THE BEATITUDES IN PSALMS – The theme of trust forms the final beatitude in the Psalms; such beatitudes have previously appeared in Psalm 40:4 (Oh, the joys of those who trust the lord) and in Psalm 33:20-21 (in God our hearts rejoice for we are trusting in God’s holy name). But not only in the beatitudes does this relationship between trust and happiness/joy appear, for as the whole psalter makes clear, "happiness is not the absence of pain and trouble, but the presence of a God who cares about human hurt and who acts on behalf of the afflicted and the oppressed." [1]

GOD’S CLAIM – Verse 7 describes God’s universal claim to show compassion on all of creation. Such a claim, Brueggemann calls "the main claim for Yahweh." [2] What follows then tells us how God exercises sovereignty through service to others in need.

THE REIGN OF GOD – Throughout this psalm—its beginning burst of praise, the instructions in vv. 3-5, and the description of God’s reign in vv. 6-9—we can anticipate Jesus’ preaching on the reign of God (Mark 1:14-15). In the actual ministry of Jesus we see the same kind of actions that Psalm 145 envisions in the coming reign of God. As our Christian communities face the same challenges that the psalmist and Jesus later faced, so we can also move forward in the face of challenges from within and without with the encouragement that Psalm 145 offers: " Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven."

connections

A spiritual life is a life which is controlled by a gradually developing sense of the Eternal . . . so that our relation to God becomes the chief thing about us, exceeding and also conditioning our relationship with each other. [3] Evelyn Underhill

How have you contributed to or collaborated in God’s physical and spiritual creation through "a gradually developing sense of the Eternal?"

gambits

Use this psalm as an entry way to the topic of singing and praise. When you think about it, Psalm 146 is a radical call to sing God’s praise. For the pious Jew, to praise God was to live, and to live was to praise God. How can we too sing our praise both in liturgy and lifestyle?

You might want to incorporate the idea of Brueggemann as you call your listeners to a liturgy and lifestyle of praise:

Israel holds doxology against the powerful staying force of the rulers of this age. Israel sings, and we never know what holy power is unleashed by such singing. Israel sings, and we never know what human imagination is authorized by such singing. One reason we may not sing is that such hope is intellectually outrageous. Another reason we may to sing is that such an alternative is too subversive. But the Church and Israel do sing! This singing is our vocation, our duty, and our delight. We name this staggering name—and the world becomes open again, especially for those on whom it had closed in such deathly ways—the prisoners, the blind, the sojourner, the widow, the orphan. The world is sung open. Against this Holy One and this song, death cannot close the world into injustice again. [4]

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[1] The New Interpreter’s Bible IV (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1996. page 1264.
[2] Walter Brueggemann, “Psalm 146: Psalm for the Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost,” No Other Foundation 8/1 (Summer 1987): 28; cited in New Interpreter’s Bible IV, page 1264.
[3] The Spiritual Formation Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1999), page 816.
[4] NIB IV, page 1265.