Psalms 96 – 100 are filled with wonderful praise for Yahweh. He is powerful, He is magnificent, He is worthy to be praised. We’re not going to linger in these psalms, but I want the tone of them to just wash over us and let our hearts soar with praise for our mighty God.
1 – 6
First, we are invited to sing “a new song.” We no longer sing the songs of the idols of this age, but sing of the new thing God has done for us in bringing about a great salvation.
Secondly, we don’t just move our lips and vibrate our vocal chords—we sing to Yahweh in praise of His name—and not just today but “day to day”. Everyday is a good day to praise Yahweh for His salvation.
Thirdly we make that proclamation not just in church but in every part of our life and in every place we go. We don’t stop being a thankful Christian just because we step out of church.
We do this because God is great and everything else isn’t! Society thinks they have satisfaction wired. But they do not. Everything the world offers is like cotton candy: it gives you a big rush but then lets you down every time and offers nothing to sustain you. Fear God, worship God, serve God—He made the world and you. He is:
Splendor: majesty, glory, strength.
Majestic: usually used to show an object that is beautiful and inspires awe.
Strength: Power (like a stronghold)
Beauty: glory, splendor, honor
Where God is (His sanctuary) these exist!
7 – 9
This section tells us that we should worship God and no other! “Worship” here and elsewhere in this psalm is the Hebrew word: Shacha which means “to depress” and the idea is bowing down.
10 – 13
God is in charge, He decides when things happen ultimately. And when God decides, He will be just and fair. This should lead everyone to be glad, for our King is coming and He is going to judge and it is going to be a good thing. The word “faithfulness” in verse 13 means “firmness” or “security”. We can trust in the way God does things. We can finally let go of our own worries over justice.
It will be done in total fairness. No one will argue with God over His judgments. People who don’t want anything to do with our God will get their wish. It is my hope that they realize this world is selling them a bill of goods. This culture is a great con artist. Only God has life and He offers it freely through trust and reliance in His Son Jesus. This is indeed something to celebrate!
Psalm 97
Psalm 97 was originally a song, of course, but recently its been made into a worship chorus.
1 – 5
The “many coasts and islands” suggests God reigns over the uttermost parts of the earth. The “Clouds and thick darkness” remind us of God on Mt. Sinai when He first spoke to the children of Israel in Exodus. Hebrews says “Our God is a consuming fire.” (Heb 12:29). Lightning and thunder were also seen on Mt. Sinai. Basically—nothing can stand in His way—nothing!
6
Not only is the Lord powerful on earth, but He is seen in heaven as “righteous.” One day, when Jesus returns in clouds and with great glory we will indeed see Him:
1 John 3:2 “Dear friends, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him because we will see Him as He is.”
7
At that time, those that worship the false gods this age puts forward will be “put to shame.” They will realize they are nothing but idols. The end of verse 7 can be translated: “all the gods must humble themselves before Him.” It is so true. Upon His return Jesus will rule “with a rod of iron” (Revelation 2:27), which means no one will be able to dispute His authority.
8 – 9
Here, the psalmist says Israel is glad. But we have been adopted into God’s family so we too can rejoice, because despite what this age shouts at us: God is “exalted above all the gods!” (Ephesians 1:5).
10 – 12
So now we move to the final point. If God reigns then we need to align our character with His.
Proverbs 8:13 says “to fear the Lord is to hate evil.” Jesus said: “You cannot serve two masters.” (Matthew 6:24). You need to decide, either you are going to love the character of our God or love what the world serves up as good—which is to give into the desires of the flesh apart from God.
But praise be to God, for those of us who love Him, he protects us, rescues us, shines the light of His glory on us and brings us gladness of heart. In fact “gladness” means “to brighten up”. Isn’t that awesome!
Psalm 98
Psalm 98 rejoices in the victory God has won for His people, and the fact that He is returning to make everything right!
1 – 3
Again we have the admonition to “sing a new song.” God has indeed done something new through Jesus—and notice that we did nothing. God did it all. That’s the beauty of it. Jesus, by Himself, defeated sin and death, then turned around and passed that victory on to us.
We are now “more than conquerors through Him who love us.” (Romans 8:37)
4 – 6
“Jubilant” can also mean “break forth.” The idea here is that we simply can’t contain our joy for what God has done for us. We sing, we shout—and we do it in God’s presence. Psalm 22:3 says “You are enthroned on the praises of Israel.” This can also be translated: “inhabit.” We who have been saved by His grace can come into His presence, not just by coming to a temple, but by lifting up our voices in praise.
7 – 9
This phrase is very similar to the ending of Psalm 96. There the nations, the heavens, the seas and the trees rejoice that God is returning to take over. Here it is the sea, the rivers, and the mountains.
Romans 8:20 “For the creation was subjected to futility—not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it—in the hope 21 that the creation itself will also be set free from the bondage of corruption into the glorious freedom of God’s children. 22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together with labor pains until now. 23 And not only that, but we ourselves who have the Spirit as the firstfruits—we also groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for adoption, the redemption of our bodies.”
What will it look like when the Lord returns? There are many places we could turn to, but let’s finish this psalm with:
Rev. 19:11 Then I saw heaven opened, and there was a white horse. Its rider is called Faithful and True, and He judges and makes war in righteousness. 12 His eyes were like a fiery flame, and many crowns were on His head. He had a name written that no one knows except Himself. 13 He wore a robe stained with blood, and His name is the Word of God. 14 The armies that were in heaven followed Him on white horses, wearing pure white linen. 15 A sharp sword came from His mouth, so that He might strike the nations with it. He will shepherd them with an iron scepter. He will also trample the winepress of the fierce anger of God, the Almighty. 16 And He has a name written on His robe and on His thigh:
KING OF KINGS
AND LORD OF LORDS.
Psalm 99
This psalm is a call to bow before Yahweh, who was present in the Holy of Holies, and powerful through His presence. It’s a call to worship that echoes down through the centuries as we worship our Lord Jesus.
1 – 2
God is truly a force to be reckoned with. Unlike any other god, Yahweh is actually the King of the universe. Yet he stooped to make His home on earth. First in the Temple, and then in the person of Jesus Christ. He is described here as “enthroned” above the cherubim. The cherubim were angels whose wings were extended above the mercy seat on top of the Ark of the Covenant in the Holy of Holies. I love how the psalmist describes the name of Yahweh as “awe inspiring.” But He is also pure like we have never experienced. And it is coming into contact with this character that causes us to tremble.
4 – 5
Three aspects of God’s character are in view here: fairness, justice, and righteousness. God’s standards are very high—way too high for us to even dream of attaining. God didn’t have to lower His standards to bring you into fellowship with Him. He just had to give you His character and righteousness, which He did through Jesus, if you belong to Him. The “footstool” refers to the Ark of the Covenant.
4 – 8
Here he talks about three men who heard God speak audibly. Moses, of course, heard God speak from the burning bush and later on Mt. Sinai. In fact, it says that God spoke to Moses as one speaks to a friend (Exodus 33:11). Samuel heard God’s voice speak in the night. The two sets of men inaugurated important parts of Israel’s history. Moses led the people out of Egypt and into the Promised Land, and Samuel led Israel into the monarchy—first with Saul, then with David, which led to the Messiah Jesus.
So what might be in view here is that these people called out to God, He answered with His laws, then took into account that they were weak, just as we are. So God was forgiving of their weaknesses, though He disciplined them for their “sinful actions.” Moses struck the rock twice, Aaron made the golden calf, and Samuel did not want to anoint anyone king. God disciplines us, but His discipline is designed to help us trust Him more, it is never punishment.
I guess the point might be: despite our weaknesses, we can have a relationship with Yahweh if we bow to him.
9
So here the psalmist is encouraging people to come to Mt. Zion, to the Temple, bow in worship for God is holy.
He said “Be holy, even as I am holy.” (1 Peter 1;16). That is only possible as Jesus cleanses us and makes us holy.
Psalm 100
Psalm 100, though one of the shortest psalms, is one of the greatest. It is a psalm of invitation to actually come into God’s presence!
There are six commands given here—six things for us to do—and they are all beautiful, given the wonderful character of our God.
Shout triumphantly. God wins. God rules. God is my hero. Do you believe that?
“Serve” with gladness. To serve a taskmaster you do it in fear and trembling. But Yahweh is so wonderful that we can serve Him with glad hearts—and especially because He has made us glad by His grace!
“Come before Him with joyful songs.” Our glad hearts need to be expressed personally to the Lord.
“Acknowledge that Yahweh is God.” Do you belong to Him?
“Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise” What a wonderful invitation. The psalmist was speaking of the temple, of course. But for us who know Jesus we can actually come into God’s presence as we praise.
Finally, “give thanks”—wonderful!
Look how the psalm ends. We don’t serve because God makes us, we serve because he is good and He loves us and is faithful to us eternally. How great is that!
