Psalms of Thanksgiving

Bonus! Today's discussion is also available on Youtube if you'd rather listen/watch!

Today as we turn our attention towards the theme of giving thanks in the Psalms, I want to give you a brief tour of thanks in the Psalms. Imagine our discussion today as though we are going from one exhibit to another, and each little paragraph is a plaque featuring a display. 

Psalm 100 is a standout Psalm of thanksgiving and is the starting point for our tour today:

1 Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. 2 Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. 3 Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. 5 For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Within Psalm 100 there are two words used that deal directly with thankfulness. These words in Hebrew are תּוֹדָה (Pronounced to-daw' - translated to English as thanksgiving) and יָדָה (Pronounced yaw-daw' - translated to English as thanks). Both of these words see frequent use throughout the scriptures.  תּוֹדָה occurs 12 times in the Psalms in 10 different Psalms, and יָדָה occurs more than 60 times in more than 50 different Psalms. I only bring up their frequency as a way to show just how important thankfulness is within the Psalms. 

The second stop on our tour is an exhibit displaying how thanksgiving and worship are connected in the Psalms. Often times the words תּוֹדָה and יָדָה are translated as praise instead of thanksgiving. Whether the word is rendered as praise or thanksgiving, the source of praise and reason for giving thanks is connected to who God is and what He's done. Let's take a look at a few examples: 

I will praise God's name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving (תּוֹדָה). Psalm 69:30

Let us come before him with thanksgiving (תּוֹדָה) and extol him with music and song. Psalm 95:2

Let them sacrifice thank (תּוֹדָה) offerings and tell of his works with songs of joy. Psalm 107:22

Sing to the Lord with grateful praise (תּוֹדָה); make music to our God on the harp. Psalm 147:7

I will give thanks (יָדָה) to the Lord because of his righteousness; I will sing the praises of the name of the Lord Most High. Psalm 7:17

I will give thanks (יָדָה) to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds. Psalm 9:1

I will give you thanks (יָדָה) in the great assembly; among the throngs I will praise you. Psalm 35:18

There are more examples I could show, but I hope these selected examples act like a few sign posts with little descriptions on them in a museum. If you'd like to stop and read more here are a few verses you can look up on your own: Psalm 44:8, 50:14, 56:12, 67:5, 69:30, 71:22, 75:1, 86:12, 145:10. 

So what have we seen so far in our tour? So far two things: First, we've seen that the theme of giving thanks is quite widespread throughout the book of Psalms. Second, we've seen that giving thanks in the Psalms is often connected to the praise and worship of the Lord God. Thirdly today I want to show you how the Psalms speak of the joy that inspires Christian giving of thanks. 

Psalm 92:1 says "It is good to praise the Lord and make music to your name" and then later in verse 4 says "For you make me glad by your deeds, Lord: I sing for joy at what your hands have done". Psalm 95:1 says "Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation". Psalm 97:1 says "The Lord reigns, let the earth be glad; let the distant shores rejoice." Psalm 98:4 says "Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music" and of course Psalm 100 says "Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.".

In the Psalms we hear of how good it is to praise God. We read of God's mighty deeds bringing gladness to his people. We observe joyful song is appropriate as we witness the results of the Lord's labors. Shouting, while often considered rowdy, raucous, and irreverent is one way the Psalms express reverence. The songs of the Psalms are not dreary, dreadful, monotonous caricatures of worship expressed in an emotional vacuum. The songs are jubilant, and confident in their abundant outpouring of adoration and praise to the great God of wonders. 

Joy, thanks, shouts, singing, worship, and praise all go together in the Psalms. They are a collective response to the experienced reality of God's love towards the believer. Thanksgiving is the result of someone who has received something worthwhile. Thanksgiving is a byproduct of witnessing who God is, and trusting in what He's done. 

I hope you've enjoyed our brief tour of thanksgiving in the Psalms!