Psalm 150:  With Every Beat of My Heart

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!  Psalm 150:6


Praise Yah

 

Psalm 150, a psalm of praise, is a development of the Hebrew word hallelujah, meaning “Praise the Lord.”  Again the psalmist calls God’s people together to offer Him praise for His acts of power and surpassing greatness.  Lest we ignore his first cry, the psalmist calls out again and again.  “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.”

The importance of praiseHow well this 150th psalm sums up the message of the entire collection.  Each psalm, probing as it does our deepest emotions, is in fact an invitation to know God better and a summons to praise Him.  What a privilege it is to join the saints of all the ages in a chorus of praise.

150:1 in His sanctuary:  The intent is for praise to come to God in His dwelling in heaven.

1  Praise the Lord! Praise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in His mighty firmament!

150:3-5 The varied instruments in this section includes horns, reeds, strings, and percussion, encompassing many of the instruments known in Israel at the time.

3  Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet; Praise Him with the lute and harp! 4  Praise Him with the timbrel and dance; Praise Him with stringed instruments and flutes! 5  Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with clashing cymbals!

150:6 everything that has breath:  The very breath that God gives us should be used to praise Him.  As long as we live we should praise our Creator.  By His breath God created all things, and by our breath we should adore Him.  The Book of Psalms begins with God’s blessing on the righteous and concludes with all of creation blessing its loving Creator.

 

** Praise is given by people who go up, not down.  They find themselves in God’s house and are amazed.  We cannot give praise while in despair.  We cannot give praise while being dead.  We cannot give praise while being sad or fearful.  We will give praise and make all sorts of joyful noise when we are filled with happiness and gratitude.  We will give praise after crying of relief – for escaping the scariest movie ever made.   The tough choice will be whether to join the choir or the orchestra.  

“Through many dangers, toils and snares we have already come.  When we’ve been there ten thousand years.  Bright shining as the sun,  We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise  Than when we’d first begun.  (Amazing Grace).”

 


150 1  Praise the Lord! Praise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in His mighty firmament! 2  Praise Him for His mighty acts; Praise Him according to His excellent greatness! 3  Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet; Praise Him with the lute and harp! 4  Praise Him with the timbrel and dance; Praise Him with stringed instruments and flutes! 5  Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with clashing cymbals! 6  Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!