(8-22) The first four strophes of Psalms 105 (1Chronicles 16:1-15.)

(8) Give thanks.--The same Hebrew verb as in 1Chronicles 16:4, "to thank." Psalms 105 is a tod?h, or thanksgiving, hence its use here.

Call upon his name.--Invoke His help, appealing to Him by His revealed name of Jehovah. (Comp. Psalm 3:1-7; Psalm 5:1; Psalm 7:6, and many others.)

Make known.--Israel's mission.

Deeds.--Feats, exploits, deeds of wonder; a poetic word.

People.--Peoples.

Verses 8-36. - These verses, then, provide the form of praise which David wished to be used on this, and probably in grateful repetition on some succeeding occasions. David makes selections from four psalms already known; for it cannot be supposed that the verses we have here were the original, and that they were afterwards supplemented. The first fifteen verses (viz. 8-22) are from Psalm 105:1-15. The next eleven verses (23-33) are from Psalm 96:1-13; but a small portion of the first and last of these verses is omitted. Our thirty-fourth verse is identical with Psalm 107:1; Psalm 118:1; Psalm 136:1; and forms the larger part of Psalm 106:1. It is, in fact, a doxology. And our thirty-fifth and thirty-sixth verses consist of a short responsive ("and say ye") invocation, followed by another doxology. These are taken from Psalm 106:47, 48. Hereupon "all the people" are directed to find the final outburst of praise to Jehovah, and "Amen." In the first of these selections (vers. 8-23) there is no material variation from the language of the psalm itself. Yet the original psalm has Abraham, where our own thirteenth verse reads Israel. And the original psalm uses the third person, where our fifteenth and nineteenth verses have the second person. In the second selection it is worthy of note that our ver. 29, "Come before him," probably preserves the ante-temple reading, while Psalm 96:8 was afterwards, to fit temple times, altered into, "Come into his courts." The arrangement of all the succeeding clauses does not exactly agree with the arrangement of them found in the psalm, as for instance in the latter half of our ver. 30 and in ver. 31, compared with the clauses of vers. 10,11 of the psalm. Again, one clause of the tenth verse of the psalm, "He shall judge the people righteously," is not found in either alternative position open to it through the inversion of clauses, in our vers. 80, 81. The rhythm and metre of the psalm are, however, equally unexceptionable. The whole of the twenty-nine verses of this Psalm of praise (vers. 8-36 inclusive) are divided into portions of three verses each, except the portion vers. 23-27 inclusive which consists of five verses. As regards the matter of it, it may be remarked on as breaking into two parts, in the first of which (vers. 8-22) the people are reminded of their past history and of the marvellous providence which had governed their career from Abraham to the time they were settled in Canaan, but in the second (vers. 23-36) their thought is enlarged, their sympathies immensely widened, so as to include all the world, and their view is borne on to the momentous reality of judgment. Verses 8-10. - These verses are an animated invocation to thanks and praise.

16:7-36 Let God be glorified in our praises. Let others be edified and taught, that strangers to him may be led to adore him. Let us ourselves triumph and trust in God. Those that give glory to God's name are allowed to glory in it. Let the everlasting covenant be the great matter of our joy his people of old, be remembered by us with thankfulness to him. Show forth from day to day his salvation, his promised salvation by Christ. We have reason to celebrate that from day to day; for we daily receive the benefit, and it is a subject that can never be exhausted. In the midst of praises, we must not forget to pray for the servants of God in distress.Then on that day,.... The ark was brought to Zion, and the above persons appointed to minister before it:

David delivered first this psalm to thank the Lord into the hand of Asaph and his brethren to be sung by them now, and on every proper occasion; and this seems to be the first that was delivered to them; afterwards there were many more, as the titles of the psalms show; the following is composed of part of two others, as they now stand in the book of Psalms. From hence, to the end of 1 Chronicles 16:22 is the same with Psalm 105:1, with a little variation, see the notes there; and from thence to the end of 1 Chronicles 16:33 is Psalm 96:1 which see; and 1 Chronicles 16:34 is the same with Psalm 106:1, see the notes there. See Gill on Psalm 106:1, Psalm 107:1, Psalm 105:1, Psalm 105:2, Psalm 105:3, Psalm 105:4, Psalm 105:5, Psalm 105:6, Psalm 105:7, Psalm 105:8, Psalm 105:9, Psalm 105:10, Psalm 105:11,on Psalm 105:12, Psalm 105:13, Psalm 105:14,on Psalm 105:15