Psalm 150


Psalm 150 is the 150th and final psalm of the Book of Psalms, generally known in English by its first verse, in the King James Version, "Praise ye the. Praise God in his sanctuary". In Latin, it is known as "Laudate Dominum in sanctis eius". In Psalm 150, the psalmist urges the congregation to praise God with music and dancing, naming nine types of musical instruments. For this reason it is also called "the musicians' psalm". The Book of Psalms is the third section of the Hebrew Bible, and a book of the Christian Old Testament. In most versions of the Bible, the Book of Psalms has 150 psalms and Psalm 150 is the final one. However, that is not the case in the Eastern Orthodox and Syriac Orthodox canons, which have 151 and 155 psalms respectively.
Psalm 150, a hymn psalm, is a regular part of Jewish, Catholic, Anglican, and Protestant liturgies. As one of the Laudate psalms, it was part of the Lauds, a Catholic morning service. It has been paraphrased in hymns and has been set to music often. Composers have written settings throughout the centuries, in various languages, including Bruckner's German setting, Psalm 150, from 1892; the third movement of Stravinsky's Symphony of Psalms in Latin; and the third movement, Tehillim, in Hebrew in the Gloria by Karl Jenkins in 2010.

Background and themes

Like Psalms 146, 147, 148, and 149, Psalm 150 begins and ends in Hebrew with the word Hallelujah. Further, Guzik notes that each of the five books of Psalms ends with a doxology, with Psalm 150 representing the conclusion of the fifth book as well as the conclusion of the entire work. Henry notes that this final psalm parallels the first psalm in that they have the same number of verses.
According to the Kabbalah, the ten expressions of praise in this psalm correspond to the ten sefirot. Additionally, the word hallel can be found thirteen times in the psalm, correlating to the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy. The directive hallelu is seen twelve times, corresponding to the twelve new moons that occur in a Hebrew calendar year. When this psalm is recited during the Jewish prayer service, verse 6 is repeated, adding a thirteenth expression of hallelu which alludes to the thirteenth new moon in a leap year.
Psalm 150 names nine types of musical instruments to be used in praise of God. While the exact translation of some of these instruments is unknown, the Jewish commentators have identified the shofar, lyre, harp, drum, organ, flute, cymbal, and trumpet. Saint Augustine observes that all human faculties are used in producing music from these instruments: "The breath is employed in blowing the trumpet; the fingers are used in striking the strings of the psaltery and the harp; the whole hand is exerted in beating the timbrel; the feet move in the dance".
In verse 6, according to the Midrash, the Hebrew words kol ha-neshamah (, which literally mean "Let all souls ", can also be vowelized as kol ha-neshimah, "Let every breath ". The Midrash expounds, "For each and every breath a person takes, he must praise God".

Text

Hebrew Bible version

Following is the Hebrew text of Psalm 150:
VerseHebrew
1הַ֥לְלוּיָ֨הּ הַֽלְלוּ־אֵ֥ל בְּקָדְשׁ֑וֹ הַֽ֜לְ֗לוּהוּ בִּרְקִ֥יעַ עֻזּֽוֹ
2הַֽלְלוּהוּ בִּגְבֽוּרֹתָ֑יו הַֽ֜לְל֗וּהוּ כְּרֹ֣ב גֻּדְלֽוֹ
3הַֽלְלוּהוּ בְּתֵ֣קַע שׁוֹפָ֑ר הַֽ֜לְל֗וּהוּ בְּנֵ֣בֶל וְכִנּֽוֹר
4הַֽלְלוּהוּ בְתֹ֣ף וּמָח֑וֹל הַֽ֜לְל֗וּהוּ בְּמִנִּ֥ים וְעֻגָֽב
5הַֽלְלוּהוּ בְּצִֽלְצְלֵי־שָׁ֑מַע הַֽ֜לְל֗וּהוּ בְּצִלְצְלֵ֥י תְרוּעָֽה
6כֹּ֣ל הַ֖נְּשָׁמָה תְּהַלֵּ֥ל יָ֜֗הּ הַֽלְלוּיָֽהּ

King James Version

  1. Praise ye the. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power.
  2. Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness.
  3. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp.
  4. Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs.
  5. Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals.
  6. Let every thing that hath breath praise the. Praise ye the.

    Uses

Judaism

Psalm 150 is the fifth of five consecutive psalms which comprise the main part of Pesukei dezimra in the daily morning service. When recited in this prayer, verse 6 is repeated, indicating the conclusion of the main part of Pesukei dezimra. This repetition of the final verse, which concludes the entire Book of Psalms, mirrors the way the final verse at the end of a Book of the Torah is repeated during the Torah reading in the synagogue.
The entire psalm is recited during the Shofrot section of the Mussaf Amidah on Rosh Hashanah, and during Kiddush Levanah.
Verse 3 is included in a piyyut recited by the Hazzan and congregation on the first day of Rosh Hashanah when that day coincides with a Shabbat.
In Perek Shirah, an ancient Jewish text that ascribes scriptural verses to each element of creation as their way of praising God, the spider says verse 5 of this psalm and the rat says verse 6.
Psalm 150 is one of the ten psalms of the Tikkun HaKlali of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov.

Catholicism

Psalm 150 is one of the Laudate psalms, the others being Psalm 148 and Psalm 149. All three were traditionally sung, in the sequence 148, 149 and 150, during Lauds, a morning service from the canonical hours.

Musical settings

With its focus on musical instruments, Psalm 150 has been called "the musicians' psalm", and also "praise beyond words". It has inspired many composers to musical settings, from paraphasing hymns to use in extended symphonic works: