Psalms 147 · The Lantern

It Is Good to Sing Praises

Praise the LORD! For it is good to make music to our God; for it is pleasant — praise is fitting.

The LORD builds Jerusalem; he gathers in the banished of Israel.

The Lord who builds Jerusalem shall gather together the dispersions of Israel. How Jerusalem is built, how the dispersion is gathered together, has already been said. Since therefore these two little verses have been discussed, and we ought not to build upon another's foundation, let us pass on to what remains.

Who is "our God," that praise should be pleasant to Him? He makes Himself sweet to us, He commends Himself to us; thanks to His condescension...."But God commends His love to us"..."in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." [Romans 5:8] ...Let us see whether it be the commendation which the Apostle speaks of, that Christ died for the sinners and ungodly: "the Lor…

"He heals the broken of heart and binds up their wounds." A marvelous kind of healing is spoken of so that we wear ourselves away constantly if we wish to be restored to health. But that wound of contrition pertains to what makes us whole and leads to full recovery. And—what is beyond every good—it leads us to that physician who offers eternal health.

He is the healer of the broken of heart, and the binder of their wounds.

He counts the number of the stars; to all of them he calls names.

If anyone undertakes to speak of the attributes of God, let him first describe the bounds of the earth. Though you dwell on the earth, you do not know the limit of your dwelling place; how then will you be able to form a worthy concept of its Creator?

Who numbers the multitude of the stars. What is the connection, according to the letter, between "And binding up their bruises" and "who numbers the multitude of the stars"? But because he healed the contrite of heart and bound up their bruises, those who before had been contrite, and afterward were healed, he turns into stars. Who numbers the multitude of the stars.

"Who telleth the number of the stars, and calleth them all by their names" (ver. 4). What great matter is it for God to "tell the number of the stars"! Men even have endeavoured to do this; whether they have been able to achieve it, is their concern; they would not however attempt it, did they not think that they should achieve it.

Great is our Lord and abundant in power; to his insight there is no number.

Great is our Lord, and great is his power, and of his wisdom there is no number. Great is his power: Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God. And of his wisdom there is no number. Christ is wisdom: and the one wisdom cannot be numbered.

You have indeed concerning him who is the image, that "being in the form of God, he did not consider it robbery to be equal with God." Where certainly both his rectitude in the form of God, and his majesty in the equality, are indicated to you: so that when rectitude is compared to rectitude, and greatness to greatness, that which is to the image and the image may appear to cor…

God by the knowledge of simple intelligence knows and comprehends infinite things. I respond: For the understanding of the foregoing, it must be noted that according to the ancient doctors we are compelled to hold that God knows infinite things, as the Prophet David says in the Psalm: "Great is our Lord and great is his power, and of his wisdom there is no number"; and as Augus…

The LORD sustains the humble; he brings the wicked down to the earth.

Answer the LORD with thanksgiving; make music to our God on the lyre —

the one who covers the heavens with clouds, who prepares rain for the earth, who makes grass sprout on the mountains;

They must suppose that our ancestors went down into Egypt without bodies and invisible and that only the soul of Joseph was imprisoned by Pharaoh, because it is written, "They went down into Egypt with threescore and fifteen souls," and "The iron entered into his soul," a thing that could not be bound.

..."Who covereth the heaven with clouds, who prepareth rain for the earth" (ver. 8). Now thou art alarmed, because thou canst not see the heaven: when it hath rained thou shalt gather fruit, and shalt see clear sky. Perhaps our God hath done this. For had we not the obscurity of Scripture as an occasion, we should not say to you those things wherein ye rejoice.

That you may be aware that God the Father worked not only on those first six days but "even until now," read the [saying] of the prophet, "Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you"; and in the psalm, "He who shaped the hearts of every one of them"; and elsewhere, "Who covers the heavens with clouds and prepares rain for the earth, who produces hay on the mountains," and othe…

who gives to the animal its food, to the sons of the raven that call.

Not in the might of the horse does he delight; not in the legs of a man does he take pleasure.

He will not take pleasure in the strength of the horse. We promised brevity, and, compelled by necessity, we have disputed at greater length. We have lied, but the lie is most useful. Would that Herod had lied and had broken his oath! And so we too promised lesser things, and, as you prayed, have offered greater things.

"In the power of an horse He will not take pleasure." The power "of an horse" is pride. For the horse seemeth adapted as it were to bear a man aloft, that he may be more uplifted as he goes. And in truth he has a neck which typifieth a sort of pride.

However powerful, rich, learned, and strong a man may be, unless he fears God, nothing avails him. Whence the Psalm: "He shall not take pleasure in the strength of the horse, nor shall he be well pleased with the legs of a man: the Lord is well pleased with those who fear him, and with those who hope in his mercy."

The LORD takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who wait for his loyal love.

The Lord is well pleased with those who fear him. One fear casts out many fears. Is it not better to fear one, that you may not fear many, than to fear many, that you may not fear one? And with those who hope in his mercy. They hope not in their own works, but in the mercy of the judge.

But what addeth he? "The Lord will delight in them that fear Him, and in them that hope in His mercy." A robber is feared, and a wild beast is feared, and an unjust and powerful man is much feared. "The Lord will delight in them that hope in His mercy." Behold, Judas, who betrayed our Lord, feared, but he did not hope in His mercy.

Extol the LORD, Jerusalem! Praise your God, Zion!

For he has strengthened the bars of your gates; he has blessed your sons within you.

He is the one who sets your border at peace; with the fat of wheat he satisfies you.

Who has set your borders as peace. Where has peace been set, which was overthrown by war? And he fills you with the fat of the wheat. Does wheat have fat? Answer, O Jew, does wheat have fat? If, then, wheat does not have fat, and you are compelled by necessity to understand it spiritually, then according to this verse the rest too must be understood.

What ye cried out a while ago at the very mention of peace, ye cried from longing: your cry was from thirst, not from fulness; for there will be perfect righteousness where will be perfect peace. Now we hunger and thirst after righteousness. "They shall be filled." How shall they be filled? When we have arrived at peace.

The fruits of the earth refer to the consideration of the divine condescensions in the orders of the Churches. Their fullness is seen as the conjunction of both Churches, the militant and the triumphant. It is in this manner that God "has granted peace in your borders"; that is, as He shall declare, peace is like a river.

He is the one who sends his saying to the earth; his word runs very swiftly.

"He that sends his word on earth, until his word runs swiftly." He that sends is evidently distinct from him that is sent. You have then, here, both the Sender, the almighty God, and also the Word that was sent, who having many names is called by the holy oracles now Wisdom, now Word, now God, and also Lord.

Who sends forth his word to the earth. Answer, O Jew: if he was speaking of wheat, And he fills you with the fat of the wheat, how does he now say, Who sends forth his word to the earth? In the beginning was the Word. This Word is sent forth in the flesh. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us. Who sends forth his word to the earth.

"Who sendeth forth His Word to the earth." Behold, on earth we toil, weary, fainting, sluggish, cold: when should we be raised up to the fat of wheat that satisfieth, did not He send His Word to the earth, whereby we were weighed down, to the earth, whereby we were hindered from returning?

He is the one who gives snow like wool; he scatters frost like ashes.

He casts his ice like crumbs; before his cold, who can stand?

He sends his word and melts them; he makes his wind blow, the waters flow.

He declares his words to Jacob, his statutes and his judgments to Israel.

He has not done so for any nation, and his judgments — they have not known them. Praise the LORD!

Psalms147

It Is Good to Sing Praises