Psalm 96:1














We have both in these verses. There is a threefold summons to sing unto the Lord, and a similar threefold summons to speak for the Lord. Such psalms as this never contemplate a religion which can be hid away and held in secret. The passionate love which breathes in this psalm must have vent or die. There is here no coming to the Lord by night, or being secretly a disciple for fear of the Jews, but the psalm is an open, full, joyous confession of the soul's delight in the Lord. And such confession takes this double form.

I. Song. This is called for:

1. Because our love to the Lord should be amongst those deep and intense feelings which demand the fullest utterance of which the soul is capable. Plain prose will serve for ordinary communications, but when the soul is deeply stirred, as it should be, by the love of God, then song becomes a necessity. See in the Scriptures how the rapt utterances of psalmist and prophet inevitably clothe themselves in poetical form.

2. Because it is so attractive. It tells of a glad, bright, winsome religion, of sunshine in the soul and joy in the heart, all which in this sad, weary, sin-stricken world cannot but be infinitely attractive. Therefore God would have his people sing.

3. And because it is the noblest form of utterance. Music and poetry combine to invest the soul's deepest and holiest thought in the most perfect garment of praise.

4. And the song is to be a new song. Every day is a new day, and brings with it material for a new song.

"New mercies, each returning day,
Hover around us while we pray;
New perils past, new sins forgiven,
New thoughts of God, new hopes of heaven."

5. And universal. This is our desire, and, if so, its expression commits us to do our best to unite "all the earth" in this song.

6. It is to be grateful. "Bless his Name." What abundant reason there is for such gratitude! Happy they who thus sing unto the Lord!

II. SERMONS. These also are called for - fervent, holy speech for God. Not necessarily set discourses such as we understand by sermons. These, but not these alone, nor these at all, if God has not given us the needed capacity; but God-prompted, loving words spoken for him - these all can speak, and should do so as opportunity is given. Such speech is described, as was the song, in a threefold way.

1. Showing forth God's salvation. And this from day to day. This can be done, and perhaps best done, by what we are and do - by our life as well as by our lips; yet let not the latter be silent, as they too often are, to our own and others' great loss.

2. Declaring his glory among the heathen. There is no need to go far away to find these heathen. They are all around us. Tell them of the glory of his character, his Word, his service, his Spirit dwelling within, his eternal rest by and by.

3. His wonders among all people. Not the good people only - it is easy to talk before them; but among the unsaved, tell them what a wonderful Saviour Jesus is. - S.C.

To-day if ye will hear His voice, harden not your heart, as in the provocation.
I. THE TIME SPECIFIED — "To-day if ye will hear His voice." This is the uniform time and tense of the Holy Ghost's exhortations. "Consecrate yourselves to-day to the Lord." "I command thee this thing today." "Son, go work to-day in My vineyard." Therefore, "To-day if ye will hear His voice, harden not your heart."

1. "To-day" is a time of obligation Every man is under a present necessity as a subject of God to obey his Lord today, and having rebelled against his God, every sinner is under law to repent of sin to-day.

2. Remember, also, that to-day is a time of opportunity. There is this day set before us an open door of approach to God. This is a very favoured day, for it is the Lord's day, the day of rest, consecrated to works of grace. Today our Lord Jesus rose and left the dead that He might declare the justification of His people. This is a day of good tidings, therefore I pray you to seize the golden moments.

3. Remember that it is a time limited (Hebrews 4:7). To-day will not last for ever; a day is but a day. When days are longest, shadows fall at last and night comes on. The longest life soon wanes into the evening of old age, and old age hastens to the sunset of the tomb.

4. A word of encouragement: it is a time of promise, for when God says to a man, Come to Me at such a time, He by that very word makes an engagement to meet him. He has made no appointment with thee to meet with thee to-morrow, but He has engaged to speak with thee to-day, if thou wilt hear His voice. Never shall one wait and say, like young Samuel, "Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth," without God's speaking in words of love ere long.

II. THE VOICE TO BE REGARDED. "His."

1. Remember that the voice of God is the voice of authority. God has a right to speak to you; shall the creature refuse to hear the Creator? Shall those who are nourished and fed by Him turn a deaf ear to the Preserver of men? When He saith "to-day," who among us shall dare to say that he will not hearken to-day, but by and by?

2. It is the voice of love. How wooing are its tones!

3. It is the voice of power. Old man, the Holy Ghost saith still, "To-day, to-day"; and He that saith "to-day " can make to-day for thee a day of tenderness and melting, till you will be no longer like a stone.

4. It is a pledging voice. When He saith, "Seek ye the Lord while He may be found," He doth, as it were, covenant that He will be found of you. Listen, then, to His promising voice, His cheering voice; it will cast all unbelieving fear out of you, and drive away Satan better than David's harp drove the evil spirit out of Saul. God help you so to do.

5. The voice of God should be easy to hear; for "the voice of the Lord is powerful, the voice of the Lord is full of majesty."

III. THE EVIL TO BE DREADED. "Harden not your heart."

1. It will be a serious evil if you do. Under the sound of love's entreaties, within ear-shot of mercy's imploring tones, the sinner is hardening his heart. Sad work to harden one's heart against one's own welfare! Shall any man do this and go unpunished? What think you?

2. It is a greater sin in some than in others, for the Scripture quotes the instance of Israel (Hebrews 3:8). Some of you are the highly privileged as compared with others.

3. This dreadful sin can be committed in a great many ways. Some harden their hearts by a resolution not to feel, some by wishing to wait, some by getting into evil company.

4. This sin will bring with it the most fearful consequences. "He sware in His wrath, they shall not enter into My rest!" You wish to rest at last, you long to rest even now. But it cannot be till you yield to God. You are not at peace now, and you never will be if you harden your hearts.

( C. H. Spurgeon.)

I would press the importance, the necessity, of immediately becoming religious —

I. BECAUSE OF THE SHORTNESS AND UNCERTAINTY OF LIFE. You are mortal; it is appointed to all men once to die. You are frail, and may die soon and suddenly. You stake your soul without any equivalent; for if life should be spared you gain nothing; but should it be cut short, you lose all, you are ruined for eternity.

II. BECAUSE YOU CANNOT PROPERLY, OR EVEN LAWFULLY, PROMISE TO GIVE WHAT IS NOT YOUR OWN. To-morrow is not yours; and it is yet uncertain whether it ever will be. To-day is the only time which you can properly give to God.

III. BECAUSE IF YOU DEFER THE COMMENCEMENT OF A RELIGIOUS LIFE, THOUGH BUT TILL TO-MORROW, YOU MUST HARDEN YOUR HEARTS AGAINST THE VOICE OF GOD. God commands and exhorts you to commence a religious life immediately. If you do not comply, you must refuse, for there is no medium. If you disobey, you must assign some excuse to justify your disobedience, or your consciences will reproach you and render you uneasy; if no plausible excuse occurs, you will seek one; if none can readily be found, you will invent one. This tends most powerfully to harden the heart.

IV. IF YOU DO NOT COMMENCE A RELIGIOUS LIFE TO-DAY, THERE IS GREAT REASON TO FEAR THAT YOU WILL NEVER COMMENCE IT. The very causes which induce you to defer its commencement render it highly improbable that you will ever become religious. Every day's delay will render it more difficult.

V. BECAUSE, AFTER A TIME, GOD CEASES TO STRIVE WITH SINNERS AND TO AFFORD THEM THE ASSISTANCE OF HIS GRACE. He gives them up to a blinded mind, a seared conscience, and a hard heart. Thus He dealt with the old world; the wicked sons of Eli; the Jews in the time of Isaiah (Isaiah 6:9,10); and the inhabitants of Jerusalem in our Saviour's time (Luke 19:41, 42).

VI. BECAUSE YOU ARE, WHILE YOU DELAY, CONSTANTLY MAKING WORK FOR REPENTANCE; YOU ARE DOING WHAT YOU MEAN TO BE SORRY FOR; YOU ARE BUILDING UP TO-DAY WHAT YOU MEAN TO THROW DOWN TO-MORROW. How irrational and absurd is this! I will not now hear God's voice, but I mean to mourn, to be grieved for it hereafter. Could you say this to your fellow-creatures without blushing?

VII. BECAUSE IT IS THE EXPRESS COMMAND OF GOD. "God now commandeth all men everywhere to repent." And the Holy Ghost saith, Obey God's command, hear His voice to-day, and do not harden your hearts against it. Dare any of you trample on a known command of God?

(E. Payson, D.D.)

In the winter evening, when the frost is setting in with growing intensity, and when the sun is far past the meridian glory, and gradually sinking in the western sky, there is a two-fold reason why the ground grows every moment harder and more impenetrable. In the first place, the frost, with increasing intensity, is indurating the stiffening clods; on the other hand, the genial rays of the sun, which alone can soften them, are every moment withdrawing and losing their enlivening power. As long as the sinner remains unconverted, he is under a double process of hardening. The frosts of eternal night are settling down upon his soul, and the Sun of Righteousness is withdrawing His powerful beams for evermore. If grace do not penetrate the heart to-day, there will be less chance of it to-morrow.

(R. Venting.)

People
Psalmist
Places
Jerusalem
Topics
Melody, O, Oh, Sing, Song
Outline
1. An exhortation to praise God
4. for his greatness
8. for his kingdom
11. for his general judgment

Dictionary of Bible Themes
Psalm 96:1

     4203   earth, the
     8352   thankfulness

Psalm 96:1-2

     7960   singing

Psalm 96:1-3

     8624   worship, reasons

Psalm 96:1-9

     8440   glorifying God

Library
Psalm Xcvi. 1, 2
Psalm xcvi. 1, 2. Sing a new song unto the Lord; His mercies, every morning new, His truth and faithfulness record; Give to our God the glory due. God is the Lord; around His throne In heaven, adoring seraphim, And ransom'd saints, ascribe alone All power, might, majesty, to Hiin. On earth His church impregnable, Built on the rock of ages, stands, And yet, against the gates of hell, Shall send salvation through all lands. Thou, by whose word the worlds were made, In wisdom and in goodness framed,
James Montgomery—Sacred Poems and Hymns

Letter Xlii to the Illustrious Youth, Geoffrey De Perrone, and his Comrades.
To the Illustrious Youth, Geoffrey de Perrone, and His Comrades. He pronounces the youths noble because they purpose to lead the religious life, and exhorts them to perseverance. To his beloved sons, Geoffrey and his companions, Bernard, called Abbot of Clairvaux, wishes the spirit of counsel and strength. 1. The news of your conversion that has got abroad is edifying many, nay, is making glad the whole Church of God, so that The heavens rejoice and the earth is glad (Ps. xcvi. 11), and every tongue
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux—Some Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux

Therefore Go On, Saints of God, Boys and Girls...
27. Therefore go on, Saints of God, boys and girls, males and females, unmarried men, and women; go on and persevere unto the end. Praise more sweetly the Lord, Whom ye think on more richly: hope more happily in Him, Whom ye serve more instantly: love more ardently Him, whom ye please more attentively. With loins girded, and lamps burning, wait for the Lord, when He cometh from the marriage. [2075] Ye shall bring unto the marriage of the Lamb a new song, which ye shall sing on your harps. Not surely
St. Augustine—Of Holy Virginity.

A Letter from Origen to Africanus.
Origen to Africanus, a beloved brother in God the Father, through Jesus Christ, His holy Child, greeting. Your letter, from which I learn what you think of the Susanna in the Book of Daniel, which is used in the Churches, although apparently somewhat short, presents in its few words many problems, each of which demands no common treatment, but such as oversteps the character of a letter, and reaches the limits of a discourse. [3028] And I, when I consider, as best I can, the measure of my intellect,
Origen—Origen's Letters

Period iii. The Dissolution of the Imperial State Church and the Transition to the Middle Ages: from the Beginning of the Sixth Century to the Latter Part of the Eighth
The third period of the ancient Church under the Christian Empire begins with the accession of Justin I (518-527), and the end of the first schism between Rome and Constantinople (519). The termination of the period is not so clearly marked. By the middle and latter part of the eighth century, however, the imperial Church has ceased to exist in its original conception. The Church in the East has become, in great part, a group of national schismatic churches under Moslem rulers, and only the largest
Joseph Cullen Ayer Jr., Ph.D.—A Source Book for Ancient Church History

Hiram, the Inspired Artificer
BY REV. W. J. TOWNSEND, D.D. The Temple of Solomon was the crown of art in the old world. There were temples on a larger scale, and of more massive construction, but the enormous masses of masonry of the oldest nations were not comparable with the artistic grace, the luxurious adornments, and the harmonious proportions of this glorious House of God. David had laid up money and material for the great work, but he was not permitted to carry it out. He was a man of war, and blood-stained hands were
George Milligan—Men of the Bible; Some Lesser-Known

Ye Also who have not yet Made this Vow...
30. Ye also who have not yet made this vow, who are able to receive it, receive it. [2093] Run with perseverance, that ye may obtain. [2094] Take ye each his sacrifices, and enter ye into the courts [2095] of the Lord, not of necessity, having power over your own will. [2096] For not as, "Thou shall not commit adultery, Thou shall not kill," [2097] can it so be said, Thou shalt not wed. The former are demanded, the latter are offered. If the latter are done, they are praised: unless the former are
St. Augustine—Of Holy Virginity.

The First Commandment
Thou shalt have no other gods before me.' Exod 20: 3. Why is the commandment in the second person singular, Thou? Why does not God say, You shall have no other gods? Because the commandment concerns every one, and God would have each one take it as spoken to him by name. Though we are forward to take privileges to ourselves, yet we are apt to shift off duties from ourselves to others; therefore the commandment is in the second person, Thou and Thou, that every one may know that it is spoken to him,
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments

The Prophet Micah.
PRELIMINARY REMARKS. Micah signifies: "Who is like Jehovah;" and by this name, the prophet is consecrated to the incomparable God, just as Hosea was to the helping God, and Nahum to the comforting God. He prophesied, according to the inscription, under Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. We are not, however, entitled, on this account, to dissever his prophecies, and to assign particular discourses to the reign of each of these kings. On the contrary, the entire collection forms only one whole. At
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament

The History of the Psalter
[Sidenote: Nature of the Psalter] Corresponding to the book of Proverbs, itself a select library containing Israel's best gnomic literature, is the Psalter, the compendium of the nation's lyrical songs and hymns and prayers. It is the record of the soul experiences of the race. Its language is that of the heart, and its thoughts of common interest to worshipful humanity. It reflects almost every phase of religious feeling: penitence, doubt, remorse, confession, fear, faith, hope, adoration, and
Charles Foster Kent—The Origin & Permanent Value of the Old Testament

Psalms
The piety of the Old Testament Church is reflected with more clearness and variety in the Psalter than in any other book of the Old Testament. It constitutes the response of the Church to the divine demands of prophecy, and, in a less degree, of law; or, rather, it expresses those emotions and aspirations of the universal heart which lie deeper than any formal demand. It is the speech of the soul face to face with God. Its words are as simple and unaffected as human words can be, for it is the genius
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

Links
Psalm 96:1 NIV
Psalm 96:1 NLT
Psalm 96:1 ESV
Psalm 96:1 NASB
Psalm 96:1 KJV

Psalm 96:1 Bible Apps
Psalm 96:1 Parallel
Psalm 96:1 Biblia Paralela
Psalm 96:1 Chinese Bible
Psalm 96:1 French Bible
Psalm 96:1 German Bible

Psalm 96:1 Commentaries

Bible Hub
Psalm 95:11
Top of Page
Top of Page