Psalm 145–147

David’s Praise

¹145I lift you high in praise, my God, O my King!

and I’ll bless your name into eternity.

²I’ll bless you every day,

and keep it up from now to eternity.

³God is magnificent; he can never be praised enough.

There are no boundaries to his greatness.

⁴Generation after generation stands in awe of your work;

each one tells stories of your mighty acts.

⁵Your beauty and splendor have everyone talking;

I compose songs on your wonders.

⁶Your marvelous doings are headline news;

I could write a book full of the details of your greatness.

⁷The fame of your goodness spreads across the country;

your righteousness is on everyone’s lips.

⁸God is all mercy and grace—

not quick to anger, is rich in love.

⁹God is good to one and all;

everything he does is suffused with grace.

^10–11Creation and creatures applaud you, God;

your holy people bless you.

They talk about the glories of your rule,

they exclaim over your splendor,

¹²Letting the world know of your power for good,

the lavish splendor of your kingdom.

¹³Your kingdom is a kingdom eternal;

you never get voted out of office.

God always does what he says,

and is gracious in everything he does.

¹⁴God gives a hand to those down on their luck,

gives a fresh start to those ready to quit.

¹⁵All eyes are on you, expectant;

you give them their meals on time.

¹⁶Generous to a fault,

you lavish your favor on all creatures.

¹⁷Everything God does is right—

the trademark on all his works is love.

¹⁸God’s there, listening for all who pray,

for all who pray and mean it.

¹⁹He does what’s best for those who fear him—

hears them call out, and saves them.

²⁰God sticks by all who love him,

but it’s all over for those who don’t.

²¹My mouth is filled with God’s praise.

Let everything living bless him,

bless his holy name from now to eternity!

^1–2146Hallelujah!

O my soul, praise God!

All my life long I’ll praise God,

singing songs to my God as long as I live.

^3–9Don’t put your life in the hands of experts

who know nothing of life, of salvation life.

Mere humans don’t have what it takes;

when they die, their projects die with them.

Instead, get help from the God of Jacob,

put your hope in God and know real blessing!

God made sky and soil,

sea and all the fish in it.

He always does what he says—

he defends the wronged,

he feeds the hungry.

God frees prisoners—

he gives sight to the blind,

he lifts up the fallen.

God loves good people, protects strangers,

takes the side of orphans and widows,

but makes short work of the wicked.

¹⁰God’s in charge—always.

Zion’s God is God for good!

Hallelujah!

¹147Hallelujah!

It’s a good thing to sing praise to our God;

praise is beautiful, praise is fitting.

^2–6God’s the one who rebuilds Jerusalem,

who regathers Israel’s scattered exiles.

He heals the heartbroken

and bandages their wounds.

He counts the stars

and assigns each a name.

Our Lord is great, with limitless strength;

we’ll never comprehend what he knows and does.

God puts the fallen on their feet again

and pushes the wicked into the ditch.

^7–11Sing to God a thanksgiving hymn,

play music on your instruments to God,

Who fills the sky with clouds,

preparing rain for the earth,

Then turning the mountains green with grass,

feeding both cattle and crows.

He’s not impressed with horsepower;

the size of our muscles means little to him.

Those who fear God get God’s attention;

they can depend on his strength.

^12–18Jerusalem, worship God!

Zion, praise your God!

He made your city secure,

he blessed your children among you.

He keeps the peace at your borders,

he puts the best bread on your tables.

He launches his promises earthward—

how swift and sure they come!

He spreads snow like a white fleece,

he scatters frost like ashes,

He broadcasts hail like birdseed—

who can survive his winter?

Then he gives the command and it all melts;

he breathes on winter—suddenly it’s spring!

^19–20He speaks the same way to Jacob,

speaks words that work to Israel.

He never did this to the other nations;

they never heard such commands.

Hallelujah!