Subject. - This Psalm is evidently taken from that sacred song which was composed by David at the time when "the ark of God was set in the midst of the tent which David had prepared for it, and they offered burnt sacrifices and peace offerings before God." See 1 Chronicles 16:1. The former part of that sacred song was probably omitted in this place because it referred to Israel, and the design of the Holy Ghost in this Psalm was to give forth a song for the Gentiles, a triumphant hymn wherewith to celebrate the conversion of the nations to Jehovah in gospel times. It follows fitly upon the last Psalm, which describes the obstinacy of Israel, and the consequent taking of the gospel from them that it might be preached among the nations who would receive it, and in due time be fully won to Christ by its power. It thus makes a pair with Psalm 95:1. It is a grand Missionary Hymn, and it is a wonder that Jews can read it and yet remain exclusive. If blindness in part had not happened unto Israel, they might have seen long ago, and would now see, that their God always had designs of love for all the families of men, and never intended that his grace and his covenant should relate only to the seed of Abraham after the flesh. We do not wonder that the large-hearted David rejoiced and danced before the ark, while he saw in vision all the earth turning from idols to the one living and true God. Had Michal, Saul's daughter, only been able to enter into his delight, she would not have reproached him, and if the Jews at this day could only be enlarged in heart to feel sympathy with all mankind, they also would sing for joy at the great prophecy that all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord.

Divisions. - We will make none, for the song is one and indivisible, a garment of praise without seam, woven from the top throughout.

Hints to Preachers

Psalm 96:1. - The novelties of grace.

I. A new salvation.

II. Creates a new heart.

III. Suggests a new song.

IV. Secures new testimonies, and these,

V. Produce new converts.

Psalm 96:1-3. -

I. The end desired into see the earth singing unto the Lord, and blessing his name.

II. The means suggested - the showing forth his salvation from day Go day; declaring his glory, etc.

III. The certainty of its accomplishment. The Lord hath said it. "O sing," etc. When he commands earth must obey.

Psalm 96:1-3. - The progress of zeal.

I. The spring of expansive desire, Psalm 96:1.

II. The streamlet of practical daily effort, Psalm 96:2.

III. The broad river of foreign missions, Psalm 96:3. - C. D.

Psalm 96:1-9. - We are to honour God.

I. With songs, verses Psalm 96:1, 19 96:2.

II. With sermons, Psalm 96:3.

III. With religious services, Psalm 96:7, 19 96:8, 19 96:9. - Matthew Henry.

Psalm 96:3 (first clause). -

I. Declare among the heathen the glory of God's perfections, that they may acknowledge him as the true God.

II. Declare the glory of his salvation, that they may accept him as their only Redeemer.

III. Declare the glory of his providence, that they may confide in him as their faithful guardian.

IV. Declare the glory of his word, that they may prize it as their chief treasure.

V. Declare the glory of his service, that they may choose it as their noblest occupation.

VI. Declare the glory of his residence, that they may seek it as their best home. - William Jackson.

Psalm 96:3. -

I. What the gospel is, "God's glory,.... his wonders."

II. What shall we do with it - declare it.

III. To whom. "Among the heathen," all people.

Psalm 96:3 (last clause). - "His wonders among the people."

I. The wonders of his Being, to inspire them with awe.

II. The wonders of his creation, to fill them with amazement.

III. The wonders of his judgments, to restrain them with fear.

IV. The wonders of his grace, to allure them with love. - W. Jackson.

Psalm 96:4-6. - Missionary sermon.

I. Contrast Jehovah of the Bible with gods of human device.

II. Decide between divine worship and idolatry.

III. Appeal for effort on behalf of idolaters. - C. D.

Psalm 96:6. - "Honour and majesty are before him."

I. As emanations from him.

II. As excellencies ascribed to him.

III. As characteristics of what is done by him.

IV. As marks of all that dwell near him. - W. Jackson.

Psalm 96:6. (latter clause). - What we may see in God's sanctuary (strength and beauty). What we may obtain there, Psalm 90:17 (strength and beauty). - C. D.

Psalm 96:8. - Jehovah possesses a nature and character peculiar to himself; he sustains various offices and relations, and he has performed many works which he alone could perform. On all these accounts something is due to him from his creatures. And when we regard him with such affections, and yield him such services, as his nature, character, offices, and works deserve, then we give unto him the glory which is due to his name.

I. Let us inquire what is due to Jehovah on account of his nature.

II. What is due to Jehovah on account of the character he possesses.

III. What is due to God on account of the relations and offices which he sustains - that of a creator, preserver.

IV. What is due to Jehovah on account of the works which he has performed, in nature, providence and redemption. - E. Payson.

Psalm 96:8. - The object of worship. The nature of worship. The accompaniment of worship (an offering). The place of worship. - C. D.

Psalm 96:9 (first clause). - An examination of true and false worship.

I. False worship, in the obscurity of ignorance, in the dulness of formalism, in the offensiveness of indulged sin, in the hideousness of hypocrisy.

II. True worship, in the beauty of holiness. - G. D.

Psalm 96:9. - Holy fear an essential ingredient in true religion.

Psalm 96:10-13. - The reign of righteousness.

I. The announcement of a righteous king and judge.

II. The joyful reception prepared for him.

III. His glorious coming. - C. D.

Psalm 96:11, Psalm 96:12. - The sympathy of nature with the work of grace; especially dwelling upon its fuller display in the millennial period.

Explanatory Notes and Quaint Sayings

Whole Psalm

What has been said of Psalm 67:1-7 may be fitly applied to the present Psalm. We need not hesitate to add that it is a millennial anthem. It accords with the condition of the world when Christ shall sit enthroned in the willing loyalty of our race. The nations join in an acclaim of praise to him as their rightful Judge and King. There is a unanimity in the song, as if it ascended from a world purged into a temple of holiness, and whose inhabitants were indeed a royal priesthood, with one heart to make Jesus king, with one voice to sound forth one peal of melody in praise of the name above every name.

Fix the eye for a moment on the precious vision of which we thus catch a glimpse. It holds true to the deepest principles of our nature, that what we contemplate as possible, much more what we anticipate as certain, lends us the very hope and energy conducive to its realisation. On the contrary, despair paralyses effort. Is it on this account that everywhere in prophecy, old and new, there floats before us the ideal of a recovered and rejoicing world, at times transfigured into a loftier scene, the new heavens and new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness? So largely did this thought imbue the prophetic mind, that the language of Paul warms into the animation of poetry, when even "the creature itself," according to his own vivid personification, like some noble bird, drooping under the weight Of its chain, with neck outstretched and eyeball distended, is described as looking down into the vista of coming time for its deliverance from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the sons of God (Romans 8:19). He hastens to add, that "we are saved by hope." It is true of the soul individually, we are saved by hope. It is true of our race collectively, if ever a millennium is to dawn upon it, we are saved by such a hope. Our earth may be in ruins meanwhile, blackness on the sky, barrenness on the soil, because sin is everywhere; but a change is promised. What we hope for, we labour for all the more that our hope is no dream of fancy, but has its basis in the science and certainty of absolute truth. "For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations." (Isaiah 61:11.) The tuning of the instrument is sometimes heard before the music comes. The mother teaches her child to lisp a hymn before he comprehends its full scope and meaning. And so here, in this holy Psalm, the Jerusalem from above, the mother of us all, trains us to the utterance of a song suitable to seasons of millennial glory, when the Moloch of oppression, the Mammon of our avarice, the Ashtaroth of fiery lust, every erring creed, every false religion, shall have given place to the worship of the one true and living God - to the faith and love of Christ. "Let the peoples praise thee, O God; let all the peoples praise thee." - W. H. Goold, in "The Mission Hymn of the Hebrew Church, a Sermon." 1865.

Whole Psalm

This Psalm is entitled in the Septuagint, "A Hymn of David; when the Temple was rebuilt after the Captivity," and this appears to be a true description of it; for the substance of it is found in 1 Chronicles 16:23-33, where it is described as having been delivered by David into the hand of Asaph and his brethren, to thank the Lord when the Ark was brought up to Zion. David's Psalm here receives a new name, and is called a new song (sir chadash), because new mercies of God were now to be celebrated; mercies greater than David had ever received, even when he brought the Ark to Zion. They who now sang the old song, which had thus become a new song, identified themselves with David, and identified him with themselves. - Chr. Wordsworth.

Whole Psalm

Subject. - Call to praise, in view of Christ's second advent and glorious reign. - To apply it. - Look forward to the glorious day of the Lord's coming; and realise its approach that you may prepare for it. - A. R. C. Dallas.

Psalm 96:1

"O sing unto the Lord a new song," etc. "A new song," unknown to you before. Come, all ye nations of the wide earth, who, up to this hour, have been giving your worship to dead gods that were no gods at all; come and give your hearts to the true and only God in this new song! - Henry Cowles.

Psalm 96:1

"A new song." It must be "a new canticle," a beautiful canticle, and elegantly composed; also a canticle for fresh favours; in like manner, a canticle befitting men who have been regenerated, in whom avarice has been supplanted by charity: and finally a canticle not like that of Moses, or Deborah, or any of the old canticles that could not be sung outside the land of promise, according to Psalm 137:1-9, "How shall we sing the Lord's song in a strange land?" but a new canticle that may be sung all over the world; and he, therefore, adds, "Sing unto the Lord, all the earth," not only Judea, but the whole world. - Bellarmine.

Psalm 96:1

"New." The word is used to describe that which is delightful, exquisite, precious, etc. - Martin Geier.

Psalm 96:1

"New." New things are generally most approved, and especially in songs; for Pindar praises old wine and new songs. - John Cocceius, 1603-1669.

Psalm 96:1

"A new song." Our old songs were those of pride, of, gluttony, luxury, in hope of gain, prosperity, or harm to others; our "new song" is of praise, reverence, and obedience, and love to God, in newness of life, in the Spirit that quickeneth, no longer in the letter that killeth, but keepeth that new commandment, that we love one another, not with the narrow patriotism and fellow-feeling of a small tribe, or a mere national church, but with a citizenship which embraces all the whole earth. - Neale and Littledale.

Psalm 96:1

"Sing unto the Lord." We find it thrice said, sing unto the Lord, that we may understand that we are to sing unto him with mind, and tongue, and deed. For all these things must be joined together, and the life ought to correspond with the mouth and mind. As Abbot Absolom says, When the speech does not jar with the life, there is a sweet harmony. - Le Blanc.

Psalm 96:1

"All the earth." It is a missionary-hymn for all ages of the church; and it becomes more and more appropriate to our times in proportion as the heathen begin to respond to the call, "Sing unto the Lord a new song," and in proportion as we find in the melancholy condition of the church at home occasion to look with a hopeful eye towards the heathen world. - E. W. Hengstenberg.

Psalm 96:2

"From day to day." Continually; always. It is a fit subject for unceasing praise. Every man should praise God every day - on each returning morning, and on every evening - for the assurance that there is a way of salvation provided for him, and that he may be happy for ever. If we had right feelings, this would be the first thought which would burst upon the mind each morning, irradiating, as with sunbeams, all around us; and it would be the last thought which would linger in the soul as we lie down at night, and close our eyes in slumber - making us grateful, calm, happy, as we sink to rest, for whether we wake or not in this world, we may be for ever happy. - Albert Barnes.

Psalm 96:2

"From day to day." Other news delights us only at first hearing; but the good news of our redemption is sweet from day to day, ac si in eodem die redemptio fuisset operata, saith Kimchi here, as if it were done but to-day. Tam recens mihi nunc Christus est, saith Luther, ac si hac hora fudisset sanguinem, Christ is now as fresh unto me as if he had shed his blood but this very hour. - John Trapp.

Psalm 96:3

"Declare." The corresponding word is a book; and the participle is often rendered a scribe, a writer, Psalm 45:1. The verb is rendered, tell, shew forth, declare. The variety of verbs used in Psalm 96:1-3, proves that we are to employ all proper means for making known the Saviour. One of these methods is by writing. - W. S. Plumer.

Psalm 96:3

"Declare his glory" - what a glorious person the Messiah is; the brightness of his Father's glory; having all the perfections of Deity in him; how the glory of God appears in him, and in all that he has done; and especially in the work of redemption, in which the glory of divine wisdom power, justice, truth, and faithfulness, love, grace, and mercy, is richly displayed; say what glory he is advanced unto, having done his work, being highly exalted, set at the right hand of God, and crowned with glory and honour, and what a fulness of grace there is in him, for the supply of his people; and what a glory is on him, which they shall behold to all eternity. - John Gill.

Psalm 96:3

His glory shines from every ray of light that reaches us from a thousand stars; it sparkles from the mountain tops that reflect the earliest and retain the last rays of the rising and the setting sun; it spreads over the expanse of the sea, and speaks in the murmur of its restless waves; it girdles the earth with a zone of light, and flings over it an aureole of beauty. In the varied forms of animal tribes; in the relations of our world to other worlds, in the revolutions of planets, in the springing of flowers, in the fall of waters, and in the flight of birds; in the sea, the rivers, and the air; in heights and depths, in wonders and mysteries, - Christ wears the crown, sways the sceptre, and receives from all a tribute to his sovereignty. We cannot augment it; we cannot add one ray of light to the faintness of a distant star, nor give wings to an apterous insect, nor change a white hair into black. We can unfold, but not create; we can adore, but not increase; we can recognise the footprints of Deity, but not add to them. - John Cumming in "From Patmos to Paradise, 1873."

Psalm 96:3

"Declare his glory among the heathen," etc. It is a part of the commission given to the ministers of the gospel, not only to teach their congregations concerning Christ, but also to have a care that they who never did hear of him, may know what he is, what he hath done and suffered, and what good may be had by his mediation. Nothing so glorious to God, nothing so wonderful in itself, as is the salvation of man by Christ; to behold God saving his enemies by the incarnation, sufferings, and obedience of Christ the eternal Son of God: "Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people." - David Dickson.

Psalm 96:3

"Declare his glory." It is his glory which should be proclaimed, not the learning, ability, and eloquence of the orator who professes to speak for him; it is his glory, the loving beauty, the attractiveness of his gospel, the lavish promises to repentant sinners, the blessedness of heaven, which should be the chief themes of discourse; not threats, menaces, sermons on hell or torment to affright men, and at best make them God's trembling slaves, not his loving friends. The preaching is to be "unto all people," in obscure country districts, amongst unpolished and illiterate congregations, and not to be confined, as fashionable preachers like to confine it, to the cultivated and critical audiences of the capital. - Hugo, quoted by Neale and Littledale.

Psalm 96:3

"His glory." What he had before called salvation, he now names glory, and afterwards wonders. And since this salvation, whereby the human race is redeemed from eternal death and damnation, is glorious and full of wonders, it is therefore worthy of admiration and praise. - Mollerus.

Psalm 96:3

"His wonders." What a wonderful person he is, for he is God manifest in the flesh; what wonderful love he has shown in his incarnation, obedience, sufferings, and death; what amazing miracles he wrought, and what a wonderful work he performed; the work of our redemption, the wonder of men and angels; declare his wonderful resurrection from the dead, his ascension to heaven, sitting at the right hand of God, and intercession for his people; the wonderful effusion of his Spirit, and the conquests of his grace, and the enlargement of his kingdom in the world; as also what wonders will be wrought by him when he appears a second time; how the dead will be raised, and all will be Judged. - John Gill.

Psalm 96:5

"For all the gods of the nations are idols." Nothings, nonentities, a favourite description of idols in Isaiah's later prophecies. See e.g. Isaiah 41:24, and compare Leviticus 19:4, Leviticus 26:1, 1 Corinthians 8:4-6, 1 Corinthians 10:19. A less probable etymology of the Hebrew word makes it a diminutive of (אל) El, analogous to godlings as an expression of contempt. - J. A. Alexander.

Psalm 96:5

"The gods of the nations are idols." Their Elohim are elilim. See 1 Chronicles 16:26. The word elilim occurs in two places in the Psalms, here and Psalm 97:7. It is used most frequently by Isaiah, and properly signifies nothings, as St. Paul says, "an idol is nothing." (1 Corinthians 8:4.) - Chr. Wordsworth.

1 O Sing unto the Lord) a new song; sing unto the Lord, all the earth.

2 Sing unto the Lord, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from

day to day.

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

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

5 For all the gods of the nations are idols; but the Lord made the heavens.

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

sanctuary.

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

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

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

10 Say 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:

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

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

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