Psalm 103 (Contemporary English Version)
- (By David.) With all my heart I praise the LORD, and with all that I am I praise his holy name!
- With all my heart I praise the LORD! I will never forget how kind he has been.
- The LORD forgives our sins, heals us when we are sick,
- and protects us from death. His kindness and love are a crown on our heads.
- Each day that we live, he provides for our needs and gives us the strength of a young eagle.
- For all who are mistreated, the LORD brings justice.
- He taught his Law to Moses and showed all Israel what he could do.
- The LORD is merciful! He is kind and patient, and his love never fails.
- The LORD won't always be angry and point out our sins;
- he doesn't punish us as our sins deserve.
- How great is God's love for all who worship him? Greater than the distance between heaven and earth!
- How far has the LORD taken our sins from us? Farther than the distance from east to west!
- Just as parents are kind to their children, the LORD is kind to all who worship him,
- because he knows we are made of dust.
- We humans are like grass or wild flowers that quickly bloom.
- But a scorching wind blows, and they quickly wither to be forever forgotten.
- The LORD is always kind to those who worship him, and he keeps his promises to their descendants
- who faithfully obey him.
- God has set up his kingdom in heaven, and he rules the whole creation.
- All of you mighty angels, who obey God's commands, come and praise your LORD!
- All of you thousands who serve and obey God, come and praise your LORD!
- All of God's creation and all that he rules, come and praise your LORD! With all my heart I praise the LORD!
A beautiful psalm of praise and one of the most-used in the book. The only occasion we can connect with it is the psalmist's overwhelming praise for his God. He is so moved he calls upon "all that is within me" to praise God's holy name. He also admonishes himself not to "forget all His benefits." I can recall a number of times in my life when I was filled with gratitude for something God had done for me and made a mental note not to forget what God had done and not to forget to go to Him in prayer at every point for He had been faithful to answer and I want to be faithful to depend upon Him. Let's remind ourselves of God's benefits to us:
- He forgives all our sin. Let's acknowledge the truth of this while we may also harbor some doubt. We sometimes doubt that He forgives certain sins because of the degree of suffering they cause. But we will find no exceptions in scripture concerning his forgiveness of sin.
- He heals all our diseases. We may doubt this one even more than the first, for we know that people are not always healed of disease even when we have prayed fervently for their healing. What do we do with this doubt? I don't know about you, but I accept the truth of this. I accept that God can and does heal all diseases. I recognize that He does not heal in every instance, but I must leave it to His sovereignty as to why He does in some instances and does not in others.
- He redeems us and crowns us with His love and compassion. We have already touched on doubt. Now let's lay doubt aside and simply accept all of these statements by faith. In so doing we can accept a God into our lives who can meet our every need.
- He satisfies us with goodness
- He renews our youth. The one whose life is centered in God can keep a youthful spirit throughout life.
- He provides justice for the oppressed.
- He reveals His ways to us. Recognize, though, that we have to spend time with Him for Him to reveal them to us.
- He does not keep accusing us of our sin or remain forever angry with us.
- He does not deal with us as our sins deserve. It is popular in advertising these days to tell people that they deserve the special benefit of whatever is being advertised. But in reality we don't deserve any such benefit. What we really deserve we could not bear and we must be ever thankful to God that He withholds from us our just desserts.
- His love is as great as the heavens are high. We must keep our minds focused on this one.
- He knows and remembers man's frailty. For man is like the grass that is here one day and vanishes with the wind. God is considerate of this frailty.
- His love is eternal for those who fear Him. Scripture teaches that God loves all people, but only for those who fear Him and keep His covenants is that love eternal.
In the last verses of the psalm, the writer invites all, including the angels, to join him in praising God.
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