1Praise YAH!1
How good it is to sing praises to our God!2
How pleasant and fitting it is to praise him!
2YAHWEH3 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 cattle,
And for the young ravens when they call.
10He does not 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 loving kindness.
12Praise YAHWEH, Jerusalem!
Praise your God, Al-Quds!4
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 Yaqub;
His statutes and his ordinances to Israel.
20He has not done this for just any nation.
They do not know his ordinances.
Praise YAH!5
- 147:1 Praise YAH! – literally, Hallelu-YAH. YAH is a short form of God’s revealed name, YAHWEH. ↩︎
- 147:1 God, English translation of elohim. Elohim (Hebrew) is related to allah (Arabic) and alaha (Syriac), all of which translate as “God,” and refer to the one true God. ↩︎
- 147:2 YAHWEH, the name God revealed to Prophet Musa in the Taurat, Exodus 3:15 – God said moreover to Musa, “You shall tell Bani-Israel this, ‘YAHWEH, the God of your fathers, the God of Ibrahim, the God of Ishaq, and the God of Yaqub, has sent me to you.’ This is my Name forever, and this is how I am to be remembered to all generations.” ↩︎
- 147:12 Al-Quds, meaning “the Holy (City).” The Hebrew text reads Zion, a synonym for Jerusalem. It originally referred to Mount Zion, one of the hills of Jerusalem. ↩︎
- 147:20 Praise YAH! – literally, Hallelu-YAH. YAH is a short form of God’s revealed name, YAHWEH. ↩︎