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Illustration for Psalm 98: Sing to the LORD

Psalm 98

Sing to the LORD

PraiseJoyAdventure

Sing a new song because God has done wonderful things — His own right hand has won the victory! He has remembered His love for Israel and all the ends of the earth have seen His salvation. Let the rivers clap their hands and the mountains sing for joy!

  1. 1Sing to the LORD a new song, for He has done marvelous things; His right hand and His holy arm have worked salvation for Him.
  2. 2The LORD has made His salvation known; He has revealed His righteousness to the nations.
  3. 3He has remembered His love and His faithfulness to Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
  4. 4Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth; burst into jubilant song with music;
  5. 5make music to the LORD with the harp, with the harp and the sound of singing,
  6. 6with trumpets and the blast of the ram's horn— shout for joy before the LORD, the King.
  7. 7Let the sea resound, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.
  8. 8Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy;
  9. 9let them sing before the LORD, for He comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples with equity.

What it means

This psalm invites the rivers to clap and the mountains to sing. It is a picture of a world so full of God's goodness that even the scenery joins in. Praise is not only something we do inside a building — the whole creation is at it.

A little prayer

God, You have done wonderful things and You have won the victory. I want to sing You a brand new song. Thank You that the whole world is full of reasons to praise You. Amen.

Memory verse

“Sing to the LORD a new song, for He has done marvelous things; His right hand and His holy arm have worked salvation for Him.”

Psalm 98:1 (BSB)

It gives a reason before it gives an instruction, which is why the singing makes sense.

Talk about it

Questions with no single right answer — for a family table or a Sunday-school circle.

  1. The psalm says God's own right hand won the victory. Why does it matter who did it?
  2. It calls on rivers to clap and mountains to sing. Have you ever felt like the world was joining in?
  3. It says God remembered His love. What is the difference between keeping a promise and remembering one?
  4. What good news have you had that you wanted to shout?

Try this

Rivers clapping

Make the sound of a river with your hands and voices — everyone joins in a layer at a time until it is a proper roar. Then read verse 8 over the top of it.

Scripture from the Berean Standard Bible (BSB)