Psalm 148—Come and Praise the Lord!

"Praise him in all the heavens and in the holy heights!"

This psalm is a top-to-bottom tour of Genesis 1, calling all of God’s creation to praise the Lord who made it. Just as in the first chapter of the Bible, the focus moves from the heavens themselves to the heavenly bodies and the heavenly host, to the sky, the land, and the sea and all their creatures, the fruit trees, the animals, and, finally, humanity. The first half of the psalm corresponds to the first three days of Genesis 1—the days of forming. The second half of the psalm matches up with days four, five, and six—the days of filling.

Note: For more on my unexpected rendering of verse 4, read this post on Pattern Bible. It has to do with the solid sky dome and the water above it.

“Praise him in the heavenly realm
Beyond the waters in the sky.”

Why Does the Bible Say the Sky Is Solid?

For more on this psalm, watch this excellent analysis from Bibleproject.

Rendition of Psalm 148

Come and praise the Lord!
Praise him in all the heavens
And in the holy heights!
Praise him all his angels
And all high host!
Praise him sun, and moon,
And every star
Praise him in the heavenly realm
Beyond the waters in the sky.
They were made to praise the Lord
With everything he has created!
What he has made, he has made forever.
As his every word, 
they will never fade nor pass away.

Praise the Lord all the land,
The sea monsters and the deep abyss;
Fire and hail; snow and clouds;
Storm winds booming;
All mountains and every hill;
Trees bursting with fruit and every high cedar;
Every living thing and all animals;
Creeping things and the birds of the sky;
Kings of the earth and every nation;
Rulers and the wise;
Men and women; old ones and children.

Everything must draw their praise together,
For his name alone is exalted.
The breadth of his glory spans earth and heaven.
He has sent a king to his people.
Praise him his faithful people
And draw near to him.
Come and praise the Lord!

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Psalms: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 31, 32, 34, 35, 38, 39, 40, 42, 43, 46, 50, 51, 53, 54, 62, 63, 65, 66, 73, 74, 75, 84, 86, 88, 90, 91, 100, 107, 110, 114, 117, 118, 119, 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125, 126, 127, 128, 129, 130, 131, 132, 133, 134, 137, 139, 140, 142, 147, 148.

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Photo by Luke Stackpoole on Unsplash