I. (50:1–6) God Summons the Earth to Assemble before Him. The psalm begins by declaring that “the Mighty One, God the Lord” calls all the earth, “from the rising of sun to its setting,” to listen.426 As Genesis makes clear, there is but one true God, who made heaven and earth and all humankind; he called Abraham’s family to be the vehicle of his light to the rest of the world (Gen. 12:1–3). Here the other peoples, together with the heavens and earth (cf. Deut. 4:26; 31:28; 32:1; Isa. 1:2), are pictured as if they were watching the scene in which God speaks to his people (those “who made a covenant with me”).

The role of Israel in the world is clear from how the psalm portrays Zion (Ps. 50:2): it is the “perfection of beauty” (cf. 48:2) and the place “out of” which “God shines forth” (i.e., makes himself manifest; cf. Deut. 33:2; Pss. 80:1; 94:1). The plan was for God to shine forth by way of his faithful people, and the psalm is calling the people to account for whether they have indeed displayed his character to the world (“judge his people”; v. 4). Besides having the special place of Zion, God’s people also have the privilege of having “made a covenant with me by sacrifice”—perhaps thinking of Abraham (Gen. 15:9–18), as well as Sinai (Ex. 24:3–8).

The terms translated “judge” (Hb. din, Ps. 50:4; shapat, v. 6) could mean, according to context, “to bring just deliverance to” someone (72:2; Prov. 31:8–9), “to rule justly” (Ps. 96:10), or “to arraign someone for injustice” (Isa. 3:13). Here the stress is on God’s arraignment: he has “been silent” in the face of the unfaithful among his people (Ps. 50:21), but he is ending that silence in this song (v. 3), and in verse 7 God will “testify against” them.

“The heavens declare his righteousness” (cf. 97:6); the question here is whether the corporate life of God’s people assists that declaration.

II. (50:7–15) He Speaks to His People: Worship Him from the Heart. God’s act of judgment is an oracle, speaking to them of what it really means to be his people. He speaks to their use of “sacrifices” (v. 8); in the light of verses 10–13, as well as verse 16, he is addressing people tempted to think that God somehow needs the sacrifices, which can be used almost as a bribe to satisfy him. God’s reply, an obvious one for those who think clearly about the creation account, is that he owns the entire created order and does not depend on it in any way.

The oracle then turns to the right use of sacrifices (cf. comment on 40:1–10 [at vv. 6–8]), focusing on the “sacrifice of thanksgiving” and “vows” (50:14).427 These were both types of peace offerings (Lev. 7:11–12, 16), the only kind of sacrifice in which the worshiper ate some of the sacrificial animal; its primary function was to eat a meal in company with the sacrificer’s family and the needy, with God as the host, calling his guests to be glad (cf. Deut. 12:5–7; 14:23–29). (Indeed, in 1 Cor. 10:16–18 this is the pattern for the Lord’s Supper.428) Membership in God’s people is about being welcome in his presence (Ps. 50:14), depending on him (v. 15), and accepting one’s place in God’s new human community—which means being people who deal justly with others (vv. 19–20, 23). Such membership engages the heart.

In verses 9–11 the song mentions a variety of animal types: the “bull” and “goat” would be standard candidates for an offering (albeit expensive ones); they belong to the category “cattle” (v. 10, portrayed as grazing on the hills). The “beast of the forest” would include wild animals, only some of which (game animals) were suitable for Israelite food; the predators were unclean (forbidden either as food or sacrifice). Likewise only some of the birds were clean, and “all that moves in the field” (cf. 80:13) would surely include small animals that were unclean (such as rodents and insects).429 The point is that all animal life belongs to God, even those excluded from his people’s consumption—which means that, were humans somehow to refuse to offer sacrifices, and were God really dependent on his creation for food, he would not starve! The irony reinforces the message: the people depend on God (50:15), not he on them.

III. (50:16–22) He Speaks to the “Wicked”: He Rebukes Them. From speaking to the community as a whole the song goes on to focus on “the wicked” person. (The word “wicked” and the pronoun “you” are both singular throughout the stanza until v. 22.) From the context it is clear that the wicked here is a member of the covenant people who despises the privileges of the covenant. In verse 16 he takes God’s covenant on his lips and recites God’s statutes; to ask “what right” he has to do so is to imply that he does it presumptuously. This presumption becomes clear from verse 17, where he “hates” the fatherly “discipline” God gives his children (cf. Prov. 3:11–12) and casts God’s words behind. Such a person prefers the company of the thief and the adulterer (i.e., of persons given over to violating the 8th and 7th commandments; Ex. 20:14–15). He further employs his speech for promoting evil and harming his fellow covenant members (Ps. 50:19–20). God gave his covenant in order to knit all his people together in the great project of showing forth true human community for the sake of the world, but instead far too many members rejected this great purpose and sought only to promote themselves at the expense of their fellows.

The wicked person misinterpreted God’s silence (v. 21); he thought God was as greedy as himself, but God in his mercy now issues his rebuke (v. 21). Verse 22 switches to a plural address and invites all of those who fit this description to repent and mend their ways.

The ESV explains that it is possible to interpret the second line of verse 21 as “you thought that the I am was one like yourself” (cf. ESV mg.), which would be an allusion to Exodus 3:14, where “I am” is the short form of the explained name of God.430 This would sharpen the rebuke, as God’s name is especially connected with his promises of faithfulness and kindness to his people (Ex. 3:12; 6:6–8). The wicked are abusing this.

IV. (50:23) He Sums It Up: Worship Him with the Heart. The final thought sums up the psalm, with its interest in what membership in God’s favored people should mean: delighting joyfully in God’s presence (“thanksgiving as his sacrifice”) and pursuing a just and kind life in fellowship with God’s people (“orders his way rightly”).