Words in italic type have been added for clarity. They are not found in the original Hebrew or Aramaic.

Psalm 103

What should I learn from this chapter?

• God’s Covenant
• God’s Mercy and Benefits

Praise for the Lord’s Mercies

A Psalm of David.

Psalm 103:¹ Bless the Lord (yᵊhōvâ), O my soul;
And all that is within me, bless His holy name!

Psalm 103:² Bless the Lord (yᵊhōvâ), O my soul,
And forget not all His benefits:

Psalm 103:³ Who forgives all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases,

• He forgives our sins.
• He heals our diseases.

Psalm 103:⁴ Who redeems your life from destruction,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,

• He guides us in paths that avoid bad choices.
• He adopts us as His children.

Psalm 103:⁵ Who satisfies your mouth with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

• A life of healthy living; He endows men with energy.

Psalm 103:⁶ The Lord (yᵊhōvâ) executes righteousness
And justice for all who are oppressed.

• He protects. He has “the back of the weak”.

Psalm 103:⁷ He made known His ways to Moses,
His acts to the children of Israel.

• He has given men laws to ensure a healthy society.

Psalm 103:⁸ The Lord (yᵊhōvâ) is merciful and gracious,
Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.

• Slow to Anger, slow to Boil.

Psalm 103:⁹ He will not always strive with us,
Nor will He keep His anger forever.

• Genesis 6:3
  And the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.”
  
  And then the Great Worldwide flood came and wiped them all away.
  This is a Moral to remember.
  

Psalm 103:¹⁰ He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
Nor punished us according to our iniquities.

Psalm 103:¹¹ For as the heavens are high above the earth,
So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;

• Have men found the edge of the heavens?
• God’s mercy cannot be measured or imagined.

Psalm 103:¹² As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.

The East Circles to meet the West, and Neither Knows its End.
Like a tornado, sins become “Gone with the Wind”.

Psalm 103:¹³ As a father pities his children (bēn),
So the Lord (yᵊhōvâ) pities those who fear Him.

Psalm 103:¹⁴ For He knows our frame (Understands our constitution);
He remembers that we are dust (clay).

Psalm 103:¹⁵ As for man, his days are like grass;
As a flower of the field, so he flourishes.

Psalm 103:¹⁶ For the wind passes over it, and it is gone (not),
And its place remembers it no more.

Psalm 103:¹⁷ But the mercy of the Lord (yᵊhōvâ) is from everlasting to everlasting
On those who fear Him,
And His righteousness to children’s children,

Psalm 103:¹⁸ To such as keep His covenant,
And to those who remember His commandments to do them.

• His promises are for those who keep His covenant and do His commandments.
  
• Mercy “swallows up” Anger when a man’s heart begs for forgiveness.
  
• This covenant precedes a new covenant.
  
  • Jeremiah 31:31 A New Covenant
    • “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah—
      
  • Matthew 26:28
    • For this is My blood (wine) of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
      
  • Luke 5:38
    • But new wine (grace/mercy) must be put into new wineskins (grace/mercy cannot be poured into an old wineskin, the covenant with law), and both are preserved.
      
      • Old Wineskin is an Old Covenant which the Jews had with the law.
      • New Wineskin is a New Covenant which covers both Jews and Gentiles, although the Jews are blinded in part.
      • The old wine is the blood of animals.
      • The new wine is the blood of Jesus.
      • Red wine and red blood are the same Hebrew word: “dam”.

Psalm 103:¹⁹ The Lord (yᵊhōvâ) has established His throne in heaven, And His kingdom rules over all.

Psalm 103:²⁰ Bless the Lord (yᵊhōvâ), you His angels (messengers),
Who excel in strength, who do His word,
Heeding the voice of His word.

Psalm 103:²¹ Bless the Lord (yᵊhōvâ), all you His hosts,
You ministers (servants) of His, who do His pleasure.

Psalm 103:²² Bless the Lord (yᵊhōvâ), all His works,
In all places of His dominion.

Bless the Lord (yᵊhōvâ), O my soul!

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