Psalm 150

Psalm 150:1b-2, 3-4, 5-6

#440 Weekday Year I Context (Thursday of the 23rd Week in Ordinary Time)

#499 Weekday Year II Context (Wednesday of the 33rd Week in Ordinary Time)

R. (6) Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!

Praise the LORD in his sanctuary,
praise him in the firmament of his strength.
Praise him for his mighty deeds,
praise him for his sovereign majesty.
R. Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!

Praise him with the blast of the trumpet,
praise him with lyre and harp,
Praise him with timbrel and dance,
praise him with strings and pipe.
R. Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!

Praise him with sounding cymbals,
praise him with clanging cymbals.
Let everything that has breath
praise the LORD! Alleluia.
R. Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ps 150:1b-2, 3-4, 5-6

Psalm 150 contains a litany of praise, first praising God for what he is.  In the strophes that follow, it offers praise with various media, instruments, dance, and song. The refrain, “holy, holy, holy Lord, mighty God,” has its roots in the ancient Hebrew, in that there was no word for “holier” or “holiest.” When that thought was to be expressed, the word was repeated the appropriate number of times. The psalm serves as a doxology for the fifth book of Psalms. The sound of clashing cymbals in this case reminds us of the rumblings and peals of thunder in Revelation, God’s work, and his presence on earth.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fin