Psalms · psalm 150 of 150
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Psalm 150 is the last psalm of the book of Psalms and an outburst of praise in six short verses. It answers where, why and how to praise God: in his sanctuary and in his mighty heavens, for his mighty deeds and excellent greatness, with trumpet, harp, lyre, tambourine, dancing, strings, pipe and cymbals. It ends by saying that everything that has breath should praise the Lord.
Psalm 150 closes the fifth book of Psalms and the whole Psalter. It is the last of the five hallelujah psalms (146 to 150) and works as a great closing doxology: after 149 psalms of petition, lament, teaching, history and hope, the book ends with pure praise. It repeats the command praise again and again and answers three questions in order: where, why and with what.
The psalm begins with a hallelujah and the place of praise: praise God in his sanctuary, praise him in his mighty heavens. The sanctuary is the temple on earth, and the heavens, the sky, where God reigns. Praise rises on earth and on high, without separation.
Verse 2 gives the motive: praise him for his mighty deeds, praise him according to his excellent greatness. God is worthy for what he does and for who he is. Verses 3 to 5 list the instruments: praise him with trumpet sound, with lute and harp, with tambourine and dance, with strings and pipe, with sounding cymbals, with loud clashing cymbals. They are wind, string and percussion instruments, and also dance. Every form of music has a place in praise.
Verse 6 closes the psalm and the whole book: let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Hallelujah. There is no limit of people or age, or instruments: every being that has breath is invited to praise the one who gave it.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
God is to be praised in his sanctuary and in his mighty heavens. Praise embraces the worship of earth and the adoration of heaven.
God is praised for his mighty deeds and according to his excellent greatness. What he does and who he is are both reasons for praise.
Trumpet, harp, tambourine, dance, strings, pipe and cymbals are called to praise the Lord. The musical and bodily gifts of his people are put at the service of worship.
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Breath is a gift of God, and using it to praise him is the most natural response of every creature.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: In his sanctuary and in his mighty heavens. — Psalm 150:1
Answer: For his mighty deeds and according to his excellent greatness. — Psalm 150:2
Answer: The trumpet. — Psalm 150:3
Answer: The lute, the harp and the strings. — Psalm 150:3-4
Answer: The tambourine, dance, strings and pipe. — Psalm 150:4
Answer: Everything that has breath. — Psalm 150:6
Psalm 150 invites us to make praise the center and goal of a life of faith. In a small group you can end a study with spontaneous praise, each person giving thanks for something God has done. You can also sing or play together, though not perfectly: what counts is that everything with breath praise.
The psalm reminds us that every gift, music, voice, movement, has its place if offered to God. For Christians, the breath we have received calls us to praise God in Christ, and today's praise anticipates that of eternity, described in Revelation. After reading the whole book of Psalms, we can simply say: hallelujah.
Psalm 150 closes the book of Psalms with an outburst of praise and with the certainty that everything that has breath is called to praise the Lord. After laments, songs of trust and of history, the book ends with a single word: hallelujah.
The Psalter begins with the blessing of Psalm 1 and goes through laments, trust, history and hope. It ends with five psalms of praise to say that, in spite of everything, the last word of God's people is worship. Many scholars see Psalm 150 as the final doxology of the whole book.
The Hebrew term is the expanse or vault of the sky, the same word as in Genesis 1 for the firmament. Here it means the place where God shows his power. The psalm thus joins the sanctuary on earth and heaven, to say that praise embraces everything.
To show that every form of music can serve to praise God. The psalm names wind, string and percussion instruments, besides dance, and leaves the door open for others. It does not prescribe a single style but invites us to use the gifts each community has.