Chapter: Psalm 96

Hymns

Hymns extol the glory and greatness of God as it is revealed in nature and history, and particularly in Israels’s history. Hymns praise God in general terms for his power and faithfulness as creator of the cosmos, ruler of history, and creator/redeemer of Israel to bring blessing to all the world. Israel’s hymns stress God’s active involvement in the life story of Israel. Hymns typically demonstrate motives for worshipping and praising God. A clear example is Psalm 117, the shortest psalm, just two verses:

¹ O praise the Lord, all you nations; *

praise him, all you peoples.

² For (= Hebrew ki) great is his loving-kindness towards us, *

and the faithfulness of the Lord endures for ever.

Praise the Lord.

Hymns were used for exuberant worship in the temple and the synagogue. The people of God before the Incarnation invite us to celebrate and praise with them in hope of the kingdom of God and his Messiah. Hymns, like all psalms, show Christians how to praise God who has acted in creation, in revelation, and in redemption, and who is acting decisively in establishing his kingdom on earth. They do not ask anything; they simply rejoice in God’s presence.

Examples: Psalms 8, 19:1-6, 33, 66:1-12, 100, 103, 104, 145-150, and others

Enthronement Psalms

Some of the hymns in the Psalter are called “enthronement psalms” because they focus on the theme of God’s kingship. His throne is established from an immeasurable past time, and his kingdom will be everlasting. In the Temple on Mount Zion in Jerusalem, God became present to his people in worship. God did not literally dwell/live in the Temple but his people experienced his “tabernacling presence” there as they worshipped. He was enthroned in the praises of his people. His kingship may also have been celebrated in a ritual enactment of enthronement, a drama of God ascending his throne amid shouts of acclamation. God is enthroned triumphantly over powers that threaten to plunge our lives into meaningless chaos and disorder. Christians read these psalms in the context of the good news that God in Christ has inaugurated the divine kingdom by striking a decisive blow against all powers of oppression, darkness, chaos, and death. We pray the enthronement psalms in the spirit of the Lord’s prayer: “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matt. 6:10)

Examples: Psalms 29, 47, 93, 95-99

96

Cantate Domino

¹ O sing unto the Lord a new song; *

sing unto the Lord, all the whole earth.

² Sing unto the Lord and praise his Name; *

tell of his salvation from day to day.

³ Declare his honor to the nations, *

and his wonders to all peoples.

⁴ For the Lord is great, and highly to be praised; *

he is more to be feared than all gods.

⁵ As for all the gods of the nations, they are but idols; *

but it is the Lord who made the heavens.

⁶ Glory and majesty are before him; *

power and honor are in his sanctuary.

⁷ Ascribe unto the Lord, O you families of the peoples, *

ascribe unto the Lord worship and power.

⁸ Ascribe unto the Lord the honor due unto his Name; *

bring offerings and come into his courts.

⁹ O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness; *

let the whole earth stand in awe of him.

¹⁰ Tell it out among the nations, “The Lord is King; *

it is he who has made the world so firm that it cannot be moved; he shall judge the peoples righteously.”

¹¹ Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; *

let the sea make a noise, and all that is therein.

¹² Let the field be joyful, and all that is in it; *

then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice before the Lord.

¹³ For he comes, for he comes to judge the earth, *

and with righteousness to judge the world, and the peoples with his truth.