Psalm 147 Mar. 21  1Praise Yah, for it is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant and fitting to praise Him. 2Yahweh builds up Jerusalem, He gathers together the outcasts of Israel. 3He heals the broken in heart, and binds up their wounds. 4He counts the number of the stars, He calls them all by their names. 5Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite. 6Yahweh upholds the humble; He brings the wicked down to the ground. 7Sing to Yahweh with thanksgiving, sing praises on the harp to our God, 8who covers the sky with clouds, who prepares rain for the earth, who makes grass grow on the mountains. 9He provides food for the livestock, and for the young ravens when they call. 10He doesn’t delight in the strength of the horse, He takes no pleasure in the legs of a man. 11Yahweh takes pleasure in those who fear Him, in those who hope in His grace. 12Praise Yahweh, Jerusalem! Praise your God, Zion! 13For He has strengthened the bars of your gates, He has blessed your children within you. 14He makes peace in your borders, He fills you with the finest of the wheat. 15He sends out His commandment to the earth; His word runs very swiftly. 16He gives snow like wool, and scatters frost like ashes. 17He hurls down His hail like pebbles- who can stand before His cold? 18He sends out His word and melts them; He causes His wind to blow and the waters flow. 19He shows His word to Jacob, His statutes and His ordinances to Israel. 20He has not done this for any other nation; they don’t know His ordinances. Praise Yah!    

Commentary

147:2 The Jews returned from Babylon to the land of their own volition; but it was Yahweh who gathered them back, as if He called them almost of His volition rather than theirs. They rebuilt Jerusalem; but actually, Yahweh did, through His confirmation of all the freewill effort of men like Ezra and Nehemiah. In our exodus from this world and journey to the Kingdom, God is willing and able to confirm every freewill effort we make in every aspect of our lives. The returning exiles had to strengthen the bars of Jerusalem’s gates as is emphasized throughout Neh. 3; but God worked through them (:13).