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Pentecost Season · Proper 27 · Year B

Psalm 146

Praise the Lord, O My Soul

November 7, 2027

The Seven Works of Mercy: Feeding the Hungry, Master of Alkmaar
The Seven Works of Mercy: Feeding the Hungry, Master of Alkmaar, 1504Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
Seven panels made for a church in Alkmaar, each showing one work of mercy performed in a Dutch street, with Christ standing unnoticed among the bystanders in every one.The psalm's God feeds the hungry, frees the prisoner and lifts the bowed down, and these panels show who is expected to do it.Master of AlkmaarAn unidentified painter working in the northern Netherlands around 1500, named after this altarpiece. Several candidates have been proposed and none has stuck.Rijksmuseum, AmsterdamThe Netherlands' national museum, built around the Dutch Golden Age and reopened in 2013 after a ten-year rebuilding.Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
Revised Common Lectionary
GospelMark 12:38-44Mk 12:38-44
EpistleHeb. 9:24-28Heb 9:24-28
Old TestamentRuth 3:1-5; 4:13-17Ru 3:1-5; 4:13-17Alt. OT1 Kings 17:8-161 Kgs 17:8-16
PsalterPs. 127Ps 127Alt. PsalmPs. 146Ps 146

Overview & Insights

“The Lord executes justice for the oppressed, and gives food to the hungry.” (Psalm 146:7)

The liturgical nature of this hymn is apparent from the combination of commands addressed to a group (vv. 1a, 3, 10b), namely Zion personified (v. 10), and the testimony of a liturgist (“I” in v. 2). Thus the psalm opens with a call to praise (v. 1a), followed by the liturgist’s proclamation of praise (vv. 1b–2) and his instruction to the congregation (vv. 3–9), particularly in the form of a blessing (v. 5) and praises to Yahweh (vv. 6–9). It then closes with a summary addressed to Zion and a concluding call to praise (v. 10).

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Take it further: Psalm 146

Commentary

Working Preacher: Commentary on Psalm 146Working Preacher: Commentary on Ps 146 Working Preacher

Lutheran lectionary commentary on the God who helps the oppressed for the semicontinuous track.

Enduring Word: Psalm 146Enduring Word: Ps 146 Enduring Word · David Guzik

David Guzik's verse-by-verse evangelical notes on the psalm.

BibleHub: Commentaries on Psalm 146:1BibleHub: Commentaries on Ps 146:1 BibleHub

Parallel classic commentaries on praising the Lord who reigns forever.

CEP: Psalm 146 CommentaryCEP: Ps 146 Commentary Center for Excellence in Preaching

Reformed preaching commentary on hope in the Lord rather than in princes.

Background & Word Study

Sefaria: Psalms 146 (Hebrew)Sefaria: Ps 146 (Hebrew) Sefaria

Hebrew text with English and Jewish commentary on the psalm.

BibleHub: Psalm 146 InterlinearBibleHub: Ps 146 Interlinear BibleHub

Hebrew-English interlinear for word-level study of the psalm.

The Church Fathers

Catena: Psalm 146Catena: Ps 146 Catena

Patristic comments gathered verse by verse on Psalm 146.

Questions preachers ask

What is Psalm 146?

A hymn urging trust in the Lord rather than princes, for he made heaven and earth and keeps faith forever, lifting the bowed down and watching over the stranger, the widow, and the orphan.

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