Psalms 146-148

Psalm 146

¹Let the Lord be praised. Give praise to the Lord, O my soul.

²While I have breath I will give praise to the Lord: I will make melody to my God while I have my being.

³Put not your faith in rulers, or in the son of man, in whom there is no salvation.

⁴Man's breath goes out, he is turned back again to dust; in that day all his purposes come to an end.

⁵Happy is the man who has the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God:

⁶Who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all things in them; who keeps faith for ever:

⁷Who gives their rights to those who are crushed down; and gives food to those who are in need of it: the Lord makes the prisoners free;

⁸The Lord makes open the eyes of the blind; the Lord is the lifter up of those who are bent down; the Lord is a lover of the upright;

⁹The Lord takes care of those who are in a strange land; he gives help to the widow and to the child who has no father; but he sends destruction on the way of sinners.

¹⁰The Lord will be King for ever; your God, O Zion, will be King through all generations. Praise be to the Lord.

Psalm 147

¹Give praise to the Lord; for it is good to make melody to our God; praise is pleasing and beautiful.

²The Lord is building up Jerusalem; he makes all the outlaws of Israel come together.

³He makes the broken-hearted well, and puts oil on their wounds.

⁴He sees the number of the stars; he gives them all their names.

⁵Great is our Lord, and great his power; there is no limit to his wisdom.

⁶The Lord gives help to the poor in spirit; but he sends sinners down in shame.

⁷Make songs of praise to the Lord; make melody to our God with instruments of music.

⁸By his hand the heaven is covered with clouds and rain is stored up for the earth; he makes the grass tall on the mountains.

⁹He gives food to every beast, and to the young ravens in answer to their cry.

¹⁰He has no delight in the strength of a horse; he takes no pleasure in the legs of a man.

¹¹The Lord takes pleasure in his worshippers, and in those whose hope is in his mercy.

¹²Give praise to the Lord, O Jerusalem; give praise to your God, O Zion.

¹³He has made strong the iron bands of your doors; he has sent blessings on your children inside your walls.

¹⁴He gives peace in all your land, making your stores full of fat grain.

¹⁵He sends out his orders to the earth; his word goes out quickly.

¹⁶He gives snow like wool; he sends out ice-drops like dust.

¹⁷He sends down ice like raindrops: water is made hard by his cold.

¹⁸At the outgoing of his word, the ice is turned to water; when he sends out his wind, there is a flowing of waters.

¹⁹He makes his word clear to Jacob, teaching Israel his laws and his decisions.

²⁰He has not done these things for any other nation: and as for his laws, they have no knowledge of them. Let the Lord be praised.

Psalm 148

¹Give praise to the Lord. Let the Lord be praised from the heavens: give him praise in the skies.

²Give praise to him, all you his angels: give praise to him, all his armies.

³Give praise to him, you sun and moon: give praise to him, all you stars of light.

⁴Give praise to him, you highest heavens, and you waters which are over the heavens.

⁵Let them give praise to the name of the Lord: for he gave the order, and they were made.

⁶He has put them in their places for ever; he has given them their limits which may not be broken.

⁷Give praise to the Lord from the earth, you great sea-beasts, and deep places:

⁸Fire and rain of ice, snow and mists; storm-wind, doing his word:

⁹Mountains and all hills; fruit-trees and all trees of the mountains:

¹⁰Beasts and all cattle; insects and winged birds:

¹¹Kings of the earth, and all peoples; rulers and all judges of the earth:

¹²Young men and virgins; old men and children:

¹³Let them give glory to the name of the Lord: for his name only is to be praised: his kingdom is over the earth and the heaven.

¹⁴He has put on high the horn of his people, for the praise of all his saints; even the children of Israel, a people which is near to him. Let the Lord be praised.