Psalm 206

A song of spiritual uplifting.

Hum, Blessed Beer Cooler

   206 O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: because his mercy endureth for ever. 2 Praise ye the LORD. Praise ye the name of the LORD; praise him, O ye servants of the LORD. 3 Ye that stand in the comforting house1 of the LORD, rise up and praise the name of the LORD. 4 Be glad ye righteous servants and rejoice exceedingly2. 5 Drink in the light of the LORD; blessed be the light he shineth through shrouded portals.

            6 O LORD, when thy people cried out in thirst, thou gavest them a plentiful rain. Selah. 7 Though gavest them abundant harvests. 8 Thou gavest them breweries of ale, lager and stout. 9 Thou converteth electricity to cold in thine devices3. 10 This is the LORD's doing: it is marvellous before our eyes. 11 The right hand of the LORD is exalted: the right hand of the LORD doeth valiantly. 12 Blessed be the LORD, who daily loadeth us with benefits, as before4 Joshua, the God of our salvation.

          13 Open to me the cooler doors: I will take a cold5 one and praise the LORD. 14 Guard over this container of the LORD, of which the righteous shall partake. 15 Watch him, O LORD, like the children of Israel. 16 Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the LORD: we shall giveth him cool6 beverages, for a reasonable7 price. 17 God is the LORD. He hath delivered coolness for his vessels. 18 In his kindness he has given us a light and a soothing hum so that we shall be peaceful. 19 O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: because his mercy endureth for ever.



Footnotes
1206:3 comforting house: - Heb. a house of the Lord or a convenient store
2206:4 exceedingly: Heb. rejoice with gladness
3206:9 in thine devices: or, inside thy devices
4206:12 before: Heb. in front of
5206:13 cold: Heb. delicious and frosty
6206:16 cool: Heb. cold
7206:16 reasonable: of the Lord's wisdom and reason


John Fitzpatrick's Commentary and Explanatory notes

Overview
It is good to be in the house of the Lord. (1-5) The wonderful work of God. (6-12) Thanks and prayers to the Lord. (13-19)
Commentary and notes on Psalm 206:1-5
The psalmist begins by prayers of praise to the Lord. The Lord is good and provideth us. Those who stand in the presence of the Lord must give praise and thanks. Standing in his house is enough in itself to provide spiritual delights. The term comforting house has a double meaning in Hebrew, and can be taken to mean either the house of the Lord or a convenient(-ce) house, or store. The psalmist may have been referring to either, but more likely he means both (see also 206:6): we should praise the Lord everywhere that his spirit is apparent. The Lord's spirit dwelleth everywhere, and the righteous shall extol God's spirit wherever they shall step. Let us be exceptional in our praise of the Lord, let us not shy away from the Lord's beverages, which he has given unto us. Let our joy and supplication be frequent and prodigious. When the psalmist says Drink in the light of the Lord he is again employing a double meaning. We should partake of the Lord's light, but also drink the Lord's beverages in his light (see also 206:3).

Commentary and notes on Psalm 206:6-12
The Lord's miracles are abundant around us. The creation of beer and keeping it cool are no simple matters. The Lord giveth the hops, the barley, the rain to make them grow, the yeast and the instruments of brewing. The Lord has supplied us with alcohol, and the process with which to make it. The Lord made us diverse with different tastes, and gave us many types of beer, to appeal to the taste of every one of his disciples. When we cried in thirst, the Lord did not only give us water, which would have been sufficient; he gave us beer. For this, we should not only be grateful, but we should exalt and glorify the name of the Lord. Beer is the Lord's creation, and it is his chosen drink.

The Lord's work is done with his right hand - the working hand. The right hand is also the drinking hand. The right hand is valiant and good and we should praise it. The right hand is also the smiting hand. Those who do not enjoy the Lord's drink are heathens. God has supplied us with a diversity of beer, to meet the taste of every righteous person. We must smite down those who do not drink beer, for they are blasphemers and evildoers and do not belong in the house of the Lord. We must be furious and vicious and righteous in our persuit of the pagans. The Lord will help us crush them, as he helped Joshua bring down the walls of Jericho. The psalmist's mention of Joshua is not coincidental. It took Joshua seven days to bring down the walls, just as the Lord keepeth the beer cool seven days a week.

Commentary and notes on Psalm 206:13-19
I shall drink what the Lord has offered me. I shall not pass it up. I shall drink and rejoice in the love and the light of the Lord. The light guides me to the Lord's beverage. The Lord guides me with his light as He guided Israel with a pillar of smoke and a pillar of fire. He leadeth me to the cooler, which I can find in the darkest of night. I pray to the Lord, so that the Lord shall not forsake me. The cooler hums in the voice of the Lord, showing me that the Lord is unfalteringly there, and the beer shall remain cool. God watched over the children of Israel for forty years in the desert. The psalmist prays to the Lord to watch over the beer cooler for a long time, like he watched over the children of Israel. The psalmist says watch him and not it for the cooler is an instrument of the Lord. God loves everyone and all who are righteous should give praise and thanks to him, and drink his beer, and be merry and mirthful. The psalmist calls upon all about him to give thanks to God for the glad tidings of great joy to all people. We should rejoice in the knowledge that the Lord provideth us and gives us gifts. He is the redeemer and the saviour and his mercy is everlasting.

Psalm 205 << Psalm 206 >>Psalm 207