Did you know that the book of Psalms ends with a crescendo of praise? For the first 144 chapters, Israel’s songwriters and poets cry out to the Lord for help, pour out their heartaches before him, search for his wisdom, and declare their trust in him. Interspersed with these concerns are notes of praise. But as the book draws to a close, praise becomes the focus of every psalm, almost every line. The final six psalms, 145 – 150, are soaring doxologies- works of pure praise. The largest category in the psalms is lament, but praise gets the last word.

And so it will be with us. One day, our heartaches will be over, and our laments finished, but our songs of praise will only get louder and longer. If we have sown in tears, we will reap with shouts of joy. This is God’s promise to his people: praise will get the last word (see Isa 61:3).

And even now, no matter what happens, praise can have the last word in every circumstance and at the end of every day if we so choose. Because even when we are broken, even when we are crushed, as Job was, God is still ruling and reigning, he is still good, and he is still for us, which means we always have a reason to praise. That’s why Paul can say, “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (1 Thes 5:18). God never leaves his people without a reason for thanksgiving and praise. Not even in 2020.

So I think the macro-lesson of the final six psalms is that praise can have, and will ultimately get, the last word. But we would be missing much if we stopped right there. Each psalm has something important to say in its own right.  Each has a theme; a message about how to praise, or why to praise, or what to praise that can help us worship and grow to be more thankful. Over the next several weeks leading up to Thanksgiving, I’ll do a series of posts looking at them one at a time. I’d love it if you’d read along and add your own insights and comments, too!