Chapter Ninety-Five

This psalm is cited with significant variations in (1 Chr 16:7-36) as sung by David during the carrying of the Ark of the Covenant. At the conclusion of the psalm the people answered: “Hallelujah.” The latter term became known only from the Book of Chronicles, where it is first introduced, and it entered into Jewish liturgical use no earlier than before the time of the Babylonian exile, if not during the exile itself. This circumstance indicates that the people could not have answered David’s prayer with such an expression, that is, the Book of Chronicles in this case does not demonstrate literal accuracy in its testimony, and therefore the prayer of David transmitted above, which shows such great similarity to Psalm 95, cannot serve as irrefutable proof that it, Ps 95, is necessarily a work of David, especially also in view of its great similarity to the prophecies of the prophet Isaiah (Ps 95—Isa 42:10; Ps 95—Isa 42:12; Ps 95—Isa 43:15; Ps 95:11-12—Isa 42:10-11) and in view of the fact that before it there is no word “thus” (replacing the expression “the following”), usually used before the actual words of some person. It may be that the writer of Chronicles (probably Ezra), by citing the content of this ecstatic hymn of praise, only wished to indicate the character of David’s glorification, as well as by ascribing to the people the pronouncement of hallelujah only testified to the enthusiastic mood of the latter. Therefore the inscription of the Greek and Latin Bibles, calling David the author, can be understood as an indication that the composer of this psalm imitated the hymns of praise and thanksgiving of David. The further words of the inscription “for the building of the house” (in the Vulgate and in the LXX it is added “after the captivity”) only indicate the especially intensified use of the psalm after the captivity when building the second temple. Incidentally, this inscription is applicable to the times of King Josiah as well, when there was also a renewal and restoration of the proper order of worship in the temple, as if a new building of it.

The entire earth is invited by the writer to sing and praise the Lord as the one and true God, before whom the idols of the pagans are insignificant. All tribes and all peoples are invited to this praise of the Lord (1–7). Bring gifts to the Lord in His sanctuary and proclaim to the peoples that the Lord has reigned, and with Him righteousness (8–10). Let therefore all the earth rejoice, the groves, the seas, and the fields, for the Lord comes to judge the earth (11–13).

Psalm 95:1. Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth. By the “new song” to which the writer of the psalm invites all Jews, one should understand hymns of praise and thanksgiving. They are new because they fill the Jews with a new joyful disposition, inspiring faith in a better future. This faith is the beginning of a new life, a life in accordance with the divine law, which was forgotten before, but now, with the reign of Josiah, began to be preached and put into practice.

Psalm 95:2. Sing to the Lord and praise His name; proclaim His salvation day after day. Psalm 95:3. Declare His glory among the nations, His marvelous deeds among all peoples; Psalm 95:4. for great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; He is to be feared above all gods. Psalm 95:5. For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the Lord made the heavens. Psalm 95:6. Splendor and majesty are before Him; strength and glory are in His sanctuary. Familiarity with this law, as well as with the history of the past life of the Jews, reveals clearly before men the greatness of God’s promises to His chosen people, and together with it the innumerable facts of miraculous guidance, which show how great the Lord is and how much He loves His people. From a true Jew is now required to “proclaim,” to announce these deeds (“His salvation”) of the Lord among all peoples, to declare His marvelous deeds, since the latter clearly testify that Jehovah alone is the one true and fearsome God in might, while the gods of other peoples are simple products of human hands, lifeless idols. Faith and devotion to this great God will assure the peaceful existence of the people and prompts the writer to invite to new songs, to a new disposition not gloomy and fearful for his political well-being and independence, but full of faith in God and praiseworthy.

Psalm 95:7. Ascribe to the Lord, you families of nations, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength; Confidence that God will protect His people motivates the writer to invite all pagan nations to willingly submit to God and a reverent relation to Him.

Psalm 95:11. Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it; Psalm 95:12. let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them; then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy Psalm 95:13. before the Lord, for He comes, for He comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in His faithfulness. Since the Lord is the King of the whole world, then when He comes to judge the whole world, justice will be restored on the earth, now trampled upon by men and peoples. The writer expects and prays to God for this coming and invites all of nature to share in his joy: the seas, rivers, fields, forests. Such an invitation speaks of the extraordinary depth and power of the feeling experienced by the writer. All this joyful and brave content of the psalm corresponds to the time of King Josiah, when the discovered and read by him autograph of the law of Moses filled him on the one hand with a feeling of sorrow at the sight of the disorder of the present life of his subjects, far from the ideal depicted in the law, on the other hand—filled him with zeal for the purification of life, instilled a confidence that the Lord would not allow this repentant and reforming people to perish before Him.