Psalm 148
BSB
Praise the LORD from the Heavens
(Psalms 33:1–22)
1Hallelujah!
Praise the LORD from the heavens;
praise Him in the highest places.
2Praise Him, all His angels;
praise Him, all His heavenly hosts.
3Praise Him, O sun and moon;
praise Him, all you shining stars.
4Praise Him, O highest heavens,
and you waters above the skies.
5Let them praise the name of the LORD,
for He gave the command and they were created.
6He established them forever and ever;
He issued a decree that will never pass away.
7Praise the LORD from the earth,
all great sea creatures and ocean depths,
8lightning and hail, snow and clouds,
powerful wind fulfilling His word,
9mountains and all hills,
fruit trees and all cedars,
10wild animals and all cattle,
crawling creatures and flying birds,
11kings of the earth and all peoples,
princes and all rulers of the earth,
12young men and maidens,
old and young together.
13Let them praise the name of the LORD,
for His name alone is exalted;
His splendor is above the earth and the heavens.
14He has raised up a horn for His people,
the praise of all His saints,
of Israel, a people near to Him.
Hallelujah!
Introduction
Psalms 148
This psalm is a most solemn and earnest call to all the creatures, according to their capacity, to praise their Creator, and to show forth his eternal power and Godhead, the invisible things of which are manifested in the things that are seen. Thereby the psalmist designs to express his great affection to the duty of praise; he is highly satisfied that God is praised, is very desirous that he may be more praised, and therefore does all he can to engage all about him in this pleasant work, yea, and all who shall come after him, whose hearts must be very dead and cold if they be not raised and enlarged, in praising God, by the lofty flights of divine poetry which we find in this psalm. I. He calls upon the higher house, the creatures that are placed in the upper world, to praise the Lord, both those that are intellectual beings, and are capable of doing it actively (Psa 148:1, Psa 148:2), and those that are not, and are therefore capable of doing it only objectively (Psa 148:3-6). II. He calls upon the lower house, the creatures of this lower world, both those that can only minister matter of praise (Psa 148:7-10) and those that, being endued with reason, are capable of offering up this sacrifice (Psa 148:11-13), especially his own people, who have more cause to do it, and are more concerned to do it, than any other (Psa 148:14).
Cross-references: Ps 148:1 · Ps 148:2 · Ps 148:3 · Ps 148:7 · Ps 148:11 · Ps 148:14