Psalms — Chapter 115
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1Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to Your name be the glory, because of Your loving devotion, because of Your faithfulness.
2Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?”
3Our God is in heaven; He does as He pleases.
4Their idols are silver and gold, made by the hands of men.
5They have mouths, but cannot speak; they have eyes, but cannot see;
6they have ears, but cannot hear; they have noses, but cannot smell;
7they have hands, but cannot feel; they have feet, but cannot walk; they cannot even clear their throats.
8Those who make them become like them, as do all who trust in them.
9O Israel, trust in the LORD! He is their help and shield.
10O house of Aaron, trust in the LORD! He is their help and shield.
11You who fear the LORD, trust in the LORD! He is their help and shield.
12The LORD is mindful of us; He will bless us. He will bless the house of Israel; He will bless the house of Aaron;
13He will bless those who fear the LORD—small and great alike.
14May the LORD give you increase, both you and your children.
15May you be blessed by the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.
16The highest heavens belong to the LORD, but the earth He has given to mankind.
17It is not the dead who praise the LORD, nor any who descend into silence.
18But it is we who will bless the LORD, both now and forevermore. Hallelujah!
1Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth’s sake.
2Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is now their God?
3But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.
4Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands.
5They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not:
6They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not:
7They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat.
8They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them.
9O Israel, trust thou in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.
10O house of Aaron, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.
11Ye that fear the LORD, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.
12The LORD hath been mindful of us: he will bless us; he will bless the house of Israel; he will bless the house of Aaron.
13He will bless them that fear the LORD, both small and great.
14The LORD shall increase you more and more, you and your children.
15Ye are blessed of the LORD which made heaven and earth.
16The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD’S: but the earth hath he given to the children of men.
17The dead praise not the LORD, neither any that go down into silence.
18But we will bless the LORD from this time forth and for evermore. Praise the LORD.
1Not unto us, O Jehovah, not unto us, But unto thy name give glory, For thy lovingkindness, and for thy truth`s sake.
2Wherefore should the nations say, Where is now their God?
3But our God is in the heavens: He hath done whatsoever he pleased.
4Their idols are silver and gold, The work of men`s hands.
5They have mouths, but they speak not; Eyes have they, but they see not;
6They have ears, but they hear not; Noses have they, but they smell not;
7They have hands, but they handle not; Feet have they, but they walk not; Neither speak they through their throat.
8They that make them shall be like unto them; Yea, every one that trusteth in them.
9O Israel, trust thou in Jehovah: He is their help and their shield.
10O house of Aaron, trust ye in Jehovah: He is their help and their shield.
11Ye that fear Jehovah, trust in Jehovah: He is their help and their shield.
12Jehovah hath been mindful of us; he will bless [us]: He will bless the house of Israel; He will bless the house of Aaron.
13He will bless them that fear Jehovah, Both small and great.
14Jehovah increase you more and more, You and your children.
15Blessed are ye of Jehovah, Who made heaven and earth.
16The heavens are the heavens of Jehovah; But the earth hath he given to the children of men.
17The dead praise not Jehovah, Neither any that go down into silence;
18But we will bless Jehovah From this time forth and for evermore. Praise ye Jehovah. Psalm 116
1Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name bring honor, for the sake of your loyal love and faithfulness.
2Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?”
3Our God is in heaven. He does whatever he pleases.
4Their idols are made of silver and gold— they are man-made.
5They have mouths, but cannot speak; eyes, but cannot see;
6ears, but cannot hear; noses, but cannot smell;
7hands, but cannot touch; feet, but cannot walk. They cannot even clear their throats.
8Those who make them will end up like them, as will everyone who trusts in them.
9O Israel, trust in the Lord. He is their deliverer and protector.
10O family of Aaron, trust in the Lord. He is their deliverer and protector.
11You loyal followers of the Lord, trust in the Lord. He is their deliverer and protector.
12The Lord takes notice of us; he will bless— he will bless the family of Israel, he will bless the family of Aaron.
13He will bless his loyal followers, both young and old.
14May he increase your numbers, yours and your children’s.
15May you be blessed by the Lord, the Creator of heaven and earth.
16The heavens belong to the Lord, but the earth he has given to mankind.
17The dead do not praise the Lord, nor do any of those who descend into the silence of death.
18But we will praise the Lord now and forevermore. Praise the Lord!
1Not to us, Yahweh, not to us, but to your name give glory, for your loving kindness, and for your truth’s sake.
2Why should the nations say, “Where is their God, now?”
3But our God is in the heavens. He does whatever he pleases.
4Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands.
5They have mouths, but they don’t speak. They have eyes, but they don’t see.
6They have ears, but they don’t hear. They have noses, but they don’t smell.
7They have hands, but they don’t feel. They have feet, but they don’t walk, neither do they speak through their throat.
8Those who make them will be like them; yes, everyone who trusts in them.
9Israel, trust in Yahweh! He is their help and their shield.
10House of Aaron, trust in Yahweh! He is their help and their shield.
11You who fear Yahweh, trust in Yahweh! He is their help and their shield.
12Yahweh remembers us. He will bless us. He will bless the house of Israel. He will bless the house of Aaron.
13He will bless those who fear Yahweh, both small and great.
14May Yahweh increase you more and more, you and your children.
15Blessed are you by Yahweh, who made heaven and earth.
16The heavens are the heavens of Yahweh; but the earth has he given to the children of men.
17The dead don’t praise Yah, neither any who go down into silence;
18But we will bless Yah, from this time forward and forever more. Praise Yah!
Summary
This Hallel psalm begins by directing all glory away from Israel and to God alone, for the sake of his covenant love and faithfulness (v. 1), countering the nations' taunt of "where is their God?" with the reminder that God does whatever he pleases from heaven (vv. 2-3). By contrast, the idols of the nations are lifeless objects of silver and gold, with mouths, eyes, ears, and hands that cannot actually speak, see, hear, or act — and those who make and trust them become just as lifeless (vv. 4-8). The psalm then calls Israel, the priestly house of Aaron, and all who fear the LORD to trust in him as their help and shield (vv. 9-11), affirming that God is mindful of his people and will bless them, young and old, and increase their numbers (vv. 12-14). Since the dead cannot praise God, the psalm closes with a vow that the living will bless the LORD forever (vv. 17-18).
Authorship & Background
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Verse-by-verse commentary on this chapter, written for the everyday reader and freely available online.
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
- Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.
Videos
Articles
- GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of Psalms -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.
Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.
Reflection
- Redirecting the Glory (v.1) — The psalm opens by refusing credit — not to us, but to God's name be the glory. When you succeed, is your first instinct to point to yourself or to God?
- Trusting a Sovereign God (v.3) — Our God is in the heavens and does whatever He pleases. Does God's freedom to act as He wills feel threatening to you, or does it rest on His goodness?
- Becoming What You Worship (v.8) — Those who make idols become like them — lifeless and unresponsive. What are you devoting your attention to, and is it shaping you into someone more alive or more empty?
- Trust as the Dividing Line (v.11) — Those who fear the LORD are called to trust Him as their help and shield. What would it look like for you to actively trust God today rather than merely believe in Him?
- Praise While You Can (vv.17-18) — The dead do not praise the LORD, but those who are alive bless Him forever. What is keeping you from praising God today with the life you still have?