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Psalm 103 · a question people ask

"Who forgives all your sins" (103:3). Who is the you the psalm is talking to?

In the text

The psalm has just spoken to "my soul" (103:1-2), and it goes straight on: "who forgives all your sins, who heals all your diseases" (103:3). In Hebrew the command Praise in 103:1-2 is spoken to one, in the feminine form, and every your in 103:3-5 has that same feminine form. Those feminine forms run to the end of 103:5; then 103:6 speaks of the LORD in the third person, "The LORD executes righteous acts", and 103:10 says "us". So in 103:3-5 the psalm is still speaking to its own soul, and the same feminine command comes back in its last words, "Praise the LORD, my soul!" (103:22). The title is "By David" (103:1), and it says no more than that about who speaks.

The verses

“By David. Praise the LORD, my soul! All that is within me, praise his holy name! Praise the LORD, my soul, and don’t forget all his benefits, who forgives all your sins, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with loving kindness and tender mercies, who satisfies your desire with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. The LORD executes righteous acts, and justice for all who are oppressed.”
Psalm 103:1-6 · World English Bible
“He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor repaid us for our iniquities.”
Psalm 103:10 · World English Bible
“Praise the LORD, all you works of his, in all places of his dominion. Praise the LORD, my soul!”
Psalm 103:22 · World English Bible

From Favor's study of Psalm 103

Psalm 103: Praise the LORD, my soul

"Praise the LORD, my soul" (103:1) is the same Hebrew as "Bless the LORD, my soul" (Psalm 104:1): the psalm speaks to its own soul, and every your in 103:3-5 is spoken to it. And its "flower of the field" (103:15) is Isaiah's, where the Hebrew calls the glory of flesh chesed, the psalm's word for the LORD's everlasting loving kindness (103:17).

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Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Every answer cites the verses it rests on. What we believe · All Bible questions