This psalm is, in poetic terms, an acrostic. Every verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Here, then, are words that have been weighed and tested, tasted and approved - not clever, but constructed; shaped and structured with thought and care. And all under the tutelage of the master craftsman, the Spirit of God.
Well, that's all very interesting...but how does knowing it help us? For times when our hearts and minds are like ocean waves under the pull of a harvest moon, knowing this is praise that has been pondered without becoming ponderous, that it is structured for the whole of life (A to Z) and that it is so very extensive in all it says...those things become an invitation to join the chorus of praise, praise to the God of order and calm, the One who is "most worthy" of that praise.
This psalm is full of light and majesty. It invites us into room after room, gallery upon gallery, of the Lord's masterpieces. Phrase by phrase it discloses its sweetness, like flower buds opening in the warmth of the morning sun. It sweeps from generation to generation, each passing on the glories of God, the sublime joys of salvation and the complete security of his unflinching faithfulness and gospel grace.
The beauties of this psalm are worth staying with over many days. You could easily take it for a week's meditations that ground your praise in the LORD and his works and ways. Searching and savouring its truths will yield a reward far in excess of the time spent in doing so.
Having such a composition in our hands is a gift for all who find their words inadequate or who struggle because the impulse to praise has been pressed into submission by the falling sky of circumstances or trial. In life, it's often the case that cloudbursts are prefaced by stormy skies and the rending of the clouds by lightning and its thunderous report. In the turmoil and the distress, in which it seems no respite is at hand, psalms such as this can be the shelter we so deeply need. We can ask the Lord to make it so for us.
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When all Thy mercies, O my God,
My rising soul surveys,
Transported with the view, I'm lost
In wonder, love and praise.
Unnumbered comforts on my soul
Thy tender care bestowed,
Before my infant heart conceived
From whom those comforts flowed.
When worn with sickness, oft hast Thou
With health renewed my face;
And when in sins and sorrows sunk,
Revived my soul with grace.
Ten thousand thousand precious gifts
My daily thanks employ;
Nor is the least a cheerful heart,
That tastes those gifts with joy.
Through every period of my life
Thy goodness I'll pursue,
And after death in distant worlds
The glorious theme renew.
Through all eternity to Thee
A joyful song I'll raise;
But O! eternity's too short
To utter all Thy praise!
(Joseph Addison, 1672-1719)
