I’ve compiled a great list of Psalms of thanksgiving and praise. There are many different kinds of prayer. All of them are important and have a powerful purpose. However, I would have to say that praise is probably my favorite form of prayer. I love the joy that fills my soul as I pour out gratitude to my Father. And I know that praise pleases His heart. The Psalms are full of bible verses about thanksgiving and gratitude!
Make sure to grab your FREE printable Bible reading plan at the bottom! Also, use some gratitude coloring pages for a fun way to meditate on the Psalms.
There are some questions we want to consider as we look at the different bible verses of praise and thanksgiving.
- Which Psalms are ones of praise and thanksgiving?
- How many Psalms of thanksgiving are there?
- Why is giving praise and thanks to God so important?
Let’s dig into some of these questions.
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How Many Psalms of Thanksgiving Are There?
Psalms is a book of prayers. It includes prayers of thanksgiving and praise, lament, supplication, and surrender, just to name a few.
Honestly, I wasn’t sure exactly how many of the Psalms were specifically categorized as Psalms of thanksgiving. So, I did a little digging and found out that the thanksgiving Psalms are often referred to as the Todah Psalms. Todah is the Hebrew word that means “confession, praise, thanksgiving”.
Here are a few of the Todah Psalms. We’ll take a closer look at some of these in a minute:
- Psalm 27
- Psalm 46
- Psalm 37
- Psalm 100
- Psalm 34
- Psalm 18
- Psalm 145
- Psalm 92
The Power of Thanksgiving
There are many instances throughout God’s Word where we are given the command to ‘rejoice in Him!’, ‘praise Him!’, and to be ‘thankful in all things!’
This command is for our benefit. There is power in giving thanks to God.
God Wants Us to Be Thankful
Have you ever asked the question, “God what is your will for me”?
Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. – 1 Thessalonians 5:18 NASB
We may not know the fullness of God’s will for our lives, but we can be sure that it includes praise and thanksgiving.
His Word says so.
When we are giving God praise and gratitude, we can be confident that we are responding in accordance with His will.
Gratitude Guards Our Hearts and Minds
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 4:6-7
Did you catch that? When we choose gratitude, we are protecting ourselves from the myriad of anxious thoughts that attempt to penetrate our mind and heart.
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Psalms of Thanksgiving and Praise to God
I love the book of Psalms because they are full of praise and thanksgiving scriptures. They also give us great examples of how we can pray and trust God in all circumstances. Here are a few of my favorites Psalms of praise to God.
Psalm 145
This is a great starting place. This psalm is one of my favorites because it’s a great reminder that God is worthy of my praise today – and each and every day! His greatness endures forever.
I will extol You, my God, O King,
And I will bless Your name forever and ever.
Every day I will bless You,
And I will praise Your name forever and ever.
Great is the Lord, and highly to be praised,
And His greatness is unsearchable.
Read More…
Psalm 138:1-8
This psalm begins with personal praise and worship in bowing down before the Lord. However, it also mentions how the kings of all the earth will give praise and sing to God.
I will give You thanks with all my heart;
I will sing praises to You before the gods.
I will bow down toward Your holy temple
And give thanks to Your name for Your lovingkindness and Your truth;
For You have magnified Your word according to all Your name.
Read more…
Psalm 34
I love having my daily quiet times with the Lord each morning. I sit in His presence, read His word, and pour out my heart in prayer. However, I can so easily leave this place and forget to pray, ponder, and meditate on Him and His goodness for the remainder of my day. This psalm is a great reminder that prayer and praise need to be my lifestyle. My quiet time must be carried into the rest of my day.
I will bless the Lord at all times;
His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
My soul will make its boast in the Lord;
The humble will hear it and rejoice.
O magnify the Lord with me,
And let us exalt His name together.
Read more…
Psalm 92:1-4
I love how this psalm begins. It is good to give thanks to the Lord. Giving God praise and gratitude has an amazing way of lifting our hearts and minds out of our circumstances and into the heavenly places.
Indeed – it is good to give thanks to the Lord.
It is good to give thanks to the Lord
And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High;
To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning
And Your faithfulness by night,
With the ten-stringed lute and with the harp,
With resounding music upon the lyre.
For You, O Lord, have made me glad by what You have done,
I will sing for joy at the works of Your hands.
Psalm 103:1-22
One of the reasons Israel failed to faithfully follow the Lord is because they failed to remember all the ways God had been faithful to them. This is a great psalm to encourage us to remember all the ways God has been good to us – and to thank Him for it all.
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And all that is within me, bless His holy name.
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And forget none of His benefits;
Who pardons all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases;
Who redeems your life from the pit,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion;
Who satisfies your years with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle.
Read More…
Psalm 95
The Lord loves when His people assemble together for the purpose of singing for joy to Him.
O come, let us sing for joy to the Lord,
Let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation.
Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving,
Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.
Read More…
Psalm 118
God and His character are unchanging. I’m so thankful that we serve a God whose lovingkindness is everlasting for those who fear Him.
Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
Oh let Israel say,
“His lovingkindness is everlasting.”
Oh let the house of Aaron say,
“His lovingkindness is everlasting.”
Oh let those who fear the Lord say,
“His lovingkindness is everlasting.”
Read More
More Short Psalms of Praise to God
Along with the psalms listed above, here are some others that are short and sweet. These are great psalms to memorize.
Psalm 100
A pastor friend of mine used to say “praise is the key to the gate of heaven”. Psalm 100 tells us to come before the Lord with gratitude in our hearts and praise on our lips.
Enter His gates with thanksgiving
And His courts with praise.
Give thanks to Him, bless His name.
Read More…
Psalm 117
And the winner of the shortest psalm goes to…
This psalm may be short but definitely not lacking in quality. BTW – that word ‘laud’ means ‘praise’. (I had to look it up, LOL)
Praise the Lord, all nations;
Laud Him, all peoples!
For His lovingkindness is great toward us,
And the truth of the Lord is everlasting.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 8
This psalm always leaves me in wonder and awe. The works of the Lord are truly amazing.
O Lord, our Lord,
How majestic is Your name in all the earth,
Who have displayed Your splendor above the heavens!
Read More…
Psalm 113
This psalm is similar to others we have seen. However, I love how this one mentions how amazing it is that the Lord, the creator of the heavens and earth, would humble Himself to behold the things in our lives.
Praise the Lord!
Praise, O servants of the Lord,
Praise the name of the Lord.
Blessed be the name of the Lord
From this time forth and forever.
Read More…
Psalm 134
Like Psalm 117, this one is also short and sweet. According to Matthew Henry Commentary, “In the first two verses, the priests or Levites who sat up all night to keep the watch of the house of the Lord are called upon to spend their time while they were upon the guard, not in idle talk, but in the acts of devotion.”
Again, this is a great reminder for us to spend each of our moments in praise to God.
Behold, bless the Lord, all servants of the Lord,
Who serve by night in the house of the Lord!
Lift up your hands to the sanctuary
And bless the Lord.
May the Lord bless you from Zion,
He who made heaven and earth.
Psalms of Gratitude and Adoration
What is the difference between praise and adoration? Is there a difference? This is a question I’ve been pondering.
I believe that praise leads us to adoration. Praise is the act of giving thanks to God for who He is and what He has done. Adoration takes us a bit deeper. If you google “definition of adore”, you will see that adoration is about reverence and devotion.
The following are some more psalms that have led me to this place of adoration.
Psalm 66
I love the thought of making His praise glorious. This psalm causes me to consider how my life (my choices, actions, and ambitions) are giving glory to His name.
Shout joyfully to God, all the earth;
Sing the glory of His name;
Make His praise glorious.
Say to God, “How awesome are Your works!
Read More…
Psalm 111
God is after our hearts. He wants to be the object of our greatest affection and longing.
Praise the Lord!
I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart,
In the company of the upright and in the assembly.
Great are the works of the Lord;
They are studied by all who delight in them.
Splendid and majestic is His work,
And His righteousness endures forever.
Read More…
Psalm 89
We serve a God who is full of beauty and wonder. There is no one else like Him. He is great and worthy of our highest praise and devotion.
The heavens will praise Your wonders, O Lord;
Your faithfulness also in the assembly of the holy ones.
For who in the skies is comparable to the Lord?
Who among the sons of the mighty is like the Lord,
A God greatly feared in the council of the holy ones,
And awesome above all those who are around Him?
Read More…
Psalm 139
It can be a scary thought to think that there is someone out there who knows my every thought and desire. However, God knows all of me and still loves me deeply.
O Lord, You have searched me and known me.
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
You understand my thought from afar.
You scrutinize my path and my lying down,
And are intimately acquainted with all my ways.
Even before there is a word on my tongue,
Behold, O Lord, You know it all.
Read More…
Psalm 73:25-28
There is no person or thing that can satisfy our greatest desires and longings like God can.
Whom have I in heaven but You?
And besides You, I desire nothing on earth.
My flesh and my heart may fail,
But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
For, behold, those who are far from You will perish;
You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You.
But as for me, the nearness of God is my good;
I have made the Lord God my refuge,
That I may tell of all Your works.
Morning Psalms of Thanksgiving
Declaration is a great way to start our day off right! Here are some psalms to declare for helping you to establish Truth in your mind before the day begins.
Psalm 5
I love this psalm! It encourages us to order our prayers to God in the morning, then eagerly watch to see how He will reply. This is a prayer of great faith.
Give ear to my words, O Lord,
Consider my groaning.
Heed the sound of my cry for help, my King and my God,
For to You I pray.
In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice;
In the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly watch.
Read More…
Psalm 46
Remind yourself first thing in the morning that God is your refuge and strength. He is the one who will sustain us through each day for all that He has called us to.
God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change
And though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea;
Though its waters roar and foam,
Though the mountains quake at its swelling pride.
Read More…
Psalm 144
We are in a battle every day. A spiritual one. God, with the help of His word and His Spirit, trains us to fight the right way with the right weapons.
Blessed be the Lord, my rock,
Who trains my hands for war,
And my fingers for battle;
My lovingkindness and my fortress,
My stronghold and my deliverer,
My shield and He in whom I take refuge,
Who subdues my people under me.
Read More…
Evening Psalms of Thanksgiving and Praise
Declaring truth in the evening is a great way to help you surrender your cares and concerns of the day at the throne. Don’t take your anxious thoughts to bed with you. Use these verses to fill your mind with Truth and peace.
Psalm 121
It’s comforting to know that while we rest our weary bodies in the evenings, God remains alert and aware. He is watchful over us.
I will lift up my eyes to the mountains;
From where shall my help come?
My help comes from the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.
He will not allow your foot to slip;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, He who keeps Israel
Will neither slumber nor sleep.
Read More…
Psalm 91
There is a whole lot of craziness happening all around us in the world these days. Yet, we do not need to fear. We belong to God and He is able to keep and protect us.
You will not be afraid of the terror by night,
Or of the arrow that flies by day;
Of the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
Or of the destruction that lays waste at noon.
Read More…
Psalm 4:6-8
Our joy comes from knowing and trusting God.
Many are saying, “Who will show us any good?”
Lift up the light of Your countenance upon us, O Lord!
You have put gladness in my heart,
More than when their grain and new wine abound.
In peace I will both lie down and sleep,
For You alone, O Lord, make me to dwell in safety.
Psalm 55:16-23
It’s a great comfort to know that the one who defends me from my enemies is always available for a rescue.
As for me, I shall call upon God,
And the Lord will save me.
Evening and morning and at noon, I will complain and murmur,
And He will hear my voice.
He will redeem my soul in peace from the battle which is against me,
For they are many who strive with me.
Read More…
Psalm 103:15-22
The lovingkindness of the Lord will never end. This assurance gives me peace, no matter what circumstances life may throw at me. He knows my days. My coming and going.
As for man, his days are like grass;
As a flower of the field, so he flourishes.
When the wind has passed over it, it is no more,
And its place acknowledges it no longer.
But the lovingkindness of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him
Read More…
Psalms of Thanksgiving and Praise Printable Reading Plan
Get these verses in a printable Bible reading plan. Just click and download your free copy. Meditate on these powerful psalms over the next few weeks.
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- 34 Beautiful Psalms of Comfort
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