Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof;
The psalm has just told the nations to say that the Lord reigns. Now the call reaches past human voices to sky, land and sea. Two questions follow. Why tell things that cannot speak to rejoice? And what has changed to make that call reasonable?
The earlier verses call the nations. One writer traces how the psalm moves from them to the whole universe.
All the earth is to fear before Him. They are called to come up, and more than that: the great declaration "Jehovah reigns" — the LORD is King — is to go through the nations. The reign of Jehovah will establish the world itself so that it cannot be moved, and He will judge the peoples righteously. Then the universe is called on to rejoice at this display of His righteous power. So while Israel stands at the centre as the place of Jehovah's covenant, the whole creation is summoned into joy, for He is the Creator as well as Israel's God, and in power He judges the earth to maintain the blessing.
The verse pairs "heavens" and "earth" in one sentence. One writer sees verses 11-13 as the point where both come under one openly confessed rule.
Verses 11-13 are full of comprehensive beauty and power. They show everything brought together under the confessed rule of the reigning Christ. Things in heaven and things on earth rejoice together in the acknowledged blessing of the Lord of peace. From start to finish, the Psalm is a very sweet song of millennial prophecy.
Hamilton Smith traces the story of creation's song. It began at the making of the world, and something stopped it.
There has been a creation song. The earth came fresh from the hands of God, and "the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy" (Job 38:7). Sadly, sin spoiled that fair creation. Singing gave place to weeping, and songs to groans. In the millennial day, God will make the earth new. Creation's groan will stop, and heaven and earth will unite in a new song.
Creation is not a neutral bystander. Its freedom waits for the day when God's children are in glory.
In this, creation has a deep and personal interest, for its condition, made subject to futility, must remain unchanged until we are in glory. Then "the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God" (Rom. 8:21)… Now the whole creation groans and suffers pain together. When the Lord comes back in power, its keynote will change, and created things will give Him a glad welcome.
A roaring sea can sound like violence. One writer hears gladness instead, and carries that through to the field and trees of the next verse.
So nature is called to rejoice in harmony. A song began in heaven, and earth takes it up. The sea too lifts up its waves in gladness, not rebellion. The field too is to exult, and the trees of the wood, for the curse of barrenness is lifted off. Jehovah is come, and come to judge the earth.
Some read the heavens, earth and sea as pictures of people rather than plain nature.
The heavens rejoicing stands for the whole multitude of saints in heaven at that time… There will be multitudes in heaven who join in the celebration of the victory of the Lord Jesus. The earth (or the land) stands for Israel, and will overflow with gladness; the sea (the nations) will roar in worship (v.11). "The field" is the world (Matt. 13:38), which will rejoice with all that is in it (v.12).
Commentators differ. When one writer applied the sea's roar to unrest among the nations, an editor pushed back in a footnote:
We may question the idea of turbulence here, and also the application to the nations. "Roaring" does not always mean one thing.
The verse is a call, not a picture of the world today. One writer explains why he could not preach it as something already true.
That is a splendid sermon, though I could not preach it, for the simplest reason possible — He does not reign yet. No, He is in heavenly glory now. He has been refused here, and has gone to heaven, but He is going to reign.
- Song lost. Creation once sang at its making; sin turned that singing into weeping and groans.
- Song promised. The new song of this psalm is the old joy restored, with heaven and earth uniting in it.
- Song widened. The call runs past the nations to the universe itself — sky, land and sea are all summoned in.
- Song explained. The sea roars in gladness, not rebellion. The curse is lifted, and creation is set free from its bondage to corruption.
- Song awaited. No one can preach this as present fact, because He does not reign yet. The psalm looks on to the day He comes to judge the earth.
Let the field exult and all that is therein. Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy,
Psalm 96 gathers the whole earth into one song, and by verse 12 the singers are no longer people but fields and forests. Why should trees be glad about a Judge? And what must change in the world before nature can celebrate?
The call goes out to every part of creation because the King has come.
The Lord has come, and the announcement goes out, so that all the earth may greet Him and give Him welcome. There is indeed a new song now to sing, for the long estrangement is over... Now He comes to fill the earth with the knowledge of His glory. He comes to bless and save it. He comes to judge it, and that judging is its salvation. He will purge it from the evil that defiles it, free it from the bondage of corruption, and bring it into the liberty of the glory of the sons of God (Rom. 8:21).
Fields and trees are not scenery in this song. Their gladness depends on a change in the ground itself.
So nature is called to rejoice in harmony. Earth takes up a song that began in heaven, and the sea too lifts up its waves in gladness, not rebellion. The field too is to exult, and the trees of the wood, for the curse of barrenness is lifted off. The Lord has come, and come to judge the earth.
Right now the created world makes a very different sound.
Creation has a deep and personal interest in the glory God's children are waiting for. Its own condition, made subject to vanity, must remain unchanged until we are in glory. Then it "will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God" (Rom. 8:21)... Now, the whole creation groans and suffers pain together. When the Lord comes back in power, its keynote will change, and created things will give Him a glad welcome.
Judgment sounds like bad news. Here it is the reason for the celebration.
Well may the earth rejoice, the floods clap their hands, and the hills be joyful together before the Lord. The Redeemer is the Creator, and the "rule" of the rod of iron is a shepherd-rule, as the word means. The judgment itself is the effect of love as well as righteousness, "destroying the destroyers of the earth" (Rev. 11:18).
The trees sing before a coming King. His identity has two sides.
As the root and offspring of David, He will be the source of blessing to the earth, making good all that God is, as revealed in righteousness, in government. He will reign as Son of David. Yet the One born into this world of the seed of David is also the One from whom David sprang, for He was also David's Lord. He who comes to establish His kingdom is therefore also the Lord Himself.
Commentators differ on how far to press the picture. Other writers read the fields and trees as the real creation set free. One writer takes them as symbols.
"The field" is the world (Matt. 13:38), which will rejoice with all that is in it (v.12). Then the psalm mentions "all the trees of the woods," a picture of every individual. Nothing stays outside the great celebration of the triumph of the true King.
Read next to Psalm 98, this verse turns out to be one stage in a rising chorus rather than the final note.
Again the New Song is heard, but here it has this full special character: it is sung "before the King, the LORD." He has made His salvation known, and He has openly shown His righteousness... There is a fuller note in the song here than in Psalm 96:12.
- Coming — the singing starts because the Lord has arrived. The song is a welcome, not a wish.
- Curse — fields and forests can exult because the barrenness laid on the ground is lifted off.
- Change — creation groans now. His coming does not replace it; it changes its keynote.
- Care — the judgment behind the joy is a shepherd's rule: love as well as righteousness, aimed at those who ruin the earth.
- Christ — the One the trees sing before is David's son and David's Lord. The whole earth's gladness rests on one Person.
Before Jehovah, for he cometh; for he cometh to judge the earth he will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples in his faithfulness.
The psalm ends by calling the fields, the trees and the sea to break out in song. The reason given is the one thing people dread — a Judge is coming. Everything turns on who this Judge is, and on what His judgment will do to the world.
The One who comes is not only a descendant of David taking a throne. One writer weighs both sides of His title.
As the root and offspring of David, He will be the source of blessing to the earth by making good all that God is, revealed in righteousness, in government. He will reign as Son of David. Yet the One born into this world of David's line was also the One from whom David came, for He was David's Lord. So the One who comes to establish His kingdom is also Jehovah.
The verse makes judgment the reason for joy. That sounds strange until you see what this judgment does. One writer explains what it clears away.
He comes to bless and save the earth. He does come to judge it, and that judgment is its salvation. He will purge it from the evil that defiles it, free it from the bondage of corruption, and bring it into the liberty of the glory of the sons of God (Rom. 8:21). Jehovah, the living, the eternal God, comes to give the earth the blessing that must flow out where He is.
The trees and fields are not watching a destruction. The earth survives this judgment, and that is why it can sing.
The whole earth, corrupted as it will be throughout, will pass through the crisis into the glory. God will judge; but His judgment will be purifying, not destructive. The earth outlives it. The rainbow pledges this — the rainbow of Genesis 9 and of Revelation 4 and 10. These far-apart parts of Scripture tell the same story of mercy and salvation toward this earth. God gave this earth to mankind at the beginning, and He still loves it so well Himself.
The verse names two measures for this judgment: righteousness and faithfulness. They are what the world lacks now. One commentator feels that contrast.
Wonderful relief for a world torn by the vicious cruelty of unrighteousness and by constant lies!
The world does not look like that today. One writer sets the present time beside the coming kingdom.
Now is not the time of Christ's judgment, except as Lord over His people for their good. It is the time of grace to the world. When He appears and establishes the kingdom, it will be the time of judgment... The cross accomplished infinitely deeper things, and it established divine righteousness. Yet at the cross righteousness was not made good in this world, but the opposite. Righteousness was found in the person of Christ; judgment in the hands of Pilate, or the chiefs of the Jews. When Christ appears for His kingdom, judgment and righteousness will go together in the earth.
David sang much of this psalm when the ark came to Jerusalem (1 Chronicles 16). He did not sing all of it. One writer compares the two versions.
The words of verse 33, "For He comes to judge the earth," replace the fuller words of the psalm (v. 13). The psalm adds: "He will judge the world in righteousness, and the peoples in His faithfulness." Such a fullness of government could not match David's reign.
The word "judge" here carries more than sentencing. Applied to the parallel promise in the next psalms, one writer takes it as government exercised with discernment.
Because "He comes to judge the earth," not to punish, but to use discerning judgment in ruling in perfect righteousness. This will be true of the world as a whole, but just as true of every person in it. "Come, Lord Jesus!"
- Who — the Coming One is David's son and David's Lord at once. The King who takes the throne is Jehovah Himself.
- Why — His judgment is the earth's salvation. It purges the evil that defiles the world and frees it from bondage to corruption.
- How far — the judgment purifies; it does not destroy. The earth outlives it, so fields, trees and seas can sing.
- What is restored — the cross showed righteousness in Christ and judgment in Pilate's hands. When He appears the two go together in the earth, and a world worn down by cruelty and lies finds relief.
- When — David sang this psalm, but not its fullest promise. Such government waits for a reign greater than his. Until then the believer prays, "Come, Lord Jesus!"