Psalm 145:14
The LORD upholds all who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down.
The LORD upholds
The Hebrew word for "LORD" here is "Yahweh," the covenant name of God, emphasizing His eternal, self-existent nature and His faithfulness to His promises. "Upholds" comes from the Hebrew root "samak," which means to support, sustain, or hold up. This imagery suggests a God who is actively involved in the lives of His people, providing strength and stability. Historically, this reflects the understanding of God as a divine protector and sustainer, a theme prevalent throughout the Old Testament. In a spiritual sense, it reassures believers of God's unwavering support in times of trouble.

all who fall
The phrase "all who fall" acknowledges human frailty and the inevitability of stumbling in life's journey. The Hebrew word for "fall" is "naphal," which can mean to fall physically, morally, or spiritually. This recognition of human weakness is a recurring theme in the Psalms, where the psalmist often cries out for divine assistance. It serves as a reminder of the grace and mercy of God, who does not abandon His people in their failures but instead offers a helping hand to lift them up.

and lifts up
"Lifts up" is translated from the Hebrew word "qum," which means to rise, stand up, or establish. This action of God is not just about restoring someone to their previous state but elevating them to a place of strength and dignity. It reflects the transformative power of God's intervention in the lives of believers. Theologically, it points to the resurrection power of God, who not only restores but also renews and empowers His people.

all who are bowed down
The phrase "all who are bowed down" refers to those who are burdened, oppressed, or humbled by life's circumstances. The Hebrew word "kaphaph" means to bend or bow down, often under the weight of sorrow or adversity. This imagery is rich with compassion, as it portrays God as one who is deeply concerned with the plight of the downtrodden. In the broader scriptural context, it aligns with the teachings of Jesus, who came to lift the burdens of the weary and offer rest to their souls. This phrase encapsulates the hope and encouragement found in God's promise to raise up those who are humbled and oppressed.

Persons / Places / Events
1. The LORD (Yahweh)
The covenant name of God, emphasizing His eternal presence and faithfulness. In this Psalm, He is depicted as compassionate and supportive.

2. Those who fall
Refers to individuals who stumble or face difficulties in life, whether due to sin, weakness, or external circumstances.

3. Those who are bowed down
Represents people who are burdened, oppressed, or humbled by life's challenges.
Teaching Points
God's Faithfulness in Support
The LORD's commitment to uphold and lift those who fall or are bowed down demonstrates His unwavering faithfulness. Believers can trust in His constant support.

Divine Compassion
God's actions in this verse reflect His deep compassion for humanity. He is not distant or indifferent but actively involved in the lives of those who seek Him.

Encouragement in Trials
This verse offers encouragement to those facing trials. It assures believers that they are not alone and that God is ready to provide strength and relief.

Call to Humility
Recognizing our need for God's help requires humility. This verse encourages believers to acknowledge their dependence on God and seek His aid.

Role of the Community
As followers of Christ, we are called to emulate God's compassion by supporting and uplifting those around us who are struggling.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does understanding the LORD's role as a supporter and lifter in Psalm 145:14 impact your view of God's character?

2. In what ways can you apply the promise of God's support in your current life circumstances?

3. How do the themes of divine support and compassion in Psalm 145:14 connect with Jesus' invitation in Matthew 11:28-30?

4. Reflect on a time when you felt "bowed down" by life's challenges. How did you experience God's support during that period?

5. How can you, as part of the Christian community, help to "uphold" and "lift up" others who are facing difficulties?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Psalm 37:24
This verse speaks of the LORD's support for the righteous, even when they stumble, highlighting God's sustaining power.

Isaiah 41:10
God promises His presence and strength to those who are fearful or dismayed, reinforcing His role as a helper and sustainer.

Matthew 11:28-30
Jesus invites the weary and burdened to find rest in Him, echoing the theme of divine support and relief.
For the Fallen and the FallingS. Conway Psalm 145:14
Recuperative GracePsalm 145:14
The God of the UnsuccessfulM. R. Vincent, D. D.Psalm 145:14
Christ the King of SaintsPsalm 145:1-21
God's Chosen People Extolling Their Sovereign KingR. C. Dillon, D. D.Psalm 145:1-21
God's Greatness, Goodness, and GloryC. Short Psalm 145:1-21
The Happy Duty of Daily PraisePsalm 145:1-21
The Kinghood of God, and the Glory of His ProvidenceDavid Thomas, D. D.Psalm 145:1-21
The Te Deum of the Old TestamentS. Conway Psalm 145:1-21
Christ's Kingdom EverlastingThe Advertiser.Psalm 145:13-14
The Greatness and Condescension of GodH. Melvill, B. D.Psalm 145:13-14
People
David, Psalmist
Places
Jerusalem
Topics
Bent, Bowed, Crushed, Fall, Falling, Lifter, Lifts, Raises, Raiseth, Raising, Support, Supporting, Sustains, Upholdeth, Upholds
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Psalm 145:14

     5138   bowing

Psalm 145:13-14

     1330   God, the provider

Library
June 17 Evening
All thy works shall praise thee, O Lord; and thy saints shall bless thee.--PSA. 145:10. Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.--I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.--Every day will I bless thee; and I will praise thy name for ever and ever. Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee. Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily Path

The Satisfier of all Desires
'Thou openest Thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing ... 19. He will fulfil the desire of them that fear Him: He also will hear their cry, and will save them.'--PSALM cxlv. 16, 19. You observe the recurrence, in these two verses, of the one emphatic word 'desire.' Its repetition evidently shows that the Psalmist wishes to run a parallel between God's dealings in two regions. The same beneficence works in both. Here is the true extension of natural law to the spiritual world.
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Christian Conversation
"They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power."--Psalm 145:11. YOU HAVE only to look at the preceding verse, and you will discover, in a single moment, who are the people here spoken of who shall speak of the glory of God's kingdom, and talk of his power. They are the saints: "All thy works shall praise thee, O Lord; and thy saints shall bless thee. They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power." A saint will often be discovered by his conversation. He
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 46: 1900

How I Know God Answers Prayer
How I Know God Answers Prayer The Personal Testimony of One Life-Time By ROSALIND GOFORTH (Mrs. Jonathan Goforth) Missionary in China since 1888 "They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodness."--Psalm 145:7. "Go . . . and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee."--Mark 5:19. HARPER & BROTHERS PUBLISHERS NEW YORK AND LONDON Copyright, 1921, by Harper & Brothers PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Rosalind Goforth—How I Know God Answers Prayer

Exhortations to those who are Called
IF, after searching you find that you are effectually called, I have three exhortations to you. 1. Admire and adore God's free grace in calling you -- that God should pass over so many, that He should pass by the wise and noble, and that the lot of free grace should fall upon you! That He should take you out of a state of vassalage, from grinding the devil's mill, and should set you above the princes of the earth, and call you to inherit the throne of glory! Fall upon your knees, break forth into
Thomas Watson—A Divine Cordial

God, My King, Thy Might Confessing
[1186]Stuttgart: Gotha, 1715 Psalm 145 Richard Mant, 1824 DOXOLOGY God, my King, thy might confessing, Ever will I bless thy Name; Day by day thy throne addressing, Still will I thy praise proclaim. Honor great our God befitteth; Who his majesty can reach? Age to age his works transmitteth, Age to age his power shall teach. They shall talk of all thy glory, On thy might and greatness dwell, Speak of thy dread acts the story, And thy deeds of wonder tell. Nor shall fail from memory's treasure
Various—The Hymnal of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the USA

Free Grace
To The Reader: Nothing but the strongest conviction, not only that what is here advanced is "the truth as it is in Jesus," but also that I am indispensably obliged to declare this truth to all the world, could have induced me openly to oppose the sentiments of those whom I esteem for their work's sake: At whose feet may I be found in the day of the Lord Jesus! Should any believe it his duty to reply hereto, I have only one request to make, -- Let whatsoever you do, be done inherently, in love, and
John Wesley—Sermons on Several Occasions

Prayer Out of the Deep.
Hear my prayer, O God; and hide not Thyself from my petition. Take heed unto me and hear me; how I mourn in my prayer and am vexed.--Psalm iv. 1, 2. In my trouble I will call upon the Lord, and complain unto my God; so shall He hear my voice out of His holy temple, and my complaint shall come before Him; it shall enter even into His ears.--Ps. xviii. 5, 6. The Lord is nigh unto them that call upon Him; He also will hear their cry, and will help them.--Psalm cxlv. 18, 19. In the day when I cried
Charles Kingsley—Out of the Deep

The Life, as Amplified by Mediaeval Biographers.
1. His Early Years.--Ephraim, according to this biography, was a Syrian of Mesopotamia, by birth, and by parentage on both sides. His mother was of Amid (now Diarbekr) a central city of that region; his father belonged to the older and more famous City of Nisibis, not far from Amid but near the Persian frontier, where he was priest of an idol named Abnil (or Abizal) in the days of Constantine the Great (306-337). This idol was afterwards destroyed by Jovian (who became Emperor in 363 after the
Ephraim the Syrian—Hymns and Homilies of Ephraim the Syrian

I Will Pray with the Spirit and with the Understanding Also-
OR, A DISCOURSE TOUCHING PRAYER; WHEREIN IS BRIEFLY DISCOVERED, 1. WHAT PRAYER IS. 2. WHAT IT IS TO PRAY WITH THE SPIRIT. 3. WHAT IT IS TO PRAY WITH THE SPIRIT AND WITH THE UNDERSTANDING ALSO. WRITTEN IN PRISON, 1662. PUBLISHED, 1663. "For we know not what we should pray for as we ought:--the Spirit--helpeth our infirmities" (Rom 8:26). ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. There is no subject of more solemn importance to human happiness than prayer. It is the only medium of intercourse with heaven. "It is
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Second Great Group of Parables.
(Probably in Peræa.) Subdivision D. Parable of the Lost Son. ^C Luke XV. 11-32. ^c 11 And he said, A certain man had two sons [These two sons represent the professedly religious (the elder) and the openly irreligious (the younger). They have special reference to the two parties found in the first two verses of this chapter --the Pharisees, the publicans and sinners]: 12 and the younger of them [the more childish and easily deceived] said to his father, Father, give me the portion of thy substance
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Knowledge of God Conspicuous in the Creation, and Continual Government of the World.
1. The invisible and incomprehensible essence of God, to a certain extent, made visible in his works. 2. This declared by the first class of works--viz. the admirable motions of the heavens and the earth, the symmetry of the human body, and the connection of its parts; in short, the various objects which are presented to every eye. 3. This more especially manifested in the structure of the human body. 4. The shameful ingratitude of disregarding God, who, in such a variety of ways, is manifested within
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion

The Holiness of God
The next attribute is God's holiness. Exod 15:51. Glorious in holiness.' Holiness is the most sparkling jewel of his crown; it is the name by which God is known. Psa 111:1. Holy and reverend is his name.' He is the holy One.' Job 6:60. Seraphims cry, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of his glory.' Isa 6:6. His power makes him mighty, his holiness makes him glorious. God's holiness consists in his perfect love of righteousness, and abhorrence of evil. Of purer eyes than
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

Covenant Duties.
It is here proposed to show, that every incumbent duty ought, in suitable circumstances, to be engaged to in the exercise of Covenanting. The law and covenant of God are co-extensive; and what is enjoined in the one is confirmed in the other. The proposals of that Covenant include its promises and its duties. The former are made and fulfilled by its glorious Originator; the latter are enjoined and obligatory on man. The duties of that Covenant are God's law; and the demands of the law are all made
John Cunningham—The Ordinance of Covenanting

The Mercy of God
The next attribute is God's goodness or mercy. Mercy is the result and effect of God's goodness. Psa 33:5. So then this is the next attribute, God's goodness or mercy. The most learned of the heathens thought they gave their god Jupiter two golden characters when they styled him good and great. Both these meet in God, goodness and greatness, majesty and mercy. God is essentially good in himself and relatively good to us. They are both put together in Psa 119:98. Thou art good, and doest good.' This
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

The Intercession of Christ
Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us! T he Redemption of the soul is precious. Fools make mock of sin (Proverbs 14:9) . But they will not think lightly of it, who duly consider the majesty, authority, and goodness of Him, against whom it is committed; and who are taught, by what God actually has done, what sin rendered necessary to be done, before a sinner could have a well-grounded
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 2

Psalms
The piety of the Old Testament Church is reflected with more clearness and variety in the Psalter than in any other book of the Old Testament. It constitutes the response of the Church to the divine demands of prophecy, and, in a less degree, of law; or, rather, it expresses those emotions and aspirations of the universal heart which lie deeper than any formal demand. It is the speech of the soul face to face with God. Its words are as simple and unaffected as human words can be, for it is the genius
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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