提要
詩篇第一四八篇要求宇宙萬物、天上的和地上的、有氣息的和沒有氣息的，都要讚美耶和華。耶和華應受讚美的最大理由就是：「祂就是宇宙萬物的創造主及維持者」。請注意，最後才強調人類是上帝受造物的冠冕。不論階段、年齡、或是性別，人人都要讚美上帝（148：11~12）。讚美上帝就是我們活著的主要目的。當人們不讚美上帝，也不順服祂，他們就不是真正地活著。如果他們認為他們本該那樣，他們就會在上帝審判時發現，他們錯得非常厲害。
更進一步地看，詩人當時要求百姓都讚美上帝。他們都有特別的理由讚美上帝。祇有那些與耶穌基督有個人關係的人，才能用祂的名來讚美上帝。他們知道，祂的名是耶穌，高過任何其他的名（148：13；腓2：9~11）。讚美那個名所產生的結果乃是，上帝會加添祂百姓的力量，並且榮耀他們。
詩篇第一四九篇告訴我們，讚美上帝還有另一個意義。它就是不僅要慶祝上帝已經為我們成就的事，而且也要慶祝誰是上帝。我們要在祂的裡面歡樂，因為祂就是我們的造物主與君王。對古代的以色列人而言，歡欣的慶祝之後，就是跳舞、歌唱，以及彈奏樂器。當慶祝是榮耀耶和華時，祂就會在慶祝中感到喜悅。祂會悅納他們的讚美。
這篇詩篇的場合也許是以色列人得到重大軍事勝利的時候。他們受到耶和華的幫助和拯救，以及唯有像這樣重要的事件才需要唱「新歌」來慶祝；因此，這一詩篇的著作時機可能是軍人得勝凱歸之時。對信耶穌的人而言，新歌就是慶祝上帝在戰勝罪惡與死亡之後，將救恩與自由放在我們心裡時所唱的歌。
雖然以色列人已經贏得戰爭，其他的戰爭又接踵而來。他們是生活在好幾個敵對國家的威脅下；顯然他們不僅是以色列人的仇敵，而且也被認為是上帝的仇敵。聖經賜給他們權威摧毀他們，因為上帝的審判就是要懲罰他們的惡行（149：6~9；申7；112）。不過，這幾節經文在過去已為某些名義上的基督徒所誤解，因為他們利用它作為攻擊異教徒，發動聖戰的藉口。從新約的觀點來看，這樣的解釋是不對的，而且也忽略了聖保羅的話：「我們爭戰的兵器，本不是屬血氣的，乃是在上帝面前有能力，可以攻破堅固的（屬靈的）營壘」（林後10：4）。顯然，它與希伯來書作者所說「兩刃的劍就是上帝的話語」也有相符之處。今天的信徒讚美上帝，手裡有聖靈的寶劍，（149：6下；弗6：17）。我們抵抗黑暗的權勢，可藉著聖靈的大能戰勝它。
詩篇第一五○篇是一篇多麼重要的終曲啊！在短短的六節聖經內，我們讀到「讚美」一字竟然有十三次之多！我們明白，由於上帝是聖潔的，祂應在聖地──祂的聖所或聖殿、或是在天上──受到讚美（150：1）。我們就是耶穌基督的教會，所以也是聖潔的，以及我們的身體也成為上帝的聖殿，所以我們可以肯定，上帝會悅納我們所獻上的讚美（林前3：16）。
我們也明白，為什麼我們要讚美上帝。誠然，我們應當讚美祂的大能作為，但是基本上我們讚美上帝的「極端偉大」（His Excellent Greatness）乃是因為耶穌基督將上帝的偉大擬人化了，所以耶穌就是上帝向人類展示的最大的啟示，以及我們必須為耶穌的緣故讚美上帝（彼後1：17）。
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Overview
Psalm 148 calls for the universal praise to the Lord by all created things, both heavenly and earthly, and both living and inanimate. The main reason for His receiving praise is because He is the Creator and the Sustainer. Notice that the crown of God's creation, mankind, is mentioned last for emphasis. Regardless of class, age, or sex, no one is exempt from praising God (148:11-12). Praising God is the main purpose of our being. When people do not praise the Lord and live in obedience to Him, they cannot truly have fulfilled lives. If they think they do, they will discover at the time of the judgment that they were very wrong.
Narrowing it down even further, the psalmist then calls upon God's people to praise Him. They especially have reason to praise God. Only those who have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ can praise God by His Name. They know that His name is Jesus, which is exalted above every other name (148:13; Phil. 2:9-11). A result that comes from praising that name is that God will strengthen and honour those believers and they will be a people who are near to Him, but He also draws nearer to us that we might have a closer fellowship, relationship, and bond.
Psalm 149 gives us yet another dimension of praise. It is the joyful celebration for not only what God has done for us, but for Who God is. We are to rejoice in Him as our Maker and King. For the ancient Israelite, a joyful celebration was accompanied by dancing, singing, and the playing of musical instruments. When the celebration was in honour of the Lord, He would be glorified through this. He would take pleasure in receiving their sincere and joyful praises.
The occasion for this psalm was most likely a military victory for Israel. They received the Lord's help and deliverance and such an important event called for the singing of a "new song"; Thus this psalm was possibly composed for the time when the soldiers returned victoriously from battle. For the believer in Jesus, the new song is the song of salvation and freedom that He puts within our hearts since He has won the victory over sin and death.
Although Israel had won a war, there were still other wars to be waged. They were under the threat of several hostile nations, who were not only their enemies but they were also considered the enemies of God. The sacred Scriptures gave them the authority to destroy them as divine judgment in punishment for their wickedness (149:6-9; Deut. 7:1-2). These verses, however, have been misunderstood in the past by nominal Christians who have used them in support of an actual military assault on the heathen, a holy war. In light of the New Testament, such an interpretation is unacceptable and it ignores the words of the Apostle Paul, "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down [spiritual] strongholds" (2 Cor. 10:4). It is no coincidence that the writer to the Hebrews refers to the double-edged sword as being the Word of God (Heb. 4:12). When believers today praise God it should be accompanied by the sword of the Spirit, not the sword of steel (149:6b; Eph. 6:17). We fight against principalities and powers of darkness over which we will prevail and be victorious by the power of God's Spirit.
What a grand finale is Psalm 150! Within the six short verses we read the word "praise" (Hebrew halel) thirteen times! We learn that since God is holy He is to be praised in a holy place — His sanctuary or Temple and in the heavenlies (150:1). We, who make up the Church of Jesus Christ, have been made holy, and our bodies have been made the temple of God so we can be assured that the praises we offer unto Him are acceptable and pleasing (1 Cor. 3:16).
We also learn why we should praise Him. Indeed, we should praise Him for His mighty acts, but primarily we should praise Him for "His excellent greatness" Jesus Christ personified God's greatness, for He was and is the greatest revelation of God to mankind and we today must praise God for Jesus (2 Peter 1:17). How are we to praise God? With every form of praise, including musical instruments of all kinds, but most importantly we are to praise Him from our own mouths as long as we breathe. He who breathed life into us is worthy of our praise all the days that He has given us upon the earth. Even in eternity, when we have new and resurrected bodies in the life everlasting, we will live to praise Him.
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