Reading the Word

Psalm 9:1–20 (ESV)
1 I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds.
2 I will be glad and exult in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.
3 When my enemies turn back, they stumble and perish before your presence.
4 For you have maintained my just cause; you have sat on the throne, giving righteous judgment.
5 You have rebuked the nations; you have made the wicked perish; you have blotted out their name forever and ever.
6 The enemy came to an end in everlasting ruins; their cities you rooted out; the very memory of them has perished.
7 But the LORD sits enthroned forever; he has established his throne for justice,
8 and he judges the world with righteousness; he judges the peoples with uprightness.
9 The LORD is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble.
10 And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you.
11 Sing praises to the LORD, who sits enthroned in Zion! Tell among the peoples his deeds!
12 For he who avenges blood is mindful of them; he does not forget the cry of the afflicted.
13 Be gracious to me, O LORD! See my affliction from those who hate me, O you who lift me up from the gates of death,
14 that I may recount all your praises, that in the gates of the daughter of Zion I may rejoice in your salvation.
15 The nations have sunk in the pit that they made; in the net that they hid, their own foot has been caught.
16 The LORD has made himself known; he has executed judgment; the wicked are snared in the work of their own hands. Higgaion. Selah
17 The wicked shall return to Sheol, all the nations that forget God.
18 For the needy shall not always be forgotten, and the hope of the poor shall not perish forever.
19 Arise, O LORD! Let not man prevail; let the nations be judged before you!
20 Put them in fear, O LORD! Let the nations know that they are but men! Selah

Understanding and Applying the Word

This psalm is a praise of God’s deliverance of Israel from their enemies. The writer states in the opening that he will “give thanks to the LORD” with his “whole heart” and “recount all of your wonderful deeds.”

Praise is always a response to something. When we praise God, it is because of who he is or what he has done, either in the past, the present, or promised future. We should especially focus our praise on the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the focal point of all of Scripture. Yet, we often fail to remember the things God has done for us, so we fail to praise him as we ought. We fail to see the little things that transpire each and every day or we fail to see God’s hand at work in those little things. Take time today to think about how God has shown his goodness to you. He has done so in Christ and he has done so in so many smaller ways. Take time to praise him with thanksgiving.

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