Seventh-day Adventist Bible CommentaryPsalms 148

All his angels. See Ps. 103:20, 21. All his hosts. See on Ps. 24:10.

Stars of light. Poetically the stars, the sun, and the moon are called upon to ascribe praise to God.

Heavens of heavens. Idiomatic for the highest heavens. Above the heavens. Compare Gen. 1:7.

Let them praise. See on v. 3.

Stablished them. The heavenly bodies owe their stability and permanence to the omnipotent will of God, their Sustainer.

Decree. Heb. choq, “something prescribed.” Choq may also mean “bounds,” or “limit,” as in Jer. 5:22, and the psalmist may be referring to the fact that God has marked out the orbits in which the heavenly bodies move. They perform their revolutions with unerring accuracy within the bounds that He has prescribed.

Dragons. See on Deut. 32:33; Job 30:29. The summons must be understood poetically.

Fire. Presumably a reference to lightning, as in Ps. 18:12; 105:32.

Fruitful trees. The summons extends to the plant kingdom.

Beasts. Heb. chayyah, “wild animals.” Cattle. Heb. behemah, “domestic animals.” The summons extends to the animal kingdom.

All people. The psalmist places mankind last, perhaps as representing the crowning work of creation as far as this earth is concerned.

Young men. A subclassification of the human family emphasizing the comprehensiveness of the summons to praise. Everyone of whatever age or station, whether high or low, young or old, should praise the Lord.

Exalteth the horn. An expression denoting increase of power and strength (see Deut. 33:17; 1 Sam. 2:1, 10; Ps. 18:2; etc.). Praise ye the Lord. Like Ps. 146, 147, this psalm closes with a “hallelujah” (see on Ps. 146:1).