O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth.
Psalm 96 opens with a command of praise suited to the glory of Jehovah and the coming publication of His salvation among the heathen. Much of this psalm appears in David’s song when the ark was brought to its place in Jerusalem, where Israel was commanded to sing unto the LORD, declare His glory among the heathen, and fear Him above all gods (1 Chronicles 16:1,7,23-33). But the psalm reaches beyond Israel standing before the ark. It calls “all the earth” to sing, commands God’s glory to be declared “among the heathen,” and proclaims that “the LORD reigneth” among the nations (vv.1,3,10). This is Old Testament prophecy with gospel breadth. Jehovah is not a local god, nor the possession of one land. He made the heavens (v.5). His salvation must be shown from day to day (v.2). His praise must be as wide as His dominion.
The verse begins, “O sing.” This is not suggestion, entertainment, or religious decoration. It is command. Singing is a duty of worship, and the God who made the voice has right to command the voice. David said, “I will sing unto the LORD, because he hath dealt bountifully with me” (Psalm 13:6). The redeemed have cause to sing, and silence is not fitting where God has shown mercy. The opening “O” gives warmth to the command. This is not cold instruction. The psalmist stirs the heart to praise because the LORD is great, greatly to be praised, and to be feared above all gods (v.4).
The song is “unto the LORD.” LORD in all capital letters is the King James Bible’s usual way of representing the divine name Jehovah. This matters. The psalm does not call for songs unto idols, angels, saints, nature, religious feeling, or man’s own imagination. “All the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens” (v.5). Idols have no life, no authority, no salvation, and no right to worship. Jehovah made the heavens. He alone must be praised.
This phrase also governs the manner of worship. The song is unto the LORD, so it must be ruled by His truth and offered for His glory. Yet Godward singing also profits the saints, for Paul commanded the church to teach and admonish one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs while singing with grace in their hearts to the Lord (Colossians 3:16). He also charged saints to speak to themselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in the heart to the Lord (Ephesians 5:19). The highest direction of worship is Godward, but truthful singing edifies the church. Much that men call worship aims at fleshly pleasure, performance, or tradition. Psalm 96 fixes the object: sing unto Jehovah.
The “new song” must be handled carefully. It does not mean a search for modern novelty, emotional freshness, new doctrine, or invented worship. God’s word is settled in heaven (Psalm 119:89). His truth does not improve with fashion, culture, or musical appetite. Nor is the “new song” a warrant to chase subjective feeling, as though worship were made better by whatever seems fresh to the flesh. The newness is not novelty against truth. It is the higher praise belonging to fuller revelation and greater salvation.
Look at the psalm. The new song is tied to salvation shown from day to day, glory declared among the heathen, wonders declared among all people, and Jehovah’s reign announced among the nations (vv.2-3,10). This reaches toward the superior light of the New Testament dispensation. The prophets searched diligently into the salvation that would come, inquiring what the Spirit of Christ signified when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow (1 Peter 1:10-12). Old Testament saints saw Christ through promises, sacrifices, shadows, and prophetic figures; the law had “a shadow of good things to come,” not the very image of those things (Hebrews 10:1). But now redemption has been accomplished by Jesus Christ, and the gospel has been preached with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven (1 Peter 1:12). That is matter for a new song.
This new song is the praise of redemption accomplished. Heaven gives the clearest pattern: “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). That song is new because the Lamb has been slain, the blood has been shed, the purchase has been made, and the redeemed are gathered from all nations. Psalm 96 commanded the earth to sing before that glory was fully revealed. From this side of the cross, the church sings with greater knowledge. We do not sing of sacrifices awaiting fulfillment; we sing of Christ once offered to bear the sins of many (Hebrews 9:28). We do not sing through shadows as if the work were unfinished; we sing because He cried, “It is finished” (John 19:30).
“Sing unto the LORD.” The command is repeated, and the repetition is not vain. The heart is slow to praise and quick to forget. God summons it again. Sing unto the LORD. The psalm itself repeats the charge because Jehovah’s glory deserves more than a passing acknowledgment. His salvation must be shown, His glory declared, His wonders published, and His reign confessed (vv.2-3,10). One call is not enough for dull hearts. The Spirit presses the duty.
“All the earth.” Here the command widens. Israel must sing, but Israel alone is not enough. The whole earth is called to praise Jehovah. This is remarkable in an Old Testament psalm. The nations had long walked in darkness and idolatry, but the psalm commands the publication of God’s glory among the heathen (v.3). The New Testament shows the fulfillment more plainly: repentance and remission of sins were to be preached in Christ’s name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem (Luke 24:47). When Paul turned to the Gentiles, he declared that the Lord had commanded the apostles to be a light of the Gentiles, that they should be for salvation unto the ends of the earth (Acts 13:46-47). Psalm 96 is singing in advance of that day.
This does not teach universal salvation. “All the earth” is a call of duty, not a promise that every soul will obey savingly. All men owe Jehovah worship because He made them, rules them, and will judge them (vv.5,10,13). Yet the gospel also gathers actual redeemed worshippers from the earth. Christ redeemed men to God by His blood out of every kindred, tongue, people, and nation (Revelation 5:9). The command is universal; the saving fruit is particular by grace. The heathen who once served idols are turned to serve the living and true God (1 Thessalonians 1:9).
This verse rebukes narrow thoughts of Jehovah’s dominion. He is not one god among many. He is not confined to one nation in the way idols were tied to lands and peoples. He made the heavens (v.5). He reigns among the heathen (v.10). He comes to judge the earth with righteousness and the people with His truth (v.13). Every idol is vanity. Every false worship is rebellion. Every creature owes praise to the LORD.
Psalm 96:1 sets the tone for the whole psalm. Sing unto Jehovah. Sing the new song, not the noise of novelty, but the superior praise of redemption now accomplished in Jesus Christ. Sing again, for the heart needs the command. Let all the earth hear, for the salvation once promised in shadows has now been declared among the nations. Jehovah made the heavens, reigns among the heathen, and comes to judge the earth. His glory is great, His salvation is published, and His praise belongs from Israel to the ends of the world.
O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth.
Psalm 96 opens with a command of praise suited to the glory of Jehovah and the coming publication of His salvation among the heathen. Much of this psalm appears in David’s song when the ark was brought to its place in Jerusalem, where Israel was commanded to sing unto the LORD, declare His glory among the heathen, and fear Him above all gods (1 Chronicles 16:1,7,23-33). But the psalm reaches beyond Israel standing before the ark. It calls “all the earth” to sing, commands God’s glory to be declared “among the heathen,” and proclaims that “the LORD reigneth” among the nations (vv.1,3,10). This is Old Testament prophecy with gospel breadth. Jehovah is not a local god, nor the possession of one land. He made the heavens (v.5). His salvation must be shown from day to day (v.2). His praise must be as wide as His dominion.
The verse begins, “O sing.” This is not suggestion, entertainment, or religious decoration. It is command. Singing is a duty of worship, and the God who made the voice has right to command the voice. David said, “I will sing unto the LORD, because he hath dealt bountifully with me” (Psalm 13:6). The redeemed have cause to sing, and silence is not fitting where God has shown mercy. The opening “O” gives warmth to the command. This is not cold instruction. The psalmist stirs the heart to praise because the LORD is great, greatly to be praised, and to be feared above all gods (v.4).
The song is “unto the LORD.” LORD in all capital letters is the King James Bible’s usual way of representing the divine name Jehovah. This matters. The psalm does not call for songs unto idols, angels, saints, nature, religious feeling, or man’s own imagination. “All the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens” (v.5). Idols have no life, no authority, no salvation, and no right to worship. Jehovah made the heavens. He alone must be praised.
This phrase also governs the manner of worship. The song is unto the LORD, so it must be ruled by His truth and offered for His glory. Yet Godward singing also profits the saints, for Paul commanded the church to teach and admonish one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs while singing with grace in their hearts to the Lord (Colossians 3:16). He also charged saints to speak to themselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in the heart to the Lord (Ephesians 5:19). The highest direction of worship is Godward, but truthful singing edifies the church. Much that men call worship aims at fleshly pleasure, performance, or tradition. Psalm 96 fixes the object: sing unto Jehovah.
The “new song” must be handled carefully. It does not mean a search for modern novelty, emotional freshness, new doctrine, or invented worship. God’s word is settled in heaven (Psalm 119:89). His truth does not improve with fashion, culture, or musical appetite. Nor is the “new song” a warrant to chase subjective feeling, as though worship were made better by whatever seems fresh to the flesh. The newness is not novelty against truth. It is the higher praise belonging to fuller revelation and greater salvation.
Look at the psalm. The new song is tied to salvation shown from day to day, glory declared among the heathen, wonders declared among all people, and Jehovah’s reign announced among the nations (vv.2-3,10). This reaches toward the superior light of the New Testament dispensation. The prophets searched diligently into the salvation that would come, inquiring what the Spirit of Christ signified when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow (1 Peter 1:10-12). Old Testament saints saw Christ through promises, sacrifices, shadows, and prophetic figures; the law had “a shadow of good things to come,” not the very image of those things (Hebrews 10:1). But now redemption has been accomplished by Jesus Christ, and the gospel has been preached with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven (1 Peter 1:12). That is matter for a new song.
This new song is the praise of redemption accomplished. Heaven gives the clearest pattern: “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). That song is new because the Lamb has been slain, the blood has been shed, the purchase has been made, and the redeemed are gathered from all nations. Psalm 96 commanded the earth to sing before that glory was fully revealed. From this side of the cross, the church sings with greater knowledge. We do not sing of sacrifices awaiting fulfillment; we sing of Christ once offered to bear the sins of many (Hebrews 9:28). We do not sing through shadows as if the work were unfinished; we sing because He cried, “It is finished” (John 19:30).
“Sing unto the LORD.” The command is repeated, and the repetition is not vain. The heart is slow to praise and quick to forget. God summons it again. Sing unto the LORD. The psalm itself repeats the charge because Jehovah’s glory deserves more than a passing acknowledgment. His salvation must be shown, His glory declared, His wonders published, and His reign confessed (vv.2-3,10). One call is not enough for dull hearts. The Spirit presses the duty.
“All the earth.” Here the command widens. Israel must sing, but Israel alone is not enough. The whole earth is called to praise Jehovah. This is remarkable in an Old Testament psalm. The nations had long walked in darkness and idolatry, but the psalm commands the publication of God’s glory among the heathen (v.3). The New Testament shows the fulfillment more plainly: repentance and remission of sins were to be preached in Christ’s name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem (Luke 24:47). When Paul turned to the Gentiles, he declared that the Lord had commanded the apostles to be a light of the Gentiles, that they should be for salvation unto the ends of the earth (Acts 13:46-47). Psalm 96 is singing in advance of that day.
This does not teach universal salvation. “All the earth” is a call of duty, not a promise that every soul will obey savingly. All men owe Jehovah worship because He made them, rules them, and will judge them (vv.5,10,13). Yet the gospel also gathers actual redeemed worshippers from the earth. Christ redeemed men to God by His blood out of every kindred, tongue, people, and nation (Revelation 5:9). The command is universal; the saving fruit is particular by grace. The heathen who once served idols are turned to serve the living and true God (1 Thessalonians 1:9).
This verse rebukes narrow thoughts of Jehovah’s dominion. He is not one god among many. He is not confined to one nation in the way idols were tied to lands and peoples. He made the heavens (v.5). He reigns among the heathen (v.10). He comes to judge the earth with righteousness and the people with His truth (v.13). Every idol is vanity. Every false worship is rebellion. Every creature owes praise to the LORD.
Psalm 96:1 sets the tone for the whole psalm. Sing unto Jehovah. Sing the new song, not the noise of novelty, but the superior praise of redemption now accomplished in Jesus Christ. Sing again, for the heart needs the command. Let all the earth hear, for the salvation once promised in shadows has now been declared among the nations. Jehovah made the heavens, reigns among the heathen, and comes to judge the earth. His glory is great, His salvation is published, and His praise belongs from Israel to the ends of the world.