Psalm 147
Back home in Jerusalem
Maestro please
1Thank the LORD. [1]It’s great to sing songs to our God,
Sweet music beautiful to hear.
2The LORD is rebuilding Jerusalem.
He’s bringing his people home. [2]
3He’s mending hearts that are broken.
He’s bandaging wounds of the injured.
4He’s not only able to count the stars,
He has given each one a name.
5Our Lord is great and powerful.
His wisdom is off the scale.
6The LORD defends
The exploited and oppressed,
He crushes their abusers to dirt.
Strum that lyre
7Sing a song that thanks the LORD.Sing praise to the strum of the lyre.
8He hides the sky above the clouds.
He pours rain on the dry land.
He grows grass on mountains of rock
9He serves his food to the animals.
He feeds nestling ravens that cry.
10The strength of a horse doesn’t impress him.
Nor does the speed of a sprinter.
11He’s impressed by those who respect him,
And by those who trust what he says.
Rebuilding Jerusalem
12Jerusalem, praise the LORD.Zion [3] hill, thank your God.
13He reinforced your city gates with crossbars.
And he keeps your children safe and sound.
14He brought peace to your land.
And premium wheat to your fields.
God does the weather
15He sends his orders to earth.They’re carried out right away.
16He covers the ground with snow
Like a white fleece of wool.
He throws frost in a spray
Like he’s tossing a pitcher of ashes.
17He throws hail like pebbles.
And his icy weather
Is colder than any can take.
18With just one command, he melts the ice.
With a breath, he starts water flowing.
19God gave his laws to Jacob. [4]
He gave his teachings to Israel.
20No nation but ours received such honor.
They know nothing of God’s rules for living.
Thank the LORD.
Footnotes
The Hebrew word is hallelujah, which is often translated as “praise the LORD.”
The song reads like a song the Jewish people sang after Babylonians from what is now Iraq erased the Jewish nation from the world map, leveled Jerusalem, and exiled many of the surviving Jews to what is now Iraq. There, without the Jerusalem Temple or without the ability to offer sacrifices, the only way they knew to worship was to sing and pray.
Literally, “Zion,” which is a term of endearment, and another name for Jerusalem. It’s a bit like “The Big Apple” for New York City.
Jacob is considered a father of the Jewish nation because his dozen sons produced extended families that became the 12 tribes of Israel. Each tribe was assigned a plot of land in what is now Israel, Palestinian Territory, and parts of Jordan and Syria.
Discussion Questions
- Sorry, there are currently no questions for this chapter.
Maps/Guides
