"Jehovah reigneth! Let the earth* dance for joy! (Horsley, n.) Let the multitude of its regions rejoice." The “basis of his throne" (comp. Psa. lxxxix. 15) is formed The theme. by "Righteousness and judgment," while "clouds" are its curtains. And then is described the judgment upon idols, in language borrowed from the Sinai-appearing of the Lord, (ver. 3, 4). When in verse 6 it is said, “The heavens declare his righteousness,” the sense corresponds to Romans i. 18; it is equivalent to saying that now the Lord from heaven, from his opened heavens, rises up in favour of righteousness. From age to age the heavens seemed silently to hear, as if almost indifferent to the cry of sin; but not so any longer. At verse 7 Angels are called upon, "Ye gods," (Heb. i. 6); and called upon to worship" Him" who now appears, viz., Christ who now comes into the world again, (Heb. i. 6). Angels who were present, and who adored him at Bethlehem, at his first Coming, are again adoring. Israel and earth at large rejoice, witnessing his “judgments,” i.e., his providential dealings. But specially his saints, who have long prayed and waited, now find that they waited not in vain ; and hence the exhortation in verse 10, and the promise in verse 11, a verse illustrated by Esther viii. 16 in one view of it— "Light is sown for the righteous.” members Into the furrows made by the plough of affliction and temp- Christ and his tation, God casts the seeds of after-joy. Christ, "the Righteous One," is first partaker of this harvest of joy, as abundant as were his tears, his woes, his sorrows-and joy is synonymous with "light," because of light's cheerfulness, and because the rich flood of rays from the sun may be emblematic of the gifts and blessings to be poured on the Righteous One and his members. It is interesting to notice that an apparent reference to the Head and members is contained in the change of numbers in the clauses of verse 11 Light is sown for the Righteous One, PY And gladness for those who are upright in heart,” (who keep to his All this blessedness, at the very hour judgment comes on idols and idolaters, may well call forth the rejoicing with which our Psalm begins and ends. And the "holiness" of verse 12 may remind us that all this joy is the result of Jehovah having at length introduced his own holiness into a fallen world. It is a blessed song concerning The Advent of Messiah, and its results to earth. The time. The theme. PSALM XCVIII. A Psalm. 1 0 SING unto the Lord a new song! for he hath done marvellous things His right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory. 2 The Lord hath made known his salvation: His righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen. 3 He hath remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel: All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. 4 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth: Make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise. 5 Sing unto Lord with the harp; with the harp, and the voice of a psalm. 6 With trumpets and sound of cornet, make a joyful noise before the Lord, the King. 7 Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they tl a dwell therein. 8 Let the floods clap their hands: Let the hills be joyful together before the Lord; 9 For he cometh to judge the earth: With righteousness shall he judge the world, and the people with equity. RYLAND (in "Psalms restored to Messiah,") thinks that as the Jews held that Moses wrote Psalm xc. and onward to the xcviii., it may be to this Psalm that Rev, xv. alludes, as "The Song of Moses and the Lamb." This is improbable; but the Psalm suits that time. The kingdom and the King have arrived; the blessedness of that happy day has been celebrated. But the harp cannot be silent yet! Another song on the same key! Another sweet and solemn melody on the same theme; but with this special addition, the Lord's faithfulness to Israel. Hengstenberg remarks that this Psalm is full of allusion to Isaiah. At any rate, this Psalm and Isaiah, whichever was the earlier, answer to one another, as seraph to seraph, celebrating "wonders," "salvation with his right hand," "his holy arm,” “his righteousness revealed." And may not the clause in verse 2, "He hath remembered his mercy and truth," be considered as equivalent to "full of grace and truth" in John i. 17? That grace and truth is now to be revealed to Israel in particular, for he who is the fountain of it is to dwell among them-his throne stretched over Jerusalem as a rainbow spans the plain beneath, and his sceptre swayed over earth to its utmost ends. Sing to Jehovah with the harp! With the harp and voice of psaltery! With cornets and sound of ¡rumpet (as at the bringing up of the ark to Zion, and as in 1 Kings i. 34, when Solomon was crowned). Raise the peal of melody Before THE KING, Jehovah !" And as at the commencement of a reign in Israel, we read of the shout, “Let the king live !" (2 Kings xi. 12, and ix. 13,) “Jehu is king!” and as they clapped the hand (2 Kings xi. 12), as well as shouted and blew the trumpet (2 Kings ix. 13), so we find all these recognitions of The King in this Psalm"The rivers clap their hands," and "the hills shout for joy," for the king foretold in David's last words has at length come (2 Sam. xxiii. 3), to rule over men in the fear of the Lord. peculiar. It is the only Psalm called simply ", "Psalm," without The title addition. Some say that the reason is, there are so many verses that have some form of the root, verses 1-8, &c. Hengstenberg accounts for it by supposing it the lyrical accompaniment of the more directly prophetical preceding Psalm, and the lyrical echo of the second part of Isaiah. It is at least interesting to notice, that a song of Zion which so exults in the king's arrival should be called pre-eminently, ; as if the Psalm of Psalms were that which celebrates Israel, and Earth at large, blessed in Messiah's Advent. The theme. The contents. PSALM XCIX. 1 THE Lord reigneth, let the people tremble: He sitteth between the cherubim, let the earth be moved. 2 The Lord is great in Zion; and he is high above all the people. 3 Let them praise thy great and terrible name; for it is holy. 4 The king's strength also loveth judgment; thou dost establish equity, Thou executest judgment and righteousness in Jacob. 5 Exalt ye the Lord our God, and worship at his footstool; For he is holy. 6 Moses and Aaron among his priests, and Samuel among them that call upon his name; They called upon the Lord, and he answered them. 7 He spake unto them in the cloudy pillar; They kept his testimonies, and the ordinance that he gave them. 8 Thou answeredst them, O Lord our God: thou wast a God that forgavest them, Though thou tookest vengeance of their inventions. 9 Exalt the Lord our God, and worship at his holy hill; For the Lord our God is holy. THE King and kingdom having come and been established, the Psalmist sings of the principles of government. Holiness is the rule. Jehovah is as holy as when he manifested himself to Israel dwelling between the cherubim. Or rather, the idea seems to be that Jehovah, while fulfilling the type exhibited in his dwelling between the cherubim by dwelling with men in Zion, is nevertheless so holy that earth bows prostrate before him, and the nations quake. "They praise thy name! Great and terrible, holy is He! * And royal strength loveth judgment !" This is their song, because he has established judgment in Jacob. They call on others to join (ver. 5), bidding them fall before "His footstool," i.e., his ark, where he gave his manifestation of himself to men who approach to worship. “He is holy” (ver. 5), *Like "the might of Gabriel fought" (Milton, P. L. vi. 355), “ Crispi facunda senectus." (Juven. iv. 31). Others refer back to verse 3, “Let them praise the strength of the King (who) loveth judgment.” This is one of their arguments; another is, Moses and Aaron, Israel's leaders in the wilderness, are there; and Samuel, the first of the judges in the land, is there. These men, and such as these, used to call upon the Lord and get answers, during their days of trial, he speaking from the pillar-cloud. "They kept his testimonies this is an abridged description of the obedient life of all these saints-even as John xvii. 6, "They have kept My word," is the Master's delineation of his disciples. "He gave them a code of statutes," refers to such a passage as Deut. xxxiii. 4, where the law is reckoned among the prime blessings of Israel. Yes, it was always thus; Jehovah answered them, and forgave them, yet was "An avenging God because of their iniquities.” He is the same for ever. Just, sin-hating, righteous! And then a third time, as if to cause earth to respond to the song of heaven (Isa. vi. 3, Rev. iv. 8), the Psalmist extols Jehovah's holiness "Worship at the hill of his holiness, It is throughout a Psalm proclaiming the untarnished perfections of the King, Messiah ruling in holiness. PSALM C. A Psalm of praise. 1 MAKE a joyful noise unto the Lord, all 2 Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing. 3 Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; We are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise : Be thankful unto him, and bless his name. 5 For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations. THE King and kingdom come. and holiness now swaying the |