Psalms 106:1
in Psalms 106Hallelujah! Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His loving devotion endures forever.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Praise ye Jehovah. Oh give thanks unto Jehovah; for he is good; For his lovingkindness endureth for ever.
KJV
Praise ye the Lord. O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
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This verse in Psalms 106
Commentary
13 notes on this versePraise ye the Lord,.... Or "hallelujah"; which, according to the Arabic version, is the title of the psalm; and so it stands in the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, and Ethiopic versions. Several psalms following begin in like manner; it begins as the former ended, and ends as it begins; praise being due to God at all times, and on all occasions.
This site's exposition
for He is good
on Psalms 106:1-3
Hallelujah opens the psalm, and the call is to give thanks to the LORD for His goodness. Verse 2 asks who can describe the LORD's mighty acts. Verse 3 states what is owed before the confession begins, justice upheld and righteousness practiced at all times.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers4 voices
But I find these two Psalms, the CVth and CVIth so connected, that in one of them, the first, the people of God is praised in the person of the elect, of whom there is no complaint, whom I imagine to have been there in those with whom God was well pleased; [1 Corinthians 10:5] but in the following Psalm those are mentioned among the same people who have provoked God; though the mercy of God was not wanting even to these....This Psalm therefore begins like the former; "Confess ye unto the Lord." But in that Psalm these words follow: "And call upon His Name:" whereas here, it is as follows, "For He is gracious, and His mercy endures for ever" [Psalm 106:1]. Wherefore in this passage a confession of sins may be understood; for after a few verses we read, "We have sinned with our fathers, we have done amiss, and dealt wickedly;" but in the words, "For He is gracious, and His mercy endures for ever," there is chiefly the praise of God, and in His praise confession. Although when any one confesses his sins, he ought to do so with praise of God; nor is a confession of sins a pious one, unless it be without despair, and with calling upon the mercy of God. It therefore does contain His praise, whether in words, when it calls Him gracious and merciful, or in the feeling only, when he believes this....If that mercy be here understood, in respect of which no man can be happy without God; we may render it better, "for ever:" but if it be that mercy which is shown to the wretched, that they may either be consoled in misery, or even freed from it; it is better construed, "to the end of the world," in which there will never be wanting wretched persons to whom that mercy may be shown. […]
[Jesus] was granting pardon; but while he was granting it he raised his face to her and said, "Has no one stoned you?" And she did not say, "Why? What have I done, Lord? I am not guilty, am I?" She did not say that; what she said was, "No one, Lord." She accused herself. They had been unable to prove it against her and had withdrawn. But she confessed, because her Lord was aware of her guilt but was nonetheless seeking her faith and her confession. "Has no one stoned you?" "No one, Lord." "No one"—that is confession of sins; and "Lord"—that is pardon of the punishment that she deserved. "No one, Lord. I acknowledge both things. I know who you are, I know who I am. It is to you I am confessing. You see, I have heard the words, "Confess to the Lord, for he is good." I know my confession, I know your mercy.
Alleluia, alleluia. We ought to hold to this rule, wherever two alleluias are set at the head of a psalm: let us understand that the one belongs to the end of the previous psalm, and the other to the psalm that follows.
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. O you who sin grievously, and despair of your own salvation, and think that because of the greatness of your sins you cannot obtain pardon: I command you — that is, the prophet does — give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. Great are your sins: but great is the Lord, who has mercy on you. Give thanks, therefore, to the Lord. Do penance; do not despair of your salvation: the Lord is kind. Give thanks to the Lord, you who have great sins.
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
He is good and his mercy endures for ever; let us therefore own our obligations to him and make him a return of our best affections and services. Give him the glory of his greatness, his mighty acts, proofs of his almighty power, wherein he has done great things, and such as would be opposed.
6 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century6 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Praise, &c.--(See on Ps 104:35), begins and ends the Psalm, intimating the obligations of praise, however we sin and suffer 1Ch 16:34-36 is the source from which the beginning and end of this Psalm are derived.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
Praise, &c.--(See on Ps 104:35), begins and ends the Psalm, intimating the obligations of praise, however we sin and suffer 1Ch 16:34-36 is the source from which the beginning and end of this Psalm are derived.
Praise ye the Lord. Hallelujah. Praise ye Jah. This song is for the assembled people, and they are all exhorted to join in praise to Jehovah. It is not meet for a few to praise and the rest to be silent; but all should join. If David were present in churches where quartets and choirs carry on all the singing, he would turn to the congregation and say, "Praise ye the Lord." Our meditation dwells upon human sin; but on all occasions and in all occupations it is seasonable and profitable to praise the Lord. O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good. To us needy creatures the goodness of God is the first attribute which excites praise, and that praise takes the form of gratitude. We praise the Lord truly when we give him thanks for what we have received from his goodness. Let us never be slow to return unto the Lord our praise; to thank him is the least we can do—let us not neglect it. For his mercy endureth for ever. Goodness towards sinners assumes the form of mercy, mercy should therefore be a leading note in our song. Since man ceases not to be sinful, it is a great blessing that Jehovah ceases not to be merciful. From age to age the Lord deals graciously with his church, and to every individual in it he is constant and faithful in his grace, even for evermore. In a short space we have here two arguments for praise, "for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever, "and these two arguments are themselves praises. The very best language of adoration is that which adoringly in the plainest words sets forth the simple truth with regard to our great Lord. No rhetorical flourishes or poetical hyperboles are needed, the bare facts are sublime poetry, and the narration of them with reverence is the essence of adoration. This first verse is the text of all that which follows; we are now to see how from generation to generation the mercy of God endured to his chosen people.
Praise ye the Lord. Hallelujah. Praise ye Jah. This song is for the assembled people, and they are all exhorted to join in praise to Jehovah. It is not meet for a few to praise and the rest to be silent; but all should join. If David were present in churches where quartets and choirs carry on all the singing, he would turn to the congregation and say, "Praise ye the Lord." Our meditation dwells upon human sin; but on all occasions and in all occupations it is seasonable and profitable to praise the Lord.
Praise ye the Lord - This, which is a sort of title, is wanting in several MSS., and in the Syriac Version. O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good - Ye who live by his bounty should praise his mercy. God is the good Being, and of all kinds of good he is the Author and Dispenser. That the term God among our Anglo-Saxon ancestors, expressed both the Supreme Being and good or goodness, is evident from the Anglo-Saxon version of this clause: “Confess Lord for that God, (or good), for that on world mildheartness his.” Which the old Psalter thus translates and paraphrases: - Trans. Schifes to Lorde for he is gude; for in worlde the mercy of him. Par - Schryfes synes, and louyngs to God. for he is gude of kynde, that nane do bot aske his mercy; for it lastes to the worlds ende in wriches whame it comfortes and delyvers: and the blysfulhede that is gyfen thrugh mercy is endles. That is: - Confess your sins, and give praise to God, for he is good in his nature to all that ask his mercy; for it lasts to the world’s end in comforting and delivering the wretched: and the blessedness that is given through mercy is endless.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Praise ye the Lord - Margin, “Hallelu-jah.” The two Hebrew words mean, “praise ye the Lord.” They are the same words with which the previous psalm closes, and are here designed to indicate the general duty illustrated in the psalm. O give thanks unto the Lord - See the notes at Psa 105:1. For he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever - See Psa 100:5, note; Psa 107:1, note; where the language in the Hebrew is the same.
The words behind it
8 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| הַֽלְלוּיָ֨הּ׀ | haluyah | praise Yahweh | H1984 →H3050 → | 50 times |
| הוֹד֣וּ | hodu | give thanks | H3034 → | 114 times |
| לַיהוָ֣ה | layahweh | to Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| כִּי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| ט֑וֹב | tov | [he is] good | H2895 → | 45 times |
| כִּ֖י | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| לְעוֹלָ֣ם | leolam | [is] for ever | H5769 → | 438 times |
| חַסְדּֽוֹ׃ | chasdo | covenant loyalty his | H2617 → | 247 times |
הַֽלְלוּיָ֨הּ׀praise Yahweh
הוֹד֣וּgive thanks
hoduH3034 →114 times
לַיהוָ֣הto Yahweh
layahwehH3068 →6520 times
כִּי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
ט֑וֹב[he is] good
tovH2895 →45 times
כִּ֖יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
לְעוֹלָ֣ם[is] for ever
leolamH5769 →438 times
חַסְדּֽוֹ׃covenant loyalty his
chasdoH2617 →247 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
1 Thessalonians 5:18Give thanks in every circumstance, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
it leads to
- Ephesians 5:20
always giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
- Philippians 4:6
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
- Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do, in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.
- Hebrews 13:15
Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise, the fruit of lips that confess His name.
- Job 1:21
saying: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.”
- Ephesians 5:20
Through
Psalms 136:1Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good. His loving devotion endures forever.
it leads to
- 1 Chronicles 16:34
Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His loving devotion endures forever.
Reached by 3 separate paths from here.
- 1 Chronicles 16:34
Through
1 Chronicles 16:34Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His loving devotion endures forever.
it leads to
- Psalms 107:1
Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His loving devotion endures forever.
Reached by 3 separate paths from here.
- Psalms 107:1
Through
Psalms 105:1Give thanks to the LORD, call upon His name; make known His deeds among the nations.
it leads to
- Isaiah 12:4
and on that day you will say: “Give praise to the LORD; proclaim His name! Make His works known among the peoples; declare that His name is exalted.
- Isaiah 12:4
Where this verse is studied
About Psalms
This page draws on 10 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Augustine of Hippo, Exposition on Psalm 106; Augustine of Hippo, SERMON 16A.5; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 5; Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Psalms; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Homily 32, on Psalm 105; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.