Have you ever been so happy that you couldn’t resist the urge to burst into song? In Psalm 98, the psalmist is experiencing just that. He is so full of joy over who God is and what he is done that he can’t help but to burst into shouts of praise towards Him. “Sing a new song to the Lord, for he has done wonderful deeds. His right hand has won a mighty victory; his holy arm has shown his saving power! The Lord has announced his victory and has revealed his righteousness to every nation! He has remembered his promise to love and be faithful to Israel. The ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God. Shout to the Lord, all the earth; break out in praise and sing for joy! Sing your praise to the Lord with the harp, with the harp and melodious song, with trumpets and the sound of the ram’s horn. Make a joyful symphony before the Lord, the King!” (1-6) The psalmist is so full of joy that he continues to praise God and encourage all of creation to praise God as well. “Let the sea and everything in it shout his praise! Let the earth and all living things join in. Let the rivers clap their hands in glee! Let the hills sing out their songs of joy before the Lord…” (7-9) The psalmist is so full of joy over who the Lord is and what the Lord has done. The end of the psalm tells us exactly why the psalmist is so joyful. “… for the Lord is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with justice, and the nations with fairness” (9) Right now, you might be thinking, “Wow, he was that excited about God coming to judge the world? That doesn’t sound like something to be joyful about” The psalmist was that excited and joyful about the character of God and the promises that God has made over the judgment on the world because he knew that God is loving, righteous, and just. He knew that God would be fair in his judgment as well. God is the ultimate judge and knowing that he is righteous, just, fair, and loving caused the psalmist to rejoice in the coming judgment of the Lord. There has never and will never be a more righteous, and just judge.
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