Chris Tomlin – Praise Him Forever

Contemporary Christian juggernaut Chris Tomlin began his career in 1993.  He released seventeen albums, including:

• Inside Your Love (1995)
• Authentic (1998)
• Too Much Free Time (1998)
• The Noise We Make (2001)
• Not to Us (2002)
• Arriving (2004)
• See the Morning (2006)
• Hello Love (2008)
• And If Our God Is for Us… (2010)
• Burning Lights (2013)
• Love Ran Red (2014)
• Adore: Christmas Songs Of Worship (2015)
• Never Lose Sight (2016)
• Holy Roar (2018)
• Chris Tomlin & Friends (2020)
• Miracle of Love: Christmas Songs of Worship (2020)
• Always (2022)

He is a 26-time award recipient, including 23 Dove Awards, 2 Billboard awards, and 1 Grammy.

Also, check out my other Chris Tomlin reviews and Christmas song Noel.

Note to new users: This is a different kind of review site!  Read About the Berean Test and Evaluation Criteria prior to reading this review.

1. What message does the song communicate?

Creation worships the Lord, the roaring Lion, for all eternity.  This includes those whom He liberated.

Score: 10/10

2. How much of the lyrics line up with Scripture?

The lyrics perfectly align with God’s inspired Word.

Lyrics posted with permission.*

[Verse 1]

Praise Him you stars above
Galaxies all in motion
Praise Him you thunderclouds
Ringing throughout the Heavens
From every mountaintop
To every wild ocean
Oh, hear all the universe sing praise

All creation praises God (Psalm 19:1-4, Psalm 66:4, Psalm 103:22, Psalm 148:7-11, Psalm 150:1-6, Isaiah 55:12, Luke 19:40, and Revelation 5:13).

[Chorus]

Oh, sing praise
Let everything that breathes
Let all the earth proclaim
Great is the Lord our God
Praise Him forever
Let all that is within me
Magnify His name
Great is the Lord our God
Praise Him forever
Praise Him forever

See commentary on Verse 1.  In addition, we praise Him eternally (Nehemiah 9:5, Psalm 30:12, Psalm 52:9, Psalm 86:12, Psalm 89:1, Psalm 115:18, Psalm 145:1-2, Psalm 145:21, and Revelation 5:9-13).

[Verse 2]

Praise Him you beating hearts
Sing for the life He’s given
Praise Him you rescued ones
Join in the sound of Heaven
From every mountaintop
To every wild ocean
Oh, hear all the universe sing praise

See commentary on Verse 1.  Also, among those who worship are the rescued (Romans 6:1-11, Romans 7:4-6, Galatians 2:19-20, 2 Timothy 2:11, and 1 Peter 2:24).

[Bridge]

Hear the holy roar
Hear this anthem rise

Probably a reference to Hosea 11:10.

In the house of God
All creation cries

See commentary on Verse 1.

Hear the holy roar
Hear this anthem rise
In the house of God
All creation cries
Hear the holy roar
Hear this anthem rise
In the house of God
All creation cries
Hear the holy roar
Hear this anthem rise
In the house of God
All creation cries

Repeats lines 1-4.

[Outro]

Hear the holy roar
Hear the holy roar
Hear the holy roar

Repeats Bridge, line 1.

Praise Him forever

Repeats Chorus, line 4.

Score: 10/10

3. How would an outsider interpret the song?

In plain English, Tomlin proclaims the same message over and over again: humans and nature alike will worship their God.  However, this song could easily be sung in a Mormon temple, an Islamic mosque, and a Jewish synagogue without alteration and apply to their versions of god.  This makes it hard for unbelievers to know what Tomlin means by “God” purely from the lyrics.

Score: 7/10

4. What does this song glorify?

It glorifies God as the One whom we adore and worship.

Score: 10/10

Closing Comments

Chris Tomlin’s Praise Him Forever is all about worship.  That’s it.  That is the entire song in a nutshell.  Creation worships God, which brings Him glory.  Unbelievers will easily see this, though have no clear direction on which “god” is being worshipped aside from outside research such as Tomlin’s background or, you know, sung inside a church.

This song is suitable for corporate worship.

Final Score: 9.5/10

Artist Info

Track: Praise Him Forever (listen to the song)

Artist: Chris Tomlin

Album: Holy Roar

Genre: Rock

Release Year: 2018

Duration: 4:54

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*Copyright © 2018 S.D.G. Publishing (BMI) Capitol CMG Paragon (BMI) (adm. at CapitolCMGPublishing.com), Simply Global Songs (BMI) / Phil Wickham Music (BMI) / Sing My Songs (BMI) / Hickory Bill Doc (SESAC) / So Essential Tunes (SESAC) (admin at EssentialMusicPublishing.com). All rights reserved. Used by permission.