Psalm 103 is the 103rd psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the

King James Version The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version, is an Bible translations into English, English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and publis ...

: "Bless the , O my soul". The Book of Psalms is part of the third section of the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
'' Christian Old Testament. In Latin, it is known as "Benedic anima mea Domino". The psalm is a hymn psalm. In the slightly different numbering system used in the Greek

Septuagint The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond ...

and Latin

Vulgate The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels u ...

translations of the Bible, this psalm is Psalm 102. The first verse (the sub-heading in most English translations) attributes the psalm to King

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

. The psalm forms a regular part of

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

, Anglican and other Protestant liturgies. The psalm has been paraphrased in

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hy ...

s, and has often been set to music.

Background and themes

Baptist preacher and biblical commentator

Charles Spurgeon Charles Haddon Spurgeon (19 June 1834 – 31 January 1892) was an English Particular Baptist preacher. Spurgeon remains highly influential among Christians of various denominations, among whom he is known as the "Prince of Preachers". He wa ...

suggests that the psalm was written in David's later life, as seen by the psalmist's focus on the frailty of life and his "higher sense of the preciousness of pardon, because a keener sense of sin". Spurgeon divides the psalm into three sections: * Verses 1–5: The Psalmist's personal experience of God's compassion; * Verses 6–19: The attributes of God as seen in his interactions with his people; * Verses 20–22: The Psalmist's call to all creatures to join him in blessing God. Lutheran minister

Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg Ernst Wilhelm Theodor Herrmann Hengstenberg (20 October 1802, in Fröndenberg28 May 1869, in Berlin), was a German Lutheran churchman and neo-Lutheran theologian from an old and important Dortmund family. He was born at Fröndenberg, a Westpha ...

notes that the number of verses in the psalm parallels the 22 letters of the

Hebrew alphabet The Hebrew alphabet ( he, אָלֶף־בֵּית עִבְרִי, ), known variously by scholars as the Ktav Ashuri, Jewish script, square script and block script, is an abjad script used in the writing of the Hebrew language and other Jewi ...

, and that the concluding words repeat the opening words, "finishing" and "rounding off" the psalm into a complete whole. Nonconformist minister Matthew Henry also notes this circular form, stating: "Blessing God and giving him glory must be the alpha and the omega of all our services". The

Midrash Tehillim Midrash Tehillim (Hebrew: מדרש תהלים), also known as Midrash Shocher Tov or the Midrash to Psalms, is an aggadic midrash to the Psalms. It has been known since the 11th century, when it was quoted by Nathan of Rome, by R. Isaac ben Juda ...

offers several explanations of the first verse, among them:

Rabbi Levi said in the name of Rabbi Hama: A sculptor makes a statue; the sculptor dies, but his sculpture endures. It is not thus with the Holy One, blessed be He. The Holy One made man, and man dies, but the Holy One lives and endures. … Another comment: A sculptor makes a statue, but cannot make a soul or vital organs. But the Holy One made a statue, man, and within him made a soul and vital organs. Therefore, David offered praise, "Bless the , O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name".

The opening words, "Bless the , O my soul", appear again at the beginning of

Psalm 104 Psalm 104 is the 104th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great". In Latin, it is known as "Benedic anima mea Domino". In the slightly different ...

, reinforcing the thematic connection between these psalms. But Patrick D. Miller also sees Psalm 103 as a logical extension of Psalm 102, pointing out that "one may see

salm Salm may refer to People * Constance de Salm (1767–1845), poet and miscellaneous writer; through her second marriage, she became Princess of Salm-Dyck * Salm ibn Ziyad, an Umayyad governor of Khurasan and Sijistan * House of Salm, a European ...

102 as opening issues and questions to which

103 offers the solution or answer". For example, in Psalm 102 the psalmist blames his illness and pain on God's "indignation and anger" (verse 10), while Psalm 103 makes it clear that divine anger is not the final word, nor will it last forever.

Text

Hebrew Bible version

King James Version

# Bless the , O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. # Bless the , O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: # Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; # Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies; # Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's. # The executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed. # He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel. # The is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. # He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever. # He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. # For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. # As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. # Like as a father pitieth his children, so the pitieth them that fear him. # For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust. # As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. # For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more. # But the mercy of the is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's children; # To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them. # The hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all. # Bless the , ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word. # Bless ye the , all ye his hosts; ye ministers of his, that do his pleasure. # Bless the , all his works in all places of his dominion: bless the , O my soul.

Textual witnesses

Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

are of the

Masoretic Text The Masoretic Text (MT or 𝕸; he, נֻסָּח הַמָּסוֹרָה, Nūssāḥ Hammāsōrā, lit. 'Text of the Tradition') is the authoritative Hebrew and Aramaic text of the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) in Rabbinic Judaism. ...

tradition, which includes the Aleppo Codex (10th century), and

Codex Leningradensis The Leningrad Codex ( la, Codex Leningradensis [Leningrad Book]; he, כתב יד לנינגרד) is the oldest complete manuscript of the Hebrew Bible in Hebrew, using the Masoretic Text and Tiberian vocalization. According to its colopho ...

(1008). The extant

palimpsest In textual studies, a palimpsest () is a manuscript page, either from a scroll or a book, from which the text has been scraped or washed off so that the page can be reused for another document. Parchment was made of lamb, calf, or kid skin an ...

Aq includes a translation into

Koine Greek Koine Greek (; Koine el, ἡ κοινὴ διάλεκτος, hē koinè diálektos, the common dialect; ), also known as Hellenistic Greek, common Attic, the Alexandrian dialect, Biblical Greek or New Testament Greek, was the common supra-reg ...

by Aquila of Sinope in c. 130 CE, containing verses 1–13.

Uses

Judaism

Verse 1 is the final verse of Nishmat. Verses 2, 10, and 13 are recited during

Selichot Selichot ( he, סְלִיחוֹת, səlīḥōt, singular: , ''səlīḥā'') are Jewish penitential poems and prayers, especially those said in the period leading up to the High Holidays, and on fast days. The Thirteen Attributes of Mercy ar ...

. Verses 10, 13, and 14 are part of the

Tachanun ''Tachanun'' or ''Taḥanun'' ( he, תחנון "Supplication"), also called ''nefilat apayim'' ( he, נפילת אפיים "falling on the face"), is part of Judaism's morning (''Shacharit'') and afternoon (''Mincha'') services, after the recitati ...

prayer. Verse 14 is also recited during a burial service. Verse 17 is recited during the blessings before the

Shema ''Shema Yisrael'' (''Shema Israel'' or ''Sh'ma Yisrael''; he , שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל ''Šəmaʿ Yīsrāʾēl'', "Hear, O Israel") is a Jewish prayer (known as the Shema) that serves as a centerpiece of the morning and evening Jewis ...

on the second day of Rosh Hashanah. Verse 19 is part of the

Yehi kevod Yehi kevod ( he, יְהִי כְבוֹד, lit= odwill be honored) is a prayer recited daily during pesukei dezimra prior to Ashrei. The prayer is a representation of God's exaltation in both the heavens and the earth. The succession Yehi kevod h ...

prayer recited during Pesukei Dezimra.

New Testament

Verse 17 is quoted in Mary's song of praise, the

Magnificat The Magnificat (Latin for " y soulmagnifies he Lord) is a canticle, also known as the Song of Mary, the Canticle of Mary and, in the Byzantine tradition, the Ode of the Theotokos (). It is traditionally incorporated into the liturgical servic ...

, in Luke .

Catholic Church

In the

Western church Western Christianity is one of two sub-divisions of Christianity (Eastern Christianity being the other). Western Christianity is composed of the Latin Church and Western Protestantism, together with their offshoots such as the Old Catholic ...

, this psalm was traditionally performed during the celebration of

Matins Matins (also Mattins) is a canonical hour in Christian liturgy, originally sung during the darkness of early morning. The earliest use of the term was in reference to the canonical hour, also called the vigil, which was originally celebrated b ...

of Saturday by the order of St. Benedict, probably since its founding to 530. In the

Liturgy of the Hours The Liturgy of the Hours (Latin: ''Liturgia Horarum'') or Divine Office (Latin: ''Officium Divinum'') or ''Opus Dei'' ("Work of God") are a set of Catholic prayers comprising the canonical hours, often also referred to as the breviary, of the ...

, Psalm 103 is sung or recited during the Office of Sunday readings, second week. It is also used for Mass readings: it is the psalm read at the Mass of the Sacred Heart in Year A of the three-yearly cycle. In ordinary time, we find the 7th and the 24th Sunday of the year A and the eighth Sunday of the year B. In

Lent Lent ( la, Quadragesima, 'Fortieth') is a solemn religious observance in the liturgical calendar commemorating the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring temptation by Satan, according to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke ...

, it is played the 3rd and 7th Sunday. Finally, it is the 7th Psalm on Easter Sunday.

Orthodox Church

In the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops vi ...

this psalm is one of the six psalms of

Orthros ''Orthros'' ( Greek: , meaning "early dawn" or "daybreak") or ''Oútrenya'' ( Slavonic Оўтреня), in the Byzantine Rite of the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Eastern Catholic Churches, is the last of the four night offices (church service ...

(Matins) read every morning outside of

Bright Week Bright Week, Pascha Week or Renewal Week ( el, Διακαινήσιμος Ἑβδομάς) is the name used by the Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Rite Catholic Churches for the period of seven days beginning on Easter and continuing up to (but n ...

. It is also the first of the "Typical Psalms" of the Typica, which is read in place of the

Divine Liturgy Divine Liturgy ( grc-gre, Θεία Λειτουργία, Theia Leitourgia) or Holy Liturgy is the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine Rite, developed from the Antiochene Rite of Christian liturgy which is that of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of ...

when the latter is not celebrated on days it is permitted to be. It is frequently sung as the first antiphon of the Divine Liturgy, but there it is often replaced by another antiphon on great feasts and on many weekdays, and is always thus replaced in Greek practice (except on Mount Athos).

Protestant

R. J. Thesman finds in this psalm a declaration that God ''never betrays us, never abandons us, and never forgets ..... His mercy covers our mistakes and our human tendencies'', while Thomas Coke, calls it ''an exquisite performance, very applicable to every deliverance: it may properly be said to describe the wonders of grace''. This Psalm is one continued hymn of praise, and includes a comprehensive view of the goodness of Jehovah, in all the great works of creation and redemption, while Albert Barnes called it ''exceedingly regular in its structure and composition; beautiful in its language and conceptions; adapted to all times and ages; suited to express the feelings of gratitude to God for deliverance from trouble, and for the manifestation of his mercy; suited to elevate the soul, and to fill it with cheerful views.'' The Old Testament scholar

Bernhard Duhm Bernhard Lauardus Duhm (October 10, 1847 – November 1, 1928) was a German Lutheran theologian, born in Bingum, today part of Leer, East Frisia. He was a member of the history of religions school. Early life and education Duhm studied theolo ...

considers the Psalm a "compilation of all sorts of beautiful sentences from a fairly extensive reading".

Musical settings

Psalm 103 is the basis of several

s. A paraphrase of Psalm 103 in German is "

Nun lob, mein Seel, den Herren "" (Now praise, my soul, the Lord) is a Lutheran hymn written in German by the theologian and reformer Johann Gramann in 1525. It was published in 1540 and appears in 47 hymnals. A translation by Catherine Winkworth, "My Soul, now Praise thy Make ...

", written by Johann Gramann in 1525, which was translated by

Catherine Winkworth Catherine Winkworth (13 September 1827 – 1 July 1878) was an English hymnwriter and educator. She translated the German chorale tradition of church hymns for English speakers, for which she is recognized in the calendar of the Evangelical Luth ...

as "My Soul, now Praise thy Maker!" and published in 1863. English hymns include "

Praise, my soul, the King of Heaven "Praise, my soul, the King of heaven" is a Christian hymn. Its text, which draws from Psalm 103, was written by Anglicanism#Anglican divines, Anglican divine (clergyman) Henry Francis Lyte. First published in 1834, it endures in modern hymnals to ...

", written in the nineteenth century by Henry Francis Lyte, as well as "Sing to the Lord and praise him"; and “Like as a Father” by Florence Margaret Spencer Palmer. In the 16th century,

Claudin de Sermisy Claudin de Sermisy (c. 1490 – 13 October 1562) was a French composer of the Renaissance music, Renaissance.Isabelle Cazeaux, "Claudin d Sermisy", "The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians", ed. Stanley Sadie. 20 vol. (London, Macmillan ...

set the psalm. In the 17th century, Henry Dumont set this psalm for La Chapelle Royale au Louvre (1666). In contemporary music, the song "Bless the Lord" in the musical ''

Godspell ''Godspell'' is a musical composed by Stephen Schwartz with book by John-Michael Tebelak. The show is structured as a series of parables, primarily based on the Gospel of Matthew, interspersed with music mostly set to lyrics from traditional hym ...

'' is based on this psalm. " 10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord)" by

Matt Redman Matthew James Redman (born 14 February 1974) is an English Christian worship leader, singer-songwriter and author. Redman has released 16 albums, written 8 books, and helped start three church-plants. He is best known for his two-time Grammy Aw ...

and Jonas Myrin takes lyrics from this psalm, as does "The Lord is Gracious and Compassionate" by

Vineyard Worship The Association of Vineyard Churches, also known as the Vineyard Movement, is a neocharismatic evangelical Christian denomination.Despite the fact that some might see denominational labels as divisive, the founder of the movement John Wimber sai ...

References

Sources

* * * *

External links

* * * Text of Psalm 103 according to th
1928 Psalter

text in Hebrew and English, mechon-mamre.org
Bless the LORD, my soul; all my being, bless his holy name!
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

introduction and text, biblestudytools.com
Psalm 103 – Help Quickly, O Lord
enduringword.com
Psalm 103 / Refrain: Come to me quickly, O God.

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

Psalm 103
at biblegateway.com
Tehillim – Psalm 103 (Judaica Press)
translation with

Rashi Shlomo Yitzchaki ( he, רבי שלמה יצחקי; la, Salomon Isaacides; french: Salomon de Troyes, 22 February 1040 – 13 July 1105), today generally known by the acronym Rashi (see below), was a medieval French rabbi and author of a compre ...

's commentary at Chabad.org {{Psalms 103 Works attributed to David