Psalm 148

As I read this psalm, I was struck by the movement from “far” to “near.” The psalmist begins in his admonition of praise by describing things that are “far” from us: the heavens, angels, heavenly hosts, sun, moon, and stars. (vs 1-4) Then, he continues to ask for praise from things a little “closer” to home: the animals, the weather, nature, and people. (vs 7-12)

Yes, let everything praise the Lord—everything that is far and everything that is near.

Photo © shutterstock.com/Denis Rozhnovsky

Here’s what I especially liked about the psalm, however. Near and far are terms of distance relative to us, but everything is near to God. Did you catch that? “Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise him in the heights above.” (vs 1) That’s “far” from us, but “near” to God, assuming He is in heaven surrounded by His legions of angels!

But then, this: “He has raised up for his people a horn, the praise of all his faithful servants, of Israel, the people close to his heart.” (vs 14) People. That’s “near” to us, and “near” to God as well. Specifically, close to His heart.

What I like about this is how it implies that nearness to God doesn’t really have anything to do with geography. Even if we are “far” in terms of physical distance (which might not be possible, see Psalm 139), we are always “near” to His heart. Though we may feel far from Him, He is never far from us.

God is near—when life is hard, good, boring, exciting, routine, devastating, or surprising. We don’t go through any of it alone, and if for nothing else, that is one of the best reasons to praise the Lord. He is always near!