vase of flowers with sign saying give thanks

35 Psalms of Thanksgiving and Gratitude to God in the Bible

There are hundreds of thanksgiving scriptures in the Bible, but many of the are in the book of Psalms which is packed with David’s gratefulness and thanksgiving to God.  These thanksgiving scriptures in Psalms reveal David’s heart and his abundant thankfulness for the faithful love, great wonders, hard times, day of trouble, and the wonderful works of the Lord.  

Through the difficult and the good things in his life he wrote his prayers of praise to honor God’s holy name.  In these psalms of thanksgiving, we can see that King David spent so much time praising God even when he was in a tight spot or feeling fearful that the unfailing love of God poured out of his whole heart.  

The lessons from these thanksgiving scriptures in Psalms encompass a way of living a life full of gratitude.  Rather than counting the things that weren’t going well, David counted the things he had to be thankful for.  He also wrote about the difficulties, but the gratitude is intermingled between the hardships.  His Psalms of praise speak of the angel of the Lord protecting him, the Lord’s great love to David and the people of Israel.  He also writes about the wondrous works and the great power of God. 

From the depths of the earth and the rising of the sun, David proclaims the the steadfast love of the Lord.  His prayers of thanksgiving about God’s eternal love have been been a source of renewal for countless people over the ages.  His praises of thanksgiving have been memorized, underlined, put to music, spoken, and prayed.  These great psalms are encouraging any time of year.  

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Psalms of Thanksgiving 

Every psalm of thanksgiving that David and his friends wrote are great during the Thanksgiving holiday season and every single day of the year.  Often, we think about psalms of thanksgiving in the fall, but David praised the name of God through his songs of praise all throughout the years.  

While he was a shepherd, he wrote about the people of His pasture and the cup of salvation.  At night as he gazed at the night sky, he was reminded of the great lights in the night.  He used beautiful visual language like the glorious splendor of your majesty to describe the God of Gods.  His spiritual songs were the outpouring of a thankful heart and praises to the name of the Lord Jesus.  

Many of our favorite psalms of thanksgiving were written for specific instruments or the accompanying music of the ten-stringed lyre.  You will also find many specific passages from Psalms quoted in the New Testament.  David’s praises of the Lord show an intimacy that he had in his spiritual life.  He longed to be one of the servants of the Lord and do what was right in the sight of the Lord.  He strove to follow the will of God as he led God’s people to understand the fear of the Lord.  His thanksgiving psalms are a reflection of that relationship.  

Scriptures on Thanksgiving

Each of these beautiful scriptures on thanksgiving in the Word of God can be an encouragement and become your own new song to the God of Heaven.  The Bible talks about a sacrifice of praise to the Almighty God and this sacrifice of praise is pleasing to God as you focus your attention on the strong hand of God that will protect you, be with you, guide you, and loves even your inmost being.  He knows where you are in the secret place, and loves to hear your psalm of praise even if you are reciting a scripture.  

Thanksgiving scriptures are a great way to remind yourself of the good things God has done for you.  As you read the different types of psalms that are praising God, requesting God’s presence in the midst of trouble, and simple gratitude for what God has done, they can encourage you as well.  David’s heart was steadfast in his sacrifice of thanksgiving and proclaiming the glory of God’s kingdom.  

Even when times were difficult, David praised God and made a joyful noise to celebrate and perhaps remind himself, of the blessings he had experienced.  

Thanksgiving Bible Verses

Each one of these thanksgiving Bible verses tells a brief story of gratefulness.  David spent a lot of time praising God and these thanksgiving Bible verses are a testament to the gratitude in his heart. There are many thanksgiving Bible verses throughout the Bible and many are found in the book of Psalms.  Scriptures on thanksgiving are sprinkled throughout the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. 

Throughout history, people have used these thanksgiving scriptures in sermons, on greeting cards, to memorize, to sing, and in prayers.  What better way to praise God than by using scripture?  Praising the name of our Lord Jesus Christ through prayer, music, and the spoken and written word, documents the thanksgiving and gratitude we express.

Each of these thanksgiving scriptures in Psalms is taken from the New International Version (NIV).  

orange flowers in vase with words thanksgiving scriptures in psalms
  • Psalm 118:1 – Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.
  • Psalm 8:2 – Through the praise of children and infants you have established a stronghold against your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger.
  • Psalm 9:2 – I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High.
  • Psalm 13:6 – I will sing the Lord’s praise, for he has been good to me.
  • Psalm 16:7 – I will praise the Lord, who counsels me; even at night my heart instructs me.
  • Psalm 18:3 – I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I have been saved from my enemies.
  • Psalm 18:46 – The Lord lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God my Savior!
  • Psalm 21:13 – Be exalted in your strength, Lord; we will sing and praise your might.
  • Psalm 33:1 – Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise him.
  • Psalm 34:1 – I will extol the Lord at all times; his praise will always be on my lips.
  • Psalm 35:28 – My tongue will proclaim your righteousness, your praises all day long.
  • Psalm 22:26 – The poor will eat and be satisfied; those who seek the Lord will praise him— may your hearts live forever!
  • Psalm 100:4 – Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.
  • Psalm 106:1 – Praise the Lord.  Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.
  • Psalm 40:3 – He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear the Lord and put their trust in him.
  • Psalm 35:18 – I will give you thanks in the great assembly; among the throngs I will praise you.
  • Psalm 42:4 – These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God under the protection of the Mighty One with shouts of joy and praise among the festive throng.
  • Psalm 42:11 – Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.
  • Psalm 43:4 – Then I will go to the altar of God, to God, my joy and my delight. I will praise you with the lyre, O God, my God.
  • Psalm 45:17 – I will perpetuate your memory through all generations; therefore the nations will praise you for ever and ever.
  • Psalm 136:1 – Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.  His love endures forever.
  • Psalm 86:12 – I will praise you, o Lord, my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever.
  • Psalm 34:6 – This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles.
  • Psalm 54:6 – I will sacrifice a freewill offering to you; I will praise your name, Lord, for it is good.
  • Psalm 23:6 – Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
  • Psalm 118:29 – Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.
  • Psalm 79:13 – Then we your people, the sheep of your pasture, will praise you forever; from generation to generation we will proclaim your praise.
  • Psalm 7:17 – I will give thanks to the Lord because of his righteousness; I will sing the praises of the name of the Lord Most High.
  • Psalm 9:1- I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.
  • Psalm 28:7 – The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.  My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.
  • Psalm 52:9 – For what you have done I will always praise you in the presence of your faithful people.  And I will hope in your name, for your name is good.
  • Psalm 69:30 – I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving.
  • Psalm 147:7 – I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving.
  • Psalm 95:1-3 – Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.  Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song.  For the Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods.

RELATED: Inspiring Scriptures about Joy

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Thanksgiving Psalm 100

Psalm 100 is probably the quintessential thanksgiving Psalm and may be one of the most familiar thanksgiving scriptures in the Bible.  You may have even heard it set to music.  Just reading through these short five verses of thanksgiving, you can hear the gratefulness from David’s heart for what God has done and who He is.  

In this thanksgiving Psalm 100, David simplifies our relationship with God.  Verse three reminds us of who we are to God.  Psalm 100:2, 3, and 4 tell us what we should do about it and how to enter His holy temple, and verse five reviews the reasons why we should offer our gratitude to the Lord of Lords.  

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
    come before him with joyful songs.
Know that the Lord is God.
    It is he who made us, and we are his;
    we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving
    and his courts with praise;
    give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
    his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Writing your Own Psalms of Thanksgiving

One way to personalize some of these psalms of thanksgiving is to rewrite them with your own words.  Psalm 23 is one of my favorite ones to look at closely and use the words and imagery to create the picture of rest and peace.  Write it out as written in the Bible and then rephrase each verse with an applicable picture or situation in your life where you can see how God is taking care of you and providing for you.  

You can do this with many of the psalms of thanksgiving just as David was pouring out his heart to God, you can do the same.  

How to Use Thanksgiving Scriptures in the Bible

How many times do the Psalms say give thanks?  It all depends on the version of the Bible you are quoting, but it is often enough to realize that it was very important to King David.  David was considered a “man after God’s heart” and his heartfelt gratitude helped him to look for the good and the blessings in his life and be grateful for them.  

As you read these thanksgiving scriptures in the Bible, take a moment to reflect on what you are thankful for and praise God for those things.  Practice an attitude of gratitude of seeing and recognizing the blessings in your life each day.  Then take the time to thank God through prayer, song, journaling, or telling others of God’s blessings to you.

Thanksgiving scriptures in the Bible can be a real encouragement to you and others as well.  As you read a thanksgiving Bible verse or Psalms of thanksgiving, write a few of these thanksgiving scriptures down on notecards and pass them along to others with the challenge that they too look for their blessings and share their gratitude.  Post them on your fridge or your bathroom mirror and memorize them.  

Write them in your prayer journal and then make of list of the things God has done for you and write your own song of praise.  Listen to Christian music that is based on thanksgiving scriptures to help you memorize the words.  Psalm 34:17 reminds us “The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles.”  This is a promise as well as a praise!  No matter the time of year, it is the perfect time to give give thanks to Christ Jesus!

RELATED: 3 Simple Ways to be Thankful to God

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