PSALMS LESSON 101
We will begin this lesson by giving the 103rd Psalm in metre.
THE PSALMS OF DAVID IN METRE
Chapter 103
Verse 1 "O MY soul, bless thou Jehovah, All within me bless his name;
Bless Jehovah, and forget not All his mercies to proclaim. "
Verse 2 "Who forgives all thy transgressions, Thy diseases all who
heals; Who redeems thee from destruction, Who with thee so
kindly deals. "
Verse 3 "Who with tender mercies crowns thee, Who with good things
fills thy mouth, So that even like the eagle Thou hast been
restored to youth. "
Verse 4 "In his righteousness, Jehovah Will deliver those distressed;
He will execute just judgment In the cause of all oppressed.
Verse 5 "He made known his ways to Moses, And his acts to Isr'el's
race; God is plentiful in mercy, Slow to anger, rich in
grace."
Verse 6 "He will not forever chide us, Nor keep anger in his mind,
Hath not dealt as we offended, Nor rewarded as we sinned. "
Verse 7 "For as high as is the heaven, Far above the earth below;
Ever great to them that fear him, Is the mercy he will show."
Verse 8 "Far as cast from west is distant, He hath put away our sin;
Like the pity of a Father Hath the Lord's compassion been. "
Verse 9 "Well he knows our frame, remembering We are dust, our days
like grass; Man is like the flower blooming, Till the hot
winds o'er it pass. "
Verse 10 "Then 'tis gone, and is remembered By its former place no
more; But on them that fear Jehovah Rests his mercy
evermore."
verse 11 "As it was without beginning, So it lasts without an end: To
their children's children ever Shall his righteousness
extend;"
Verse 12 "Unto such as keep his cov'nant, And are steadfast in his
way; Unto those who still remember His commandments and
obey."
Verse 13 "In the heavens high, Jehovah Hath for him prepared a throne,
And throughout his vast dominion All his works his power
shall own."
Verse 14 "Bless Jehovah, ye his angels, Spirits that excel in might;
Ye who hear what he commands you, Ye that do it with
delight."
Verse 15 "Bless and magnify Jehovah, All ye hosts that do his will; Ye
his servants, ever ready All his pleasure to fulfil."
verse 16 "Bless Jehovah, all his creatures Ever under his control; All
throughout his vast dominion; Bless Jehovah, O my soul."
We will now begin the verse by verse study of the 103rd Psalm.
Psalms 103:1 "{ [A Psalm] of David.} Bless the LORD, O my soul: and
all that is within me, [bless] his holy name."
This Psalm of David is a praise Psalm beyond compare. It lightens
my heart to the extent that I must stop my writing and take out time
to praise the LORD with all that is within me, as well. This is not
the flesh of mankind praising the Lord, but the inner most being. Even
as I type these words of praise, there is an overwhelming presence of
the LORD. My heart is singing within at praise of the Lord. David can
not say enough to express what is in his heart, here. We have said
before that the heart of man is what he is. David's heart is
overflowing with praise and adoration of the LORD here. We sing a
little chorus of these verses here in our church. It would do all of
us overwhelming good to stop and think of all the reasons we have for
praising the LORD with every thing within us. Of course, LORD, here,
is Jehovah.
Psalms 103:2 "Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his
benefits:"
He has done great things for everyone that ever lived. He
breathed the breath of life into each of us, and gave us life. Jesus
gave His body on the cross to give us a new everlasting life in Him.
One of the most loving and wonderful things He has done, is making the
earth and all that it contains for a dwelling place for mankind. If we
had a hundred pages to expound on the wonderful things He has done for
each of us, it would not be half enough. All that we are, or ever hope
to be, is because He loved us enough to provide it for us. The gift of
salvation is the greatest thing He has done for us. Because of His
great love, We will spend eternity in heaven with Him.
Psalms 103:3 "Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all
thy diseases;"
Most any physician in this land would tell you that he or she
doctors you, but God heals you. Most of them will, also, tell you that
they really do not understand why certain things help you to get well,
they just do. Let's look at an Old Testament promise to forgive sins.
Isaiah 1:18 "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD:
though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though
they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." Of course, this
Scripture from Isaiah is really prophetic of the forgiveness of sins
that Jesus has provided for all who will accept forgiveness. The Lord
Jesus took our sin upon His body on the cross. In exchange for our
sin, He gave us His righteousness. Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned,
and come short of the glory of God;" Praise God! He paid the price
for us. One of the greatest statements in all the Bible is this next
one. Hebrews 8:12 "For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness,
and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more."
Psalms 103:4 "Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who
crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;"
We realize that David was the Psalmist here, but he is looking
prophetically to the forgiveness provided through Jesus Christ our
Lord. David had been physically redeemed so many times from the very
destruction that he mentions here. I believe he is really looking for
the Redeemer who will come after, who will be the substitute for the
sins of all the people. I Timothy 4:10 "For therefore we both labour
and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the
Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe." David was much
like many of the Old Testament prophets who were looking for the
Messiah. David was fully aware that it was the Lord who kept him from
the jaws of the lion, and it was this same Lord who was with him as he
slew Goliath. The mercy of God was with him in all these occasions,
but he was looking ahead to the time when the mercy of God would be
shown to all men through the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Psalms 103:5 "Who satisfieth thy mouth with good [things; so
that] thy youth is renewed like the eagle's."
Possibly what is intended here by, satisfieth thy mouth, is
possibly speaking of the spirit of man which will be satisfied through
the Lord. This, at any rate, is an uplifting of the soul, which makes
the receiver of this renewed like an eagle that soars to the highest
through the sky. Many, who have been truly blessed of God have
experienced just this feeling. The Spirit refreshes the soul of
mankind and makes them ready to minister.
Psalms 103:6 "The LORD executeth righteousness and judgment for
all that are oppressed."
The Lord, not only in the time of David, but even more so in the
time of Jesus, came to help those who were oppressed. Jesus did not
come to help those who did not need His help, He came to the lost, the
sick, the demon possessed, the hungry, the blind, in fact, He came to
help the outcasts of society. The high and mighty felt as if they did
not need Him. He came to those who needed a Saviour. This same One who
brought salvation for whosoever will, is also the Judge. It is Jesus
that we will stand before on judgement day. He blesses, but if we
refuse the blessings, He is the One who condemns to hell.
Psalms 103:7 "He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto
the children of Israel."
We do know that Moses communed with God on the mount. Moses was
in His presence for 40 days and nights. The beautiful thing, to me, is
the fact that Moses' head glowed with a light so bright, when he came
down the mountain, that he had to cover his head to keep from blinding
the people. God filled Moses' head with the knowledge of Godly things
on the mountain. God brought the children of Israel out of Egypt
through mighty signs and wonders. The children of Israel were without
excuse, because they had seen the greatness of God over and over on
this journey to the promised land.
Psalms 103:8 "The LORD [is] merciful and gracious, slow to anger,
and plenteous in mercy."
No one knew this better than the Israelites. God forgave them
over and over. Prophetically they were the harlot wife in Hosea. They
were unfaithful to God, and He forgave them over and over. David could
speak from first hand knowledge of the forgiveness of God, as well.
The Lord had forgiven him of his discretion with Bathsheba. Even we
should not be quick to point a finger at him. If it were not for the
mercy and the forgiveness of God, you and I would be lost, too. We see
from the following Scripture, that it is the desire of God for all to
be saved. II Peter 3:9 "The Lord is not slack concerning his promise,
as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not
willing that any should perish, but that all should come to
repentance."
Psalms 103:9 "He will not always chide: neither will he keep [his
anger] for ever."
We think of God as a loving and forgiving God, but He will not
always look the other way. Just as there was a time when God looked on
men in the time of Noah and was sorry that He had even made them, He
is sorry whenever we continue in sin. He waited a very long time,
before He turned His hot anger and destroyed all but Noah's family. He
is patient, but there is an end to His patience. Chide, in this verse,
means grapple or wrangle. God does not wrangle over sin. He has set an
absolute, that there is no arguing with. He is tolerant, but someday
will say, it is enough.
Psalms 103:10 "He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor
rewarded us according to our iniquities."
Above all other things that God is: He is a forgiving God. He has
not dealt with any of us according to our sin, because we all are
guilty of sin and deserve to be crucified. He accepted the body and
blood of Jesus as full payment for all of our sin and iniquity.
Salvation is a free gift. Ephesians 2:8 "For by grace are ye saved
through faith; and that not of yourselves: [it is] the gift of God:"
Ephesians 2:9 "Not of works, lest any man should boast."
If I were to try to sum this lesson up, I would have to say that
David has received total forgiveness for all of his sin. He is feeling
overwhelming joy, knowing that all is well with his soul. He can not
find enough words in his meager vocabulary to express the gratitude
that he has for this loving LORD. His heart is so full of praise to
the LORD, that it seems it will burst. David is a changed man.
Let us take a look at what He has done for you and me, as well.
The very first thing is, He furnished salvation free of charge to each
of us. The very breath in our body is a gift from God. We could go on
and on, but I think you have the picture. It is very little in return
that we would praise Him with everything that is within us.
Questions 101
1. Quote Psalms chapter 103 verse 1.
2. Who penned the 103rd Psalm?
3. What kind of a Psalm is the 103rd?
4. What determines what a man is?
5. Who is LORD in verse 1?
6. In verse 2, David said forget not what?
7. Why was the earth made?
8. Who forgiveth all thine ________________.
9. Who healeth all thy diseases?
10. Quote Isaiah chapter 1 verse 18.
11. Who have sinned and come short of the glory of God?
12. What wonderful promise did He make in Hebrews chapter 8 verse 12?
13. In verse 4, He crowns with 2 things, what are they?
14. Who is Jesus Christ the Saviour of?
15. When were two times when God miraculously saved David's life?
16. What is meant, in verse 5, by satisfieth thy mouth?
17. What, besides righteousness, does the LORD execute?
18. Who did Jesus come to help?
19. Who will we stand before on judgement day?
20. What special thing happened to Moses, when he was on the mount
with God?
21. Why were the Israelites without excuse?
22. Quote Psalms chapter 103 verse 8.
23. What great sin had God forgiven David of?
24. Quote 2 Peter chapter 3 verse 9.
25. What does the word {chide} mean?
26. When does the Bible say that God was sorry He had made man?
27. In verse 10, we see God as a ___________ God.
28. Quote Ephesians chapter 2 verse 8.
29. How did the author sum up this lesson?
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