Psalms · Chapter 150

1-6.

V. 1. Sanctuary-In his temple. The firmament-In heaven: there let the blessed angels praise him.

Verse 1. Praise God in his sanctuary] In many places we have the compound word hy-wllh halelu-yah, praise ye Jehovah; but this is the first place in which we find la-wllh halelu-el, praise God, or the strong God. Praise him who is Jehovah, the infinite and self-existent Being; and praise him who is God, El or Elohim, the great God in covenant with mankind, to bless and save them unto eternal life.

In his sanctuary-in the temple; in whatever place is dedicated to his service. Or, in his holiness-through his own holy influence in your hearts. The firmament of his power.] Through the whole expanse, to the utmost limits of his power. As [yqr rakia is the firmament of vast expanse that surrounds the globe, and probably that in which all the celestial bodies of the solar system are included, it may have that meaning here. Praise him whose power and goodness extend through all worlds; and let the inhabitants of all those worlds share in the grand chorus, that it may be universal.

Verse 1. Praise God in his sanctuary — In his temple, where this work was to be performed constantly and solemnly. Let his priests and people that attend there, attend him with their praises. Where should he be praised, if not where he in a special manner both manifests his glory and communicates his grace? Or praise him for, or on account of, his sanctuary, and the great privileges that we enjoy by having it among us. Or, as wvdqb, may be rendered, for his holiness; that is, for the inexpressible purity and holiness of his nature. Praise him in, or for, the firmament, or expansion, as the word signifies, (see on Genesis 1:16,) of his power — “Which power is peculiarly displayed in the formation of the firmament, or expansion of the material heavens, and their incessant operations, by means of” the luminaries placed in them, and “the light and the air of which they are composed, upon the earth, and all things therein. These are the appointed instruments of life and motion in the natural world, and they afford us some idea of that power of God unto salvation which is manifested in the church, by the effects produced on the souls of men, through the gracious influence of the light divine, and the Spirit of holiness, constituting the firmament of God’s power in the new creation.” — Horne.

1. As the theme is praise, the psalm opens with a very specific designation of the Being to be praised. Two titles are given. First, Praise ye hy, (Yah,) or Jehovah—the name of God as in covenant with his people. Secondly, Praise la, (El,) God, the Almighty, the name denoting strength, power, by which God is known as the creator, the upholder of the universe, the deliverer and defender of Israel. Sanctuary—This is the rendering we should here give to the word kodesh, “holy,” for, having spoken of the Being to be praised, the author now mentions the chief places of his praise; and this also best agrees with the prefix preposition be, in— “Praise God in his holy place.” Had it been of the abstract holiness of God that he was speaking, and not the holy place of his worship, he would have used the causal particle, kee, “for”— “Praise God for his holiness.” Firmament of his power— “Firmament,” here, is used synonymously with what we would call the visible heavens. In the “sanctuary” God is celebrated specially for his redemptive work; in the “firmament,” as creator and ruler of all worlds. These are the visible seats of his manifested power.

Verse 2. For his mighty acts] Whether manifested in creation, government, mercy or justice.

His excellent greatness.] wldg brk kerob gudlo, according to the multitude of his magnitude, or of his majesty. [Anglo-Saxon]; After the manyfoldness of his mickleness.—Anglo-Saxon. After the mykelnes of his greathede.—Old Psalter. Let the praise be such as is becoming so great, so holy, and so glorious a Being.

Verse 2. Praise him for his mighty acts — Hebrew, wytrwbgb, for his mightinesses; for all the instances of his might shown in the dispensations of his providence and grace; the power he hath exerted in creating, upholding, and governing the world, and in redeeming and saving the human race. Praise him according to his excellent greatness — Or, as Dr. Hammond renders wldg brk, according to the multitude of his magnificence — Not that our praises can bear any proportion to God’s greatness, for it is infinite, but because he is greater than we can express or conceive, we must raise our conceptions and expressions to the highest degree to which we can attain. We must not be afraid of saying too much in the praises of God, as we often do in praising even great and good men; all the danger is, of our saying too little; and therefore when he have done our utmost we must own, that though we have praised him in consideration of his excellent greatness, yet not in proportion to it.

2. Mighty acts… excellent greatness—These are named as reasons for this coextensive, universal praise.

Verse 3. The sound of the trumpet] rpwc sophar, from its noble, cheering, and majestic sound; for the original has this ideal meaning. With the psaltery] lbn nebel; the nabla, a hollow stringed instrument; perhaps like the guitar, or the old symphony.

And harp.] rwnk kinnor, another stringed instrument, played on with the hands or fingers.

Verses 3-5. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet, &c. — “It is impossible for us to distinguish,” says Dr. Horne, “and describe the several sorts of musical instruments here mentioned, as the Hebrews themselves acknowledge their ignorance in this particular. Thus much is clear, that the people of God were enjoined to use all the various kinds of them in the performance of their divine services.” “And why,” adds he, “should they not be so used under the gospel? We read of sacred music before the law, in the instance of Miriam, the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, who, to celebrate the deliverance from Pharaoh and the Egyptians, took a timbrel in her hand, and the women went out after her with timbrels and dances, Exodus 15:20. The custom, therefore, was not introduced by the law, nor abolished with it. Well-regulated music, if ever it had the power of calming the passions, if ever it enlivened and exalted the affections of men in the worship of God, (purposes for which it was formerly employed,) doubtless hath still the same power, and can still afford the same aids to devotion. When the beloved disciple was, in spirit, admitted into the celestial choir, he not only heard them singing hymns of praise, but he heard likewise the voice of harpers, harping upon their harps, Revelation 14:2. And why that which saints are represented as doing in heaven, should not be done, according to their skill, by saints upon earth; or why instrumental music should be abolished as a legal ceremony, and vocal music, which was as much so, should be retained, no good reason can be assigned. Sacred music, under proper regulations, removes the hinderances of our devotion, cures the distraction of our thoughts, and banishes weariness from our minds. It adds solemnity to the public service, raises all the devout passions of the soul, and causes our duty to become our delight. ‘Of the pleasures of heaven,’ says the eloquent and elegant Bishop Atterbury, ‘nothing further is revealed to us, than that they consist in the practice of holy music and holy love; the joint enjoyment of which, we are told, is to be the happy lot of all pious souls to endless ages.’ It may be added, that there is no better method of combating the mischievous effects flowing from the abuse of music than by applying it to its true and proper use. If the worshippers of Baal join in a chorus to celebrate the praises of their idol, the servants of Jehovah should drown it by one that is stronger and more powerful, in praise of Him who made heaven and earth. If the men of the world rejoice in the object of their adoration, let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.” The best music, however, in God’s ears, is that of devout and pious affections. We must praise God with a strong faith, and with a holy love and delight; with entire confidence in Christ, and a believing triumph over the powers of darkness; with earnest desire toward him, and full satisfaction in him. We must praise him by a universal respect to all his commands, and a cheerful submission to all his dispensations; by rejoicing in his love, and solacing ourselves in his great goodness; by promoting the interest of the kingdom of his grace, and by enjoying and maintaining a lively hope and expectation of the kingdom of his glory. Without these, and such like devout and pious affections and dispositions, the best and most perfect harmony and melody of musical sounds, whether from voices or instruments, is as insignificant before God, as the harsh and discordant noises of a sounding brass or tinkling cymbal.

Ver. 3. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet. Praise him with the psaltery. 1 Samuel 10:5. Praise him with the harp, the kinnor.

3-5. Having spoken of the Being to whom this praise belongs, the places where it should be rendered, and the reasons why it should be given, (vers. 1, 2,) the psalmist now comes to mention the instrumental helps by which the widest and most acceptable expressions of joy and gratitude could be made. Twelve times in this short psalm the call for praise is made, (besides the declarative future, verse 6,) and now with nine varieties of instrumental music. This variety is not proposed as a complete enumeration, but suffices as an expression of the loudest and most earnest praise, wherein each nation is called to use its own favorite instruments. The occasion is the world’s jubilee. The kingdom has come! The Lord reigneth! Nations and nature join in the swelling anthem! See Revelation 5:13; 19:6, 7. “May we not say that in this psalm’s enumeration of musical instruments there is a reference to the variety that exists among men in the mode of expressing joy and exciting feeling? All nations come and praise! Use every energy for praise! Men in every variety of circumstances, men of every various mood, men of all capacities, come and praise! Each in his own way sing hallelujah.”—Bonar.

Verse 4. Praise him with the timbrel] ãt toph, drum, tabret, or tomtom, or tympanum of the ancients; a skin stretched over a broad hoop; perhaps something like the tambarine. Anglo-Saxon; [A.S.] the glad pipe. Taburne; Old Psalter.

And dance] lwjm machol, the pipe. The croude or crowthe: Old Psalter; a species of violin. It never means dance; see Clarke’s note on “Psalm 149:3”. Crwth signifies a fiddle in Welsh. Stringed instruments] מנים minnim. This literally signifies strings put in order; perhaps a triangular kind of hollow instrument on which the strings were regularly placed, growing shorter and shorter till they came to a point. This would give a variety of sounds, from a deep bass to a high treble. In an ancient MS. Psalter before me, David is represented in two places, playing on such an instrument. It may be the sambuck, or psaltery, or some such instrument.

Organs.] bgw[ ugab. Very likely the syrinx or mouth organ; Pan’s pipe; both of the ancients and moderns. The fistula, septem, disparibus nodis conjuncta, made of seven pieces of cane or thick straw, of unequal lengths, applied to the lips, each blown into, according to the note intended to be expressed. This instrument is often met with in the ancient bucolic or pastoral writers.

Verses 3-5. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet, &c. — “It is impossible for us to distinguish,” says Dr. Horne, “and describe the several sorts of musical instruments here mentioned, as the Hebrews themselves acknowledge their ignorance in this particular. Thus much is clear, that the people of God were enjoined to use all the various kinds of them in the performance of their divine services.” “And why,” adds he, “should they not be so used under the gospel? We read of sacred music before the law, in the instance of Miriam, the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, who, to celebrate the deliverance from Pharaoh and the Egyptians, took a timbrel in her hand, and the women went out after her with timbrels and dances, Exodus 15:20. The custom, therefore, was not introduced by the law, nor abolished with it. Well-regulated music, if ever it had the power of calming the passions, if ever it enlivened and exalted the affections of men in the worship of God, (purposes for which it was formerly employed,) doubtless hath still the same power, and can still afford the same aids to devotion. When the beloved disciple was, in spirit, admitted into the celestial choir, he not only heard them singing hymns of praise, but he heard likewise the voice of harpers, harping upon their harps, Revelation 14:2. And why that which saints are represented as doing in heaven, should not be done, according to their skill, by saints upon earth; or why instrumental music should be abolished as a legal ceremony, and vocal music, which was as much so, should be retained, no good reason can be assigned. Sacred music, under proper regulations, removes the hinderances of our devotion, cures the distraction of our thoughts, and banishes weariness from our minds. It adds solemnity to the public service, raises all the devout passions of the soul, and causes our duty to become our delight. ‘Of the pleasures of heaven,’ says the eloquent and elegant Bishop Atterbury, ‘nothing further is revealed to us, than that they consist in the practice of holy music and holy love; the joint enjoyment of which, we are told, is to be the happy lot of all pious souls to endless ages.’ It may be added, that there is no better method of combating the mischievous effects flowing from the abuse of music than by applying it to its true and proper use. If the worshippers of Baal join in a chorus to celebrate the praises of their idol, the servants of Jehovah should drown it by one that is stronger and more powerful, in praise of Him who made heaven and earth. If the men of the world rejoice in the object of their adoration, let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.” The best music, however, in God’s ears, is that of devout and pious affections. We must praise God with a strong faith, and with a holy love and delight; with entire confidence in Christ, and a believing triumph over the powers of darkness; with earnest desire toward him, and full satisfaction in him. We must praise him by a universal respect to all his commands, and a cheerful submission to all his dispensations; by rejoicing in his love, and solacing ourselves in his great goodness; by promoting the interest of the kingdom of his grace, and by enjoying and maintaining a lively hope and expectation of the kingdom of his glory. Without these, and such like devout and pious affections and dispositions, the best and most perfect harmony and melody of musical sounds, whether from voices or instruments, is as insignificant before God, as the harsh and discordant noises of a sounding brass or tinkling cymbal.

Ver. 4. Praise him with the timbrel, the tambour. Praise him with the machol, as in Psalm 149:3. Praise him with the minnim, a stringed instrument. Praise him with the uggab, a kind of organ.

4. Dance—A translation of doubtful propriety. The word in the text and in Psalm 149:3, stands classified as a musical instrument, and is translated “pipe” in the margin of our English Bible. In Psalm 30:11, it seems evidently used in a figurative sense for joy, and the same in Lamentations 5:15. Jeremiah 31:4, 13, might also be taken in the same sense. The same noun in the feminine (hlwjm) is more commonly taken in the literal sense of dancing, or, as the etymology suggests, “dancing in a circle,” probably because, in the literal sense, females only or chiefly practised it. These “dances,” though embracing a religious sentiment, were not connected with the regular worship, but belonged to occasions of rare national joy and triumph. In the text, and in Psalm 149:3, the word stands connected with earnest, spiritual, and universal praise and worship; and though it is more in harmony with the connexion and scope to take it as an instrument of music, still, if understood of dancing, it can give no countenance to that movement as a common mode of worship, much less to modern social dancing, which is not only practiced without a religious object, but in antagonism to all true religious sensibility. See note on Psalm 30:11.

Verse 5. Loud cymbals] µylxlx tseltselim. Two hollow plates of brass, which, being struck together, produced a sharp clanging sound. This instrument is still in use. What the high-sounding cymbals meant I know not; unless those of a larger make, struck above the head, and consequently emitting a louder sound.

Verses 3-5. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet, &c. — “It is impossible for us to distinguish,” says Dr. Horne, “and describe the several sorts of musical instruments here mentioned, as the Hebrews themselves acknowledge their ignorance in this particular. Thus much is clear, that the people of God were enjoined to use all the various kinds of them in the performance of their divine services.” “And why,” adds he, “should they not be so used under the gospel? We read of sacred music before the law, in the instance of Miriam, the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, who, to celebrate the deliverance from Pharaoh and the Egyptians, took a timbrel in her hand, and the women went out after her with timbrels and dances, Exodus 15:20. The custom, therefore, was not introduced by the law, nor abolished with it. Well-regulated music, if ever it had the power of calming the passions, if ever it enlivened and exalted the affections of men in the worship of God, (purposes for which it was formerly employed,) doubtless hath still the same power, and can still afford the same aids to devotion. When the beloved disciple was, in spirit, admitted into the celestial choir, he not only heard them singing hymns of praise, but he heard likewise the voice of harpers, harping upon their harps, Revelation 14:2. And why that which saints are represented as doing in heaven, should not be done, according to their skill, by saints upon earth; or why instrumental music should be abolished as a legal ceremony, and vocal music, which was as much so, should be retained, no good reason can be assigned. Sacred music, under proper regulations, removes the hinderances of our devotion, cures the distraction of our thoughts, and banishes weariness from our minds. It adds solemnity to the public service, raises all the devout passions of the soul, and causes our duty to become our delight. ‘Of the pleasures of heaven,’ says the eloquent and elegant Bishop Atterbury, ‘nothing further is revealed to us, than that they consist in the practice of holy music and holy love; the joint enjoyment of which, we are told, is to be the happy lot of all pious souls to endless ages.’ It may be added, that there is no better method of combating the mischievous effects flowing from the abuse of music than by applying it to its true and proper use. If the worshippers of Baal join in a chorus to celebrate the praises of their idol, the servants of Jehovah should drown it by one that is stronger and more powerful, in praise of Him who made heaven and earth. If the men of the world rejoice in the object of their adoration, let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.” The best music, however, in God’s ears, is that of devout and pious affections. We must praise God with a strong faith, and with a holy love and delight; with entire confidence in Christ, and a believing triumph over the powers of darkness; with earnest desire toward him, and full satisfaction in him. We must praise him by a universal respect to all his commands, and a cheerful submission to all his dispensations; by rejoicing in his love, and solacing ourselves in his great goodness; by promoting the interest of the kingdom of his grace, and by enjoying and maintaining a lively hope and expectation of the kingdom of his glory. Without these, and such like devout and pious affections and dispositions, the best and most perfect harmony and melody of musical sounds, whether from voices or instruments, is as insignificant before God, as the harsh and discordant noises of a sounding brass or tinkling cymbal.

Ver. 5. Praise him with the cymbals.

Praise him with the cymbals of jubilee.

If the machol be counted, Psalm 149:3, here are nine instruments. Tirinus, the learned jesuit, has the following note on this subject. “See Cassiodorus, Boëthius, and Marianus, where the use of instruments of music in the church, is not only accounted pious, but grateful to God; and not for young men only, as St. Justin thinks, but likewise in heaven also, where St. John heard the utmost perfection of the harp. Revelation 5:8. 14:2.” Yet the use of instruments in christian worship was by no means general, though the three fathers here cited speak positively of its existence. Nothing can exceed the voice of a whole congregation praising God.

5. Loud cymbals—The idea is, cymbals giving a clear, distinct sound, causing a distinct hearing—literally, cymbals of hearing. High sounding cymbals—Literally, cymbals of shouting, clanging cymbals. The difference between the two is simply in the volume of sound they are adapted to give forth. The Hebrew music was noisy and strong, but this occasion exceeded all others.

V. 6. Also-Every living creature in heaven and in earth.

Verse 6. Let every thing that hath breath] Either to make a vocal noise, or a sound by blowing into pipes, fifes, flutes, trumpets, &c. Let all join together, and put forth all your strength and all your skill in sounding the praises of Jehovah; and then let a universal burst with HALLELUJAH! close the grand ceremony. It is evident that this Psalm has no other meaning than merely the summoning up all the voices, and all the instruments, to complete the service in FULL CHORUS.

Of such peculiar importance did the Book of Psalms appear to our blessed Lord and his apostles, that they have quoted nearly fifty of them several times in the New Testament. There is scarcely a state in human life that is not distinctly marked in them; together with all the variety of experience which is found, not merely among pious Jews, but among Christians, the most deeply acquainted with the things of Christ.

The minister of God’s word, who wishes to preach experimentally, should have frequent recourse to this sacred book; and by considering the various parts that refer to Jesus Christ and the Christian Church, he will be able to build up the people of God on their most holy faith; himself will grow in grace, and in the knowledge of God; and he will ever have an abundance of the most profitable matter for the edification of the Church of Christ.

Verse 6. Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord — Every living creature in heaven and earth, Revelation 5:13, according to their several capacities, some objectively, as manifesting his glorious perfections in their formation, qualities, and endowments, and giving men and angels just occasion to praise him; and others actively, with hearts and voices, words and actions, showing forth his praise. Mankind, especially, are under peculiar and indispensable obligations to comply with the psalmist’s exhortation. For,

“Creation’s great superior, man! is thine,

Thine is redemption.”

And

— — “Should not this

Raise man o’er man, and kindle seraphs here?”

YOUNG.

Above all, the children of God should comply with it; who, added to redemption, have obtained salvation, the salvation of grace, and are in the way to the salvation of glory. Surely, with respect to them, not only the breath of natural life, which God hath breathed into their nostrils as men, but the breath of that new and eternal life which he hath given them as Christians, through Christ Jesus, should be returned in hallelujahs. “And then the church, composed of many and different members, all actuated, like the pipes of a well-tuned organ, by the same spirit, and conspiring together in perfect harmony, would become one great instrument, sounding forth the praises of God most high.”

LET EVERY THING THAT HATH BREATH PRAISE THE LORD. — “With this wish,” says the learned divine last quoted, “the sweet psalmist of Israel closes the songs of Sion.” And with the same wish, the author of this work, adopting his words, wishes to close his meditations and observations upon them; “giving thanks to the Father of mercies, and the God of all comforts, by whose most gracious favour and aid they have been begun, continued, and ended; and humbly praying that no errors or improprieties, from which, through human infirmity, the most diligent and careful are not exempt, may prevent his labours from contributing, in some small degree, to promote the improvement and consolation of the redeemed, and the honour and glory of the Redeemer, who is THE ROOT AND OFFSPRING OF DAVID, AND THE BRIGHT AND MORNING STAR. AMEN.”

6. The final call to praise. Every thing that hath breath—Every living thing. Praise ye the Lord—Reader, this is addressed to thee. A fitting practical climax! Can a rational soul decline this honor? Can it spurn this privilege, this blessedness? “If it grieves you that your praise is so weak, remember: Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord, and there must be many weak ones in such a host. But they praise their God, and you are joining with them. If you cannot succeed—with strong cries and loud notes, only keep breathing forth to God the desires of your heart, and this will be acceptable to him.”—Moll. If our hearts are in harmony with all that praise God in heaven and on earth, our praise, being according to our capacity, will be as acceptable as that of the highest archangel. His praise “is accepted according to that a man hath.”

THE END.