Christianity

Psalms 98A Joyful Noise for the King

Summary

Psalm 98 calls for a new song because the LORD has done marvellous things and his right hand has gained the victory. He has openly shown his salvation in the sight of the nations and remembered his mercy toward Israel, so that all the ends of the earth have seen it. Worshippers join in with harp, trumpets and cornet, while the sea roars, the floods clap their hands and the hills rejoice before the LORD who comes to judge the earth.

Key verse

“Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.”

Psalms 98:4

Themes

Victory and Salvation
Joyful Music
All the Earth Rejoices
Coming Judgment

O 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.

The LORD hath made known his salvation: his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen.

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.

Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.

Sing unto the LORD with the harp; with the harp, and the voice of a psalm.

With trumpets and sound of cornet make a joyful noise before the LORD, the King.

Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.

Let the floods clap their hands: let the hills be joyful together

Before the LORD; for he cometh to judge the earth: with righteousness shall he judge the world, and the people with equity.

Text: King James Version (1611/1769), public domain.

Across traditions

Christianity
Isaiah 52: The Ends of the Earth Shall See
Isaiah 52:10 says all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God, wording that Psalm 98:3 shares almost exactly.
Christianity
Luke 1: The Song of Mary
Mary's song in Luke 1:54 speaks of God helping Israel in remembrance of his mercy, language close to Psalm 98:3. In Anglican Evening Prayer, Psalm 98, the Cantate Domino, may be sung in place of the Magnificat.
Judaism
Psalm 98 in the JPS 1917 Tanakh
Psalm 98 is one of the psalms of the Kabbalat Shabbat service, where its call for all the earth to rejoice greets the Sabbath.

Questions about Psalms 98

Is Joy to the World based on Psalm 98?

Yes. Isaac Watts wrote Joy to the World, published in 1719, as a paraphrase of the second half of Psalm 98, reading the coming of the LORD in light of Christ. It was not originally written as a Christmas hymn.

What does 'let the floods clap their hands' mean?

Psalm 98:8 gives rivers hands and hills a voice, a poetic way of saying all creation joins the celebration of God's reign. Isaiah 55:12 uses a similar image of trees clapping their hands.