NOTES for Psa 96

Printable version

¹O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth.

²Sing unto the LORD, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day.

³Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people.

⁴For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods.

⁵For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens.

⁶Honour and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

⁷Give unto the LORD, O ye kindreds of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength.

⁸Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts.

⁹O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth.

¹⁰Say among the heathen that the LORD reigneth: the world also shall be established that it shall not be moved: he shall judge the people righteously.

¹¹Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof.

¹²Let the field be joyful, and all that is therein: then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice

¹³Before the LORD: for he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth: he shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth.

The song of praise that makes up Psalm 96 brings together two essential aspects of biblical spirituality. On the one hand, praise of the Lord is the fullest opposite of sin. If sin consists in rejecting God as Creator and Lord, in trying to arrange one's life independently, without God, praise, by contrast, is born in a heart that accepts the Creator's authority and trusts His love. Moreover, the gift of life that God bestows on a person can be received only in gratitude and in glorifying the One who is Life itself. This is why praise is closest to heavenly life and furthest from the wretched existence of hell.

On the other hand, praise in Psalm 96 is utterly concrete. The psalmist glorifies God not in general terms but in connection with the manifestation of His mercy in real life. The psalm stresses that the God of Israel is the true God, unlike the idols. The God of Israel is the Lord of all peoples, and everyone without exception is called to worship before His face. This means that He is ready to receive all people, and that He needs us all. Finally, not only all peoples but all creation as a whole is filled with the mercy of the Almighty, and this outpouring of mercy and righteousness belongs not only to the past and present: it is to grow and reach fulfilment in the future. Such glorification of the Lord matters for the person who turns to Him with this prayer of praise, because it alone can fill the human heart with joy and give meaning to that person's actual life.

Other notes

For Psa 96:1-12

¹O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth.

²Sing unto the LORD, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day.

³Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people.

⁴For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods.

⁵For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens.

⁶Honour and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

⁷Give unto the LORD, O ye kindreds of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength.

⁸Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts.

⁹O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth.

¹⁰Say among the heathen that the LORD reigneth: the world also shall be established that it shall not be moved: he shall judge the people righteously.

¹¹Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof.

¹²Let the field be joyful, and all that is therein: then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice

Not only do the signs of God's presence appear utterly fearsome; contemplating His majesty, it is easy to conclude that... Read more

Not only do the signs of God's presence appear utterly fearsome; contemplating His majesty, it is easy to conclude that it is altogether incompatible with everything that exists on earth. And if the Lord can melt mountains more easily than a flame melts wax, what are human beings before Him, such weak and insignificant creatures?

Yet it is precisely the human being who proves to be the only one capable of speaking with God. Human greatness consists in being able to stand before God, not only on one's own behalf but also on behalf of all creation, while the One before whom the universe trembles agrees to hear us.

This is precisely why the account demanded of us will be the greatest. The sins into which we fall are abhorrent in themselves, but even that is not all, because unfortunately they cannot be called merely our private affair. No, they can affect the destiny of all creation. Yet our deliverance from sin will also become the beginning of the healing of the distorted world.

For Psa 96:1-12

¹O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth.

²Sing unto the LORD, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day.

³Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people.

⁴For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods.

⁵For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens.

⁶Honour and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

⁷Give unto the LORD, O ye kindreds of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength.

⁸Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts.

⁹O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth.

¹⁰Say among the heathen that the LORD reigneth: the world also shall be established that it shall not be moved: he shall judge the people righteously.

¹¹Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof.

¹²Let the field be joyful, and all that is therein: then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice

The first line expresses the central thought of the entire psalm, whose details the psalmist then sings. The Lord reigns... Read more

The first line expresses the central thought of the entire psalm, whose details the psalmist then sings. The Lord reigns: let the earth rejoice! The psalmist sees God’s throne, surrounded by the radiant flame of His mercy, as the center and foundation of the universe. Everything is ordered around this center; without it, the world turns into a chaotic accumulation of phenomena. Only the Creator’s reign gives the world harmony and meaning. This is one of the most important elements of biblical revelation about us and our life. For only from there, from God’s throne, do light, truth, and joy enter our life.

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