Psalm 103:
Listen:
Psalm 103 in the Streetlights App or on youtube
While you listen, close your eyes and try to visualize the words (listen again if that helps)
Read: Psalm 103
1 Praise the Lord, my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
2 Praise the Lord, my soul,
and forget not all his benefits—
3 who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,
5 who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
6 The Lord works righteousness
and justice for all the oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
his deeds to the people of Israel:
8 The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in love.
9 He will not always accuse,
nor will he harbor his anger forever;
10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve
or repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his love for those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
13 As a father has compassion on his children,
so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;
14 for he knows how we are formed,
he remembers that we are dust.
15 The life of mortals is like grass,
they flourish like a flower of the field;
16 the wind blows over it and it is gone,
and its place remembers it no more.
17 But from everlasting to everlasting
the Lord’s love is with those who fear him,
and his righteousness with their children’s children—
18 with those who keep his covenant
and remember to obey his precepts.
19 The Lord has established his thronein heaven,
and his kingdom rules over all.
20 Praise the Lord, you his angels,
you mighty ones who do his bidding,
who obey his word.
21 Praise the Lord, all his heavenly hosts,
you his servants who do his will.
22 Praise the Lord, all his works
everywhere in his dominion.
Praise the Lord, my soul.
Speak:
There’s a lot of good news in this psalm, which piece of good news stands out to you? Which aspect of God do you appreciate the most right now? Share that out loud (whether you’re doing this in a group or on your own, speak what is good about God in this psalm)
Study:
There is a lot of familial language in this Psalm, the word mercy/compassion in verses 4 and 8 and 13 are connected to the word womb (rechem), like the mercy/compassion a woman may feel for her child, and verse 13 speaks of a father’s compassion for his children, and speaks of his love for the descendants of those he loves (verse 17). Why do you think these familial images are used to explain God’s love for us?
Think:
Verse 19 says: “The Lord set his throne up in heaven,/and he rules over everything. (ERV) or in another version: “The Eternal has established His throne up in the heavens./He rules over every seen and unseen realm and creature. (The VOICE)
Start listing out all the far reaching things that God rules over in creation, things you can see and things too tiny to be seen, from the bottoms of the ocean to the edges of space, to the tiny organisms inside our bodies, to the strangest animals, make a wild list of all he rules over and then marvel at his creative ingenuity. (Don’t stop at less than 20!!)
Ask/Listen/Speak:
There was A LOT of good news about who God is in this Psalm.
Ask God to bring to mind a friend (maybe one who doesn’t know how good God is) who needs to hear one of these good things
Which thing from this Psalm is good news they need to hear?
Ask him to make a piece of this good news tangible to them this week.
Pray for an opportunity to be a part of making this good news tangible to them this week.
Additional Listen: (Some songs related to Psalm 103)
No Limit (Psalm 103) Enter the Worship Circle
One Thing Remains by Jesus Culture
Tender Mercy (Psalm 103) Enter the Worship Circle
Bless the Lord-Lynne Thigpen (from Godspell)
Additional Look:
Acrylic and Ink Piece by Beth Dreyer
(and generally a great resource for artwork related to most psalms can be found here: https://parkchurch.org/psalms-artwork/
curated by Johanna Richards