What does Psalm 115:17 mean?
ESV: The dead do not praise the Lord, nor do any who go down into silence.
NIV: It is not the dead who praise the Lord, those who go down to the place of silence;
NASB: The dead do not praise the Lord, Nor do any who go down into silence;
CSB: It is not the dead who praise the Lord, nor any of those descending into the silence of death.
NLT: The dead cannot sing praises to the Lord, for they have gone into the silence of the grave.
KJV: The dead praise not the Lord, neither any that go down into silence.
NKJV: The dead do not praise the Lord, Nor any who go down into silence.
Verse Commentary:
Verse Context:
Psalm 115:16–18 concludes the psalm with a series of statements. God rules all things, and makes His home in heaven, but He has allowed men to rule over the earth (Genesis 1:28; 9:1–2, 7). Those who die can no longer worship the Lord from earth (Isaiah 38:18; Psalm 30:9), so the psalmist anticipates rescuing so the people can continue to praise the Lord.
Chapter Summary:
Psalm 115 turns all praise and credit away from the people of Israel and gives it entirely to God. Pagan nations worshipped statues and objects. They might have ridiculed Israel's worship of an invisible deity. Yet their own idols were unthinking, unmoving, silent fakes. They were shaped like men but couldn't even do the things ordinary men could do. Israel should maintain trust in the Lord, who chose them as His people and made a covenant with them. The psalmist anticipates a long, productive life of worship because of God's protection.
Chapter Context:
This psalm emphasizes the superiority of the Lord, the One True God, with the false idols and lifeless statues of pagan religions. This is part of the so-called "Egyptian Hallel" (Psalm 113—118). The songs in this segment repeatedly use the Hebrew expression halelu-yāh, brought nearly unchanged into English as "hallelujah." The nation of Israel often struggled with idolatry (2 Kings 17:12; 2 Chronicles 24:18; Isaiah 2:8); this psalm is a call for faithfulness.
Book Summary:
The book of Psalms is composed of individual songs, hymns, or poems, each of which is a ''Psalm'' in and of itself. These works contain a wide variety of themes. Some Psalms focus on praising and worshipping God. Others cry out in anguish over the pain of life. Still other Psalms look forward to the coming of the Messiah. While some Psalms are related, each has its own historical and biblical context.
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