Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.
Every breathing person and every living creature is called to praise the Lord. Animate and even inanimate creation are summoned into one chorus, and the call of unreasoning things to praise rebukes intelligent people when their souls do not glow and their lips do not proclaim God's majesty and glory. The praise is due to God as Maker and King who delights in His people and saves the meek, for daily mercies, faithful care, provision, preservation of life and restored health, and above all for love shown in Christ giving His life and bearing the penalty for transgression. It is to be given in joyful singing with heart, soul, voice and instruments, in calm and patient trust that looks on the bright side and talks faith, and in trained lips, cheerful family words, Sabbath gladness and thankful deeds overflowing from a full heart. Receiving mercy without gratitude, like the healed who forgot God when distress passed, and putting on sadness, unbelief and gloom, do not glorify Him and are forbidden.
Scope of the Call
Let everything that lives and breathes praise the Lord, every living creature and every breathing person without exception. The call is universal, addressed to everything that has breath and to every living being, summoning gladness for goodness and mercy and love. It joins the congregation of the saints in joyful singing, thanksgiving and praise with harp and timbrel, with rejoicing in God as Maker and King. It trains lips to speak praise in the family circle and teaches children to offer praise and thanksgiving, with cheerful words of faith, hope and gladness especially on the Sabbath instead of censuring and talk of doubts and gloom. It cultivates thanksgiving in every church with gifts and thanksgiving offerings for daily favors, acknowledging dependence on God for daily mercies, unfailing faithfulness and every good and perfect gift, since kindness from friends calls for thanks and far more is owed to the Friend who gives all. It requires praise in health as well as sickness rather than taking health for granted, and renewed obligation to the Creator when health is restored.
Animate and inanimate creation are brought together in one chorus of praise and thanksgiving to God. By calling senseless, unreasoning things to praise, the verse powerfully rebukes people blessed with intelligence when their souls do not glow and their lips do not proclaim the majesty and glory of God. That rebuke answers the wonderful works of God in nature, which reveal human littleness and nothingness before the great Master Artist who reigns in the heavens.
The call is answered in nature when birds praise their Creator with their breath, pouring out happy, grateful, joyous songs. Their praise awakens gratitude in human hearts for blessings such as sunshine. A person whose whole being is rested and refreshed answers in the same way, waking in good health with a clear conscience and buoyant spirit, the heart answering the morning with praise and joining the birds' song.
The verse stands among the many exhortations in the Word to Israel to praise the Lord. It commands every breathing person to break silence and sing God's praises, persuading silent lips and voices to sing. It calls everyone that has breath to praise continually, with every breath, with hearts flowing out in gratitude and glowing with fervent love. That continual praise is calm, patient trust and dependence on the One who knows human necessities, closing the windows of the soul earthward and opening them heavenward, and it is the response of those buried with Christ in baptism and risen with Him to newness of life to seek the things above where Christ sits at God's right hand.
Reasons for Praise
The call to praise is a call to rejoice in God as Maker and King, who takes pleasure in His people and beautifies the meek with salvation. The wonderful works of God in nature reveal human littleness and nothingness before Him as the great Master Artist who reigns in the heavens.
Praise is due for daily mercies, unfailing faithfulness, and every good and perfect gift, with acknowledgment of dependence on God as the giver. It is due for providential care and ample provision, recognized as great treasure and blessing received from Him. It is due for miraculous preservation of life, for being brought up as from death to life again, and for restored health, with hearts flowing out in gratitude and glowing with fervent love for merciful kindness and lovingkindness to the children of men. Such praise belongs in health as well as in sickness, remembering goodness instead of taking health for granted, and recognizing renewed obligation to the Creator when health is restored.
Every breathing creature is to praise out of love for Jesus because He first loved and gave His life. Praise is due for God's pure and holy character revealed in His holy, just, and good law given in love, and for Jesus Christ taking the penalty for transgression. It is the response of those buried with Christ in baptism in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and raised to newness of life, with the three great powers of heaven pledged to cooperate in living the new life, so that with every breath they praise God as those risen with Christ to seek things above where Christ sits at the right hand of God.
Receiving mercy without gratitude is condemned, for favors are not to be forgotten once distress has passed. The warning is seen when ten lepers were healed yet only one returned to glorify Jesus, while the nine failed to give thanks.
Ways to Praise God
Let everything that has breath praise in joyful singing and in songs of praise and devotion, joining the congregation of the saints in thanksgiving and praise. Harp and timbrel and musical instruments are to be had and used for this praise, offered to God in glorious harmony. They are to be used with heart and soul and voice to magnify His name before the world. Silent lips and voices are to be persuaded to break silence and sing, learning and singing the songs of heaven here on earth in order to join the heavenly choir above.
The praise is to be glad and joyful, with calm, patient trust and dependence on the One who knows human necessities. It constantly looks on the bright side, talks faith and acts faith, and praises and glorifies the holy name for providential care and ample provision. It closes the windows of the soul earthward and opens them heavenward, so that the spirit is sweetened and cheered by the sunshine of Christ's righteousness instead of discouragement, dispiritedness, and downheartedness. Putting on sadness, unbelief, lamentation, and woe is forbidden, and the dark side is never to be looked upon for a moment, because the Lord is not glorified by those things.
Lips are to be trained to speak His praise in the family circle, and children are to be taught to offer praise and thanksgiving. Cheerful and happy words of faith and hope and gladness are to be spoken, and glad hearts and joyful countenances are to testify of grace and love and goodness and power and saving grace, especially on the Sabbath, instead of censuring and talk of doubts and gloom. Thanksgiving is to be cultivated in every church, with gifts and thanksgiving offerings declaring gratitude for daily favors, since kindness from friends calls for thanks and much more is owed to the Friend who gives every good and perfect gift. There are to be set seasons of praise, and hearts are to be kept constantly so full of cultivated thankfulness to God that they overflow in spoken praise and loving deeds.
Every breathing person and every living creature is called to praise the Lord. Animate and even inanimate creation are summoned into one chorus, and the call of unreasoning things to praise rebukes intelligent people when their souls do not glow and their lips do not proclaim God's majesty and glory. The praise is due to God as Maker and King who delights in His people and saves the meek, for daily mercies, faithful care, provision, preservation of life and restored health, and above all for love shown in Christ giving His life and bearing the penalty for transgression. It is to be given in joyful singing with heart, soul, voice and instruments, in calm and patient trust that looks on the bright side and talks faith, and in trained lips, cheerful family words, Sabbath gladness and thankful deeds overflowing from a full heart. Receiving mercy without gratitude, like the healed who forgot God when distress passed, and putting on sadness, unbelief and gloom, do not glorify Him and are forbidden.
Scope of the Call
Let everything that lives and breathes praise the Lord, every living creature and every breathing person without exception. The call is universal, addressed to everything that has breath and to every living being, summoning gladness for goodness and mercy and love. It joins the congregation of the saints in joyful singing, thanksgiving and praise with harp and timbrel, with rejoicing in God as Maker and King. It trains lips to speak praise in the family circle and teaches children to offer praise and thanksgiving, with cheerful words of faith, hope and gladness especially on the Sabbath instead of censuring and talk of doubts and gloom. It cultivates thanksgiving in every church with gifts and thanksgiving offerings for daily favors, acknowledging dependence on God for daily mercies, unfailing faithfulness and every good and perfect gift, since kindness from friends calls for thanks and far more is owed to the Friend who gives all. It requires praise in health as well as sickness rather than taking health for granted, and renewed obligation to the Creator when health is restored.
Animate and inanimate creation are brought together in one chorus of praise and thanksgiving to God. By calling senseless, unreasoning things to praise, the verse powerfully rebukes people blessed with intelligence when their souls do not glow and their lips do not proclaim the majesty and glory of God. That rebuke answers the wonderful works of God in nature, which reveal human littleness and nothingness before the great Master Artist who reigns in the heavens.
The call is answered in nature when birds praise their Creator with their breath, pouring out happy, grateful, joyous songs. Their praise awakens gratitude in human hearts for blessings such as sunshine. A person whose whole being is rested and refreshed answers in the same way, waking in good health with a clear conscience and buoyant spirit, the heart answering the morning with praise and joining the birds' song.
The verse stands among the many exhortations in the Word to Israel to praise the Lord. It commands every breathing person to break silence and sing God's praises, persuading silent lips and voices to sing. It calls everyone that has breath to praise continually, with every breath, with hearts flowing out in gratitude and glowing with fervent love. That continual praise is calm, patient trust and dependence on the One who knows human necessities, closing the windows of the soul earthward and opening them heavenward, and it is the response of those buried with Christ in baptism and risen with Him to newness of life to seek the things above where Christ sits at God's right hand.
Reasons for Praise
The call to praise is a call to rejoice in God as Maker and King, who takes pleasure in His people and beautifies the meek with salvation. The wonderful works of God in nature reveal human littleness and nothingness before Him as the great Master Artist who reigns in the heavens.
Praise is due for daily mercies, unfailing faithfulness, and every good and perfect gift, with acknowledgment of dependence on God as the giver. It is due for providential care and ample provision, recognized as great treasure and blessing received from Him. It is due for miraculous preservation of life, for being brought up as from death to life again, and for restored health, with hearts flowing out in gratitude and glowing with fervent love for merciful kindness and lovingkindness to the children of men. Such praise belongs in health as well as in sickness, remembering goodness instead of taking health for granted, and recognizing renewed obligation to the Creator when health is restored.
Every breathing creature is to praise out of love for Jesus because He first loved and gave His life. Praise is due for God's pure and holy character revealed in His holy, just, and good law given in love, and for Jesus Christ taking the penalty for transgression. It is the response of those buried with Christ in baptism in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and raised to newness of life, with the three great powers of heaven pledged to cooperate in living the new life, so that with every breath they praise God as those risen with Christ to seek things above where Christ sits at the right hand of God.
Receiving mercy without gratitude is condemned, for favors are not to be forgotten once distress has passed. The warning is seen when ten lepers were healed yet only one returned to glorify Jesus, while the nine failed to give thanks.
Ways to Praise God
Let everything that has breath praise in joyful singing and in songs of praise and devotion, joining the congregation of the saints in thanksgiving and praise. Harp and timbrel and musical instruments are to be had and used for this praise, offered to God in glorious harmony. They are to be used with heart and soul and voice to magnify His name before the world. Silent lips and voices are to be persuaded to break silence and sing, learning and singing the songs of heaven here on earth in order to join the heavenly choir above.
The praise is to be glad and joyful, with calm, patient trust and dependence on the One who knows human necessities. It constantly looks on the bright side, talks faith and acts faith, and praises and glorifies the holy name for providential care and ample provision. It closes the windows of the soul earthward and opens them heavenward, so that the spirit is sweetened and cheered by the sunshine of Christ's righteousness instead of discouragement, dispiritedness, and downheartedness. Putting on sadness, unbelief, lamentation, and woe is forbidden, and the dark side is never to be looked upon for a moment, because the Lord is not glorified by those things.
Lips are to be trained to speak His praise in the family circle, and children are to be taught to offer praise and thanksgiving. Cheerful and happy words of faith and hope and gladness are to be spoken, and glad hearts and joyful countenances are to testify of grace and love and goodness and power and saving grace, especially on the Sabbath, instead of censuring and talk of doubts and gloom. Thanksgiving is to be cultivated in every church, with gifts and thanksgiving offerings declaring gratitude for daily favors, since kindness from friends calls for thanks and much more is owed to the Friend who gives every good and perfect gift. There are to be set seasons of praise, and hearts are to be kept constantly so full of cultivated thankfulness to God that they overflow in spoken praise and loving deeds.