Psalm 109

A psalm of David. An imprecatory lament psalm.

v.1 Initial call to God. O God of my praise!
v.2-5 The crisis: character assassination against King David.
v.6-15 Imprecatory petition. See also Ps 35:4-8. v.8 is applied to Judas in Acts 1:20.
v.16-20 Restatement of crisis and more imprecation.
v.21-25 Cry to God concerning the crisis.
v.26-29 Petition for help.
v.30-31 Vow to praise God.

Read Psalm 109

Psalm 108

A song. A Psalm of David. A hymn of trust in God.

Praise of God’s love (See Ps 57:7-11)
v.1-3 Call to praise.
v.4-5 Praise God for his steadfast love and his faithfulness.

Prayer for help against enemies (See Ps 60:5-12)
v.6-9 God's promise to defeat Israel’s enemies.
v.10-11 The crisis, God has rejected us.
v.12 Petition for God to deliver.
v.13 Confidence in God.

In your hour of crisis, recall the promises God has made in his word.

Read Psalm 108

Psalm 107

Book V (Ps 107-150)
A praise psalm. God is good!

Call to praise.
v.1 A call to praise God for he is good.
v.2-3 The setting is the deliverance of Israel from exile (answering Ps 106:47).

Praise God for four rescues he has performed.
Pattern: calamity—cry—salvation—thanksgiving.
v.4-9 God delivers people lost in the desert (wandering).
v.10-16 God delivers people suffering in prison. See Lk 1:79.
v.17-22 God delivers people suffering with disease (the wages of sin).
v.23-32 God delivers people at risk in a stormy sea. See Mk 4:35ff.

Praise God for his power over creation.
v.33-38 God is in control of every situation.
v.39-41 God brings princes low and raises the needy.
v.42 The upright see what God has done and are glad.

Epilogue.
v.43 The wise will consider these things.

The 4 rescues in v.4-32 are perhaps 4 different ways to look at Israel’s exile. They are analogous to the sinner's plight and so directly applicable to all people and all times. As you read the psalm, see yourself in need of rescue and meditate on the great love of the Lord.

Read Psalm 107

Psalm 106

A confession of the nation Israel’s long history of rebellion against the Lord and a prayer that God save his people once again. A history psalm.

A prayer for salvation
v.1-2 Call to praise and give thanks. Praise the Lord!
v.3 Beatitude on righteous people.
v.4-5 Prayer for prosperity of the nation.

A prayer of confession
v.6-12 Praise for God’s mercy on the rebellious nation at the red sea. (Ex 14-15)
v.13-23 The people rebel in the wilderness.
v.24-39 The people rebel in the promised land.
v.40-46 The rebellious people turn from God many times and many times God delivered them.

A prayer for restoration
v.47 Prayer for God’s salvation and gathering of Israel from among the nations.
v.48a Beatitude toward God.
v.48b Closing amen and Praise the Lord!

This brings Book IV of the Psalms to a close.

God was merciful to us in that while we were rebellious sinners, he sent his son to die for our sins (Rom 5:8). How much more merciful will he be to Christians as his children.

Read Psalm 106

Psalm 105

A song of Israel’s salvation, a historical psalm. Tell of all his wondrous works!

Exhortation to worship God.
v.1-6 Call to: (1) give thanks to the Lord, (2) to praise him, (3) to seek him, (4) remember his works, (5) sing praises to God, (6) tell of his wonderful acts (make known among the nations what he has done), (7) glory in his holy name, (8) rejoice in God, (9) look to the Lord and his strength, and (10) remember the things he has done.

God’s covenant people.
v.7-11 He is the Lord our God! ... He remembers his covenant forever.
Covenant—see Gn 15:9-21.
v.12-15 The Lord protected them.
Note: v.1-15 are contained in 1 Chr 16:8-22.

Exile in Egypt.
v.16-22 The psalmist recalls the story of Joseph sent into Egypt ahead of the famine.
v.23-25 Then Israel came to Egypt and the Lord made them fruitful.

Exodus from Egypt.
v.26-36 He sent Moses, who performed signs to the people of Egypt.
v.37-38 Then he brought Israel out of Egypt.

God’s protective care.
v.39-42 God provided for Israel in the desert.

Israel enters the promised land.
v.43-45 He brought them into the promised land that they might keep his statutes and observe his laws. Praise the Lord! (Hallelujah)

The psalm records 500 years of redemptive history (Gn through Jos). This story continues today as God’s eternal purposes are being carried out. The consummation of the age will be in Jesus Christ’s return. History is His story. The psalm also illustrates that the suffering of God’s people does not necessarily lie outside his purposes. Psalm 105 and 106 are companions with Ps 105 detailing the acts of God and Ps 106 the failings of men.

Read Psalm 105

Psalm 104

A hymn to the creator. O Lord my God, you are very great!

First day: God created light.
v.1-2a Opening praise to God.

Second day: God created the heavens.
v.2b-4 Nature functions to serve God.

Third day: God created the earth.
v.5-9 Creation of nature by God.
v.10-18 God’s provision for nature on the earth.

Fourth day: God created the planets.
v.19-23 God provided the heavenly bodies to mark the time.

Fifth day: God created the animals.
v.24 Interlude.

24 O Lord, how manifold are your works!
In wisdom have you made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.

v.25-26 The provision God provides in the ocean.

Sixth day: God created man.
v.27-30 Summary of God’s provisions in nature.

Every day: God should be praised.
v.31-33 Praise to the God of nature.
v.34 Rejoicing in the Lord, may my meditation be pleasing to him.
v.35a Let sinners be consumed and the wicked be no more.
v.35b Concluding praise the Lord

Man was created in God’s own image in order to know him, worship him, and give glory to his name. Let us live to know God through his son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Read Psalm 104

Note: Division of psalm into days, corresponding to Gn 1, due to HOTC.

Psalm 103

Of David. Bless the Lord, O my Soul! A praise psalm. An ode of God’s love and compassion to his people. The length of the psalm is determined by the number of letters in the Hebrew alphabet (22 verses).

David calls on himself and others to praise the Lord for his many blessings.

Praise the Lord
v.1-2 Call to praise. Praise the Lord, O my soul. (v.1a, NIV)
Forget not all his benefits. (v.2b)

Reasons for praise
v.3-5 Great acts of God worthy of praise
• who forgives all your iniquity
• who heals all your diseases
• who redeems your life from the pit (a metaphor for the grave)
• who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy
• who satisfies you with good (things)
• so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s
v.6 The Lord works righteousness and justice.
v.7 The Lord made known his acts to the people of Israel.
v.8 Praise of 4 attributes of God: mercy, grace, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love. (See Ex 34:6)
v.9-10 Praise of 4 acts of God: he does not always chide, he does not remain angry forever, he does not deal with us according to our sins, he does not repay us according to our iniquities.
v.11-13 Praise of God’s attributes (3 similes): great is his love, he removes our sin, he has compassion on those who fear him.
v.14-16 Man is but dust and few are his days.
v.17-18 But God's love is permanent (to those who obey).
v.19 The Lord rules over all. (See Rom 8:28)

Commands to praise
v.20-22 Four doxologies:

20 Bless the Lord, O you his angels,
you mighty ones who do his word,
obeying the voice of his word!
21 Bless the Lord, all his hosts,
his ministers, who do his will!
22 Bless the Lord, all his works,
in all places of his dominion.
Bless the Lord, O my soul!

We have many reasons to praise God, let's not forget any of them. God alone is to be praised.

Read Psalm 103

Psalm 102

A Prayer of one afflicted, when he is faint and pours out his complaint before the Lord. An intense personal lament. The psalm is messianic.

Lament in the day of my distress.
v.1-2 Cry to God: Hear my prayer O Lord.
v.3-11 The psalmists complaint. “I wither away like grass.” (v.11b)

The appointed time for Zion.
v.12-17 But you, O Lord, a statement of confidence in God: but you will arise and have pity on Zion.
v.18-22 Let the Lord’s certain deliverance be written down for future generations to praise God.

Your (God’s) years have no end.
v.23-24 The speaker’s crisis and petition for God to act.
v.25-27 God is eternal. Heaven and earth are the work of his hands. (v.25-27 Cited Heb 1:10-12)
v.28 Statement of confidence in God.

28 The children of your servants shall dwell secure;
their offspring shall be established before you.

This is a prayer that you can echo when you are at the end of your endurance.

Read Psalm 102

Psalm 101

A psalm of David. The king’s pledge to reign righteously. See 2 Kgs 23:3.

Personal Standards
v.1-4 The king’s personal commitments to holiness.
• He will sing praise to the Lord. (1)
• He will lead a blameless life. (2a)
• He will walk with integrity of heart. (2b)
• He will set before his eyes anything that is worthless. (3a)
• He will hate the deeds of faithless men. (3b)
• He will have nothing to do with evil. (4)

Standards in the king’s house
v.5 The king will not endure slanderers or the arrogant of heart.
v.6 The king will look with favor on the faithful.
v.7 The king will not allow the deceitful or liars in his house.

Standards for the public
v.8 The king’s commitment to put the wicked to silence every morning in the land.

Make sure those you choose as companions are faithful to God and his word.

Read Psalm 101

Psalm 100

A psalm for giving thanks. Shout for joy to the Lord.

Call to worship
v.1-2 Call to joyful singing to the Lord. (cf. 66:1)
“Worship the Lord with gladness.” (v.2a, NIV)
v.3 “Know that the Lord, he is God!”
He made us and we are the sheep of his pasture (cf. 23:1).

Call to worship
v.4 Call to give thanks to the Lord.

4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!

v.5 Conclusion.

5 For the Lord is good;
his steadfast love endures forever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.

There is only one God and he alone is to be praised (and not some dumb idol).

Read Psalm 100

Psalm 99

A praise psalm. An enthronement psalm (Ps 93-100).

Praise and worship the Lord, who is sovereign over the earth.

Call to praise and worship.
v.1-3 The Lord reigns (1-2) (See also 93:1, 96:10, 97:1) therefore praise him (3), he is holy.

1 The Lord reigns; let the peoples tremble!
He sits enthroned upon the cherubim;
let the earth quake!

v.4-5 The king is mighty and loves justice (4), therefore worship at his footstool (5), he is holy.
v.6-7 God answered those who called on him in the past (6-7).
v.8-9 You forgave them (8), therefore praise and worship him (9), he is holy.

Holy, holy, holy is our sovereign God. Let us praise his name and worship him.

Read Psalm 99

Psalm 98

A psalm. O sing to the Lord. Three stanzas of praise starting with the congregation and progressing to all peoples, then all of creation.

Praise for the Savior from the congregation (past)
v.1-3 “Oh sing to the Lord a new song” (1)
• For he has done marvelous things (1)
• His right hand has worked salvation (1) cf. Ex 15:6
• The Lord has made known his salvation (2)
• He has revealed his righteousness (2)
• He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness (3)
• All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. (3)

Praise for the Sovereign from all peoples (present)
v.4-6 “Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth” (4)
• Break forth into joyous song (4)
• Sing praises to the Lord (5)
• Make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord! (6)

Praise for the Judge from all of creation (future)
v.7-9 Let all creation praise the Lord (cf. Rom 8:19-25), for he comes to judge the earth with righteousness and equity (9)
• Let the sea roar, and all that fills it (7)
• The world and those who dwell in it (7)
• Let the rivers clap their hands (8)
• Let the hills sing for joy together (8)

Jesus fulfills the promise of this Psalm for God to judge the earth and rule his people. Jesus will save you from your sin, if you believe in him, and He is coming again—to set everything right! Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! Eph 1:3-10

Read Psalm 98

Psalm 97

A praise psalm. Rejoice in the Lord’s righteous reign over all the earth.

v.1 Call to praise—“The Lord reigns, let the earth rejoice.” The earth and the coastlands are to rejoice and be glad.
v.2-5 Praise to God as the forces of nature.
v.6-7 The heavens proclaim God's glory and righteousness (and the people see it). Worshipers of idols are put to shame.
v.8 Zion and Judah hear God's judgments and are glad. (See 48:11)
v.9 Praise—“For you, O Lord, are most high over all the earth.”
v.10 Call for the saints to hate evil. The Lord protects their lives from the wicked.
v.11-12 Light dawns (30:5). Call for the righteous, who are joyful, to rejoice and give thanks.

12 Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous,
and give thanks to his holy name!

This psalm helps the reader have a God-centered worldview. The Lord reigns over all the earth and all of human history. He is absolutely sovereign over the universe. Believers must reject all sin, no compromise. God will cause all things to work together for our good (Rom 8:28).

Read Psalm 97

Psalm 96

A praise psalm. (See parallel passage at: 1 Chr 16:23-33)

A call for everyone (all the earth and among the nations) to praise the Lord.

v.1-6 Call to praise—sing to the Lord a new song (1) all the earth. Bless his name (2), sing of his salvation (2), his glory (3), and his marvelous deeds (3).

3 Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous works among all the peoples!

For:
• great is the Lord (4) and greatly to be praised (4)
• he is to be feared above all gods (4)
• other “gods” are worthless idols (5)
• he made the heavens (5)
• splendor and majesty are before him (6)
• strength and beauty are in his sanctuary (6)
v.7-9 Call to praise—worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness.
• Ascribe to the Lord glory and strength (7)
• Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name (8)
• Bring an offering and come into his courts (8)
• Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness (9)
• Tremble before him, all the earth. (9)
v.10 Poet’s script of what the people should say:

10 Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!
Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved;
he will judge the peoples with equity.”

v.11-12a Let:
• the heavens be glad (11)
• the earth rejoice (11)
• the sea roar, and all that fills it (11)
• the field exult, and everything in it (12)
v.12b-13 The trees will sing for joy (12) because the Lord will come and judge the earth in righteousness and faithfulness (13).

All of God’s people should support global evangelism and take the message into all the earth—“The Lord reigns!”

Read Psalm 96

Psalm 95

A praise psalm.

v.1-5 Oh come let us praise the Lord with song, a joyful noise, thanksgiving, and songs of praise (1-2). For:
• he is the rock of our salvation (1) cf. 2 Sm 22:47
• he is a great God, and a great king above all gods (3) cf. Ps 96:4
• in his hand are the depths of the earth (4)
• in his hand are the heights of mountains (4)
• the land and the sea are his for he made them (5) cf. Ps 24:1-2

v.6-7a Oh come let us worship, bow down, and kneel before the Lord, our Maker (6). For:
• he is our God (7)
• we are the people of his pasture (7) cf. Ps 23:1
• and the sheep of his hand (7)

v.7b-11 Today, if you hear his voice, obey, do not harden your hearts as in Ex 17:1-7. For 40 years [God] loathed that generation and swore “they shall not enter my rest.” (See Heb 3:7-19)
Enter my rest - see Heb 4:1-13 and Rv 21:4.

This psalm is a call to praise, worship, and obey the one true and living God, creator and sustainer of all. It applies to Christians today! We must obey God's Word in order to enter His eternal rest.

Read Psalm 95

Psalm 94

An appeal to the Sovereign God (Ps 93) to redress wrongs. God is the divine judge—with favor toward the righteous and judgment against the wicked.

Focus on the wicked
v.1-3 Introduction. Appeal to the Judge of the earth.

2 Rise up, O judge of the earth;
repay to the proud what they deserve!

v.4-7 The complaint against evildoers who oppress the people.
v.8-11 Speaking to the wicked satirically—fools when will you be wise?

Focus on the righteous
v.12-15 Confidence in God to judge on behalf of the righteous.

12 Blessed is the man whom you discipline, O Lord,
and whom you teach out of your law,

v.16-19 Praise to God who has been the psalmists help.
v.20-23 Confidence that the Lord's justice will prevail.

22 But the Lord has become my stronghold,
and my God the rock of my refuge.

Since our God is a holy and just god, we can be certain that the wicked will be judged and the righteous will prevail. (Ps 28:9)

Read Psalm 94

Psalm 93

A praise psalm. God is greater than and reigns over his creation.

v.1-2 The Lord is the majestic king of the world. The Lord reigns ... from everlasting. The Lord’s reign secures the created order.
v.3-4 He is mightier than the many waters (chaos). See Ps 103:19.
v.5 Praise of God. Holiness befits your house, O Lord, forevermore. God has given us commands that are stable and reliable—and that must be obeyed.

Ps 93 celebrates God's sovereign (and eternal) kingship over all the world. Believers should confidently trust in the Lord—His reign was established in eternity past and will never end.

Read Psalm 93

Psalm 92

A Psalm. A Song for the Sabbath. A praise psalm. It is good to give thanks to the Lord.

v.1-5 Call to praise.

1 It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
to sing praises to your name, O Most High;

v.6-9 The wicked will perish.

7 that though the wicked sprout like grass
and all evildoers flourish,
they are doomed to destruction forever;

v.10-15 Praise to God for his many blessings.

12 The righteous flourish like the palm tree
and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.

See Is 40:31. The psalm contrasts the transient wicked with the flourishing godly.

Read Psalm 92

Psalm 91

Ps 91 serves as a counterpoint to Ps 90. It describes the happy condition of those who dwell in the shelter of the Most High.

v.1-2 The security of those who put their trust in God.

1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”

v.3-8 The protections given those to whom verses 1-2 apply:
- deliverance from the snare of the fowler (3)
- deliverance from the deadly pestilence (3)
- he will cover you with his pinions (feathers) (4)
- under his wings you will find refuge (4)
- his faithfulness is a shield and buckler (small shield) (4)
- you will not fear :
• the terror of night (5)
• the arrow that flies by day (5)
• the pestilence that stalks in darkness (6)
• nor the destruction that wastes at noonday (6)
- a thousand may fall at your side, but it (destruction) will not come near you (7)
- you will see the recompense (punishment) of the wicked (8)

v.9-10 Continues the theme of v.1-2 (The security of those who put their trust in God).

9 Because you have made the Lord your dwelling place—
the Most High, who is my refuge—
10 no evil shall be allowed to befall you,
no plague come near your tent.

v.11-12 More protections of those to whom v.1-2 apply. These verses were applied to Jesus by Satan in Mt 4:6 and Lk 4:10-11.
v.13 Triumph over four beasts (lion, adder, young lion, serpent).
v.14-16 [Climax] (God's voice) Because he holds fast to me in love: 1. I will deliver him. 2. I will protect him. 3. I will answer him. 4. I will be with him in trouble. 5. I will rescue him. 6. I will honor him. 7. With long life I will satisfy him. 8. I will show him my salvation.

Make God your shelter today! Read this Psalm when facing danger or evil.

Read Psalm 91

Psalm 90

Book IV (Ps 90-106)

A Prayer of Moses, the man of God.

Our days are few, we need to live them with an eternal perspective. “O God, stamp eternity on my eyeballs!”—Jonathan Edwards

Praise of God.
v.1-2 The eternal nature of God, “... from everlasting to everlasting you are God,”
v.3-6 and the transient nature of mankind.

Lament for the human condition.
v.7-8 Our sins are ever before God,

7 For we are brought to an end by your anger;
by your wrath we are dismayed.
8 You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your presence.

v.9-11 and our days are hard and full of trouble (and soon fly away).

God is our only hope.
v.12 Teach us to number our days.

12 So teach us to number our days
that we may get a heart of wisdom.

v.13-17 The psalmist pleads for God’s mercy and a return to joy and gladness.

17 Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,
and establish the work of our hands upon us;
yes, establish the work of our hands!

What matters most in life is the eternal, not the temporal. Therefore we should number our days in the light of God’s eternal sovereignty—living for the kingdom of heaven, not the kingdoms of this world.

Read Psalm 90

Psalm 89

A Maskil of Ethan the Ezrahite. A psalm of the faithfulness of God and of the Davidic Covenant.

v.1-2 Praise to God.

1 I will sing of the steadfast love of the Lord, forever;
with my mouth I will make known your faithfulness
to all generations.

v.3-4 Allusion to the Davidic Covenant. See 2 Sam 7:1-17.

4 “I will establish your offspring forever,
and build your throne for all generations.” Selah

v.5-18 Praise to God for his works in creation and his faithfulness.

14 Righteousness and justice are the foundation
of your throne;
steadfast love and faithfulness go before you.

v.19-37 Poetic description of the Davidic Covenant.
v.38-45 Lament because God has apparently rejected Israel and caused defeat in battle.
v.46-51 Prayer for God to remember his Covenant with David.

v.52 Concluding benediction bringing Book III of the Psalms (Ps 73-89) to a close.

52 Blessed be the Lord forever!
Amen and Amen.

The Davidic Covenant had its fulfillment in Jesus Christ (See Lk 1:26-38 and Rv 22:16).

Read Psalm 89