This is a glorious hymn of praise to the Lord in the first eight verses for His greatness, His glory, His goodness, and His grace. It is like a glorious expression of the triumph of faith in an individual and a call to the people of God to join in praise to glorify the greatness of God. When we get to verses nine through twelve, the psalmist sings of the glory of God’s kingdom, the majesty of God’s kingdom, the eternity of God’s kingdom, and the dominion of God’s kingdom. Then the song of praise speaks to the power of the Lord, the provision of the Lord, the righteousness of the Lord, the holiness of the Lord, the presence of the Lord, and the preservation of the Lord.
It is the Lord who gives success to His people in situations that are too great for them. Praise to the Lord at the beginning of this psalm is from a triumphant soldier who knows it was the Lord who gave him victory in times of war. His praise is to the Lord in whom he trusts personally as his rock, his fortress, his refuge, his deliverer, and his shield. The only motivation for all of these provisions is the lovingkindness of God. Wise is the person who acknowledges the Lord as the Source of our past blessings and present deliverance from evil. The greatness of God is contrasted with the weakness of men. We are insignificant in ourselves. Our lives are no more than a breath or a shadow unless we are found in Christ.
The Lord reaches out in grace and rescues frail, fallen mortal man from his latent nothingness, and makes us new creations in Christ who are accepted in the Beloved. What a rescue! The commitment of a child of God to praise is given as a promise to extol, bless, and praise the greatness of God. “Every day” and forever and ever is reasonable to expect from people who have been blessed by the Lord and privileged to be called by His grace. It is right for us to bless the Lord for His past, present, and promised future blessings to His people. We have a kind God, and that should motivate us to show kindness to others. When God steps in and rescues a believer from that which has brought him trouble and stress, we give thanksgiving and praise in a new way with words that come from our hearts that are appropriate to the victory we know is coming. Prayer and praise go together.
The peace the Lord gives today is in the hearts of those who know and love Him. There will be no world peace until the tribulation is passed and the Lord Jesus Christ reigns as the Prince of Peace. “What is man?” He has very little value without God. Without God, life is purposeless and meaningless. Man is never satisfied nor really happy without fellowship with God. There is a big empty space in a human personality that can only be filled with God. Vanity and emptiness are common to most people who live for fame, fortune, and pleasure. “A round world does not fill a three-cornered heart.” When God intervenes in human history as the Mighty Conqueror, the King of kings and Lord of lords, then everything will be changed. A new song will be sung all over the world, not just by those who love the Lord now and live a “kingdom” life and lifestyle now.
The theme of praise includes “Great is the Lord,” and personal praise comes from the individual person, “I will praise thy name…, I will speak of the glorious honor of Thy majesty…, I will declare Thy greatness.” Generational praise is passed on from “one generation… to another.” That praise from redeemed people will go on “throughout all generations.” National praise is for His “glorious honor… and for His everlasting kingdom.” In universal praise, “men shall speak of [Thy] might… and “Thy dominion.” Creational praise comes from “all Thy works…” and “every living thing.”
In the psalmist’s prayer for the Lord to “bow thy heavens, O Lord, and come down…,” he is requesting the Lord’s intervention in his struggle with enemies who were making false charges against him, and breaking treaties they had already made with him. To pray a similar prayer in relation to the intervention of God in the stalemates that often affect the work of the Gospel seems to be appropriate. How often, when a soul draws near to the kingdom of God, but is hindered in some way, or an outreach into a new place seems to be called for, if we pray for divine intervention, God draws near and works in grace and salvation.
David exhorts all people to praise the Lord for all He is and all He has done, and will yet do. Verses in this psalm have every letter of the Hebrew alphabet but one. There is nothing missing in the Lord in any way, but perhaps this is a warning to any person who has never given God praise and thanks for saving them, that their name is missing from the Lamb’s book of life.
Believers have a personal commitment to praise the Lord for the blessing of His great salvation. The mighty acts of God are objects of praise and are the virtues of God’s grace that move us to praise Him. God’s faithfulness to us and His righteousness are reasons for our continuing to give ourselves to praise the Lord. His mighty works and His glory and splendor are observable reasons for our praise. His greatness, goodness, and gracious compassion motivate us to praise Him. His tender mercies, His providential care, and His nearness to all who call upon Him move true believers to openly praise the Lord. His everlasting kingdom, His righteousness and holiness will have all His people to praise the Lord forever and ever.
Every man, woman, and child needs to remember the greatness, the works, the grace, and the faithfulness of God. Creation moves us to consider that this is the beginning of a kingdom in which we are found, where the name of the Lord is to be praised by all flesh forever. The crowning blessing of a nation is happy people. Peace and prosperity will someday come to those who live for the future and in the future. An idealized family is described that lives for the Lord and follows the life of faith. Family life will be a blessing that is full of vitality, health, and vigor. The sons will be full of vigor and will be spiritually fruitful. Daughters will have beauty inwardly and outwardly. People will be trustworthy. Crops will not fail, and the earth will yield its abundance. Animals will be healthy and useful, and will reproduce easily and be able to bear heavy loads.
The nation will be at peace, and there will be God-given happiness to those who are in the kingdom of God. Life is short, so life that is lived for the Lord is important. Purposeful goals have lasting value. A life that is worthwhile and meaningful with real reachable objects can be really good. It is up to those who are older to pass on to young people the kind of hope and faith that shapes life in the right way. Far too many young people are jaded, discontented, unhappy, and angry with life the way it is. They had hoped for something to make them feel fulfilled. Those of us who are believers in Christ know that He is the only One who can meet their longings and expectations. We have, and do experience the happiness that so many are looking for. Let us tell our friends and families why we are happy and how they can be happy too.