147

  1Praise the Lord.⚓

  How good it is to sing praises to our God,
   how pleasant and fitting to praise him!

  2The Lord builds up Jerusalem;
   he gathers the exiles of Israel.
  3He heals the brokenhearted
   and binds up their wounds.
  4He determines the number of the stars
   and calls them each by name.
  5Great is our Lord and mighty in power;
   his understanding has no limit.
  6The Lord sustains the humble
   but casts the wicked to the ground.

  7Sing to the Lord with grateful praise;
   make music to our God on the harp.

  8He covers the sky with clouds;
   he supplies the earth with rain
   and makes grass grow on the hills.
  9He provides food for the cattle
   and for the young ravens when they call.

  10His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse,
   nor his delight in the legs of the warrior;
  11the Lord delights in those who fear him,
   who put their hope in his unfailing love.

  12Extol the Lord, Jerusalem;
   praise your God, Zion.

  13He strengthens the bars of your gates
   and blesses your people within you.
  14He grants peace to your borders
   and satisfies you with the finest of wheat.

  15He sends his command to the earth;
   his word runs swiftly.
  16He spreads the snow like wool
   and scatters the frost like ashes.
  17He hurls down his hail like pebbles.
   Who can withstand his icy blast?
  18He sends his word and melts them;
   he stirs up his breezes, and the waters flow.

  19He has revealed his word to Jacob,
   his laws and decrees to Israel.
  20He has done this for no other nation;
   they do not know his laws.⚓

  Praise the Lord.

147

Praise to God for His Word and Providence

  1Praise the Lord!
   For ⚓it is good to sing praises to our God;
   ⚓For it is pleasant, and⚓praise is beautiful.
   2The Lord⚓builds up Jerusalem;
   ⚓He gathers together the outcasts of Israel.
    3⚓He heals the brokenhearted
   And binds up their wounds.
    4⚓He counts the number of the stars;
   He calls them all by name.
    5⚓Great is our Lord, and ⚓mighty in power;
   ⚓His understanding is infinite.
    6⚓The Lord lifts up the humble;
   He casts the wicked down to the ground.
   7Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;
   Sing praises on the harp to our God,
    8⚓Who covers the heavens with clouds,
   Who prepares rain for the earth,
   Who makes grass to grow on the mountains.
    9⚓He gives to the beast its food,
   And⚓to the young ravens that cry.
   10⚓He does not delight in the strength of the horse;
   He takes no pleasure in the legs of a man.
    11The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him,
   In those who hope in His mercy.
   12Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem!
   Praise your God, O Zion!
    13For He has strengthened the bars of your gates;
   He has blessed your children within you.
    14⚓He makes peace in your borders,
   And⚓fills you with the finest wheat.
   15⚓He sends out His command to the earth;
   His word runs very swiftly.
    16⚓He gives snow like wool;
   He scatters the frost like ashes;
    17He casts out His hail like morsels;
   Who can stand before His cold?
    18⚓He sends out His word and melts them;
   He causes His wind to blow, and the waters flow.
   19⚓He declares His word to Jacob,
   ⚓His statutes and His judgments to Israel.
    20⚓He has not dealt thus with any nation;
   And as for His judgments, they have not known them.
  Praise the Lord!