Psalms 150:2

Psa 150:2 Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness.

Ver. 2. Praise him for his mighty acts] Those wonderful effects of his creative and providential omnipotence.

Praise him according to his excellent greatness] Or, Greatness of greatness; which yet can never be done, but must be endeavoured. Propound the highest pitch and best patterns.

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.

Psa 150:2. Praise him for his mighty acts — Hebrew, בגבורתיו, for his mightinesses; for all the instances of his might shown in the dispensations of his providence and grace; the power he hath exerted in creating, upholding, and governing the world, and in redeeming and saving the human race. Praise him according to his excellent greatness — Or, as Dr. Hammond renders כרב גדלו, according to the multitude of his magnificence — Not that our praises can bear any proportion to God’s greatness, for it is infinite, but because he is greater than we can express or conceive, we must raise our conceptions and expressions to the highest degree to which we can attain. We must not be afraid of saying too much in the praises of God, as we often do in praising even great and good men; all the danger is, of our saying too little; and therefore when he have done our utmost we must own, that though we have praised him in consideration of his excellent greatness, yet not in proportion to it.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

2. (Psa 150:2) Praise him for his mighty acts! Praise him according to his plenitude of greatness! His mighty acts, literally his rnights or powers. See above, on Psa 145:4. For, literally in them, i.e. praise him as exhibited and viewed in these. The corresponding particle means like, in accordance with, in proportion to, in a manner worthy of his greatness. The last phrase in Hebrew is peculiarly expressive, consisting of the two strongest terms denoting magnitude, the abstract forms of much and great; which might be rendered, if our usage suffered it, muchness of greatness.

Joseph Addison Alexander, The Psalms Translated and Explained (1850) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Verse 2. For his mighty acts] Whether manifested in creation, government, mercy or justice.

His excellent greatness.] כרב גדלו kerob gudlo, according to the multitude of his magnitude, or of his majesty. [Anglo-Saxon]; After the manyfoldness of his mickleness. - Anglo-Saxon. After the mykelnes of his greathede. - Old Psalter. Let the praise be such as is becoming so great, so holy, and so glorious a Being.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(2) Mighty acts . . . excellent greatness.—The one displayed on earth, the other manifested in heaven. (See preceding Note.)

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

2. for his mighty acts] Cp. Psa_106:2; Psa_145:4; Psa_145:11-12.

according to the abundance of his greatness] Cp. 1Ch_29:11, “Thine is the greatness and the might.”

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.

Praise him for his mighty acts,.... The creation of all things out of nothing; the sustaining of all beings; the government of the world; the redemption of man by Christ, and the wonderful works done by him on earth; the work of grace upon the hearts of his people, and the preservation of them in grace to glory;

praise him according to his excellent greatness; or, "according to the multitude of his greatness" (t); which appears in his nature, perfections, and work, and these both of providence and grace; and in proportion hereunto, and according to the abilities of creatures, angels, and men, is he to be praised; which is giving him the honour due unto his name; see Psa 96:8.

(t) "secundum multudinem magnitudinie ejus", V. L. Montanus, Gejerus; so Ainsworth.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Praise him for his mighty acts - See the notes at Psa 145:4 : “One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts.” The Hebrew word is the same. The reference is to that which displays the power of God; the things which manifest his omnipotence.

Praise him according to his excellent greatness - Hebrew, the multitude of his greatness. Let the praise in elevation correspond with this; let it be such as shall properly express this; let all be employed that will contribute to make this known, or that will be appropriate to this. Hence, the psalmist proceeds to call on all to make use of everything, by instrument and voice, that would in any manner set forth the praise of God.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

As his infinite majesty deserves to be praised.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Ver. 2. Praise him for his mighty acts. Here is a reason for praise. In these deeds of power we see himself. These doings of his omnipotence are always on behalf of truth and righteousness. His works of creation, providence, and redemption, all call for praise; they are his acts, and his acts of might, therefore let him be praised for them.

Praise him according to his excellent greatness. His being is unlimited, and his praise should correspond therewith. He possesses a multitude or a plenitude of greatness, and therefore he should be greatly praised. There is nothing little about God, and there is nothing great apart from him. If we were always careful to make our worship fit and appropriate for our great Lord how much better should we sing! How much more reverently should we adore! Such excellent deeds should have excellent praise.

Ver. 2. Praise him for his mighty acts, etc. The reasons of that praise which it becomes all intelligent creatures, and especially redeemed men, to render to Jehovah, are here assigned. We are to praise Jehovah "in his sanctuary", in the place where his glory dwells, where his holiness shines forth with ineffable splendour; we are to praise him in the wide expanse over which he has spread the tokens of his power, whether in the heaven above, or in the earth beneath; we are to praise him for those omnipotent acts whereby he hath shown himself to be above all gods; we are to praise him in a manner suited to the excellent majesty of a Being whom all the heavens adore, and who is wonderful in counsel and excellent in working. His holiness, the infinity of his operations, the miraculous power which he has displayed, the unspotted excellence of his administration, call for loudest songs of praise from all whose reason enables them to rise to the contemplation of the great Supreme. John Morison.

Ver. 2. Praise him acceding to his excellent greatness. There is required special understanding and knowledge of the nature and worth of the mercy for which the duty of praise is undertaken; for God will not be praised confusedly, but distinctly and proportionably to his dispensation: Praise him according to his wondrous works; which is to be the prime and proper matter of their high praises, even his more proper and peculiar high acts, then to be remembered, as is largely expressed in Moses' praise for the particular mercy of coming safe through the Red Sea (Ex 15:1-27); and Deborah's high praise for deliverance from the host of Sisera (Jud 5:1-31); where the chiefest and highest part of the celebration and exaltation of God in his praise consists in the declaration and commemoration of the particulars of God's special goodness in their present deliverance. Thus, you see the first thing that God looks for is proportionable praise, great praise for a great God, doing great things, and high praises for a high God, doing high things. Samuel Fairclough.

Ver. 2. Praise him according to his excellent greatness, or, as the words may bear, "according to his muchness of greatness"; for when the Scripture saith, "God is great", this positive is to be taken as a superlative. "God is great", that is, he is greatest, he is greater than all; so great that all persons and all things are little, yea, nothing before him. Isa 40:15: "Behold, the nations are (to him but) as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing. And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt offering. All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity." How great is God, in comparison of whom the greatest things are little things, yea, the greatest things are nothing! Joseph Caryl.

Ver. 2. His excellent greatness. Wherein the greatness of God is specially excellent, and where it is best seen.

Ver. 2. Praise him for his mighty acts.

1. For us. Election. Redemption. Inspiration.

2. In us. The work of enlightenment in the understanding; purification in the heart; quickening in the conscience; subjugation in the will.

3. By us. Thought through us; felt through us; spoke through us; worked through us. To him be all the glory! W.J.

Ver. 2. Praise him according to his excellent greatness.

1. Reverently, according to the greatness of his being.

2. Gratefully, according to the greatness of his love.

3. Retrospectively, according to the greatness of his gifts.

4. Prospectively, according to the greatness of his promises. W.J.

Ver. 2. What the exhortation requires.

1. That men should study God's works, and observe the glory of God in them.

2. That they should meditate on his greatness till they realize its excellence.

3. That they should openly proclaim the honour due to him.

4. That they should not contradict in their life the praise they speak. J.F.

Psalms 150:3*

Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

2. Mighty acts… excellent greatness—These are named as reasons for this coextensive, universal praise.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Praise him for his mighty acts; i.e. for the great acts of his providence, especially for his deliverances of Israel. Praise him according to his excellent greatness; rather, his abounding greatness (Kay); or, his manifold greatness (Cheyne).

Things to praise God for.

For excellent greatness," read "muchness of greatness." Praise is to be offered in recognition both of God"s inherent power, and of its manifestation in mighty acts.

I PRAISE IS CALLED FOR BY DIVINE POWER. He who knows God knows him through a series of mighty, wonderful acts, interventions, provisions, deliverances, punishings, all of which produce overwhelming impressions of almighty power. Illustration may be taken from

(1) the Divine creations;

(2) the Divine maintainings;

(3) the Divine redemptions.

Divine power is seen in God"s ordering and controlling the gigantic forces of nature and the lawless willfulness of man. Modern artistic and poetic feeling, perhaps responding to the revelations of the microscope, can find Divine power in the gentle and the minute; but Hebrew genius dealt almost exclusively with the august, tremendous, and awful in nature; so power in God was the thing most impressed on the Hebrew mind as the inspiration of praise. And still a necessary ground of entire Confidence in God is a conviction of his absolute and unquestionable almightiness everywhere, and in relation to everything. We praise him because we feel sure that our God is mightier than the mightiest.

II PRAISE IS CALLED FOR BY DIVINE CHARACTER BEHIND POWER. "Excellent greatness." An adjective is applied which directs us to moral quality. God must never be thought of as we think of giants. We are altogether absorbed by thinking of their bodily size and strength; it does not matter to us whether they hi, re either mental faculty or moral character. Some think of God as a mere embodiment of august and awful power. He is not known aright, nor can he be praised aright, until the character inspiring the exercise of his power is apprehended. Then we realize that he stands in relation to us, and for his gracious relations we praise him in the highest. 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.