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This is the final doxology of the book of Psalms calling everything that has breath to praise the Lord! Praise him for his greatness and acts of power! Praise him with multiple musical instruments such as trumpet, flute, strings, tambourine, harp, lyre and cymbals and with plenty of dancing! Praise the Lord!

Psalm 149 is a vibrant song of praise exhorting Israel to rejoice in their maker and be glad in their king. The psalmist calls them to praise God with dance and music because he crowns the humble with salvation. Let the saints rejoice and sing for joy in bed! May they also hold a double-edged sword in their hands to inflict vengeance on the nations. Praise the Lord!

Psalm 148 is the third of the final 5 hallelujah / praise the Lord psalms that bring this book to a close. It is a song of jubilant universal praise from the highest heaven to the lowest place for God the creator. Thus the psalmist exhorts: “Praise the Lord from the heavens… angels… sun, moon and stars… for God commanded and they were created… he set them in place for ever… praise the Lord great sea creatures, lightening, hail, snow and clouds… mountains, hills, trees, wild animals, cattle, kings, princes, birds… everything praise the Lord!”

Psalm 147 is a song of praise to both God as mighty creator (“He determines the number of stars and calls them each by name!”) and as the gentle healer comforting brokenhearted exiles (“the Lord sustains the humble”). He says “Great is our Lord and mighty in power… sing to the Lord with thanksgiving… he supplies the earth with rain… he provides food for the cattle… the Lord delights in those that fear him… praise your God O Zion… he spreads the snow like wool… He has revealed his word to Jacob and his laws and decrees to Israel!”

Psalm 146 is a poetical hymn of praise to God starting “Praise the Lord, O my soul!… don’t trust in mortal men but trust in God!… Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob… who is the maker of heaven and earth… he upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry… the Lord watches over the alien and reigns forever!”

Psalm 145 is the last of David’s psalms and it is an exuberant celebration of God’s greatness (“his greatness no-one can fathom”), his sovereign kingdom (“they will tell of the glory of your kingdom”) and his kind spirit (“the Lord is loving towards all he has made”). David starts saying “I will exalt you, my God and King… Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise… celebrate your abundant goodness… the Lord is good to all… your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom… the Lord upholds all those who fall… you satisfy the desires of every living thing… the Lord is near to all who call on him… my mouth will speak in praise of the Lord. Let every creature praise his holy name for ever and ever!”

Psalm 144 is a psalm of praise and prayer. David starts by praising the Lord, his Rock… He is my loving God and fortress… what is man that you care for him?… for man is but a fleeting shadow… reach down your hand from on high… rescue me from the mighty waters… I will sing a new song to you, O God… Deliver me from the hands of foreigners… and our sons and daughters will flourish… and our barns will be filled… and our sheep will multiply profusely… Blessed is the people whose God is the Lord!

David, in this psalm, is suffering intense persecution (“the enemy pursues me, he crushes me to the ground”) and strong depression (“my spirit faints with longing… I will be like those who go down to the pit”). David therefore cries for help from God (“listen to my cry for mercy”) and pleas for mercy. David recalls all that God has done in the past and his soul thirsts for God. So he asks God to teach him to do his will and he trusts God to destroy his foes.

 Psalm 142 was written by David in the context of being hidden in a cave from Saul expressing his loneliness (“no-one cares for my life”), desperation (“I am in desperate need”) and danger (“men have hidden a snare for me”). He cries to God “set me free from my prison that I may praise your name.”

This psalm of David is a sincere prayer asking God to help him control his tongue (“set a guard over my mouth, O Lord”) and to help him to resist temptation (“Let not my heart be drawn to what is evil”). David then expresses that being corrected by a righteous man is a kindness (let him rebuke me – it is oil on my head”) and he concludes saying that he takes refuge in the Lord asking God to keep him free from the traps of evildoers. 

In Psalm 140 David asks God for protection and to be rescued from evil men who plan to trip him and set traps for him. David goes on to pray for God to “not let their plans succeed”. David recalls that “the Lord secures justice for the poor” saying that “surely the righteous will praise you name and the upright will live before you”. 

Psalm 139 is a Davidic meditation on the omniscience, omnipresence and omnipotence of God. First of all David considers how God knows what we are going to say before we say it. (“Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely”) Then he focuses on God’s all invasive presence and that no matter where we go God is already there. Then David points to God’s amazing work in creating man who is “fearfully and wonderfully made”, and he says that “all the days ordained for me” were  pre-written in God’s book. David closes the psalm praying for sanctification and holiness saying “search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know me”.

 Psalm 138 is a Davidic psalm of praise and thanksgiving to God saying in the first verse that “before the ‘gods’ I will sing your praise… praising God’s name for his love and faithfulness… God’s name and word are exalted above all things and you answered me and made me stout-hearted”. “May all kings praise you, O Lord… the glory of the Lord is great… and though God is high yet he still considers the lowly… you preserve my life and with your right hand you save me… the Lord will fulfill his purpose for me”.

Psalm 137 is a lament in Babylon where the Jews wept by the rivers, hung their harps on the trees and refused to sing the psalms of Zion owing to their suffering and longings for home, and faced with the torments of their captors. But God’s people vow to never forget Jerusalem saying “May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you… Jerusalem!” The psalm ends asking God for vengeance against the Edomites and against the Babylonians for their cruelty. It is a psalm of expression of profound trauma for God’s people having lost home and temple.

 Psalm 136 is a hymn of thanksgiving to God because “his love endures forever” which is the repetitive refrain repeated in each of its 26 verses. The psalm celebrates God’s goodness, his domination of creation (heavens, earth, waters, great lights, moon and stars), Israel’s deliverance from Egypt (killing of firstborn, Red Sea, Wilderness journey, killing of enemy kings) and God’s covenant faithfulness. 

Psalm 135 is a hymn of praise exhorting God’s people to worship God for his goodness. Initially the psalm calls the priests and Levites to praise the Lord because he is good. He then exhorts praise for them having been chosen as God’s people and that the Lord is greater than all gods. He points to God’s control of nature: wind, lightening, seas and clouds. The psalm then goes on to praise God for his signs and wonders in Egypt and for his victories over Canaanite kings. The psalmist then ridicules useless idols and calls everyone to praise the Lord.

Psalm 134 is the final short song of ascents praising the Lord with all who minister at night in the temple, raising hands in the sanctuary, and receiving the blessings of God. 

This very popular Psalm 133 exalts the great importance of unity amongst God’s people. Unity is compared to the sweet smelling blessed anointing oil of the High Priest. Unity is also compared with the refreshing dew of Mount Hermon. It is with unity that God bestows his blessing giving life for evermore!

Psalm 132 is another song of ascents recalling David’s zeal to construct a temple for the Lord. David wanted to bring the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem. It goes on to recall how God promised that the descendants of David would be on the throne forever which has clear messianic undertones. It is remembered that Zion was defined as God’s city promising to bless her with abundant provisions and food for the poor. The psalm closes promising a resplendent messianic crown!

Psalm 131 is a Davidic song of ascents showing gigantic humility, contentment and rest in God. David compares himself to a blessed weaned child. That is how his soul if feeling he says. He then concludes: “O Israel, put your hope in the Lord both now and forever more.” 

Psalm 130 is a penitential psalm crying for God’s mercy asking for his forgiveness. The psalmist says that he is waiting for the Lord and in his word he puts his hope. Then he concludes calling Israel to put their hope in the Lord because his love is unfailing and his redemption is full.

This further song of ascents appears to think back over Israel’s “youth” in Egypt and the severe oppression which it endured. However despite “ploughmen have ploughed my back” they did not prevail thanks to God’s grace, protection and strength. “The Lord is righteous and he has cut me free from the cords of the wicked”. May those who hate Zion be shamed and wither like grass. 

This further song of ascents says Blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways. They will be blessed with prosperity and many children. Such individual and family blessings also affect the community seeing prosperity in Jerusalem and peace in Israel. 

This psalm is a wisdom psalm attributed to Solomon which shows that anything without God is worthless. Building is in vain if God is not in it… security is empty if God doesn’t protect… and any form of labour is worthless unless done for God. However, he says, our children are not just a lot of work but blessings from God. 

Psalm 126 is a further song of ascent recalling how great they felt when they returned from exile… our mouths were filled with laughter and they sang happy songs. It was warmly recognized that God had done great things for them. The psalm concludes praying for restoration knowing that those who sow with tears will reap with joy.

This psalm is another song of ascents affirming that those who trust God are rock solid like Mount Zion and cannot be shaken as they endure forever. However evildoers will not be successful against the righteous. And the psalmist prays that God will do good to those who are good and upright in heart, whilst banishing evildoers. He closes praying for peace for Israel. 

 Psalm 124 is another song of ascents attributed to David saying that if it hadn’t been for God’s intervention Israel would have been “swallowed alive” or “engulfed”. But David praised the Lord because they had not been ripped apart by their enemies teeth or trapped by the fowler’s snare. For David declares: “Our help is in the name of the Lord”!

This another short song of pilgrimage is a prayer for God’s mercy. It says that as the slave looks to his master and as the maid looks to her mistress so we look to God for him to have mercy on us.