(REFLECTIONS ON Psalm 147:1-20)

In today’s Psalm, we read the psalmist proclaim,

1 Praise the Lord! For it is good to sing praise to our God;
For it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting.

Why is a song of praise fitting? Who is the Lord that Israel should give Him praise?

2 The Lord builds up Jerusalem;
He gathers the outcasts of Israel.

The Lord builds up Jerusalem and gathers the outcasts of Israel, reminding us of Israel’s removal from the Promised Land. In the Bible, the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah were each punished for their unfaithfulness. The northern kingdom of Israel was destroyed by Assyria, and the southern kingdom of Judah was exiled to Babylon.

Eventually, God brought Judah back to Jerusalem, commanding them to rebuild the temple and renew their covenant with Him. A song of praise is fitting because it is the Lord who builds up Jerusalem, gathers the outcasts of Israel, “heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds.”

The post-exilic period was a time of restoration. What had been torn down was rebuilt, and what had been lost was given a new beginning. In this, Israel was to praise the Lord, for He is the God who brings hope after hopelessness.

Israel is reminded by the psalmist that God is faithful and trustworthy because He is not one of the many gods the nations worshiped, but He is God the Creator, the one who “covers the heavens with clouds, prepares rain for the earth, and makes grass grow on the hills.”

The same God who governs creation also heals the brokenhearted. Yet when we remember why Israel was exiled in the first place, we realize that much of their brokenness came from their own sin and rejection of God.

The Lord was willing to heal Israel not only from the hurts inflicted by others, but also from self-inflicted wounds. Though they had once rejected Him, He remained faithful and bound up their wounds.

Brothers and sisters, this is why we are to praise the Lord today as well. That is why a song of praise is fitting for us as Christians and as a church. A song of praise is fitting because we too have gone astray, been unfaithful to a faithful God, and have endured pain, suffering, and hopelessness through our rejection of Him, our self-reliance, and our reliance on the world.

Yet this is what is so amazing about grace, that even when our wounds and hopelessness are self-inflicted, our Lord is faithful and just, and He will restore us if we are willing to return to Him.

If we are able to let go of our pride and humble ourselves, His salvation through Christ will be available not only to the unbeliever, but also to the believer who has gone astray. Today’s Psalm speaks of restoration, meaning that the Good News is not only for those who do not know our Lord, but also for us who are His and have gone astray, creating our own hopelessness.

He is our hope, and He will restore us. Because He is the Creator, and because of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice for us on the cross, He can and will do so. What else in the world can give this kind of hope in the midst of hopelessness? That is why we praise the Lord and why a song of praise is fitting.

Pastor Michael Lu
Enduring Word Bible Commentary: Psalm 147