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PSALM 98

A Psalm.

1. Sing you to jehovah a new song, for he has done wonders! His right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him!
2. jehovah has made known his salvation; before the eyes of the nations he has revealed his justice.
3. He has remembered his mercy and his truth to the house of Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our god.
4. Make a loud noise to jehovah all the earth; break forth, and rejoice, and sing praise.
5. Sing to jehovah with the harp; with the harp, and the voice of a psalm.
6. With trumpets and with the sound of the cornet, make a joyful noise before jehovah the king.
7. Let the sea roar and the fullness thereof; the world, and those that dwell therein.
8. Let the rivers clap their hands; let the mountains be joyful together.
9. Before jehovah; for he comes to judge the earth; with justice shall he judge the world, and the peoples with rectitude.

Verse 1. Wonders or miracles; see Psalm 78:43, Exposition.

Verse 1. His right hand, and his holy arm; see Psalm 10:15. Exposition.

Verses 1 to 7. Sing you to jehovah a new song, etc. etc. All the instruments mentioned from this to the seventh verse signify affections, each its own affection, and this from the agreement of their sound, for there are affections which produce varieties of sounds with men, whence also affections are known from sounds, as was said above in this article. I will add this arcanum; the angels, who in heaven constitute the lord's celestial kingdom, draw the internal sense of the Word from man's affection alone when he reads the Word, resulting also from the sound and expressions in the original tongue; but the angels, who are in the lord's spiritual kingdom, draw the internal sense from the truths which the expressions contain; hence from the celestial kingdom there is joy of heart to the man who is in spiritual affection, and from the spiritual kingdom confession from that joy; the sounds of musical instruments, which are there named, elevate the affection, and truths form it; that this is the case, is also known by those who are skilled in the are of music; for this reason the psalms of David are called psalms from playing instruments, and likewise songs from singing. AE 327.

Verses 1 to 7. See also Psalm 96:1. Exposition.

Verse 3. He has remembered his mercy and his truth to the house of Israel, etc. In the Word it is said of jehovah, that is, of the lord, that he remembers, and that he does not remember, and by it is signified that in such case it is done from mercy, whether it be preservation or deliverance; in like manner as that he sees, hears, knows, and that he does not see, does not, hear, and does not know, by which expressions also are signified compassions and non-compassions; the reason why it is so expressed is grounded in what passes in a similar way with man, and in appearance; for when he averts himself from the lord, as is the case when he does evil, then, because the lord is to his back, it appears to him that the lord does not see it, does not hear and know it, neither remembers him, when yet this is what appertains to the man, and hence from appearance it is so expressed in the Word, but the case is changed when man turns himself to the lord, as he does when he does well; every one must know that remembrance and recollection cannot be predicated of the lord, inasmuch as things past and future in him are eternal, that is, are present from eternity to eternity. AC 9849.

By mercy from the lord, the celestial understand nothing else but the perception of an influx from him, and by truth an influx of charity thence derived; but it is otherwise with the spiritual; these think concerning the things which are of faith, and when they are reformed and regenerated, they are introduced by things which are of faith to charity towards their neighbour; wherefore when the latter is treated of, by mercy from the lord is meant an influx of charity towards their neighbour, and by truth an influx of faith; but still this faith, when the spiritual man is regenerated, becomes charity, for then he acts from charity. AC 3122.

Verses 7, 8. Let the sea roar and the fullness thereof; the world, and those that dwell therein. Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains be joyful together. By these words is signified the glorification of the lord by the universal heaven; glorification from its ultimates is signified by the sea roaring and its fullness; the glorification from the whole heaven is signified by the world making a noise, and those that dwell in it; world signifies the universal heaven as to its truth, and those that dwell in it signify the universal heaven as to its good; the glorification of the lord by the truths which are of intelligence, and by the goods which are of love, is signified by the rivers clapping hands, and the mountains rejoicing together, rivers denoting the truths of intelligence, and mountains the goods of love. AE 518.

Verse 9. He comes to judge the earth. What judgement means both general and particular, see Psalm 96:13, Exposition.