Psalms 146

Praise the Lord, O my soul

raise the Lord! Let all that I am praise the Lord.a ²I will praise the Lord as long as I live. I will sing praises to my God with my dying breath.b ³Don’t put your confidence in powerful people; there is no help for you there.c

⁴When they breathe their last, they return to the earth, and all their plans die with them.d ⁵But joyful are those who have the God of Israel as their helper, whose hope is in the Lord their God.e ⁶He made heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them. He keeps every promise forever.

⁷He gives justice to the oppressed and food to the hungry. The Lord frees the prisoners.f ⁸The Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord lifts up those who are weighed down. The Lord loves the godly.g ⁹The Lord protects the foreigners among us. He cares for the orphans and widows, but he frustrates the plans of the wicked.

¹⁰The Lord will reign forever. He will be your God, O Jerusalem, throughout the generations. Praise the Lord!h

Commentary

Psalm 146 opens the final 'Hallelujah' crescendo of the Psalter, a five-psalm doxology that closes the book of praise. This first of the five calls the congregation to trust not in human princes—whose breath fails—but in the God of Jacob, who keeps faith forever. The psalm contra

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Bible Dictionary· Psalms 146(5)

Breath Heaven Israel Jerusalem Sea

References· Psalms 146

a: v.1 — Psalms 103:22, Psalms 103:1, Psalms 104:35, Psalms 105:45
b: v.2 — Psalms 63:4, Psalms 104:33, Psalms 71:14-15, Psalms 145:1-2, Revelation 7:9-17
c: v.3 — Psalms 118:8-9, Jeremiah 17:5-6, Isaiah 2:22, Psalms 108:12, Isaiah 31:3, Psalms 62:9, Isaiah 37:6, Psalms 60:11
d: v.4 — Ecclesiastes 12:7, Psalms 104:29, Genesis 2:7, Genesis 3:19, 1 Corinthians 2:6, Psalms 33:10, Isaiah 2:22, Job 17:11, Job 14:21, Job 14:10
e: v.5 — Jeremiah 17:7-8, Psalms 144:15, Psalms 71:5, Psalms 33:12, Psalms 46:11, Psalms 84:12, Genesis 32:24-29, Exodus 3:6, Psalms 84:8, Psalms 46:7
f: v.7 — Psalms 103:6, Psalms 68:6, Isaiah 61:1, Zechariah 9:11-12, Proverbs 22:22-23, Luke 4:18, Psalms 142:7, Psalms 10:18, Psalms 107:9-10, Psalms 72:4
g: v.8 — Psalms 145:14, Psalms 11:7, Acts 26:18, Matthew 9:30, Isaiah 35:5, Ephesians 1:18, 2 Corinthians 7:6, Luke 13:11-13, Matthew 11:5, John 16:27
h: v.10 — Psalms 10:16, Exodus 15:18, Revelation 11:15, Daniel 6:26, Daniel 7:14, Isaiah 12:6, Joel 3:17, Isaiah 9:7, Daniel 2:44, Isaiah 40:9

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