Psalms 138

Psalms 107:150

Gordon Churchyard

Thanks!

Psalms 138

Jesus said, "Offer (to God) the gift that Moses told you (to offer)" (Matthew 8:4).

Psalms 138

(This is) for David.

v1 I will thank you, *LORD, *with all my *heart.
I will sing your *praises in front of the (false) gods.

v2 I will fall down before (you in) your *holy *temple.
I will give thanks to *your name for your kind love that never fails.
(Also we will give thanks,) because you have lifted your name
and your word above everything else.

v3 When I prayed to you, you answered me.
You made me brave and strong.

v4 All the kings in the world will thank you, *LORD.
They have heard the promises that you have made.
That is why they will thank you.

v5 They will sing about what you have done.
(And) they will sing because of your great *glory.

v6 The *LORD is high (above the earth).
But he can see what people below him (need).
Also he can see what *proud people are doing.
They are far away (from him) but he can still see them.

v7 You keep me alive when there is trouble all round me.
When my enemy is angry you fight against him.
You save me with your right hand.

v8 The *LORD will do for me everything that he has promised.
*LORD, your kind love will always continue.
Finish the work of your hands.

The Story of Psalms 138

The words "for David" are part of the Hebrew psalm. The *psalmist spoke the Hebrew language. So he wrote the psalm in Hebrew. The *psalmist was the person that wrote the psalm. But we could translate "for David" as "by David". Does that mean that David wrote the psalm? Or did somebody else write it, and put it in David’s book of psalms? We do not know. Many Bible students think that the *psalmist wrote Psalms 138 long after David died.

If David did not write the psalm, then maybe someone wrote it after the *exile. The *exile was when the *Jews’ enemies made them live in Babylon. When they came home, 70 years later, they had to build their *temple again. The *temple was the house of God in Jerusalem. They called it a "*holy *temple" (verse 2) because they believed that God lived in it. Only God was *holy (or very, very good). So he made the places where he lived *holy too.

Whoever wrote the psalm is thanking God (verses 1 and 2). He is thanking him because he sent help (verses 6 and 7).

Verse 4 is important to Bible students. It tells them that God would do things to make everybody thank him, not just *Jews.

What Psalms 138 means

Verse 1: The false gods were the gods of other countries, like Babylon and Assyria. "*Praises" are words that say how great somebody is. Here the *psalmist writes about the *LORD. The *LORD is a special name for God. It is the "*covenant" name for God. A *covenant is when two people (or groups of people) agree. Here, God agrees to love and give help to his people. His people agree to love and obey him. "With all my *heart" is a Hebrew (and English) way to say, "as well as I possibly can".

Verse 2: "Your name" means more than just "God" or "*LORD". It means everything that God is. The "kind love" is a special Bible word. It means the love that God has for his people:

• will never finish;

• will always send help.

Verse 3: "You made me brave and strong" is what David would write. Often, when he wanted help, he prayed to the *LORD. The *LORD always answered him.

Verses 4 and 5: We do not know how these kings heard the promises of God. But they:

• thanked him (verse 4); and

• sang about it (verse 5).

God has *glory because he is great. He is very, very great. So it seems as if he shines as the sun shines! That is what "*glory" means.

Verse 6: This is about two groups of people. One group is people that need help. God is high above us in *heaven. But he can still see who needs help. He also sees the *proud people. These people think that they are so good that they do not need help. We do not know where *heaven is. *Heaven is the home of God. But God can see everybody from *heaven!

Verse 7: "The right hand of God" is a Hebrew way to say "what God does on the earth". We could translate it, "by the power of God".

Verse 8: "Your kind love will always continue" makes us think of Psalms 136. There, nearly every verse finishes "his kind love will always continue". Look at the note on verse 2 for "kind love". The "work of your hands" means the things that God does on the earth.

Something to do

1. When you need help, pray to God for it. He will answer you.

2. Read some of the psalms. And find what God has promised to do for his people.

Hebrew ~ the language that the Jews spoke; they wrote the Psalms in Hebrew.
Lord ~ a name for God; it means he has authority, or "master"; It is the word "Adonai" in Hebrew. Look also at LORD below.
LORD ~ a special name for God that his people use. It is the covenant name of God. In Hebrew it is Yahweh or Jehovah. Look after Psalm 25 in Book 1 of the Psalms of David for more about the names of God.
lord ~ someone with authority.
LORD ~ the covenant name for God (in a covenant you agree with someone).
Hebrew ~ the language that the Jews spoke; they wrote the Psalms in Hebrew.
covenant ~ two people have agreed what each should do (here, God and his people). Look in Psalm 120 about the covenant.
Yahweh ~ the covenant name for God. Most Bibles translate it LORD with 4 capital letters. It means something like "I am" or "always alive".
Jehovah ~ how some languages say Yahweh, one of the names of God in Hebrew.
heart ~ (in Hebrew poems), "heart" means "mind", the part of us that thinks.
heart ~ part of the body. Jews believed that you thought in your heart.
poem ~ using words in a special (often very beautiful) way.
Jew ~ a person who is born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children; a person who has the faith of the Jews, called Judaism.
faith ~ belief in someone or something; in the Psalms, belief in God.
praise ~ to say how great someone is; or, words that say how great someone is.
holy ~ all good with no bad in it; separate from sin; very, very good; only God is really holy. The land where he lives with his people is also holy. This is because he is there.
sin ~ not obeying God; or what you do when you do not obey God.
temple ~ a place where people meet to worship God.
glory ~ something that shines very much, maybe heaven: God has glory because his righteousness shines from inside him.
heaven ~ the home of God.
righteousness ~ what you have when you are righteous.
righteous ~ very good (only God is really righteous). God says that the people who love and obey him are righteous. Sometimes we say they are "the righteous", meaning "righteous people". Look after Psalm 5 in Book 1 of the Psalms of David for more about the word "righteous".'proud people ~ proud people think that they are good and clever. But they may not be.
psalmist ~ the person that wrote a psalm (or psalms).
exile ~ away from your own country.
Jew ~ a person who is born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children; a person who has the faith of the Jews, called Judaism.
faith ~ belief in someone or something; in the Psalms, belief in God.
praise ~ to say how great someone is; or, words that say how great someone is.
covenant ~ two people have agreed what each should do (here, God and his people). Look in Psalm 120 about the covenant.
heaven ~ the home of God.
heaven ~ the home of God.