Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
Psalms 96:10

Clarke's Commentary

Verse Psalms 96:10. Say among the heathen that the Lord reigneth — Justin Martyr, in his dialogue with Trypho the Jew, quotes this passage thus: Ειπατε εν τοις εθνεσι, ὁ Κυριος εβασιλευσε απο του ξυλου, "Say among the nations, the Lord ruleth by the wood," meaning the cross; and accuses the Jews of having blotted this word out of their Bibles, because of the evidence it gave of the truth of Christianity. It appears that this reading did exist anciently in the Septuagint, or at least in some ancient copies of that work, for the reading has been quoted by Tertullian, Lactantius, Arnobius, Augustine, Cassiodorus, Pope Leo, Gregory of Tours, and others. The reading is still extant in the ancient Roman Psalter, Dominus regnavit a ligno, and in some others. In an ancient MS. copy of the Psalter before me, while the text exhibits the commonly received reading, the margin has the following gloss: Regnavit a ligno crucis, "The Lord reigns by the wood of the cross." My old Scotico-Latin Psalter has not a ligno in the text, but seems to refer to it in the paraphrase: For Criste regned efter the dede on the crosse. It is necessary, however, to add, that no such words exist in any copy of the Hebrew text now extant, nor in any MS. yet collated, nor in any of the ancient Versions. Neither Eusebius nor Jerome even refer to it, who wrote comments on the Psalms; nor is it mentioned by any Greek writer except Justin Martyr.

The world also shall be established — The word תבל tebel signifies the habitable globe, and may be a metonymy here, the container put for the contained. And many think that by it the Church is intended; as the Lord, who is announced to the heathen as reigning, is understood to be Jesus Christ; and his judging among the people, his establishing the holy Gospel among them, and governing the nations by its laws.

Bridgeway Bible Commentary

Psalms 95-96 God the creator of the universe

Six psalms, 95 to 100, are grouped so as to form a series for use in temple worship. The first psalm opens by calling people to worship God because he is the saviour (95:1-2), the great God (3), the creator and controller of the universe (4-5), the maker of the human race (6) and, above all, the covenant Lord and shepherd of his people (7). Worship, however, must be joined to obedience. Israel’s experiences in the wilderness show that people might claim to belong to God, but be so complaining, disobedient and stubborn that it is impossible for them to enjoy the inheritance God promised (8-11; cf. Exodus 17:1-7; Numbers 11:1-23; Numbers 20:2-13; Hebrews 3:7-10).

After the worshippers have heeded the warning of the previous psalm and prepared their hearts in a right attitude of worship, they are urged to praise God with further singing. Besides praising him for his great works, they are to proclaim his wonders to others (96:1-3). Idol-gods cannot be known, because they have no life. The living and true God can be known, both through the created universe and through the worship of the sanctuary (4-6). People everywhere should therefore bring him worship, praise and sacrificial offerings (7-9). Because he is Lord of the universe, all creation joins in bringing him praise. Because he is Lord of the world of humankind, he will establish his righteous kingdom on the earth (10-13).

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible

THE COMING OF THE MESSIAH

"Say among the nations, Jehovah reigneth: The world also is established that it cannot be moved: He will judge the peoples with equity. Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; Let the field exult, and all that is therein; Then shall all the trees of the wood sing for joy Before Jehovah; for he cometh, For he cometh to judge the earth: He will judge the world with righteousness, And the peoples with his truth."

"This passage expresses the Messianic hope (Psalms 96:13)… but here, as in Malachi 4:6, there is no thought of any personal Messiah. Yahweh himself is the deliverer."W. E. Addis, p. 389. Once more, we have an example of scholarly blindness apparently due to lack of a knowledge of the New Testament. Jesus Christ the Messiah, indeed a `Personal Messiah' was none other than God Himself in the person of his only begotten Son, who in the New Testament is declared to be "God" in no less than a dozen passages (John 1:1; John 1:18; John 20:28; Acts 20:38; Romans 9:5; Philippians 2:6; Colossians 2:9; 1 Timothy 3:16; Titus 2:13; Hebrews 1:8; James 1:1; Revelation 5:13; Revelation 6:16).

"Jehovah reigneth… he will judge the peoples with equity" The reign of Jehovah was announced by John the Baptist as, "The Kingdom of God" and declared to be at hand in the year 26 A.D. That reign began on the first Pentecost after the resurrection of Christ and is in progress at the present time.

"He will judge the peoples" This judgment is progressing continually, as typified in Revelation 6:2 under the emblem of the Conquering Saviour on the White Horse. This judgment is being accomplished by the sacred inspired words of the Holy Apostles of Christ, in a spiritual sense, "Sitting upon twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of the children of Israel" (the New Israel, which is the Church) (Matthew 19:28). That this interpretation is correct appears in the fact that this judgment of mankind through the word of the Apostles of Christ will take place "in the times of the regeneration," that is, in the times when men are being saved, which is, without any doubt whatever, the present age.

"Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice" At the coming of the Messiah, on the night that Christ was born, the heavens themselves burst into song when the chorus of the angelic host sang, "Glory to God in the Highest; peace on earth to men of good will" (Luke 2:14); and the rejoicing of the earth is continuing throughout the ages in the hearts of those obeying the gospel, who go "on their way rejoicing," as did Philip the eunuch (Acts 8:39).

"Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof" This is most likely a reference to the unbelieving populations of mankind, often represented in Scripture as the sea (Revelation 13:1), and in the passage here. It is the equivalent of the rage of the heathen mentioned in Psalms 2:1. The meaning is, "Let the heathen rage," God's judgment of mankind through the gospel of Christ is steadily going forward.

"Let the fields exult… the trees of the wood sing for joy" The joyful sentiment of this verse was captured in Isaac Watts' famed hymn, "Joy to the World," set to music by Handel.

Joy to the world, the Savior reigns, Let men their songs employ,
While fields, and floods, rocks, hills, and plains
Repeat the sounding joy, Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy.Great Songs of the Church, No. 429.

"Before Jehovah, for he cometh… to judge… he will judge the people by his truth" We have already noted the application of this to the coming of the Messiah and the subsequent judgment of all nations by the Holy Gospels; but there are also overtones here of the Eternal Judgement of the Last Day. In all of the prophecies, there is a tendency to telescope the first judgment of Christ's Messianic coming that produced, among many other things, the destruction of Jerusalem, with that of the final Great White Throne Judgment of the Day of Jehovah. This occurred, because both of these judgments pertain to "the last times," of which Peter declared that "These present days" indeed belong to those last times (Acts 2:16-17).

Both of these judgments, the one proceeding now by means of the Word of God and the other to come at the end of the age, are tied together in the fact that the basis of judgment in both will be exactly the same. As Jesus said:

"He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my sayings, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I speak, the same shall judge him in the last day" John 12:48.

Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible

Say among the heathen - Among the nations; all nations. Make this proclamation everywhere. This is changed from the parallel passage in 1 Chronicles 16:0. The language there is, “Fear before him, all the earth; the world also shall be stable, that it be not moved: let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice: and let people say among the nations, The Lord reigneth.” The sense is, however, essentially the same. The idea here is, “Make universal proclamation that Yahweh is King.”

That the Lord reigneth - See the notes at Psalms 93:1.

The world also shall be established ... - Under the reign of God. The meaning is, that the world is fixed or immovable. It has its place, and it cannot be moved out of it. The government of God is fixed and stable. It is not temporary, changing, vacillating, like the dynasties of the earth, but is stedfast and abiding, and is well represented by the earth - so fixed and firm that nothing can move it from its place.

He shall judge the people righteously - The people of all lands; the nations of the earth. See the notes at Psalms 67:4.

Calvin's Commentary on the Bible

10.Say among the heathen, Jehovah reigneth His language again implies that it is only where God rules and presides that he can be worshipped. The Gentiles could not possibly profess the worship of God, so long as his throne was only in the small corner of Judea, and they were not acknowledging his government. Accordingly, the Psalmist speaks of his extending his kingdom to all parts of the world, with the view of gathering unto himself in one, those who had formerly been divided and scattered. The expression, Say among the heathen, signifies that God would enlarge the boundaries of his kingdom by his word and doctrine. What is said of the world being established, is particularly worthy of our observation. So far as the order of nature is concerned, we know that it has been Divinely established, and fixed from the beginning; that the same sun, moon, and stars, continue to shine in heaven; that the wicked and the unbelieving are sustained with food, and breathe the vital air, just as do the righteous. Still we are to remember that so long as un-godliness has possession of the minds of men, the world, plunged as it is in darkness, must be considered as thrown into a state of confusion, and of horrible disorder and misrule; for there can be no stability apart from God. The world is very properly here said therefore to be established, that it should not shake, when men are brought back into a state of subjection to God. We learn this truth from the passage, That though all the creatures should be discharging their various offices, no order can be said to prevail in the world, until God erect his throne and reign amongst men. What more monstrous disorder can be conceived of, than exists where the Creator himself is not acknowledged? Wicked and unbelieving men may be satisfied with their own condition, but it is necessarily most insecure, most unstable; and destitute as they are of any foundation in God, their life may be said to hang by a thread. ⁽⁹²⁾ We are to recollect what we have seen taught, (Psalms 46:5) “God is in the midst of the holy city, she shall not be moved.” Very possibly there may be an indirect allusion to the imperfect and uncompleted state of things under the Law, and a contrast may have been intended between the perfect condition of things which should obtain under Christ, and the prelude to it under the former period. Next he predicts that the kingdom to be introduced should be distinguished by righteousness, according to what we have seen, (Psalms 45:6) “A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of thy kingdom.” The term judging, in the Hebrew, includes government of any kind. If God’s method of governing men be to form and regulate their lives to righteousness, we may infer, that however easily men may be satisfied with themselves, all is necessarily wrong with them, till they have been made subject to Christ. And this righteousness of which the Psalmist speaks has not reference merely to the outward actions. It comprehends a new heart, commencing as it does in the regeneration of the Spirit, by which we are formed again into the likeness of God.

(92) “Semper tamen fluctuari necesse est, et vitam eoram pendere de filo, quia in Deo fundatus non est eorum status.” — Lat.

Smith's Bible Commentary

Psalms 96:1-13

O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth. Sing unto the LORD, and bless his name; show forth his salvation from day to day. Declare his glory among the heathen, and his wonders among all people. For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be reverenced above all gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens. Honor and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary. Give unto the LORD, O ye families of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength. Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts. O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: reverence him, all the earth. 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. Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof. Let the field be joyful, and all that is therein: then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice before the LORD: for he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth: he shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth ( Psalms 96:1-13 ).

Glorious psalm, Psalms 96:1-13 , encouraging us to the praising of the Lord. Singing the praises unto Him. Declaring the glories of God and the wonders of His work. Because of the greatness of God, He is to be greatly praised. He is above all of the gods of the nations, the other gods that people follow after. So give unto Him the glory due His name. Worship Him. And then the anticipation of His coming, "For the Lord cometh."

We are looking now to that day when the Lord is going to come and He's going to come to judge the earth. As you get into the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew, the disciples said, "Lord, what will be the sign of Your coming? And the end of the age? And Jesus began to tell them the things to watch for. And then as we get into chapter 25, as He is referring to His coming, "Then shall the kingdom of heaven," or, "Then shall He when He comes again gather together the nations of the earth to judge them: and He shall separate them as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goat" ( Matthew 25:32 ). And so the Lord's day of judgment that is coming, referred to here and also at the end of Psalms 98:1-9 .

In fact, Psalms 96:1-13 and Psalms 98:1-9 are parallel ideas in these psalms. "

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

Psalms 96

Here is another psalm that focuses on the reign of God. In it, the psalmist called on all the earth to join Israel in honoring and rejoicing in Yahweh’s sovereign rule.

"By being incorporated into a larger unit in 1 Chronicles 16, the psalm became associated with the glorious entry of the Ark of the covenant into Jerusalem" [Note: VanGemeren, p. 620. Cf. 1 Chronicles 16:23-33.]

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

2. An invitation to all groups of people to honor Yahweh 96:7-10

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

It is only reasonable that all tribes acknowledge Yahweh, since He reigns over all the earth. From later revelation, we know that Jesus Christ will judge the peoples fairly when He returns to this earth and sets up His millennial kingdom. Then every knee of every person will bow to His authority (Psalms 96:6; cf. Philippians 2:10).

Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

Say among the Heathen,.... This is a direction to such as were converted to Christ among the Jews, or were first called out from among the Gentiles; or to the ministers of the word, the apostles and first preachers of the Gospel more especially, who were sent into all the world to preach the Gospel to every creature, that a people from among them might he taken for the Lord:

that the Lord reigneth; whose Gospel should be received and obeyed, and his ordinances submitted to; who now reigns in heaven, at his Father's right hand, and must reign till all enemies are put under his feet; he reigns in the hearts of his people by his Spirit and grace; will reign more gloriously in his churches in the latter day, and with his saints for a thousand years in the New Jerusalem church state; and, after that, to all eternity in heaven: this is one part of the Gospel, or good tidings to be published among the Gentiles, Isaiah 52:7,

the world also shall be established, that it shall not be moved; not the natural material world; for that shall flee, and pass away, and be no more; it shall be burnt up, and all things in it; though that, and mankind on it, will be continued till all the elect of God are gathered in; Christ will uphold it, it being by his power that it shall not be moved till the work is effected: moreover, the church, in however fluctuating and unsettled a condition it may be now, sometimes in one place, and sometimes in another, yet ere long will be established on the top of the mountains, so that it shall not be moved; and the Gospel dispensation is what will remain unto the end of time, and the Gospel is an everlasting one; the ordinances of it will continue to the second coming of Christ; and he will be with his churches to the end of the world; he is reigning King of Zion; has set up a government, of which, and the peace of it, there shall be no end: during the spiritual reign of Christ, the world will be in such stable tranquillity as to have no commotions in it, nor to be moved with wars, and rumours of wars; and when the Millennium shall take place, the new heavens and new earth shall never pass away:

he shall judge the people righteously: he reigns over his people in a righteous manner, with a sceptre of righteousness, according to the rules of righteousness, by righteous laws and ordinances; he justifies his people with his own righteousness; he forms the new man in them, which is created in righteousness, and sets up a kingdom within them, which consists of righteousness; and he protects and defends them, and keeps them in safety from all their enemies.

Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible

      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   13 Before the LORD: for he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth: he shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth.

      We have here instructions given to those who were to preach the gospel to the nations what to preach, or to those who had themselves received the gospel what account to give of it to their neighbours, what to say among the heathen; and it is an illustrious prophecy of the setting up of the kingdom of Christ upon the ruins of the devil's kingdom, which began immediately after his ascension and will continue in the doing till the mystery of God be finished.

      I. Let it be told that the Lord reigns, the Lord Christ reigns, that King whom God determined to set upon his holy hill of Zion. See how this was first said among the heathen by Peter, Acts 10:42. Some of the ancients added a gloss to this, which by degrees crept into the text, The Lord reigneth from the tree (so Justin Martyr, Austin, and others, quote it), meaning the cross, when he had this title written over him, The King of the Jews. It was because he became obedient to death, even the death of the cross, that God exalted him, and gave him a name above every name, a throne above every throne. Some of the heathen came betimes to enquire after him that was born King of the Jews,Matthew 2:2. Now let them know that he has come and his kingdom is set up.

      II. Let it be told that Christ's government will be the world's happy settlement. The world also shall be established, that it shall not be moved. The natural world shall be established. The standing of the world, and its stability, are owing to the mediation of Christ. Sin had given it a shock, and still threatens it; but Christ, as Redeemer, upholds all things, and preserves the course of nature. The world of mankind shall be established, shall be preserved, till all that belong to the election of grace are called in, though a guilty provoking world. The Christian religion, as far as it is embraced, shall establish states and kingdoms, and preserve good order among men. The church in the world shall be established (so some), that it cannot be moved; for it is built upon a rock, and the gates of hell shall never prevail against it; it is a kingdom that cannot be shaken.

      III. Let them be told that Christ's government will be incontestably just and righteous: He shall judge the people righteously (Psalms 96:10; Psalms 96:10), judge the world with righteousness, and with his truth,Psalms 96:13; Psalms 96:13. Judging is here put for ruling; and though this may be extended to the general judgment of the world at the last day, which will be in righteousness (Acts 17:31), yet it refers more immediately to Christ's first coming, and the setting up of his kingdom in the world by the gospel. He says himself, For judgment have I come into this world (John 9:39; John 12:31), and declares that all judgment was committed to him,John 5:22; John 5:27. His ruling and judging with righteousness and truth signify, 1. That all the laws and ordinances of his kingdom shall be consonant to the rules and principles of eternal truth and equity, that is, to the rectitude and purity of the divine nature and will. 2. That all his administrations of government shall be just and faithful, and according to what he has said. 3. That he shall rule in the hearts and consciences of men by the commanding power of truth and the Spirit of righteousness and sanctification. When Pilate asked our Saviour, Art thou a king? he answered, For this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth (John 18:37); for he rules by truth, commands men's wills by informing their judgments aright.

      IV. Let them be told that his coming draws nigh, that this King, this Judge, standeth before the door; for he cometh, for he cometh. Enoch, the seventh from Adam, said so. Behold, the Lord cometh,Jude 1:14. Between this and his first coming the revolutions of many ages intervened, and yet he came at the set time, and so sure will his second coming be; though it is now long since it was said, Behold, he comes in the clouds (Revelation 1:7) and he has not yet come. See 2 Peter 3:4, c.

      V. Let them be called upon to rejoice in this honour that is put upon the Messiah, and this great trust that is to be lodged in his hand (Psalms 96:11; Psalms 96:12): Let heaven and earth rejoice, the sea, the field, and all the trees of the wood. The dialect here is poetical; the meaning is, 1. That the days of the Messiah will be joyful days, and, as far as his grace and government are submitted to, will bring joy along with them. We have reason to give that place, that soul, joy into which Christ is admitted. See an instance of both, Acts 8:4-25; Acts 8:26-40 When Samaria received the gospel there was great joy in that city (Acts 8:8; Acts 8:8), and, when the eunuch was baptized, he went on his way rejoicing,Acts 8:39; Acts 8:39. 2. That it is the duty of every one of us to bid Christ and his kingdom welcome; for, though he comes conquering and to conquer, yet he comes peaceably. Hosanna, Blessed is he that cometh; and again, Hosanna, Blessed be the kingdom of our father David (Mark 11:9; Mark 11:10); not only let the daughter of Zion rejoice that her King comes (Zechariah 9:9), but let all rejoice. 3. That the whole creation will have reason to rejoice in the setting up of Christ's kingdom, even the sea and the field; for, as by the sin of the first Adam the whole creation was made subject to vanity, so by the grace of the second Adam it shall, some way or other, first or last, be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God,Romans 8:20; Romans 8:21. 4. That there will, in the first place, be joy in heaven, joy in the presence of the angels of God; for, when the First-begotten was brought into the world, they sang their anthems to his praise, Luke 2:14. 5. That God will graciously accept the holy joy and praises of all the hearty well-wishers to the kingdom of Christ, be their capacity ever so mean. The sea can but roar, and how the trees of the wood can show that they rejoice I know not; but he that searches the heart knows what is the mind of the Spirit, and understands the language, the broken language, of the weakest.