Psalm 103

This popular Davidic psalm reviews God's mercies and expresses confident hope in His covenant promises. Though there is no real connection between this psalm and the preceding one, this one expresses thanks for answered prayer, which Psalm 102 requested. It was the inspiration for H. F. Lyte's popular hymn, "Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven."

 1. Praise for God's mercy to individuals 103:1-5

103:1-2 David called on himself to bless the Lord wholeheartedly because of all His many blessings.

103:3-5 God's blessings that people enjoy as benefits include forgiveness of sins, healing from sickness, deliverance from death, enrichment of life, satisfaction, and rejuvenation. Eagles remain strong to the end of their lives. Likewise God enables His people to remain spiritually vigorous until death.

 2. Testimony to God's compassion to His people 103:6-18

103:6-8 Verse 6 is a topic sentence that introduces what follows. Verses 7 and 8 describe God's dealings with Israel at Mt. Sinai. The fact that God revealed Himself to Moses and the Israelites indicates His great compassion and grace. Verse 8 quotes Exodus 34:6. It restates four great characteristics about God.

103:9-12 These verses illustrate the truth of verse 8. God's compassion is clear in that He does not constantly accuse or antagonize us even though we constantly sin (cf. Eph. 6:4). He is slow to anger and He does not maintain His anger constantly. His gracious character is obvious in that He does not punish us for our sins immediately or completely as we deserve. He does not pay us back what we deserve either. His loyal love (Heb. hesed) with those who fear Him is as limitless as the sky. Furthermore He separates the guilt of our sins from us completely.

Many students of verse 12 have noted that if someone travels north or south he finally arrives at a pole from which he can proceed no farther north or south. However if someone travels east or west, he never reaches such a point. God did not say he forgives our sins as far as the North is from the South but as far as the East is from the West, namely infinitely.

103:13-18 God's compassion is father-like in that He is mindful of our finite creature limitations.

"He knows us even better than we know ourselves."¹⁶⁶

Verses 15 and 16 beautifully describe the transitory nature of human life. It is both frail and short-lived. In contrast God's loyal love to those who fear Him abides strong forever. It transcends generations and continues on to the descendents of those who obey His law (vv. 17-18; cf. Exod. 20:5-6).

 3. Praise for God's sovereignty over all 103:19-22

God reigns from heaven as King over all. His authority extends to every created thing.

"The central theme of the book of Psalms, which its prayers assume and its songs of praise affirm, is God's kingship. . . .

"The book's theological message may be summarized as follows: As the Creator of all things, God exercises sovereign authority over the natural order, the nations, and Israel, His unique people. In His role as universal King God assures order and justice in the world and among His people, often by exhibiting His power as an invincible warrior. The proper response to this sovereign King is trust and praise."¹⁶⁷

In view of His beneficent character all creatures should bless Him. This includes his powerful angelic servants (cf. Heb. 1:14) and all His creation. David ended this psalm as he began it by exhorting himself to bless the Lord.

This great psalm glorifies God by expounding His character. It teaches us what God is like. We should join the rest of creation in praising God because of who He is.