himself in the works of creation; for His name alone is excellent, so exalted that no other name may approach His in excellence, incomparable in majesty; His glory is above the earth and heaven, His glorious testimony of Himself extends beyond the boundaries of the visible world into infinite space, which He fills.
v. 14. He also exalteth the horn of His people, establishing the power of His Church, the praise of all His saints, for His gift of strength tends to the renown of His people, even of the children of Israel, the spiritual Israel, His Church, a people near unto Him, united with Him by the bonds of a wonderful fellowship through faith in His love and mercy. Praise ye the Lord, in preparation of the more perfect praise which will arise when we shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God, Rom 8:21.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13 General Information:
General Information:
Parallelism is common in Hebrew poetry. (See: Poetry and Parallelism)
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Praise Yahweh, you in the heavens ... you in the heights
"Praise Yahweh, you in the heavens ... you in the sky." These two lines are parallel, with phrase "the heights" meaning the same thing as "the heavens" in the previous line. (See: Parallelism)
translationWords
praise
Yahweh
heaven
angel
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv1, 6, 8, 11, 13 Ps 148 This psalm calls for the whole created…
Ps 148 This psalm calls for the whole created order to praise the Lord because he has honored his faithful people.
148:1 During Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem, the crowds called out various blessings, including a phrase taken from this verse (Matt 21:9; Mark 11:10; Luke 19:38).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.