Psalm 117

Psalm 117 is the 117th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in the English King James Version "1 O praise the LORD, all ye nations: praise him, all ye people." The Book of Psalms is the third section of the Hebrew Bible, and a book of the Christian Old Testament. In the Greek Septuagint version of the bible, and in the Latin Vulgate, this psalm is Psalm 116 in a slightly different numbering system. In Latin, it is known as "Laudate Dominum".[1]

This article uses the Hebrew (Masoretic) Psalms numbering. Psalm 117 in Septuagint/Vulgate numbering would correspond to Psalm 118 in Hebrew numbering.
Psalm 117
"How amiable are thy tabernacles"
Psalm 117, from the Wolfcoz Psalter, c. 820-830.
Other name
  • Psalm 116
  • "Laudate Dominum"
LanguageHebrew (original)

The short psalm of praise is a regular part of Jewish, Catholic, Anglican and Protestant liturgies. It has been set to music often, in many languages.

Text

With just two verses and sixteen words in Hebrew, it is the shortest of all 150 psalms. It is the 595th of the 1,189 chapters of the King James Version of the Bible, making it the middle chapter. It is also the shortest chapter in this version of the Bible.

In Hebrew, it is an acrostic poem and is one of the so-called Egyptian Hallel prayers.

Hebrew Bible version
Verse Hebrew
1 הַֽלְל֣וּ אֶת־יְ֖הֹוָה כָּל־גּוֹיִ֑ם שַׁ֜בְּח֗וּהוּ כָּל־הָֽאֻמִּֽים
2 כִּ֥י גָ֘בַ֚ר עָלֵ֨ינוּ חַסְדּ֗וֹ וֶֽאֱמֶת־יְהֹ֘וָ֥ה לְ֜עוֹלָ֗ם הַֽלְלוּיָֽהּ

King James Version
  1. O praise the LORD, all ye nations: praise him, all ye people.
  2. For his merciful kindness is great toward us: and the truth of the LORD endureth for ever. Praise ye the LORD.

Uses
The Tosher Rebbe of Montreal, Quebec, Canada shaking the Four species during Sukkot while praying Hallel.

Judaism

Psalm 117 is one of six psalms (113-118) of which Hallel is composed. On all days when Hallel is recited, this psalm is recited in its entirety.[2]

New Testament

In Psalm 117, the gentiles are invited to join in praise of God. Christians view this as a fulfillment of God's promise of mercy to the gentiles, pointing to God's promise that all nations would be blessed in the seed of Abraham, who they believe is Christ, as described in Paul's Letter to the Galatians. Galatians 3:16 says "The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say 'and to seeds,' meaning many people, but 'and to your seed,' meaning one person, who is Christ." Verse 1 is quoted in Romans 15:11[3]

Catholicism

In the Catholic Church, the Rule of Saint Benedict assigns this psalm (116 in hte Vulgate) to the Office of Vespers on Monday. Saint Benedict of Nursia generally used four psalms in vespers, but because of the shortness of this psalm, he added a fifth when it was used. However, this psalm is currently used in the Liturgy of the Hours on Saturday of Weeks I and III. The psalm may be sung after Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, a ritual performed in Catholic[4] and some Anglican churches.

Musical settings
Beginning of Bach's motet

Psalm 117, known by the opening words in Latin as "Laudate dominum" (translated "O, Praise the Lord" or "Praise ye the Lord"), has been set to music by a number of composers, including William Byrd,[5] Johann Sebastian Bach Lobet den Herrn, alle Heiden, BWV 230, Michel Richard Delalande,[6], Marc-Antoine Charpentier, (7 settings), H 177, H 152, H 159, H 182, H 214, H 223, H 227, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart[7] and Robert Strassburg.[8] More recently, it has been set by the Swedish composer Fredrik Sixten. The psalm also forms the introduction of the 90s pop song Happy Nation by Swedish pop group Ace of Base, and a popular arrangement from the Taizé community.[9][10]

References
  1. Parallel Latin/English Psalter / Psalmus 116 (117) Archived 2017-05-07 at the Wayback Machine medievalist.net
  2. The Complete Artscroll Siddur page 638
  3. Kirkpatrick, A. F. (1901). The Book of Psalms: with Introduction and Notes. The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges. Book IV and V: Psalms XC-CL. Cambridge: At the University Press. p. 840. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
  4. The Benedictines of Solesmes, ed. Liber Usualis, p. 1853. New York: Desclee Company, 1961.
  5. William Byrd, (Gradualia II (1607),) no. 45.
  6. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2015-10-31.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) [archive] p.46
  7. Rykkvin, Aksel (28 December 2016). "Laudate Dominum (by Mozart) sung by boy soprano Aksel Rykkvin (13 years)". YouTube.
  8. Robert Strassburg milkenarchive.org
  9. Laudate Dominum taize.fr
  10. Le site de la communauté propose une version Midi et les partitions.
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