O My Soul, Bless God The Father
O My Soul, Bless God the Father
O my soul, bless God the Father;
All within me bless His name;
Bless the Father, and forget not
All His mercies to proclaim.
Who forgiveth thy transgressions,
Thy diseases all who heals;
Who redeems thee from destruction,
Who with thee so kindly deals.
Far as east from west is distant,
He hath put away our sin;
Like the pity of a father
Hath the Lord’s compassion been.
As it was without beginning,
So it lasts without an end;
To their children’s children ever
Shall His righteousness extend:
Unto such as keep His covenant
And are steadfast in His way;
Unto those who still remember
His commandments, and obey.
Bless the Father, all His creatures,
Ever under His control;
All throughout His vast dominion
Bless the Father, O my soul.
THIS HYMN, a recasting of Psalm 103, contains three rich biblical images for us to ponder. The first verses of both the psalm and the hymn call upon all within us to bless and praise the Lord. There is a totality of worship demanded here.
Later, the psalmist notes that God has removed our sins “as far as the east is from the west.” East and west are as far apart as you can get. What a vivid reminder that when God forgives us, our sins are truly gone!
The third image is that of a father who cares deeply for his children. Jesus used this same illustration: If a human father gives bread to his hungry child, won’t our heavenly Father do this and more? A wise parent knows the limitations of his children. We don’t ask five-year-old children to compute our taxes and then punish them for missing a few deductions. That would be foolish. In the same way, our heavenly Father understands our limits and has compassion when we fail.
Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name. Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me.
Psalm 103:1-2
From the book
