BIBLE CHAPTER STUDY
Psalms 98 — A New Song for the Lord's Coming Judgment
A psalm summoning the whole earth, the sea, the floods, and the hills to joyful praise because the LORD has displayed his salvation, remembered his covenant faithfulness to Israel, and is coming to judge the world in righteousness.
Scripture
1A Psalm. Oh sing unto Jehovah a new song; For he hath done marvellous things: His right hand, and his holy arm, hath wrought salvation for him.
2Jehovah hath made known his salvation: His righteousness hath he openly showed in the sight of the nations.
3He hath remembered his lovingkindness and his faithfulness toward the house of Israel: All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
4Make a joyful noise unto Jehovah, all the earth: Break forth and sing for joy, yea, sing praises.
5Sing praises unto Jehovah with the harp; With the harp and the voice of melody.
6With trumpets and sound of cornet Make a joyful noise before the King, Jehovah.
7Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; The world, and they that dwell therein;
8Let the floods clap their hands; Let the hills sing for joy together
9Before Jehovah; For he cometh to judge the earth: He will judge the world with righteousness, And the peoples with equity.
What this passage means
The psalm opens with a call to sing 'a new song' because the LORD 'hath done marvellous things': his right hand and his holy arm have 'wrought salvation for him' (v. 1). The vocabulary deliberately ties the act of deliverance to divine power in conflict — the 'right hand' and 'holy arm' language evokes a warrior-God acting on behalf of his people, which is then identified as 'salvation' made publicly known before the nations (v. 2).
Verses 4–8 widen the summons far beyond Israel. The psalmist addresses 'all the earth,' commands musical instruments (harp, voice of melody, trumpets, cornet), and then personifies creation itself: the sea roars, the floods clap their hands, and the hills sing together (vv. 4–8). The point is that the scope of the praise must match the scope of the act — what the LORD has done is a world-event demanding a world-response.
Verse 9 grounds the joy in a coming action: 'he cometh to judge the earth … with righteousness … and equity.' The 'new song' is not for a past rescue alone but for the certainty that the LORD will set the world right. Praise is therefore anticipatory, anchored in the revealed character of the God who saves and judges together.
Context
The provided chapter stands alone as a complete unit: a single movement from the reason for praise (vv. 1–3) to the call to praise (vv. 4–6) to creation's praise (vv. 7–8) to the basis of praise — the LORD's coming righteous judgment (v. 9).
Among the supplied cross-references, Isaiah 52:10 echoes verse 2 almost word-for-word ('hath made bare his holy arm … all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God'), and Psalms 96:1 and 96:13 share both the opening 'new song' command and the closing judgment formula. The pairing suggests this psalm belongs to a cluster of kingship/salvation songs calling the nations to praise before the coming King.
Key words in the original
- H7892 The Hebrew noun šîyr ('song') appears in verse 1 as 'sing … a new song.' Combined with the verb šiyrû ('sing'), the root stresses vocalized musical performance rather than silent reflection — praise is enacted aloud.
- H2319 ḥāḏāš ('new') in verse 1 qualifies the song because the act of salvation is unprecedented in its public scope — a fresh event demands a fresh composition rather than a borrowed one.
- H6381 nip̄lāʾôṯ ('marvellous things,' from pālā') describes acts that are distinguished or set apart — what the right hand and holy arm have accomplished is categorically unlike ordinary events, justifying the new song.
Related verses
- Isaiah 52:10 Isaiah 52:10 mirrors verse 2 almost word-for-word: the LORD 'made bare his holy arm' so 'all the ends of the earth' could see 'the salvation of our God.' The verbal overlap makes Isaiah the closest prophetic parallel to the psalm's opening claim.
- Psalms 96:1 Psalms 96:1 opens with the same command to 'sing unto Jehovah a new song' and addresses 'all the earth,' matching the summons in verses 1 and 4 of this chapter and indicating a shared composition tradition.
- Psalms 96:13 Psalms 96:13 supplies the matching ending: 'he cometh to judge the earth … with righteousness.' The shared formula with verse 9 ties the 'new song' directly to the certainty of the LORD's coming equitable reign.
Common questions
Why does the psalm call for a 'new song' rather than an existing one?
The supplied material does not explain the rationale, but the text itself links 'new song' directly to 'marvellous things' the LORD 'hath done' (v. 1). A fresh act of salvation is presented as the warrant for a fresh composition rather than a recycled one.
Does the psalm distinguish between Israel and the nations in who should praise?
Verses 1–3 center on the LORD's salvation made known 'in the sight of the nations' and remembered 'toward the house of Israel.' Verses 4–8 then summon 'all the earth,' the sea, the floods, and the hills. The chapter presents Israel as the immediate recipient of covenant faithfulness (v. 3) while opening the praise event to the nations and all creation.
How do salvation and judgment fit together in this chapter?
Verses 1–3 describe the LORD's saving act made publicly visible, and verse 9 closes with 'he cometh to judge the earth … with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.' The chapter does not separate the two: the revealed salvation is the basis on which the coming judgment is praised, and both are anchored in the same character — righteousness and equity.