David calls upon his soul and all that is in him to bless the Lord. The Lord blesses us, but how can we "bless" Him? In this context, the term "bless" means "to praise with strong affection." By calling upon his soul and all that is within him to praise the Lord, David summons his soul, mind, strength, and heart to praise Him ( Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 22:36-40).
David also gives a reason to praise the Lord: He is holy. He is completely separate from sin. When the Lord appeared to Moses in a burning bush and commissioned him to demand that Pharaoh release the Hebrews from captivity, He told Moses to remove his sandals because he was standing on holy ground ( Exodus 3:5). The ground was holy only because God was present there. Isaiah received a revelation of the Lord's holiness in the temple. He heard the seraphim pronounce, "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts" ( Isaiah 6:3). Praising the Lord for His gracious gifts to us is appropriate, but it is also appropriate to praise Him because He is holy.
Psalm 103:1-5 records David commanding his entire inner being to praise the Lord and to remember all the Lord's benefits. He credits the Lord with forgiveness of sin and healing of diseases. He says the Lord redeems the believer's life from the realm of the dead and bestows on him steadfast love, mercy, satisfaction, and renewal.
Psalm 103 praises God for what He has done. This includes celebration of His personal influence, as well as the way God has blessed the nation of Israel. David encourages praises from himself, from the people in general, and even from the angels and hosts of heaven.
David also gives a reason to praise the Lord: He is holy. He is completely separate from sin. When the Lord appeared to Moses in a burning bush and commissioned him to demand that Pharaoh release the Hebrews from captivity, He told Moses to remove his sandals because he was standing on holy ground ( Exodus 3:5). The ground was holy only because God was present there. Isaiah received a revelation of the Lord's holiness in the temple. He heard the seraphim pronounce, "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts" ( Isaiah 6:3). Praising the Lord for His gracious gifts to us is appropriate, but it is also appropriate to praise Him because He is holy.
Psalm 103:1-5 records David commanding his entire inner being to praise the Lord and to remember all the Lord's benefits. He credits the Lord with forgiveness of sin and healing of diseases. He says the Lord redeems the believer's life from the realm of the dead and bestows on him steadfast love, mercy, satisfaction, and renewal.
Psalm 103 praises God for what He has done. This includes celebration of His personal influence, as well as the way God has blessed the nation of Israel. David encourages praises from himself, from the people in general, and even from the angels and hosts of heaven.
This comment thread is locked. Please enter a new comment below to start a new comment thread.
Note: Comment threads older than 2 months are automatically locked.
Do you have a Bible comment or question?
Please Sign In or Register to post comments...
Report Comment
Which best represents the problem with the comment?