#55 Praise the LordFrom all that dwell below the skies, Let the Creator's praise arise; Let the Redeemer's name be sung, Through ev'ry land, by ev'ry tongue.

Eternal are thy mercies, Lord; Eternal truth attends thy Word; Thy praise shall sound from shore to shore, From age to age forevermore.

Your lofty themes, ye mortals bring; In songs of praise exulting sing; The great salvation loud proclaim, And ever praise the Saviour's name.

In every land begin the song; To every land the strains belong; In cheerful sounds all voices raise, And fill the world with joyful praise.

Praise God

The Delaware Valley Bible Students

The Griehs Family

August 8-13, 2010, Baia Mare, Romania

Last six Psalms are Psalms of praise

• Psalm 145 begins final section• Also one of many “acrostics”

Acrostic Psalms

• Each begins with successive letters of Hebrew alphabet

• Psalm 119 is a famous example– written with 8 verses for each of the Hebrew

consonants in order– verses 1-8 each have a first word beginning with

aleph– verses 9-16 each have a first word beginning with

beth, and so on.

Acrostic passages occur in nine psalms

Psalm 9 2 verses for each of the 22 Hebrew consonants

Psalm 10 2 verses each Psalm 25 1 verse each Psalm 34 1 verse each Psalm 37 2 verses each Psalm 111 ½ verse each Psalm 112 ½ verse each Psalm 119 8 verses each Psalm 145 1 verse each

Note that there are two versions of some letters. Kaf, Mem, Nun, Pei and Tzadei all are written differently when they appear at the end of a word than when they appear in the beginning or middle of the word. The version used at the end of a word is referred to as Final Kaf, Final Mem, etc. There are 22 letters in this alphabet.

The significance of the number “22”

As early as the 1st & 2nd centuries B.C. the Jews noted that 22 was significant in not just being the number of letters in the Hebrew alphabet but also the number of generations from Adam to Jacob , the number of works of creation, and the number of books in the Jewish canon of the Bible.

(Sources: Josephus; the book of Jubilees 2.23; cf. Kabala)

Psalms Chapter 145 ים ִּל� ִה� ְּת�(KJV)

1 A Psalm of] praise; of David. I will extol Thee, my God, O King; and I will bless Thy name for ever and ever.

2 Every day will I bless Thee; and I will praise Thy name for ever and ever.

ALEPH

BEITH-VEITH

3 Great is the LORD, and highly to be praised; and His greatness is unsearchable.

4 One generation shall laud Thy works to another, and shall declare Thy mighty acts

GHIMEL

DALETH

5 The glorious splendour of Thy majesty, and Thy wondrous works, will I rehearse.

6 And men shall speak of the might of Thy tremendous acts; and I will tell of Thy greatness.

HÉ

VAV

7 They shall utter the fame of Thy great goodness, and shall sing of Thy righteousness.

8 The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.

ZAÏNN

HETH

9 The LORD is good to all; and His tender mercies are over all His works.

10 All Thy works shall praise Thee, O LORD; and Thy saints shall bless Thee.

TETH

IOD

11 They shall speak of the glory of Thy kingdom, and talk of Thy might;

12 To make known to the sons of men His mighty acts, and the glory of the majesty of His kingdom.

HAPH-KAPH

LAMED

13 Thy kingdom is a kingdom for all ages, and Thy dominion endureth throughout all generations.

14 The LORD upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth up all those that are bowed down.

MEM

NUN-14th letter

SAMEKH

15 The eyes of all wait for Thee, and Thou givest them their food in due season.

16 Thou openest Thy hand, and satisfiest every living thing with favour.

AYINN

PÉ-PHÉ

17 The LORD is righteous in all His ways, and gracious in all His works.

18 The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon Him, to all that call upon Him in truth.

TSADÉ

QÔF

19 He will fulfil the desire of them that fear Him; He also will hear their cry, and will save them.

20 The LORD preserveth all them that love Him; but all the wicked will He destroy.

RESCH

SINE-SHINE

21 My mouth shall speak the praise of the LORD; and let all flesh bless His holy name for ever and ever.

TAV

The Missing Letter and Verse

13 Thy kingdom is a kingdom for all ages, and Thy dominion endureth throughout all generations.

MISSING VERSE14 The LORD upholdeth all

that fall, and raiseth up all those that are bowed down.

MEM

NUN

SAMEKH

•Inspired much debate •Some translations contain verse—those based on Syriac, Septuagint and Vulgate•Some suggests copyists omitted•Others say author omitted to show incomplete praise•What do you think?

Verses 1-4Alter translation

A David song of praise.Let me exalt You, my God the king.

and let me bless Your name forevermore.Every day let me bless You,

and let me praise Your name forevermore.Great is the LORD and highly praised,

and His greatness cannot be fathomedLet one generation to the next extol Your deeds

and tell of Your mighty acts.

God’s divine kingship is theme

• Our first obligation: recognize God is sovereign over creation

• First cause for praise– Should be part of daily meditation– Jesus thanked God in advance in model prayer

• Acknowledgement that God’s wisdom is superior to ours or any other

• Begin day with prayer, inspirational text or hymn– Must never take God in our life for granted

• God overrules for outworking of His plan

• May not know purpose of trial until death and resurrection

• Prayers ought to seek first development of Divine Plan and collective development of Church

I know not what the future holds, but I know who holds the future

--Known Only To Him

Verses 5-8

Of the grandeur of Your glorious majestyand Your wondrous acts let me treat.

And the power of Your awesome deeds let them say,and Your greatness let me recount.

The fame of Your great goodness they utter,and of Your bounty they joyously sing,

Gracious and merciful is the LORD, slow to anger, great in kindness

People’s concept of God’s involvement in their lives varies greatly

“let our God-given ability…”

“has a God-given ability to…”

“that her God-given ability…”

Little Understanding of God’s Eternal Purpose

The permission of evil

Destiny of mankind

Four foundation attributesLove, justice, wisdom, power

1 Corinthians 2:14 (New American Standard ) But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.

Isaiah 55:8,9Contemporary English Version

The LORD says: "My thoughts and my ways are not like yours. Just as the heavens are higher than the earth, my thoughts and my ways are higher than yours…”

Verses 9-12

Good is the LORD to all,and His mercy is over all His creatures.

All Your creatures, LORD, acclaim You.and Your faithful ones bless You.

The glory of Your kingship they say,and of Your might they speak,

to make known to humankind His mighty actsand the grandeur of His kingship’s glory.

“The LORD is good to all…?

• On surface, one might question this since all do not prosper

• Many experience poverty, destitution for all their lives

• Don’t see God executing his plan

• What is God’s overruling is seen as chance

• 1980’s—Amazon rain forest burning and projected to disappear by end of 20th century

Brazil under strict military dictatorship

• General João Figueiredo (1979-85)

• Began to develop Brazil’s portion of rain forest—1.6 million square miles

• Began devastation of ~80% of world’s largest remaining wilderness

• Late 80’s massive debt crisis stopped Brazilian activity

God used natural selfishness of man to end threat against important part of creation

Today rainforest is vast carpet of green crisscrossed by Amazon River and 1,100 tributaries.

Entire Creation is under GOD’S care

• Wisdom, power, goodness and benevolence• Memory never fails, judgment never errs• Wisdom plans for eternity without possibility

of failure• Can harness every opposing element and

make them work for accomplishment• Providences today mainly over prospective

Church, yet no human in future will escape His mercy

Verses 13-16 (without missing verse)

Your kingship is a kingship for all time,and Your dominion for all generations.

The LORD props up all who falland makes all who are bent stand erect.

The eyes of all look in hope to Youand You give them their food in its season,

opening Your handand sating to their pleasure all living

things.

Verse 14- The missing verseAccording to the Septuagint

The LORD is faithful in His words and holy in all His works.

• Most ancient translations contain

• Text of Psalm found at Qumran also contains

• Likely omitted when transcribed for Masoretic text (source of KJV)

• Importance: God’s Word is His law and creation will reflect holiness

God has limits that man cannot exceed

• Cannot ignore natural laws of universe• Man can only go as far as God permits

Ecclesiastes 1:4, “One generation passeth away and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth for ever.”

Despite nuclear threats existing today, man will never be allowed to obliterate the earth through such a war—or even the nation of Israel

Verses 17-18

Just is the LORD in all His ways,and faithful in all His deeds.

Close is the LORD all who call Himto all who call Him in truth.

God is always righteousIsaiah 45:7 (NAS) The One forming light and

creating darkness, Causing well-being and creating calamity; I am the LORD who does all these.

• God allows calamities as chastisement for sin

• Adam and Eve protected from harm, but choice of disobedience brought consequences

• God’s protection over Church does not spare lives from trouble and pain

• God’s special care eases the pain

Today’s world is not as God intended

Deuteronomy 32:4 NASThe Rock! His work is perfect, For all His ways are just; A God of faithfulness and without injustice, Righteous and upright is He.

Zephaniah 3:5 NIVThe LORD within her is righteous; he does no wrong. Morning by morning he dispenses his justice, and every new day he does not fail, yet the unrighteous know no shame.

Habakkuk 1:13aThou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity…

Psalm 5:4,5For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee. The foolish shall not stand in thy sight: thou hatest all workers of iniquity.

Today’s evil is temporary

Verses 19-20

The pleasure of those who fear Him He performs,and their outcry He hears and rescues

them.The LORD guards all who love Him,

and all the wicked He destroys.

Even Jesus needed GOD’S strength• When we cry out to the

LORD, He responds• Full assurance of faith

means He gives us all we need to complete our journey

• Conditions of which He disapproves will ultimately be dissolved and those out of harmony with ultimate plan will be destroyed

Evil principles exist in world today driven by evil spirit beings

John 8:44 –Jesus identified source

“You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”

At close of Millennium, all evil will have been destroyed with devil

1 Corinthians 15:28When all things are subjected to Him, then the

Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that God may be all in all. •To all eternity, no more opposition to His willAll will have been brought to knowledge of truth under favorable blessings of reign•If, with knowledge of truth, come to love God and obey laws and principles, He welcomes them into eternal life

Verse 21

The LORD’S praise let my mouth speak,and let all flesh bless His holy name

forevermore.

AMEN

Thou hast given so much to me, Give one thing more--a grateful heart. Not thankful when it pleases me, As if Thy blessings had spare days, But such a heart, whose pulse may be Thy praise.

#356 Great is Thy Faithfulness“Great is Thy faithfulness,” O God my Father, There is no shadow of turning with Thee; Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail

not, As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be.

“Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!”

Morning by morning new mercies I see; All I have needed Thy hand hath provided,— “Great is Thy faithfulness,” Lord, unto me!

Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest,

Sun, moon and stars in their courses above, Join with all nature in manifold witness, To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

“Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!”

Morning by morning new mercies I see; All I have needed Thy hand hath provided,— “Great is Thy faithfulness,” Lord, unto me!

Atonement for sin and a peace that endureth, Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide; Strength for today and bright hope for

tomorrow, Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

“Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!”

Morning by morning new mercies I see; All I have needed Thy hand hath provided,— “Great is Thy faithfulness,” Lord, unto me!

Sunset at the North Pole