Psalm 150 – Praise the Lord! Or Hallelujah. This psalm doesn’t contain any argument or real teaching. It is a passionate cry to all of creation to give God the praise which is due to Him. Each of the last five psalms start and finish with “Praise the Lord” of “Hallelujah”. I have heard each of them described as a praise sandwich. Psalm 150 doesn’t only start and finish with praise – it’s full of it.
We are told in verse 1 to praise Him in His sanctuary and in the heavens – where he is amongst us and where he dwells.
In verse 2 we praise Him for His power and greatness.
Verses 3-5 successively list every type of instrument known at the time – this means praise him with everything you have – it’s not an exclusive list.
The last verse – “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord”. This is a fitting conclusion to this Psalm and indeed to the whole book of Psalms. God gave us and all creation life – all creation should praise Him for it.
Praise in worship is important – it certainly is to me – it is what kept me in the church when I was growing up and gave me the basis of my faith. We should not just praise God because the Bible tells us to – although that is reason enough. Trusting God and praising Him with all your heart can give you great peace.
Psalm 5:11.
“But let all who take refuge in you be glad;
Let them ever sing for you.
Spread your protection over them,
That those who love your name may rejoice in you.”
Praise is not only a command, but a gift we give to God. It’s a sacrifice of our heart – giving him our best, even when we don’t feel up to it. The more we praise God and give him this gift, the more we’ll be filled with God’s love to share with others.
It’s one thing to sing along and repeat the verses when life is good, but it can be quite another to turn your heart to praise when life is hard. Are there benefits of praising God in hard times?
When you’re in the storms of life, under fire from battles on numerous fronts, facing difficult trials, you can take hope in God’s power. Turn your heart to find praise for the God who loves you and is fighting for you.
Believe in God’s great power and might and sing his praises, even when your heart is heavy.
Praising God through the storms not only blesses God, but will bless those around you who witness such faithfulness.
Hebrews 13:15-16 “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise – the fruit of lips that openly profess his name. And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.”
Praise the LORD: The last line of the Psalter could be nothing else than Hallelujah! God is to be praised and honoured, and will be so among His people and all creation.
In researching this study, I can a cross a quote from F B Meyer, making the point that Psalm 150 is a fitting end to the whole of the Psalter. Psalm 1 starts “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked …” and Psalm 150 ends with “Praise the Lord!”
So as he said, the psalms start with “Blessed” and end with “Hallelujah”.