Bless the Lord, O My Soul
This psalm is a wonderful praise song to the Lord by David, probably towards the end of his life. It begins and ends with a call to praise the Lord.
David begins this psalm with personal praise in verses 1-5. He declares he will “bless” the Lord with his who being (103:1). To “bless” God is to extol the nature and works of God so that His reputation is further exalted. He challenges himself not to forget the gracious acts of God by ignoring God’s goodness and disobeying His will (103:2). Over the next few verses David extols God’s blessings. God repeatedly forgives our sins and restores our spiritual health, He redeems us from Hell and crowns us to reign with Him, and He gives us good things that satisfy us and renew our strength throughout our lives (103:3-5).
David continues by giving reasons that we should praise the Lord in verses 6-18. The Lord’s actions are always right towards His people; He will see justice done (101:6). God has revealed His nature and will in His word to Moses who wrote it down (103:7-8;Ex 34:6-7). God shows His great compassion and love to us by forgiving our sins, not giving us what we deserve, but rather His mercy and grace (103:9-14). While mankind is transitory and finite, God is eternal and unchanging in His love towards His saints (103:15-18).
David concludes this psalm by calling all creation to praise the God in verses 19-22. He calls all the angels of heaven to praise God; and then summons all of creation itself to extol the nature and works of God (103:19-22).