Psalm 145: 2-3, 8-9, 17-18

The responsorial psalm for this week is a hymn of praise of the greatness of God. Interestingly, the full psalm is in acrostic form, meaning that every verse begins with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet, in order.

Psalm 145 is one of the last six psalms in the Book of Psalms, all of which are hymns of praise.

Every day will I bless you, and I will praise your name forever and ever.

The prayer begins with the psalmist’s commitment to worship God wholeheartedly and continuously. The verse uses two Hebrew words, bārak and hālal, to emphasize the depth and passion of this worship:

• Bārak (“bless”) conveys the idea of acknowledging God’s greatness and is often associated with an act of bending the knee in submission or reverence.
• Hālal (“praise”) signifies worship with exuberance and enthusiasm. It is often accompanied by joy, boasting, and a sense of wonder.

Note that it is the name of God that is lauded. In the Hebrew culture, a person’s name is closely linked to their character and essence. Thus, praising God’s name acknowledges all his divine attributes and recognizes the fullness of who God is.

“Devotion to praise is a mark of the truly filial heart. He who praises the Lord every day will praise him for the eternal Day” (Saint John Chrysostom, Expositio in Psalmos, 144, 2).

Great is the LORD and highly to be praised; his greatness is unsearchable.

God’s greatness is unfathomable, beyond human comprehension.

The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great kindness.

This verse is based on God’s revelation of himself to Moses in Exodus 34:6.

God is described as gracious (hannûn), compassionate (rahûm), and filled with lovingkindness (hesed).

By referencing this self-revelation of God, the psalmist is emphasizing that Israel’s God is the same faithful and compassionate God who entered into covenant with their ancestors.

The LORD is good to all and compassionate toward all his works.

God’s divine goodness is universal. It extends to all creation (and is not reserved for Israel alone.

The LORD is just in all his ways and holy in all his works.

God is righteous and just (sedeq) in everything he does. He is our model for moral perfection.

The LORD is near to all who call upon him, to all who call upon him in truth.

Here we see a direct connection to our first reading, making this a very fitting responsorial psalm for today.

God is accessible to those who genuinely seek him, that is they call upon him in truth (ěmet). This recognition of God’s immediate presence for those who seek him fosters a profound sense of intimacy.

The idea that the almighty creator of the universe makes himself accessible to us, his lowly creatures, is reason for praise indeed!