Psalm 103:5

Context

Psalm 103 is a hymn of praise bearing the superscription "A Psalm of David." The psalmist addresses his own soul: "Bless the LORD, O my soul" (v. 1). He then charges himself not to forget "all his benefits" (the favors God bestows in grace) and in verses 3–5 lists those benefits one by one. God forgives iniquities, heals diseases, redeems life from destruction, and crowns with lovingkindness and tender mercies; verse 5 is the last item on the list. From verse 6 onward, the focus widens from personal experience to the history of the community of Israel and to God's mercy. Verses 15–16 say that man's days are as grass, a statement that stands in contrast to the "renewing" of verse 5.

Interpretation

• Reading as an experience of recovery: Many commentators read the verse in connection with the healing of verse 3. On this view, it celebrates the experience of someone who has recovered from illness or affliction and regained vitality. "Like the eagle's" is understood as a figure drawn from the eagle molting its feathers and flying vigorously once again.
• Grace-centered reading: Preaching in the Presbyterian and Reformed traditions often links verse 5 with the forgiveness of sins in verse 3. The verse is seen as a result of grace: God gives new life and joy to those who have been forgiven.
• Reading centered on divine healing and restoration: Churches that emphasize divine healing, such as those in the Pentecostal tradition, read the verse together with verse 3. Some understand it as a promise that God restores physical health and strength to believers today as well.
• Reading as spiritual renewal: Some interpreters connect the verse with Paul's statement that "though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day." This interpretation takes the verse as speaking of inner renewal even as one grows older.

Debates and Issues

• Translation of "desire": The Hebrew word that the Korean Revised Version tradition renders as "desire" ordinarily means "ornament," and its meaning in this context is regarded as unclear. The Septuagint (the ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament) renders it with a word close to "desire" or "longing." Some modern translations render it in the sense of "lifetime" or "age," and the New Korean Standard Version likewise adopts the reading that God fills "your whole life with good things." Depending on the translation, the emphasis falls either on God satisfying what one desires or on God filling one's entire life with good things.
• The scope of "good things": Some sermons extend "good things" to include material prosperity. Critics regard this as an interpretation leaning toward prosperity theology. Others respond that the confession that God also meets the real needs of life need not be narrowed to spiritual matters alone.
• The eagle illustration: A popular story holds that around the age of forty an eagle strikes its beak against a rock until it breaks off, then plucks out its talons and feathers so that new ones grow, thereby extending its life. This story has been widely used as a sermon illustration alongside this verse, but critics point out that it has no ornithological basis. Nor does the text itself say anything of such a process.

In the Korean Church

Sermons on the theme of thanksgiving often treat verses 1–5 as a single unit. Verse 5 is frequently quoted in sermons and words of blessing concerning the new year, restoration, and renewed strength in old age. The eagle illustration mentioned above has often been told in these settings as well.

Related Passages

• Isaiah 40:28–31
• Psalm 103:11–12
• Psalm 103:15–16
• 2 Corinthians 4:16
• Ephesians 4:22–24