November 6th

Enter with Thanksgiving

Psalm 100:1 Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands.
Psalm 100:2 Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
Psalm 100:4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

Come with Singing

Psalm 100 is an exhortation to give God praise and honor. It says to make a joyful noise unto Him, and to come before His presence with singing. God is a musical God. He created music and singing, and His word tells us to come into His presence with singing. So then, singing praise to the LORD is a legitimate form of worship and praise.

Forms of Praise

Psalm 100:4 gives us four forms of praise and thanksgiving, derived from four different Hebrew words. It says to enter His gates, or to go through the doors of His presence, with thanksgiving, translated from the Hebrew word “Towdah”, which means with an open confession of thanksgiving and praise.

It goes on to say to enter into His courts, or His settled abode, with praise, from the Hebrew word “Tehillah”, meaning a song or hymn of praise, or a thanksgiving paid to one deserving it.

Next it says to be thankful unto Him, the word “thankful” coming from the Hebrew word “Yadah”, meaning to shoot or to cast out. It implies a casting out of praise to Him, an open expression of gratitude.

Then it says to bless His name, the word “bless” being a translation of the Hebrew word “Barak”, which means to kneel down and adore.

The LORD is to be Praised

We see in this Psalm a variety of acceptable ways to praise and thanks the LORD. The Bible is clear that those who follow God should be acquainted with the giving of thanks and praise to Him. Whether it be with singing, or with the confession of thanksgiving, or exuberant casting out of praise to Him, or kneeling down to Him in adoration, the LORD is to be praised.

Develop the habit of giving thanks to Him. There is an old hymn that exhorts us to count our blessings, and to name them one by one. That’s a great exercise of praise to the LORD. Take time to do that today, and every day.