SUMMARY
The Lord is gracious and merciful, giving good gifts to all.
ANALYSIS
These significant verses lie within a hymn of praise, an alphabetical acrosticAn acrostic is a play on words or a word game in which the first letter of each line in a document spells out another message. One biblical example of an acrostic is Psalm 119 in which the consecutive subsections of the psalm feature the..., that extols and blesses God whose “greatness is unsearchable” (v. 3).
Verses 8-9 repeat what is perhaps Israel’s fullest confession of faith (see Exodus 34:6; PsalmA psalm is a song of praise. In the Old Testament 150 psalms comprise the psalter, although some of the psalms are laments and thanksgivings. In the New Testament early Christians gathered to sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. 86:15; 103:8; JonahJonah son of Amittai was a rebellious prophet who fled from the Lord's command, only to be delivered by a big and fish and bring about the repentance of Nineveh. 4:2), a credal statement that becomes virtually a definition of God. True, the Old Testament and the entire Bible speak also of God’s judgment and anger, but this is finally not who God is. God is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast loveThe steadfast love (hesed) of God is the assurance of God's loving kindness, faithfulness, and mercy. This assurance rings throughout the Old Testament, and is affirmed more than 120 times in the Psalms. In some hymns of praise the response of the people was likely.... God’s gracious favor is not based on merit or human performance, but solely on God’s own nature. God remains fully committed to God’s people and all creationCreation, in biblical terms, is the universe as we know or perceive it. Genesis says that in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. In the book of Revelation (which speaks of end times) the author declares that God created all things and....
Based on who God is, the psalm praises what God does: The eyes of all creatures look to God, and God gives them their “food in due season” (vv. 15-16). “Food in due season” is similar to the “daily bread” for which JesusJesus is the Messiah whose life, death, and resurrection are God's saving act for humanity. teaches his followers to pray (MatthewA tax collector who became one of Jesus' 12 disciples. 6:11); it includes actual food, of course, which has made these psalm verses a frequent table prayer, but it also includes all that we need. For God to satisfy human desires does not mean that God is on call to provide every want. The term is used of God’s “favor” or God’s “good pleasure” as well (Psalm 30:7; 51:18). When human desires correspond to God’s desire, good things will certainly be in store.