1 Chronicles 16:8

1Ch 16:8 Give thanks unto the LORD, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the people.

Ver. 8. Call upon his name.] This psalm was sung in times of any great joy, as may be gathered from Isa 12:4.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Whereof this is the chiefest, that he hath chosen himself a Church to call upon his Name.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

(8) Give thanks.—The same Hebrew verb as in 1Ch_16:4, “to thank.” Psalms 105 is a tôdâh, or thanksgiving, hence its use here.

Call upon his name.—Invoke His help, appealing to Him by His revealed name of Jehovah. (Comp. Psa_3:1-7; Psa_5:1; Psa_7:6, and many others.)

Make known.—Israel’s mission.

Deeds.—Feats, exploits, deeds of wonder; a poetic word.

People.—Peoples.

(8-22) The first four strophes of Psalms 105 (1Ch_16:1-15.)

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

8–22 (= Psa_105:1-15)

8. his deeds among the people] R.V. his doings among the peoples.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Vers. 8-36. These verses, then, provide the form of praise which David wished to be used on this, and probably in grateful repetition on some succeeding occasions. David makes selections from four psalms already known; for it cannot be supposed that the verses we have hero were the original, and that they were afterwards supplemented. The first fifteen verses (viz. 8-22) are from Psa_105:1-15. The next eleven verses (23-33) are from Psa_96:1-13; but a small portion of the first and last of these verses is omitted. Our thirty-fourth verso is identical with Psalm evil. 1; 118:1; 136:1; and forms the larger part of Psa_106:1. It is, in fact, a doxology. And our thirty-fifth and thirty-sixth verses consist of a short responsive ("and say ye invocation, followed by another doxology. These are taken from Psa_106:47, Psa_106:48. Hereupon "all the people" are directed to find the final outburst of praise to Jehovah, and "Amen." In the first of these selections (vers. 8-23) there is no material variation from the language of the psalm itself. Yet the original psalm has Abraham, where our own thirteenth verse reads Israel. And the original psalm uses the third person, where our fifteenth and nineteenth verses have the second person. In the second selection it is worthy of note that our ver. 29, "Come before him," probably preserves the ante-temple reading, while Psa_96:8 was afterwards, to fit temple times, altered into, Come into his courts. " The arrangement of all the succeeding clauses does not exactly agree with the arrangement of them found in the psalm, as for instance in the latter half of our ver. 30 and in ver. 31, compared with the clauses of vers. 10, 11 of the psalm. Again, one clause of the tenth verse of the psalm, "He shall judge the people righteously," is not found in either alternative position open to it through the inversion of clauses, in our vers. 80, 81. The rhythm and metre of the psalm are, however, equally unexceptionable. The whole of the twenty-nine verses of this Psalm of praise (vers. 8-36 inclusive) are divided into portions of three verses each, except the portion vers. 23-27 inclusive which consists of five verses. As regards the matter of it, it may be remarked on as breaking into two parts, in the first of which (vers. 8-22) the people are reminded of their past history anti of the marvellous providence which had governed their career from Abraham to the time they were settled in Canaan, but in the second (vers. 23-36) their thought is enlarged, their sympathies immensely widened, so as to include all the world, and their view is borne on to the momentous reality of judgment.

Vers. 8-10. These verses are an animated invocation to thanks and praise.

Vers. 8-14. The constituents of piety.

In our psalms and in our prayers we often indicate the real elements of religion as fully, and perhaps as clearly, as in our exhortations. In this psalm of David we have the essential principles of piety.

I MINDFULNESS OF GOD"S POWER AND GOODNESS. (Vers. 8, 9, 12.) We cannot feel toward him as we should except we consider "his deeds among the people," except we "talk of all his wondrous works," except we "remember his marvellous works." Calling these to mind, we shall be powerfully and rightly affected by a realization of his Divine power and goodness. We shall naturally dwell on his works in nature, his power as displayed in the creation and sustenance of our own spirit and our own human life, his handiwork in the providential ordering of the world.

II A SENSE OF HIS INTIMATE DIVINE RELATION TO US AND TO THE WHOLE WORLD. (Vers. 13, 14.) As the children of Israel felt that they were chosen of God, having received direct and special communication and consideration; as they could speak of themselves as his "chosen ones," and could say, "He is the Lord our God;" so we may and must feel that we all are the objects of his Divine regard, that he looks with benignant eye on us and stretches out the hand of Divine friendship toward us, that he is the Lord our God who has chosen us and whom we have chosen. And as they were taught to feel that "his judgments are in all the earth," so we also are to think of him as the supreme almighty Power reigning and ruling everywhere, "speaking and it is done, commanding and it stands fast". (Psa_33:9)

III THANKSGIVING IN MEMORY OF HIS GOODNESS AND MERCY. (Vers. 8, 9.) A large part of the sacred service of the Jews consisted in praise. In heathendom there was much of deprecation, something of supplication, little or nothing of praise. God"s own people had such a sense of his absolute excellence that they "gave thanks at the remembrance of his holiness," and such a remembrance of his distinguishing goodness to them that they sang psalms of praise because they were such large recipients at his hand. The piety of the Hebrew was vocal with constantly recurring praise; the psalms of the "sweet singer of Israel," and of Jewish worship altogether, were so largely hymns of thanksgiving, that we always associate the thought of praise with the name of them. And from us, for whom as for them God has done such great things, for whom, indeed, God has done greater things than for them, it may well be that praise is found to be the prevailing note of our worship, the chief strain in our piety.

IV JOY IN GOD. (Ver. 10.) The people were encouraged to "glory in God"s holy Name," to triumph in the thought that they were worshipping him who was the "Holy One of Israel," in every way worthy of their profoundest adoration; also to "rejoice" in him as in One the knowledge and service of whom was the spring of truest and abiding satisfaction. We may well do the same; and having "such a High Priest" as we have, such a Saviour and Divine Friend, such a Refuge of our soul, we may glory and rejoice with intenser joy than they.

V COMMUNION WITH GOD. (Ver. 11.) We do not enter into the full heritage of the people of God until we "seek the face of the Lord continually." Both in his house and in our own home, we are to seek him, to "seek his strength," to come consciously into his presence, to draw nigh with our spirit to his Spirit, to walk with him, to hold converse with him, to pour out our heart before him, to dwell in the house of the Lord for ever, beholding his beauty as well as inquiring in his temple. (Psa_27:4)

C.

Vers. 8-10. The duty of praise.

David calls upon the people, as a matter of solemn duty, to "give thanks unto the Lord and sing psalms unto him." Dr. Goulburn well says, "Praise is the religious exercise the one religious exercise-of heaven. Angels are offering it ceaselessly, resting not night or day. Saints are offering it ceaselessly in paradise, Nature in her every district is offering it ceaselessly. From the heavens, which declare the glory of God, and the firmament which showeth his handiwork, down to the dew-drop which sparkles with the colours of the rainbow, and the lark, who tunes his cheerful carol as he salutes the rising sun, the whole creation sends up one grand chorus of praise to the throne of God." The sincere heart will ever fee! disposed to sing

I"ll praise my Maker with my breath; And when my voice is lost in death, Praise shall employ my nobler powers; My days of praise shall ne"er be past, While life, or thought, or being last, Or immortality endures.

I PRAISE IS DUE TO GOD. "For his mercy endureth for ever." Recall the reasons for praise each man can find, and each nation, especially noting those which are associated with religion, and illustrated in the connections of this passage.

II PRAISE IS REQUIRED BY GOD. AS the fitting mode of expressing our feeling towards him and our sense of what he is and does. His own declaration is, "Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me.

III PRAISE IS ACCEPTABLE TO GOD. It is to him as "sweet-smelling incense." It is the sacrifice he most desires.

IV PRAISE IS SERVICEABLE TO GOD. It is a gracious influence. It draws forth right feeling in men. The praise of one calls out the praise of many, and so aids in carrying on God"s purpose in the blessing of men.

These points sufficiently suggest of themselves lines of treatment, and scarcely need further elaboration. But it may be well to discuss the question how far our praise must needs be intelligent shaped, that is into forms that our minds can distinctly grasp and fully follow. Cannot sound music without words by its tone and character find adequate utterance for soul-emotion? Illustrate by the power of music to express varying emotion. A great musical composer gives us "Songs without Words." On this point the following passage from a sermon of the great Florentine preacher, Savonarola, may be suggestive. It refers directly to prayer, but it is equally applicable to praise: prayer, a man may be attending to the words, and this is a thing of a wholly material nature; he may be attending to the sense of the words, and this is rather study than prayer; and lastly, his whole thoughts may be directed to God, and this alone is true prayer. It is unnecessary to be considering either sentences or language the mind must be elevated above self, and must be wholly absorbed in the thought of God. Arrived at this state, the true believer forgets the world and its wants; he has attained almost a foreshadow of celestial happiness. To this state of elevation the ignorant may arrive as easily as the learned. It even frequently happens that he who repeats a psalm without understanding its words utters a much more holy prayer than the learned man who can explain its meaning. Words, in fact, are not indispensable to an act of prayer: when a man is truly rapt in the spirit an uttered prayer becomes rather an impediment, and ought to yield to that which is wholly mental. Thus it will be seen how great a mistake those commit who prescribe a fixed number of prayers. God does not delight in a multitude of words, but in a fervent spirit." Apply to the difficulty often felt in mentally following the words and truths and figures of our hymns, and show how true praise is not dependent on precise mental apprehensions. Also carefully impress that private acts of praise, however numerous, orderly, or sincere, can never relieve a man from the duty of joining in the praises of the great congregation. R.T.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.