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blog meditation Psalms

Meditation Psalm 146

Praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord, my soul.

I will praise the Lord all my life;
    I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.
Do not put your trust in princes,
    in human beings, who cannot save.
When their spirit departs, they return to the ground;
    on that very day their plans come to nothing.
Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob,
    whose hope is in the Lord their God.

He is the Maker of heaven and earth,
    the sea, and everything in them –
    he remains faithful for ever.
He upholds the cause of the oppressed
    and gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets prisoners free,
    the Lord gives sight to the blind,
the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down,
    the Lord loves the righteous.
The Lord watches over the foreigner
    and sustains the fatherless and the widow,
    but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.

The Lord reigns for ever,
    your God, O Zion, for all generations.

Praise the Lord.

(Ps. 146:1-10 NIV)

Psalm 146 begins a separate unit of Praise (Hallel) Psalms (146-150). They have been called the Hallelujah Psalms offering praise to God. There are two other collections of Hallel Psalms, the Egyptian Hallel (Ps 113-118), and the great Hallel (Ps 120-136).

The call to worship is a call to praise the Lord. He vows to praise the Lord all of his life. There is a command not to put our trust in people of influence or mere mortals because they cannot save. When these people die, they return to dust and any plans that they might have to save us will not amount to anything. The blessing of God is upon those who put their trust in God. God is the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea and everything that is in them. The Lord remains forever and so His plans to save us will last forever. Not only does the Lord remain forever, but because He is God He remains faithful to His promises forever.

The Lord upholds the cause of the oppressed and provides for the hungry. For those who are falsely imprisoned either literally or by circumstances He sets them free. The Lord Jesus Christ, when He was upon earth, fulfilled these miracles, giving sight to the blind and lifting up those who were bowed down with illness or emotional burdens.

The Lord watches over the traveller, refugee who is in a foreign country. One of the great commands of the OT was for the people to look after orphans and widows. God made provision in His word for them to be able to glean in the harvest fields as we see Ruth doing. The Lord frustrates the way of the wicked.

The Lord our God reigns forever, of the increase of his government there will be no end. Praise the Lord.

Prayer
LORD God we praise Your great and glorious name. You have done great things for us of which we are glad. We put our trust only in You. Help us Lord to understand that Your faithfulness is eternal. We thank You that we are eternally bound in to the family of God and that forever we will be Your people. Praise the Lord in the name of our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.