What does Psalm 103:1 mean?
David calls upon his soul and all that is in him to bless the Lord. The Lord blesses us, but how can we "bless" Him? In this context, the term "bless" means "to praise with strong affection." By calling upon his soul and all that is within him to praise the Lord, David summons his soul, mind, strength, and heart to praise Him (Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 22:36–40).David also gives a reason to praise the Lord: He is holy. He is completely separate from sin. When the Lord appeared to Moses in a burning bush and commissioned him to demand that Pharaoh release the Hebrews from captivity, He told Moses to remove his sandals because he was standing on holy ground (Exodus 3:5). The ground was holy only because God was present there. Isaiah received a revelation of the Lord's holiness in the temple. He heard the seraphim pronounce, "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts" (Isaiah 6:3). Praising the Lord for His gracious gifts to us is appropriate, but it is also appropriate to praise Him because He is holy.
