Tag Archives: Psalms of Enthronement

Psalm 99 The Universal King Worshipped By A Particular People

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The Temple by Radojavor@deviantart.com

Psalm 99

1 The LORD is king; let the peoples tremble! He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
2 The LORD is great in Zion; he is exalted over all the peoples.
3 Let them praise your great and awesome name. Holy is he!
4 Mighty King, lover of justice, you have established equity; you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.
5 Extol the LORD our God; worship at his footstool. Holy is he!
6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel also was among those who called on his name. They cried to the LORD, and he answered them.
7 He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud; they kept his decrees, and the statutes that he gave them.
8 O LORD our God, you answered them; you were a forgiving God to them, but an avenger of their wrongdoings.
9 Extol the LORD our God, and worship at his holy mountain; for the LORD our God is holy.

Psalm 8 can wonder, “what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?” and Psalm 99 can focus that wonder on a particular place and people through whom the world comes to know the ruler of the heavens and earth. The LORD is the one before whom all nations tremble and the earth shakes, but whose universal sovereignty is focused on a particular place: the temple in Zion. The description of God being enthroned above the cherubim almost always refers to the ark of the covenant (1 Samuel 4:4, 2 Samuel 6:2, Psalm 80:1) and the references to Zion and holy mountain indicate that the psalm is pointing to the temple in Jerusalem. Even the notation of God’s footstool also refers to the temple as a resting place for the ark (1 Chronicles 28:2, Psalm 132:7). God presence and power becomes known through a particular place.

At the same time the psalm links the knowledge of God to a holy place, it also becomes known through holy people. Book four of the psalter began with Psalm 90, the only psalm attributed to Moses, and it is likely intentional that the final enthronement psalm references Moses once again. Moses and Aaron are lifted up as priests of God, and they are responsible for the construction of the ark where God’s presence is met. Samuel is the other figure lifted up in the psalm, who also harkens back to pre-monarchic Israel. Samuel opposed the people’s request for a king because for Samuel only the LORD is king, a sentiment echoed by Psalm 99. It is possible that Psalm 99 comes from a time after the re-establishment of the temple in Jerusalem after the exile, a time when the line of Davidic kings seems to have ended.

The paradox of the psalmist’s faith is that the LORD the God of Israel is the universal king over all the earth and peoples who has revealed Godself through a particular place (the temple in Zion) and through particular people (Moses, Aaron, and Samuel in the psalm). Yet, the psalm yearns for a universal realization that transcends the particularity of Israel. Israel has the privileged position of being the people to whom the Mighty King revealed not only himself but also the vision of justice and righteousness that God’s kingdom would involve. So, in response to the universal wonder of Psalm 8, Psalm 99 can give the particular wonder of a people who says, “Who are we that the Mighty King, the lover of justice who establishes equity throughout the earth dwells in the temple on our holy mountain, and spoke to use through Moses, Aaron, and Samuel, Israel that you care for us?”

Psalm 98 A Joyous Song of God’s Salvation

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Statue of Watts, Abney Park Cemetery

 

Psalm 98

<A Psalm.>
1 O sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things. His right hand and his holy arm have gotten him victory.
2 The LORD has made known his victory; he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.
3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.
4 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises.
5 Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody.
6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD.
7 Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; the world and those who live in it.
8 Let the floods clap their hands; let the hills sing together for joy
9 at the presence of the LORD, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.

Isaac Watt’s well known Christmas song “Joy to the World” is inspired by Psalm 98, (Mays, 1994, p. 312) although instead of heaven and nature singing as in “Joy to the World”, the seas and the nations sing in the text of the psalm. The appropriate response of the people of God, the nations of the earth, and the elements and residents of the waters to the victory (or salvation)[1] of God is the boisterous music of praise and worship. The vocal and instrumental music of humanity joins with the harmonic and percussive notes of the earth and the land. The approach of the LORD the God of Israel to judge the world with righteousness and the peoples of the earth with equity is a moment of celebration for all the earth. The faithful ones are the sentinels announcing to the peoples of the world that the time has come to join in the song of creation as the marvel and salvation of God.

The salvation of God and the reign of God’s righteousness is a moment of joyous expectation for all of creation. The house of Israel has experienced God’s steadfast love[2] and faithfulness, but all the nations of the earth also witnessed God’s salvation and the creation itself responds in joy. As Ellen Davis can state,

Judgment is the positive and passionate assertion of God’s will for the world, beginning with the deep foundation of God’s rule in the human heart; therefore, it gives no quarter to deception and self-delusion. (Nancy deClaisse-Walford, 2014, p. 728)

The faithful ones know the internal dimension of God’s reign in their lives and yearn for the revelation of God’s reign in the world seen across governments and nations. Yet, the longing of the faithful is also the longing of the creation for God’s judgement which brings God’s kingdom to earth, so the ways of steadfast love and faithfulness experienced in the heavens may be done on earth. The only response is the joyous song of lyre, trumpet and voice joining the collection of the sounds of the sea, the rains, and the hills. Nature joins the song of heaven and both the faithful and the wicked bear witness to the moment when heaven and nature sing along with the upraised voices of people throughout the world.

[1] The Hebrew verb ysh is typically translated salvation and it occurs in each of the first three verses (victory in NRSV’s translation).

[2] Hebrew hesed.

Psalm 96 A New Song of God’s Triumph

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Psalm 96

1 O sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth.
2 Sing to the LORD, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day.
3 Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples.
4 For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; he is to be revered above all gods.
5 For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the LORD made the heavens.
6 Honor and majesty are before him; strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.
7 Ascribe to the LORD, O families of the peoples, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.
8 Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; bring an offering, and come into his courts.
9 Worship the LORD in holy splendor; tremble before him, all the earth.
10 Say among the nations, “The LORD is king! The world is firmly established; it shall never be moved. He will judge the peoples with equity.”
11 Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
12 let the field exult, and everything in it. Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy
13 before the LORD; for he is coming, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with his truth.

Psalm 96 is an exultant song of God’s glory and reign over all gods, nations, and the creation itself. 1 Chronicles 16 places the majority of this psalm within the song of thanksgiving appointed by David (1 Chronicles 16: 23-33) which marks the placing the placing of the ark of God in the tent. This psalm might have its origin in the songs of David, and its placement in 1 Chronicles creates an event that would make sense for this song of God’s triumphant ascension. However, this psalm also articulates the defiant faith of the chosen people in their God as they attempt to remain faithful in a multireligious world where they are not dominant among the nations. This new song allows the singers and hearers to articulate a vision of a world already giving glory and praise to the LORD who is enthroned over all gods and kings.

Three times the hearers are commanded to sing to the LORD, and the hearers are not limited to Judah or Israel. All the earth is to join in this song of blessing to the God of salvation. The song proclaims the gospel[1] that God has triumphed over the forces that opposed God’s reign. God’s works and glory are to extend to all the nations as the LORD transcends all the gods of the nations. The gods of the nations are ‘idols’ (NRSV), ‘nobodies’ ( (Brueggemann, 2014, p. 415) or ‘ineffective and incompetent.’ (Mays, 1994, p. 308) The LORD is the creator of the heavens compared to all the ineffective and incompetent nobodies who the nations once gave their allegiance to. The peoples and families of the earth are to bear witness to the glory and strength that is due to God. The nations are to stream to Jerusalem to bring an offering before God as the prophets envision. (Isaiah 2: 2-3, Micah 4: 1-2, Zechariah 8:21-23) The temple of God in Zion now occupies the central place in the world where all the families of the peoples come together in awe filled worship and celebration of the God who reigns over all the heavens and the earth.

God’s reign over the earth is to be a reign of justice that brings joy to the peoples of the earth and to the creation. The heavens, the sea, and the land all join in this praise of the nations. Those who have reigned with injustice, whose actions have done violence to people and the earth are now removed so the nations, the land, the sea, and the sky can all heal. The psalm envisions God’s kingdom coming and God’s will being done on earth as it is in heaven.

The faithful ones who worship God declare God does reign over the earth and then enter into the tension of a world where God’s reign is not realized. Injustice continues to occur. The heavens, sea, and the earth are polluted by those who improperly use the gifts of creation and the blood spilled in conflict and war. The nations continue to give their allegiance to idols that are ineffective nobodies who cannot deliver what they promise. This psalm may be easier to sing in moments of triumph, but the defiant faith of this psalm bears witness to the world of the reality faith allows them to see: that God’s kingdom is already present in the midst of the world and the time will come when the nations will all see, worship, and give glory to the God who reigns over the heavens and the earth.

[1] The Hebrew bissar is the verb “for the duty of the herald who precedes a victor to bring a report to those who await good news from the battle.” (Mays, 1994, p. 308) This verb is normally translated in the Septuagint as the Greek euangelion translated as gospel in the New Testament.