Psalm 150 - "Praise Him! Praise Him!"

Psalm 150

"Praise ye the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD."

Psalm 150 stands as the final word of the Psalter, a holy crescendo in which every verse commands one thing: praise. After the long journey through lament, confession, warfare, hope, and promise, Scripture ends this book not with explanation but with worship. “Praise ye the LORD” (v.1). This is not counsel or suggestion. It is command. Praise is due to God because He is God.

Praise begins where God reveals Himself. “Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power” (v.1). The sanctuary is not confined to stone or structure. Even Solomon confessed that “the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee” (1 Kings 8:27). The earthly tabernacle was a shadow, pointing beyond itself to a greater reality. Scripture declares that Christ entered “into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us” (Hebrews 9:24). The true Sanctuary is the Presence of God, and the true worship is inseparable from the Person and work of His Son.

Praise is commanded because of Who God is and what He has done. “Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness” (v.2). The mighty acts of God are not isolated displays of power; they are revelations of His purpose. Creation itself testifies to His glory, yet redemption declares it most clearly. The greatest act is not found in the stars or seas, but in the cross. “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain” (Revelation 5:12). All Divine Power converges there, where Justice is satisfied and Mercy is magnified.

Praise is rendered according to God’s greatness, not man’s ability. The instruments named in Psalm 150—trumpet, harp, timbrel, cymbals—represent fullness, not performance. Worship is not elevated by volume or variety, but by the Truth. Music accompanies praise; it does not define it. The heart sings when Christ is known. True worship flows from the finished work of the Mediator, through Whom believers “draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith” (Hebrews 10:22).

The command to praise extends beyond humanity. “Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD” (v.6). All creation fulfills its purpose simply by existing according to God’s will. The heavens declare His glory without words. Even creatures unseen give testimony to their Maker. Man alone resists this calling by nature. Since the fall, the heart seeks autonomy rather than submission. Praise is not natural to sinners; it is the fruit of Grace. Only those taught of God delight to exalt Him.

This is why praise ultimately centers in Christ. God has “set my king upon my holy hill of Zion” (Psalm 2:6). Christ does not wait for permission to reign. He is enthroned by decree. Heaven’s worship confirms this reality. “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created” (Revelation 4:11). Creation exists for His pleasure; redemption reveals His heart.

In glory, the redeemed cast their crowns before the throne, confessing that all honor belongs to Him alone. No praise originates in man. Even the ability to worship is a gift. God grants Grace to see His Son, Grace to believe, and Grace to praise. “Of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever” (Romans 11:36).

Psalm 150 closes the Psalter as it must end—with God exalted and Christ implied in every note. Praise is not confined to time or place. It is the eternal occupation of heaven and the present joy of those redeemed by Christ. And so the final word remains unchanged: “Praise ye the LORD.”