The Lord Extolled for His Goodness.
A Psalm of Praise, of David.
145 I will extol You, my God, O King,
And I will bless Your name forever and ever.
2 Every day I will bless You,
And I will praise Your name forever and ever.
3 Great is the Lord, and highly to be praised,
And His greatness is unsearchable.
4 One generation shall praise Your works to another,
And shall declare Your mighty acts.
5 On the glorious [a]splendor of Your majesty
And on Your wonderful works, I will meditate.
6 Men shall speak of the [b]power of Your awesome acts,
And I will tell of Your greatness.
7 They shall [c]eagerly utter the memory of Your abundant goodness
And will shout joyfully of Your righteousness.8 The Lord is gracious and merciful;
Slow to anger and great in lovingkindness.
9 The Lord is good to all,
And His mercies are over all His works.
10 All Your works shall give thanks to You, O Lord,
And Your godly ones shall bless You.
11 They shall speak of the glory of Your kingdom
And talk of Your power;
12 To make known to the sons of men [d]Your mighty acts
And the glory of the majesty of [e]Your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is [f]an everlasting kingdom,
And Your dominion endures throughout all generations.
It’s really easy to get stuck focusing on our material world. It is likewise pretty easy to read through the first verses of this psalm and think of the physical things God has done. And boy has He done some amazing things! From the miracles the Israelites experienced to the splendor of creation, it’s a “best hits” list that just keeps on going.
As incredible as God’s creation may be, there is a whole world that is beyond our imagining, and aspects of God that are far greater. And in the second passage of this psalm, we begin to see but a glimpse. He is gracious, merciful, slow to anger and great in lovingkindness. Despite our many and sometimes massive mistakes, God remains the same patient and merciful Father to each of us.
Not only that, but He is good to all, not just the folks who are most well-behaved. Even now, He is working to redeem those that we would think the lowest of the low. But “His mercies are over all His works,” and God values each of us more than we can ever know.
This kingdom, His kingdom, is everlasting, unlike our material world to which we grow so attached. So detach your mind from dwelling on the material for a moment. Take this opportunity to join with all creation and give thanks to Him, bless Him, and speak of His glory. For there is none like our God, and His power and dominion endures though all generations.