Psalms 135:19
in Psalms 135O house of Israel, bless the LORD; O house of Aaron, bless the LORD;
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
O house of Israel, bless ye Jehovah: O house of Aaron, bless ye Jehovah:
KJV
Bless the Lord, O house of Israel: bless the Lord, O house of Aaron:
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This verse in Psalms 135
Commentary
9 notes on this verseThe more deplorable the condition of the Gentile nations that worship idols is the more are we bound to thank God that we know better. Let us set ourselves about the acts of devotion, and employ ourselves in them: Bless the Lord, and again and again, bless the Lord.
This site's exposition
house of Israel, bless the LORD
on Psalms 135:19-21
Four times the call is bless the LORD, to the house of Israel, the house of Aaron, the house of Levi, and those who fear the LORD. Psalm 115:9 to 11 calls Israel, Aaron's house and those who fear the LORD to trust. Hallelujah opens verse 1 and closes verse 21.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
But daily do men believe through the miracles of Christ our Lord; daily the eyes of the blind, the ears of the deaf are opened, the nostrils of the senseless are breathed into, the tongues of the dumb are loosed, the hands of the palsied are strengthened, the feet of the lame are guided; sons of Abraham are raised up of these stones, [Matthew 3:9] to all of whom be it said, "Bless the Lord, you house of Israel" [Psalm 135:19]. All are sons of Abraham; and if sons of Abraham are raised up from these stones, it is plain that they are rather the house of Israel who belong to the house of Israel, the seed of Abraham, not by the flesh, but by faith. But even granting that it is said of that house, and the people of Israel is meant, from thence did the Apostles and thousands of the circumcised believe?
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Bless the Lord, O house of Israel,....
2 Ye that stand in the house of the L ORD , in the courts of the house of our God, 3 Praise the L ORD ; for the L ORD is good: sing praises unto his name; for it is pleasant. 4 For the L ORD hath chosen Jacob unto himself, and Israel for his peculiar treasure. The duty we are called to--to praise the Lord, to praise his name; praise him, and again praise him.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
Bless the Lord, O house of Israel. All of you, in all your tribes, praise the one Jehovah. Each tribe, from Reuben to Benjamin, has its own special cause for blessing the Lord, and the nation as a whole has substantial reasons for pouring out benedictions upon his name. Those whom God has named "the house of Israel", a family of prevailing princes, ought to show their loyalty by thankfully bowing before their sovereign Lord. Bless the Lord, O house of Aaron.
Bless the Lord, O house of Israel. All of you, in all your tribes, praise the one Jehovah. Each tribe, from Reuben to Benjamin, has its own special cause for blessing the Lord, and the nation as a whole has substantial reasons for pouring out benedictions upon his name. Those whom God has named "the house of Israel", a family of prevailing princes, ought to show their loyalty by thankfully bowing before their sovereign Lord. Bless the Lord, O house of Aaron. These were elected to high office and permitted to draw very near to the divine presence; therefore they beyond all others were bound to bless the Lord. Those who are favoured to be leaders in the church should be foremost in adoration. In God's house the house of Aaron should feel bound to speak well of his name before all the house of Israel.
2 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
Bless the Lord. O house, etc. - See similar verses, Psa 115:9-13 (note), and the notes there.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Bless the Lord, O house of Israel ... - This passage, also, is evidently an imitation of the passage in Psa 115:9-13. The form in Ps. 115, however, is rather an exhortation to trust in the Lord, and an assurance that God would bless the classes spoken of, than a call on them to bless the Lord. Still the same classes of persons are referred to; the house of Israel; the house of Aaron; and those who feared the Lord. The passage needs no further illustration than what is found in the notes at Psa 115:9-13. It is an earnest call on all classes of the people to bless and praise the Lord. It is language expressive of overflowing joy; the utterance of a heart full of exalted conceptions of the majesty, the glory, and the mercy of God; of a heart which feels to the utmost the fitness of praise, and desires that all classes of people - priests and people - that all created things should unite in the praise of Yahweh. Who, in reading the psalm, can fail to catch the feelings of the psalmist, and to say Amen and amen!
The words behind it
10 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| בֵּ֣ית | beit | O house of | H1004 → | 2046 times |
| יִ֭שְׂרָאֵל | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| בָּרֲכ֣וּ | barakhu | bless | H1288 → | 330 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| יְהוָ֑ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| בֵּ֥ית | beit | O house of | H1004 → | 2046 times |
| אַ֝הֲרֹ֗ן | ʾaharon | Aaron | H175 → | 347 times |
| בָּרֲכ֥וּ | barakhu | bless | H1288 → | 330 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| יְהוָֽה׃ | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
בֵּ֣יתO house of
beitH1004 →2046 times
יִ֭שְׂרָאֵלIsrael
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
בָּרֲכ֣וּbless
barakhuH1288 →330 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
יְהוָ֑הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
בֵּ֥יתO house of
beitH1004 →2046 times
אַ֝הֲרֹ֗ןAaron
ʾaharonH175 →347 times
בָּרֲכ֥וּbless
barakhuH1288 →330 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
יְהוָֽה׃Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 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
Psalms 148:14He has raised up a horn for His people, the praise of all His saints, of Israel, a people near to Him. Hallelujah!
it leads to
- Psalms 75:10
“All the horns of the wicked I will cut off, but the horns of the righteous will be exalted.”
- Deuteronomy 4:7
For what nation is great enough to have a god as near to them as the LORD our God is to us whenever we call on Him?
- Ephesians 2:17
He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near.
- Psalms 75:10
Through
Psalms 145:10All You have made will give You thanks, O LORD, and Your saints will bless You.
it leads to
- Psalms 19:1
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.
- Psalms 103:22
Bless the LORD, all His works in all places of His dominion. Bless the LORD, O my soul!
- Psalms 19:1
Through
Revelation 19:5Then a voice came from the throne, saying: “Praise our God, all you who serve Him, and those who fear Him, small and great alike!”
it leads to
- Psalms 134:1
Come, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD who serve by night in the house of the LORD!
- Psalms 150:6
Let everything that has breath praise the LORD! Hallelujah!
- Psalms 148:11–13
kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth,
- Psalms 134:1
About Psalms
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Psalms; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Augustine of Hippo, Exposition on Psalm 135; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 7; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.