Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand
This verse puts two things in the same hands: a song of praise and a sword. Who are these singers, why does God join worship to a sword, and what does a reader do today with a verse that sits so oddly beside "love your enemies."
Can praise and judgment belong together? One writer answers:
The joy of the saints will not be clouded by the need for evil to be judged. Once evil has been judged, it will be a cause for deeper joy... These may sound contrary to one another, especially for Christians, who at present are to love their enemies. But in the end, the praise of God and the judgment of evil will be completely consistent.
Who holds this sword? One writer identifies them from the psalm itself:
Jehovah takes pleasure in His people, but we are told who these people are. He beautifies the meek with salvation. Then he can say: let the saints be joyful in glory. But if the high praises of God are in their mouths, the sword of earthly judgment and vengeance is in their hands. It is theirs to use on the nations and peoples, and to bind the mighty ones who had once oppressed them. It was the judgment written.
This decides who may act on the verse. One writer tests it against what believers are told to do now:
These saints are clearly a people on earth. Are they the Church? Are believers now "to execute vengeance on the nations"? Not at all. The word for us now is: "Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, 'Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord'" (Rom. 12:19). Instead of bringing "punishments on the peoples", the servants must not pull up the weeds. They are to let them grow until the harvest.
The word for God here is "El". One writer says the choice of this name matters:
"The high praises of El" belong with the "two-edged sword", because He is the Strength of holiness, supreme over evil. The use of this Name here is very significant.
This sword is not random violence. One writer ties it back to Israel's first entry into the land:
But if the high praises of "El" are in their mouth, a two-edged sword is in their hand, for the judgment still has to be carried out... They are Jehovah's saints, and what they failed to do when they first entered the land they must now do in divine power. The land is cleared of the wicked, and the meek are beautified with salvation.
The sword stands for government, not only for battle:
If the praise of God is in their mouth, the sword of government will be in their hand. This is because in the day of glory they will share with the King in His government of the world, carrying out judgment on the enemies of the King. All the saints have this honour.
So what does this verse put in Christian hands? One writer points to a different sword:
We may find it hard to put the high praises of God on the lips together with a two-edged sword of vengeance in the hand. We may think the two things do not fit at all. But that is because we are not Israel but Christians. At the beginning of the coming age, God is going to use Israel to bring rebellious peoples into subjection. We are called to show the grace of God before that age dawns. So the only two-edged sword we are called to use is the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. But we also have to remember that we too will have our part in judging the world in the coming age, as 1 Corinthians 6:2 tells us. That will not be by taking vengeance. It will be by managing the affairs of the world to come in a righteous way.
Notice the order in the verse: the mouth comes before the hand. One writer describes how these singers go to war:
But they will go into the battle "with tambourines and lyres" (Isa. 30:32), or, as this Psalm puts it, "with the high praises of God in their mouth". They will be so satisfied and happy, sure of the results, because the glory is with them.
- Praise first. The mouth comes before the hand. These singers enter the battle already satisfied and happy, because the glory is with them.
- The name explains it. "El" is the Strength of holiness, supreme over evil. That is why praise of Him and a sword against evil sit in one verse.
- The hand is Israel's. These saints are the meek, beautified with salvation. In the day of glory they share the King's rule over the world.
- The task is written. In divine power they finish what they left undone when they first entered the land. This is not private revenge; it is "the judgment written."
- Your sword today. Leave vengeance to God. Your only two-edged sword is the word of God, and a righteous share in the world to come still lies ahead.
To execute vengeance against the nations, [and] punishment among the peoples;
This psalm puts the high praises of God in the mouth and a two-edged sword in the hand. Verse 7 says what that sword is for. Who holds it, and when?
The sword of verse 6 is not a private weapon. One writer ties it to the saints sharing the King's rule in a coming day:
If the praise of God is in their mouth, the sword of government will be in their hand. This is because in the day of glory they will share with the King in His government of the world, executing judgment on the enemies of the King. All the saints have this honour.
One writer tests who these saints are by asking whether the words fit Christians now:
These saints are evidently a people on earth. Are they the Church? Are believers now "to execute vengeance on the nations"? On the contrary, the word now is — "Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, 'Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord'" (Rom. 12:19). Instead of inflicting "punishments on the peoples," the servants must not pull up the weeds. They are told to let them grow until the harvest.
Another writer traces a pattern God has used before, so that this future employment of Israel is not an oddity:
God used Abraham to execute judgment on the allied kings. He used Israel to destroy the guilty inhabitants of Canaan. He raised up David to subdue the wicked nations around Israel. In the same way, He will use Israel again as one of His instruments to execute judgment on the wicked.
Praise in the mouth and a sword in the hand seem impossible together. One writer explains why:
Verse 6 is indeed remarkable. We may find it hard to put together the high praises of God on the lips and a two-edged sword of vengeance in the hand. We may think the two do not fit together at all. But that is because we are not Israel but Christians. At the beginning of the millennial age God is going to use Israel to subdue rebellious peoples. We are called to set forth the grace of God before that age dawns. So the only two-edged sword we are called to wield is the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. But we too will have our part in judging the world in the coming age (1 Corinthians 6:2). That is not by executing vengeance, but by administering the affairs of the world to come in a righteous manner.
The same writer applies the psalm to Peter's use of the sword:
A time is coming when the saints will be joyful in glory, with the high praises of God in their mouth and a two-edged sword in their hand, to execute vengeance (Ps. 149:5-7). But that time is the second coming, not the first. Peter's action was entirely out of place.
The vengeance of verse 7 is not a burst of anger. It carries out a sentence already on record, and the King acts with them:
If the high praises of God are in their mouths, the sword of earthly judgment and vengeance is in their hands. That sword is there to execute judgment on the nations and peoples, and to bind the mighty ones who had once oppressed them. It was the judgment written. So who is in view here is clear, and so is their position. The meek in Israel, now delivered, and the Lord Jesus, King in Zion, execute judgment on those who had oppressed them.
This is what keeps the act from being revenge: "The judgment is actually that of God, but God will use the saints to execute the judgment written" (L M Grant).
The psalm also finishes something Israel left undone:
Vengeance must be executed against the nations, and punishment among the peoples. Kings are to be bound with chains, and nobles with fetters of iron. And Israel must do it. They are Jehovah's saints. What they failed to do when they first entered the land must now be done in divine power. The land is cleared of the ungodly, and the meek are beautified with salvation.
One writer names the nations in view. Israel's action fulfils "the prophetic word as to Edom (Ezek. 25:14), and as to the land of Nimrod (Micah 5:6), and as to the nations (Jer. 51:20)," and they will be "militant in the most literal manner" (C. E. Stuart).
- Pleasure — Judgment is not where the psalm begins. God beautifies the meek with salvation first. The salvation comes before the sword.
- Praise — Worship and weapon appear together because the singers are Israel in the day of glory. Christians live in the day of grace, and their only sword is the word of God.
- Power — The sword is a sword of government. Israel will share the King's rule and finish in divine power what they left undone when they first entered the land.
- Purpose — Vengeance here carries out "the judgment written" — God's own recorded sentence. That is why it is never private revenge.
- Honour — All the saints have this honour. To be used by God is itself the honour: for Israel then in judgment, for Christians now in grace.
To bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron;
Psalm 149 closes the book of Psalms with a burst of praise, and in the middle of that praise a sword appears. Verse 8 tells us what the sword is for: kings in chains and nobles in iron shackles. Who does this binding, to whom, and when?
One group here does both the praising and the binding. The ones they bind are not strangers to them.
Then he can say: let the saints be joyful in glory. But if the high praises of God are in their mouths, the sword of earthly judgment and vengeance is in their hands. They are to carry it out on the nations and peoples, and to bind the mighty ones who had once oppressed them.
This is unfinished business, going back to Israel's first entry into the land.
The judgment still has to be carried out. Vengeance must fall on the nations, and punishment on the peoples. Kings are to be bound with chains, and nobles with iron shackles — and Israel must do it. They are Jehovah's saints. What they failed to do when they first entered the land, they must now do in divine power.
Chains and iron shackles are what the powerful put on the weak. Verse 8 turns that upside down.
Believers then will take sides with God completely in carrying out vengeance on the nations (v. 7), with punishment in perfect agreement with justice. Kings and nobles will be bound with chains — the opposite of the high place they hold now through their unbelieving activities (v. 8).
The oppressed change places too.
But Christ now comes to judge the poor of the people, to save the children of the needy, and to break the oppressor in pieces. These saints in Israel, snatched by His coming out of the hand of their deadly enemy, now receive their reward. They receive the leading place their oppressors held until now, and they share with Christ in carrying out judgment.
Verse 8 sits inside a hallelujah. That combination feels jarring, and commentators face it directly.
The high praises of God will be in their mouth and a two-edged sword in their hand (v. 6). These may sound contrary to one another, especially for Christians, who at present are to love their enemies, but in the final analysis of the matter, the praise of God and the judgment of evil will be fully consistent.
The sword is not a private weapon. It is the instrument of a government the saints are brought into.
If the praise of God is in their mouth, the sword of government will be in their hand. In the day of glory they will share with the King in His government of the world, carrying out judgment on the enemies of the King.
The next verse calls this "the judgment written." Binding the kings is carrying out a verdict, not inventing one.
The nations are now to meet their punishment for long ages of wrongdoing. Their kings will have no power to stand. They will fall into the hands of these avengers, to be bound and chained. It is the judgment written that is now carried out, and this is the honour given to all His saints.
Does this verse put a sword in the hands of the Church today? One writer answers by asking who these saints are.
These saints are clearly a people on earth. Are they the Church? Are believers now to carry out vengeance on the nations? No — the word now is: "Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, 'Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord'" (Rom. 12:19). Instead of punishing the peoples, the servants are told not to pull up the weeds, but to let them grow until the harvest. Binding kings and nobles fits a nation called to carry out God's righteous judgments. It is completely foreign to the ways of those who follow in the footsteps of Christ — the meek and lowly One who, "when He was reviled, He did not revile in return."
That honour was Israel's, and will be again. Today the Christian's assignment runs the other way.
It was an honour given to them to carry out the judgment written, and this will be true of them again, strange as it may sound to us. How different it is now! Those who have been led to discover in Jesus a Saviour… are made God's ministers of love, of mercy, and of grace to a rebellious world.
- Sentence — The chains are not revenge. They carry out "the judgment written," a verdict long on record against nations after ages of wrongdoing.
- Reversal — Rulers who rose by unbelief end in shackles. Those they crushed receive the leading place those rulers once held.
- Share — The sword in the saints' hand is the sword of government; they rule the world together with their King.
- Sequence — This is Israel's task in the day of glory. In divine power they finish what they failed to finish when they first entered the land.
- Separation — Today the calling is the opposite. Leave vengeance to God, let the weeds grow till harvest, and follow the One who did not strike back when He was reviled.
To execute upon them the judgment written. This honour have all his saints. Hallelujah!
The psalm ends with praise in the mouth and a sword in the hand, and it calls that sword an honour. Two questions press on any reader — what is this "judgment written," and who are the people honoured to carry it out?
The word "written" points back, not forward. The prophets had already recorded this sentence against the nations. Now Israel carries it out.
And with the Lord now among them, they will be the ones who carry out judgment. They will punish peoples, and bind kings with chains and nobles with fetters of iron. In this way they fulfil the prophetic word about Edom (Ezek. 25:14), about the land of Nimrod (Micah 5:6), and about the nations (Jer. 51:20). They will be unstoppable, for the Lord of Hosts will be with them. Who, reading only the earlier Psalms, would have predicted such a future for them?
So who holds this sword? The psalm's own words settle it.
Jehovah takes pleasure in His people, and we learn who has this place: He beautifies the meek with salvation. Then he can say, Let the saints be joyful in glory. But if the high praises of God are in their mouths, the sword of earthly judgment and vengeance is in their hands. They are to carry it out on the nations and peoples, and to bind the mighty ones who had once oppressed them. It was the judgment written. All His saints have this honour. So it is clear who these people are, and what their position is. The meek in Israel, now delivered, and the Lord Jesus, King in Zion, execute judgment on those who had oppressed them.
Read as a pattern for Christians now, the verse clashes with what the New Testament tells the church.
These saints are clearly a people on earth. Are they the Church? Are believers now "to execute vengeance upon the Gentiles"? On the contrary, the word now is — "Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God." For it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord" (Rom. 12:19). Instead of inflicting "punishments upon the people," the servants must not pull up the weeds; they are to let them grow until the harvest. Binding kings and nobles suits a nation called to carry out God's righteous judgments; it is completely foreign to the ways of those who follow in the footsteps of Christ — the meek and lowly One who, "when he was reviled, did not revile in return."
Calling armed judgment an honour sounds strange to us. It was God who gave Israel that sword — and today He hands His people a different honour.
No truth is revealed more clearly in Scripture than this. The Lord put the sword of judgment into Israel's hands, and told them to use it with unsparing severity in certain cases (Deut. 20:10-18). It was an honour given to them to carry out the judgment written, and this will be true of them again, strange as it may sound in our ears (Zech. 9; 10; Ps. 149:6-9). How different it is now! God has led some to find in Jesus a Saviour, to know the ransom of their souls by His blood, and to receive in Him, risen and glorified, the free gifts of righteousness and eternal life. He makes them His ministers of love, of mercy, and of grace to a rebellious world.
The verse ends in praise. Judgment does not interrupt the song.
The need to judge evil will not cloud the joy of the saints. Instead, because evil has already been judged, their joy will run deeper. The high praises of God will be in their mouth and a two-edged sword in their hand (v. 6). These may sound contrary to one another, especially for Christians, who at present are to love their enemies. But in the end, the praise of God and the judgment of evil will be fully consistent.
Commentators differ on how far "all his saints" reaches. Some restrict it to living Jewish saints on earth; others read the same lines as touching those brought back with Christ from heaven.
The saints who come with Christ, the heavenly saints, will share with Him in the judgment of that day (compare Psalm 149:6-9). Then God will take public and formal notice of the acts and words of this daring enemy.
- Written — the judgment is not improvised. God recorded this sentence through the prophets long before the day it falls.
- Wielded — God puts the sword in the hands of the delivered meek of Israel, with Christ reigning as King in Zion.
- Withheld — God does not put that sword in Christian hands today. Believers leave vengeance to Him and carry mercy instead.
- Honour — carrying out God's written sentence is a privilege. The matching privilege today is carrying grace to a rebellious world.
- Hallelujah — praise and judgment agree perfectly. So the psalm can close in worship with the sword still drawn.