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1 Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done marvellous things;
his right hand and his holy arm
have worked salvation for him.
2 The LORD has made his salvation known
and revealed his righteousness to the nations.
3 He has remembered his love
and his faithfulness to Israel;
all the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation of our God.
4 Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth,
burst into jubilant song with music;
5 make music to the LORD with the harp,
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with the harp and the sound of singing,
6 with trumpets and the blast of the ram’s horn –
shout for joy before the LORD, the King.
7 Let the sea resound, and everything in it,
the world, and all who live in it.
8 Let the rivers clap their hands,
let the mountains sing together for joy;
9 let them sing before the LORD,
for he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
and the peoples with equity.
(NIV)
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Psalm 98: The coming reign of the Lord on the earth is celebrated here as an event of great joy. Therefore, three groups are called upon to rejoice: God’s people (verses 1-3), the whole earth (verses 4-6), and all of nature (verses 7-9).
Verses 1-9: Like the surrounding psalms, this psalm proclaims the excitement and joy of the whole earth because of the rule of the Lord in the kingdom. This psalm is given over entirely to praise, with only a brief mention of the wicked.
• Celebration of the Lord’s Victorious Reign (98:1-6).
• Triumphs of the Lord (98:1-3);
• Praise to the Lord (98:4-6).
• Exaltation of the Lord’s Righteous Judgments (98:7-9).
Verses 1-3: A song of praise for redeeming love is a new song, a mystery hidden from ages and generations. Converts sing a new song, very different from what they had sung.
Let us praise him for the discoveries of redemption made to the world for His work; of salvation and his righteousness fulfilling the prophecies and promises in the Old Testament. God raised up his Son Jesus to be
not only a Light to lighten the Gentiles, but the glory of his people Israel.
All of this rejoicing has been before the Lord of all the earth was born.
• A time before the angels came to proclaim His birth, to the shepherds in the field
• Or came to a baby in a manger.
Now this is to announce His coming as King, so trumpets must blow and voices must praise, and knees must bow to the King of all the earth. There will be no unequal judgement from Him. His judgement will be righteous. There will be no special favours to the rich and those in high office. All will be judged with the same set of rules. His judgement is true and fair and forgiving. The believers in Christ will stand before Him and be judged by the righteousness they are clothed with. Those who refused Him as their Saviour will be judged by the law of God. Our shout should be ‘Praise to our King’
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