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A Call to Worship the Lord the Righteous Judge.

96 O sing to the Lord a new song;
Sing to the Lord, all the earth!

Sing to the Lord, bless His name;
Proclaim good news of His salvation from day to day.

Declare His glory among the nations,
His marvelous works and wonderful deeds among all the peoples.

For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised;
He is to be feared above all gods.(A)

For all the gods of the peoples are [worthless, lifeless] idols,
But the Lord made the heavens.

Splendor and majesty are before Him;
Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.


[a]Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples,
Ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.

Ascribe to the Lord the glory of His name;
Bring an offering and come into His courts.

Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness;
Tremble [in submissive wonder] before Him, all the earth.
10 
Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns;
Indeed, the world is firmly and securely established, it shall not be moved;
He will judge and rule the people with fairness.”(B)

11 
Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;
Let the sea roar, and all the things it contains;
12 
Let the field be exultant, and all that is in it.
Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy
13 
Before the Lord, for He is coming,
For He is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness
And the peoples in His faithfulness.(C)

The Lord’s Power and Dominion.

97 The Lord reigns, let the earth rejoice;
Let the many islands and coastlands be glad.

Clouds and thick darkness surround Him [as at Sinai];
Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne.(D)

Fire goes before Him
And burns up His adversaries on all sides.

His lightnings have illuminated the world;
The earth has seen and trembled.

The mountains melted like wax at the presence of the Lord,
At the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.

The heavens declare His righteousness,
And all the peoples see His glory and brilliance.


Let all those be [deeply] ashamed who serve carved images,
Who boast in idols.
Worship Him, all you gods!(E)

Zion heard this and was glad,
And the daughters (cities) of Judah rejoiced [in relief]
Because of Your judgments, O Lord.

For You are the Lord Most High over all the earth;
You are exalted far above all gods.

10 
You who love the Lord, hate evil;
He protects the souls of His godly ones (believers),
He rescues them from the hand of the wicked.(F)
11 
Light is sown [like seed] for the righteous and illuminates their path,
And [irrepressible] joy [is spread] for the upright in heart [who delight in His favor and protection].
12 
Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous ones [those whose moral and spiritual integrity places them in right standing with God],
And praise and give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name.

A Call to Praise the Lord for His Righteousness.

A [b]Psalm.

98 O sing to the Lord a new song,
For He has done marvelous and wonderful things;
His right hand and His holy arm have [c]gained the victory for Him.

The Lord has made known His salvation;
He has [openly] revealed His righteousness in the sight of the nations.(G)

He has [graciously] remembered His lovingkindness and His faithfulness to the house of Israel;
All the ends of the earth have witnessed the salvation of our God.(H)


Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth;
Shout [in jubilation] and sing for joy and sing praises.

Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre,
With the lyre and the sound of melody.

With trumpets and the sound of the horn
Shout with joy before the King, the Lord.


Let the sea thunder and roar, and all the things it contains,
The world and those who dwell in it.

Let the rivers clap their hands;
Let the mountains sing together for joy and delight

Before the Lord, for He is coming to judge the earth;
He will judge the world with righteousness
And the peoples with fairness.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 96:7 Lit Give.
  2. Psalm 98:1 The ancient rabbis called this song “orphaned” because it is anonymous and has no description with the word “Psalm” (e.g. “A Psalm of Thanksgiving”).
  3. Psalm 98:1 Or accomplished salvation.

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