Psalm 103:1 says “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name!”. This verse opens Psalm 103, which is a psalm of David praising God for His mercy, grace, patience, love and forgiveness. So what does it mean when David says “Bless the Lord, O my soul”?
First, we need to understand what it means to “bless” the Lord. The Hebrew word translated as “bless” is “barak” which means to praise, celebrate, or speak well of. So blessing the Lord means to speak well of Him, praise Him, and celebrate who He is and what He has done.
Second, David calls on his “soul” to bless the Lord. In Hebrew thinking, the soul represents the whole inner person – their will, emotions, intellect, and personality. So David is stirring up every part of himself – his entire being – to passionately praise and worship God. His praise is to flow from the depths of his heart and soul.
Third, blessing God’s “holy name” means praising His character and nature. In Hebrew thinking, a name represents a person’s essence and identity. So blessing God’s holy name means praising who He is – His holiness, righteousness, goodness, mercy, majesty, power, and glory.
Putting this all together, we can summarize the meaning as follows: David is rousing every part of his being – his will, intellect, emotions, and innermost self – to wholeheartedly praise and celebrate the Lord for who He is, giving glory to His holy name and character.
Some key implications from this verse include:
- Praising God should engage our entire heart and being – it’s not just an intellectual exercise.
- God is worthy of our highest praise for His glorious nature and deeds.
- Worship should be the natural response of our soul to the beauty and excellence of God’s character.
- Giving glory and praise to God’s name is primarily exalting who He is, not just what He’s done for us.
In summary, the call to “bless the Lord, O my soul” is a call to wholehearted, sincere worship – to lift up the greatness of God’s name and exalt His matchless worth with our entire being. This highlights the purpose for which we were created – to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.
1. Praise should engage the whole heart
In Psalm 103:1, David calls on his “soul” to bless the Lord. He doesn’t merely praise God with his words, or his mind, but with his entire inner being. True praise engages the intellect, emotions, will, and personality. John Piper describes this as praising God “with heart and soul and mind and strength.” It’s wholehearted worship.
This teaches us that praising God shouldn’t just be a dry, intellectual exercise. It should involve thoughtful reflection on God’s character, yet also stir our affections for Him. It encompasses the mind, but overflows into the heart and emotions. Singing worship songs, for example, helps express the heart’s affection for God.
As Dallas Willard wrote, “It is with the heart that one believes and experiences reality, and it is with the heart that one loves God. Feelings matter tremendously.” So when we bless the Lord, our hearts should be engaged, not just our minds.
2. God is worthy of our highest praise
Psalm 103 is filled with reasons why God deserves our praise: His tender mercies, lovingkindness, compassion, grace, and forgiveness. David models what it looks like to “bless” God’s holy name – exalting His character and deeds.
This reminds us that praise isn’t just about us. It’s centered on the surpassing greatness of God’s glory and holiness. He has supreme worth in Himself. Charles Spurgeon said: “It is too little for us to praise Him in our songs – we must exalt Him in our lives.”
Revelation 4 gives a breathtaking picture of the praise resounding around God’s throne, all centered on His holiness, power, glory and wisdom. This should inspire our own worship here on earth. Our praise, even at its best, falls infinitely short of God’s perfection, majesty and beauty.
With this in mind, we should regularly ask ourselves: Is God too small in my eyes? Do I express in worship the profoundest admiration and celebration of God’s manifold perfections? God is worthy of so much more praise than we could ever give.
3. Praise should be our natural response to God’s beauty and glory
Why does David call on his soul to bless the Lord? It’s the natural response to seeing the glory, beauty and perfection of God’s character. David is so moved by God’s attributes that praise naturally flows out.
C.S. Lewis captured this idea well: “I think we delight to praise what we enjoy because the praise not merely expresses but completes the enjoyment; it is its appointed consummation.” Praise completes joy in what is beautiful and great.
As we grow in our knowledge and awe of God, praise should become the natural response of our soul. Like David, we should behold the beauty of God’s holiness and character until our hearts erupt with wonder-fueled praise. The more we glimpse God’s greatness, the more praise will flow out.
4. Blessing God’s name is primarily about who He is, not just what He’s done
In Psalm 103, David blesses God’s name and holy character. His praise centers on God’s nature and attributes, not just His deeds. As Piper comments, “We bless God’s name when we speak well of his character and ways.”
Certainly God deserves praise for what He has accomplished on our behalf – forgiveness, redemption, answers to prayer, and spiritual blessings. But the psalms, modeled by David, remind us that praise focuses first on the innate glories of God’s name – His eternal power, boundless wisdom, infinite justice, immaculate holiness, and inexhaustible grace.
We always benefit from asking this simple diagnostic question: Does my praise focus on me and my benefits, or on the majesty of God’s name and nature? True worship centers on the worthiness of the Object, not just the benefits received from Him.
In summary…
The exhortation to “bless the Lord, O my soul” is a call to wholehearted praise and adoration of God’s glorious character and name. It teaches us key principles about worship:
- Praise should engage the mind, heart, and will.
- God inherently deserves our greatest praise, as the source of all glory.
- Worship flows naturally as we see and savor the beauty of God’s perfections.
- We bless God’s name when we speak of the excellence of His character and nature.
May David’s psalm ignite in us a passion to “bless the Lord, O my soul” – to ruminate on God’s majesty until revelation leads to adoration, and seeing His glory compels our worship. Our great purpose in this life is to exalt the excellencies of our God.