The Book of Psalms

Word Study

"a new song," Hebrew shir chadash (שִׁיר חָדָשׁ). The psalm summons the whole earth to a fresh song: "O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth." A new song is what is due to the only real God, and it is not a private hymn for one nation but a song put into the mouth of all the earth.

"shew forth his salvation," bassru yeshu'ato (בַּשְּׂרוּ יְשׁוּעָתוֹ), proclaim his salvation as good news. Bassru is the very verb from which the word "gospel," good news, comes. To shew forth God's salvation "from day to day" is to preach glad tidings daily, not to report a fact but to announce good news.

"declare his glory," sappru... kevodo (סַפְּרוּ כְּבוֹדוֹ). The call is to tell out, to recount, the glory of God: "Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people." Here, deep in the Old Testament, is the missionary heart of God, His praise refusing to stay inside Israel's borders.

"the heathen," baggoyim (בַּגּוֹיִם), the nations. These are the peoples outside Israel, and they are precisely the audience the psalm has in view. The glory of God is to be declared among them, so that the doors of praise are flung wide to every nation.

"idols," elilim (אֱלִילִים), worthless nothings. The word means "nothings, worthless things," and it rings against the word for God (elohim) almost as a pun: the gods of the nations are no-gods, empty things that made nothing and can do nothing. "All the gods of the nations are idols."

"made the heavens," shamayim asah (שָׁמַיִם עָשָׂה). Set against the manufactured nothings stands the one God who "made the heavens." The idols are things men make; the LORD is the One who made everything. That contrast is the whole case for global worship in a single line.

Explanation

Two things give this opening its power. First, its reach. This is not a private hymn for one nation; it flings the doors wide: "sing unto the LORD, all the earth... Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people." Here, deep in the Old Testament, is the missionary heart of God, His praise refusing to stay inside Israel's borders and reaching out to summon every nation. And the word for "shew forth his salvation" (bassru) is the very verb from which the word "gospel", good news, comes; to proclaim God's salvation "from day to day" is to preach glad tidings daily. Second, its reason, which is stated as a sharp contrast in verse 5. "All the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens." The Hebrew for "idols" (elilim) means "nothings, worthless things," and it rings against the word for God (elohim) almost as a pun: the gods of the nations are no-gods, empty things that made nothing and can do nothing. Set against them stands the one God who "made the heavens." The idols are things men make; the LORD is the One who made everything. That is the whole case for global worship in a single line: why should all the earth sing to the LORD? Because every other god is a manufactured nothing, and He alone is the Maker of heaven. A new song is due to the only real God.

Gospel Focus

"Declare his glory among the heathen", this psalm's missionary summons is the marching order of the church, for the risen Lord Jesus said, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature" (Mark 16:15). To "shew forth his salvation" is to preach Christ, whose very name means salvation, to every nation. And the contrast between the idols and the Maker is the gospel's own call, for the Thessalonians "turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God" (1 Thessalonians 1:9), knowing "that an idol is nothing in the world" (1 Corinthians 8:4). The "new song" this psalm calls for is sung in fullness in heaven, where the redeemed praise the Lamb: "Thou art worthy... for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation" (Revelation 5:9). So take up the new song and pass it on: the God who made the heavens has wrought salvation in Jesus Christ, and every nation must hear it.

Word Study

"give," Hebrew havu (הָבוּ), ascribe, render. The word is more exact than it first sounds. It means to ascribe, to render, to acknowledge. We do not enrich God when we worship; we cannot hand Him anything He lacks. We ascribe to Him what is already and eternally His, and three times the psalm sounds the call: "Give unto the LORD."

"kindreds of the people," mishpechot ammim (מִשְׁפְּחוֹת עַמִּים), families of the peoples. The families of all nations, every clan and tribe, are the ones summoned: "Give unto the LORD, O ye kindreds of the people." The sweep of the psalm is as wide as the human race.

"the glory due unto his name," kevod shemo (כְּבוֹד שְׁמוֹ). The glory is due. Worship is the paying of a debt, the rendering to God of the honour that is rightfully His. To withhold praise is not to keep back something that is ours; it is to fail to pay what we owe.

"an offering," minchah (מִנְחָה). The nations are told to "bring an offering, and come into his courts." The worshipper does not come empty-handed; ascribing glory takes visible form in something brought and laid before Him.

"the beauty of holiness," hadrat-qodesh (הַדְרַת־קֹדֶשׁ), the splendour of holiness. The splendour that fits the worship of God is not chiefly the beauty of gold and architecture but the beauty of holiness itself, a pure heart, a life set apart. Holiness is not a grim duty added to worship; it is the very loveliness that adorns it.

Explanation

The threefold "Give unto the LORD" is the heart of this section, and the word "give" is more exact than it first sounds. The Hebrew (havu) means to ascribe, to render, to acknowledge. We do not enrich God when we worship; we cannot hand Him anything He lacks. Rather, we ascribe to Him what is already and eternally His, "glory and strength", we acknowledge out loud the greatness that belongs to Him whether we say it or not. That is why verse 8 calls it "the glory due unto his name." Worship is the paying of a debt, the rendering to God of the honour that is rightfully His. To withhold praise is not to keep something back that is ours; it is to fail to pay what we owe. And notice again the sweep: "O ye kindreds of the people", the families of all nations, every clan and tribe, are summoned to bring their offering and come into His courts. Then comes the phrase the church has treasured: "O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness." The splendour that fits the worship of God is not chiefly the beauty of gold and architecture but the beauty of holiness itself, a pure heart, a life set apart. Holiness is not a grim duty added to worship; it is the very loveliness that adorns it. To come before the holy God, the fitting garment is holiness, and there is a beauty in it that no ornament can match.

Gospel Focus

"Give unto the LORD, O ye kindreds of the people", that all the families of the earth would give God glory is the ancient promise now fulfilled in Christ, for God said to Abraham, "in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed" (Genesis 12:3), and in the gospel that blessing reaches every kindred. The "offering" we now bring is no longer bulls and goats but ourselves, "that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice" (Romans 12:1), and "the sacrifice of praise to God continually" (Hebrews 13:15). And to "worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness" is fulfilled in the worship Christ came to establish, for He said, "the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth" (John 4:23), a worship made possible because He has made His people holy by His own blood. So ascribe to the Lord Jesus the glory due unto His name, bring the offering of your whole self, and worship in the beauty of a holy heart, cleansed and set apart in Him.

Word Study

"let the heavens rejoice," Hebrew yismechu hashamayim (יִשְׂמְחוּ הַשָּׁמַיִם). The whole created order is called into a chorus, and the heavens are given the first voice. Their gladness opens a cosmic celebration that will sweep in earth, sea, field, and forest.

"let the sea roar," yir'am hayyam (יִרְעַם הַיָּם). The sea is not silenced but summoned: its thunder becomes applause. What might sound like mere noise is here counted as praise, "let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof."

"let the field be joyful," ya'aloz sadai (יַעֲלֹז שָׂדַי). The cultivated ground shouts, and after it "all the trees of the wood rejoice." Each part of creation is given its own voice in the chorus, down to the very trees.

"for he cometh," ki va (כִּי בָא). Note the urgent, joyful repetition: "for he cometh, for he cometh," said twice, like a herald who cannot wait to announce that the King is on His way. This coming is the reason for all the joy.

"to judge the earth," lishpot ha'aretz (לִשְׁפֹּט הָאָרֶץ). Creation breaks into song precisely because the Judge is coming. God's judgment is not mere punishment; it is the great setting-right of everything that has gone wrong, and creation longs for that day the way a prisoner longs for the opening of the cell.

"with his truth," be'emunato (בֶּאֱמוּנָתוֹ), in his faithfulness. He "shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth." The word carries the sense of faithfulness: the Judge will be utterly true to Himself, so that at last every wrong is righted and every lie exposed.

Explanation

The whole created order is called into a chorus here, heavens, earth, sea, field, and forest, each given its own voice: the heavens rejoice, the sea roars its applause, the fields shout, the very trees of the wood clap and sing. It is a cosmic celebration. But pause on why all creation is glad, because it is the opposite of what we expect. The reason for the joy is: "for he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth." We usually think of judgment as something to dread, a word of terror. Yet here creation breaks into song precisely because the Judge is coming. Why would the world rejoice at judgment? Because God's judgment is not mere punishment; it is the great setting-right of everything that has gone wrong. When the righteous Judge comes, He "shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth", at last every wrong will be righted, every oppression ended, every lie exposed, and the world restored to what it was meant to be. Creation, groaning for ages under the weight of sin's curse, longs for that day the way a prisoner longs for the opening of the cell. And notice the urgent, joyful repetition: "for he cometh, for he cometh", said twice, like a herald who cannot wait to announce that the King is on His way. To those who love righteousness, the coming of the Judge is not the world's dread but the world's hope.

Gospel Focus

"For he cometh to judge the earth", this is the promised return of the Lord Jesus Christ. The angels declared it as He ascended: "this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go" (Acts 1:11), and God "hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained" (Acts 17:31), the very "righteousness" and "truth" of this psalm. And creation's longing for that day is no poetic fancy, for "the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now" (Romans 8:22), waiting to be delivered when Christ returns. For the believer, then, the coming judgment is not terror but "that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ" (Titus 2:13). The One who comes to judge is the One who first came to save, and to all who are His, His appearing means the righting of every wrong and the dawn of a world made new. Let the heavens rejoice: He cometh.