From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the LORD'S name is to be praised.
Psalm 113 belongs to a collection called the "Hallel" psalms — a group of six psalms (113–118) sung by Jewish families during major festivals like Passover, the celebration of God rescuing Israel from slavery in Egypt. "Hallel" comes from the Hebrew root word for praise, the same root as "Hallelujah." This verse declares that from the first light of dawn to the last light of dusk — every hour of every day, in every place on earth — the name of God deserves to be praised. The scope is total: no time is excluded, no geography exempt. The verse isn't limiting worship to a building or a special occasion. It is making a sweeping claim that the entire span of a human day is the proper and natural context for honoring God.
God, you are worthy of more than my Sunday best. Teach me to find you in the ordinary Tuesday afternoon, the long commute, the hours that feel too small for anything sacred. Let praise become less of a performance and more of a quiet, stubborn acknowledgment that you are here, all day long. Amen.
Sunrise to sunset. Not just the breathtaking ones you photograph. Also the Tuesday 6 AM alarm after a bad night's sleep. The long afternoon when the work feels pointless. The hour before dinner when everyone's irritable and nothing feels sacred. The whole arc of an ordinary day is, according to this ancient song, a canvas for praise — not just the highlight reel. There's something quietly radical in that. This psalm doesn't reserve praise for the mountaintop moments or condition it on things going well. The sun rises on hard days too, and the song says: *there also*. Notice it doesn't demand a particular feeling — it doesn't say "rejoice from sunrise to sunset." It says the name of the Lord *is to be praised* — present tense, ongoing, as natural as the sun completing its arc. Maybe praise, on the genuinely hard days, looks less like a song and more like a stubborn, honest acknowledgment: *You are still here. You are still good.* That small act, repeated through the unremarkable hours of an ordinary day, is what this psalm calls worship.
What does "from the rising of the sun to where it sets" communicate about *when* and *where* praise belongs — is this about frequency, geography, attitude, or something else?
Think through the hours of a typical day. Which hour feels furthest from a posture of praise? What makes that particular stretch so difficult?
Is it honest to praise God on genuinely terrible days — days of grief, anger, or exhaustion? How do you hold authentic lament alongside genuine praise without one canceling the other out?
How might a posture of ongoing praise — not just reserved for church — change the texture of how you interact with coworkers, family members, or strangers throughout the week?
Choose one specific, unremarkable moment in your coming week — a commute, a lunch break, a routine task. What would it look like to treat that exact moment as an act of worship?
And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.
Revelation 11:15
Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the LORD hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted.
Isaiah 49:13
For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.
Habakkuk 2:14
For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure offering: for my name shall be great among the heathen, saith the LORD of hosts.
Malachi 1:11
Sing unto the LORD a new song, and his praise from the end of the earth, ye that go down to the sea, and all that is therein; the isles, and the inhabitants thereof.
Isaiah 42:10
And that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy; as it is written, For this cause I will confess to thee among the Gentiles, and sing unto thy name.
Romans 15:9
So shall they fear the name of the LORD from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a standard against him.
Isaiah 59:19
Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.
Psalms 29:2
From the rising of the sun to its setting The name of the LORD is to be praised [with awe-inspired reverence].
AMP
From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the LORD is to be praised!
ESV
From the rising of the sun to its setting The name of the LORD is to be praised.
NASB
From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.
NIV
From the rising of the sun to its going down The LORD’s name is to be praised.
NKJV
Everywhere — from east to west — praise the name of the LORD.
NLT
From east to west, from dawn to dusk, keep lifting all your praises to God!
MSG