Hallelujah! That’s an ancient Hebrew word that has entered our English vocabulary, and it means, “Praise the Lord.” But Psalm 150 doesn’t just begin and end with this summons. No, it summarizes so much of what the entire psalter tells us about the worship of God, and thus forms a most fitting conclusion to the entire book.

So, where should we praise the Lord? Not just in His sanctuary, the Temple that Solomon built in Jerusalem, the only appropriate place for public worship during the psalmist’s time. No, the psalmist urges us to worship God in His “mighty expanse,” the “firmament.” And since this was how the ancient Hebrews described the dwelling place of the Sun, the Moon, and the stars, that means we should praise God all over the universe. There is simply no place in heaven or on earth where God’s praise is inappropriate.

So, why should we praise the Lord? The psalmist boils it all down for us in verse 2: we should worship God for His “excellent greatness,” because of Who He is. We should also praise Him for “His mighty deeds,” not only of creation but also of redemption, because He has chosen to use His amazing power to save all those who trust in Christ.

How should we praise the Lord? Although verses 3 through 5 list the sorts of musical instruments that we should employ, the psalter includes very few other musical specifics, none of which are sufficient for us to sing the psalms in exactly the same way that the Ancient Hebrews did. In fact, Hebrew poetry in general does not depend on the sounds of its words, the rhyme or meter or alliteration, to carry its meaning. No, because the beauty of the psalms is expressed in the ideas they contain, they can be effectively translated into any language, just as they can be accompanied by any culturally appropriate musical instrument. In short, people from every tribe and tongue are called to praise the Lord in spirit and in truth (see John 4:22-24), in a way that they can understand.

But the Lord’s praise should extend even farther. Yes, we human beings may be the only part of God’s creation that can give Him conscious praise, understanding the content and the reason for our song. But when we sing one of the psalms, we aren’t just joining with other saints throughout the ages and from all over the world. We are joining with the trumpeting elephants and the crawling snails, the roaring lions and the mewing kittens, all of whom praise God for His creation and providence simply by their existence. For verse 6 insists that everything that has breath should praise God in whatever way they can.

So today, wherever we are, let’s join in the worship of our creating and redeeming God. Let’s praise Him however we can, in whatever we do. Along with all His creation, let’s praise the Lord! Hallelujah!

Psalm 150 (NASB)

Praise the LORD! Praise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in His mighty expanse.
2 Praise Him for His mighty deeds; Praise Him according to His excellent greatness.
3 Praise Him with trumpet sound; Praise Him with harp and lyre.
4 Praise Him with timbrel and dancing; Praise Him with stringed instruments and pipe.
5 Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with resounding cymbals.
6 Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD!