Psalm 98:5-9

Our responsorial this week comes from Psalm 98, a joyful hymn that celebrates the Lord’s kingship and the victory of his saving justice.

This vision of divine judgment mirrors the message of our first reading from Malachi, where the “sun of justice” rises to set all things right.

Sing praise to the LORD with the harp, with the harp and melodious song. With trumpets and the sound of the horn sing joyfully before the King, the LORD.

This psalm is a jubilant summons to worship the Lord as King over all creation. The specific musical references — harp, trumpets, and horn — suggest the grandeur of a royal ceremony, evoking the enthronement of God as ruler of heaven and earth.

Let the sea and what fills it resound, the world and those who dwell in it; let the rivers clap their hands, the mountains shout with them for joy.

Note the vast inclusiveness here: every element of the natural world participates in this great act of worship.

The sea, once feared in ancient Near Eastern thought as a symbol of chaos and opposition to divine order, now resounds in harmony under God’s command.

The rivers and mountains, often associated with the dwelling places of other gods, are instruments in the symphony of creation, rejoicing before their true Creator and Lord.

Before the LORD, for he comes, for he comes to rule the earth, he will rule the world with justice and the peoples with equity.

The psalm reaches its climax in a vision of joyful expectation. In Hebrew, the verb translated as “to rule” is shāpat, which more precisely means “to judge.” Yet in biblical theology, shāpat does not simply mean condemning or punishing — it means governing wisely and setting things right.

Therefore, the psalmist anticipates not a fearful reckoning, but a moment of restoration. Through divine judgment, God puts an end to disorder and injustice, re-establishing harmony in creation.

God’s justice will prevail, his truth will endure, and all creation will rejoice in the renewal of his reign.