I. (96:1–6) Sing to the Lord All the Earth, for He Is Great! The psalm begins by calling the inhabitants of “all the earth” to “sing to the Lord.” (For “new song” cf. comment on 33:1–3.) The activities (“sing to the Lord,” “bless his name,” “tell of his salvation,” “praised,” and “feared”) all describe the privilege of Israelite worship in God’s sanctuary; here the Gentiles are invited to join them (cf. 96:8–9).

At the same time the psalm sends its invitation out to all the Gentiles, it also makes clear that the Lord, who has made himself known in Israel, is the supreme God, the only one worthy of human worship (vv. 4–5). The Lord is to be “feared above all gods”—because he “made the heavens,” while these other “gods” are powerless, indeed unreal. The words “gods” (Hb. ʾelohim) and “worthless idols” (ʾelilim) sound alike, providing a play on words; in English this would be close to “These mighty beings are mighty useless!”

The phrase “splendor and majesty” (v. 6) describes royal magnificence (applied to humans in 21:5; 45:3), which is suited to the theme of divine kingship (Job 40:10; Pss. 104:1; 111:3; 145:3).621 These, along with “strength and beauty,” are attributes of God, into whose presence people come in his sanctuary.

II. (96:7–9) All Nations, Ascribe Glory to the Lord! These verses develop the thought of verse 7, inviting the Gentiles to worship “in his courts,” that is, in the temple precincts. The OT describes the future era in which the Gentiles receive the light by picturing them as coming to the Jerusalem temple (Isa. 2:2–3; and even the lesser temple after the exile, Hag. 2:7–9). The Gentiles are to “bring an offering” and “worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness”—that is, the splendid presence of the all-holy one (cf. Ps. 29:2), before whom the proper response is to “tremble (cf. 114:7). The Gentiles’ uncleanness, which would defile the holy place (Isa. 52:1), can be cured by conversion, after which they too will be welcome in God’s house.

The three lines of Psalm 96:7–8 (“Ascribe . . . ascribe . . . Ascribe”) are very similar to 29:1–2, except that there it is the heavenly beings who are called to worship, while here it is the “families of the peoples” (the Gentiles). “Strength” looks back to the same word in 96:6, while “glory” (Hb. kabod) is a synonym of “beauty” (tip’eret, also in v. 6). That is, verse 6 listed God’s attributes, and now the Gentiles are called to “ascribe,” or acknowledge, these attributes. The glory “due his name” is the respect and honor God’s character deserves.

III. (96:10–13) Let All Nations Know That the Lord Will Judge in Righteousness. The Gentiles have been addressed throughout this psalm (as in vv. 1, 7); hence they are the ones who are to spread the news “among the nations,” among all their fellow Gentiles (v. 10; cf. v. 3). The news is simple: “The Lord reigns!” The universal rule of the one true God (who is above all other gods, who are “worthless” anyhow; vv. 4–5) is good news to those who will acknowledge his kingship. This universal reign of God also ensures that the world is founded on secure moral principles (cf. comment on 93:1–2): the unchanging character of God, his “equity” (cf. “righteousness” and “faithfulness”; 96:13).

These verses look to a time in which God will “judge the peoples with equity” (vv. 10, 13). The term “judge” is probably not limited to sifting between the righteous and unrighteous; the wider sense of “execute justice, rule justly” fits the context better (cf. Isa. 2:4; 11:3–4). Thus the psalm focuses the congregation’s attention more on a time in which Gentiles acknowledge the true God and on the benefits this will bring to all the earth than it does on the final judgment. When all kinds of people receive God’s rule gladly, worshiping him according to his gracious character, the rest of the creation (“the heavens,” “the earth,” “the sea” and “the field” with all their inhabitants, and “the trees of the forest”) will all celebrate (“be glad,” “rejoice,” “roar,” “exult,” and “sing for joy”). God made man to rule wisely and benevolently over his world, to bring it to the full fruition of its beauty. Now, however, the creation suffers because it is the arena in which humans commit evil, and God disciplines wayward human beings. But when such humans genuinely come under the rule of those who know and love the true God, the blessings will spread throughout the world.