THANKSGIVING HYMNS A song offering gratitude to God because He has counteracted suffering, oppression, sin, or another threat. Thanksgiving hymns typically speak of God’s ongoing love and faithfulness.

Form of the Thanksgiving Hymn

Various forms have been suggested as characteristic of a thanksgiving hymn. Gunkel notes that they begin by declaring the intention to thank God, then follow with a description of the problem and a proclamation of the Lord’s deliverance. In many cases, the hymn ends with an announcement of a thank offering.

Miller contends that the term “blessing” (along with related forms) identifies a thanksgiving hymn (Miller, They Cried, 179). The hymn begins with a statement of blessing, which is followed by a statement of what God has done that compels the person to give thanks. Miller cites Psalm 18:46–48 as an illustration of this type of hymn: “The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock, and exalted be the God of my salvation—the God who gave me vengeance and subdued peoples under me; who delivered me from my enemies” (ESV).

According to Miller, a thanksgiving hymn is to be distinguished from a praise hymn in one important detail: a thanksgiving hymn offers a gift or blessing as an expression of gratitude, while a praise hymn does not. Rather than making an animal or grain offering, the petitioner offers a song instead (Miller, They Cried, 181). A thanksgiving hymn is normally a response to a gracious act of God’s deliverance, while a praise hymn typically is a celebration of the person and character of God.

In contrast to a lament, which describes present and continuous suffering, a thanksgiving hymn refers to suffering and pain that existed in the past (Wilson, Psalms Volume 1, 66). It has become customary in recent years to identify thanksgiving hymns belonging to the personal sphere. However, songs of thanksgiving offered by the community likely exist and may include Pss 67, 92, 118, 124, and 129.

Because the word usually translated as “thanksgiving” is the same word used for “thank offering” (תּוֹדָה, todah), the setting for the proclamation of a thanksgiving hymn likely was the temple. The hymn may have been sung in a worship service when a sacrifice for a thank offering was being given to the Lord (Lev 22:29).

Biblical and Non-Biblical Thanksgiving Hymns

Due to the various ways in which thanksgiving hymns are defined and the overlap among some types of hymns, scholars differ in their opinion of which psalms should be classified as thanksgiving hymns. However, most agree that Pss 30, 92, 103, 116, 118, and 136 are thanksgiving hymns.

The Qumran community used thanksgiving hymns in their worship. Many of their hymns begin with the phrase, “I give thanks to You, O Lord” (1QH 4). Another common phrase is “Blessed are you, O Lord” (1QH 13.20).

The Odes of Solomon were composed in the late first or early second century AD. They represent early Christian hymns and center on the theme of thanksgiving for the arrival of the promised Messiah.

Bibliography

Brueggemann, Walter. The Message of the Psalms: A Theological Commentary. Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1984.

Evans, Craig. Ancient Texts for New Testament Studies: A Guide to the Background Literature. Peabody: Hendrickson, 2005.

Gunkel, Hermann and Joachim Begrich. Introduction to Psalms: The Genres of the Religious Lyric of Israel. Translated by James D. Nogalski. Macon: Mercer University Press, 1998.

Miller, Patrick D. They Cried to the Lord: The Form and Theology of Biblical Prayer. Minneapolis: Fortress, 1994.

Westermann, Claus. The Psalms: Structure, Content and Message. Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1980.

Wilson, Gerald H. Psalms. Vol. 1. NIV Application Commentary. Edited by Terry Muck. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2002.