Universal Praise to the Lord (vv. 19-22). When we worship the Lord God, we worship the King of the universe. The “Lord of Hosts” is sovereign over all things He has created, including the stars and planets (33:6; Isa. 40:26) and the angels (91:11; 2 Kings 6:17-20), who are servants to the saints (Heb. 1:14). As a youth, David confronted the giant Goliath with, “I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel” (1 Sam. 17:45 nkjv). The apostle John heard the vast choir of all creation praise the Lord (Rev. 5:13), and one day, we shall join in that anthem. But the final shout of praise in the psalm comes, not from the angels, but from David the psalmist: “Bless the Lord, O my soul.” After all, redeemed men and women have more to praise the Lord for than do all the angels in heaven and all the galaxies in the universe.

Nobody in hell blesses the Lord, but every creature in heaven does nothing else but bless the Lord. We who are in this world can enjoy “heaven on earth” as we join them in expressing thanksgiving and blessing to our great God. “Bless the Lord, O my soul!”