Psalm 98:1-2, 7-9 (NIV)
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. The LORD has made salvation known and revealed his righteousness to the nations. Let the sea resound, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it. Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy; let them sing before the LORD, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples with equity.
King David had seen the Lord do marvelous things, to be sure…but I wonder how much he understood of the prophetic future he was moved to write about and sing about. David—under the direction of the Holy Spirit—even predicted the resurrection of Jesus back in 1000 B.C. as he saw in some mysterious way what was ahead, namely, that Jesus would not be “abandon[ed] … to the grave, nor [would he] let his Holy One see decay” (Ps 16:8-11; Acts 2:30-31). Can we possibly imagine what it was like for Kind David to come face-to-face with King Jesus when he closed his eyes on earth and opened them in Heaven? Can we grasp at all the reaction David must have had as he came into the full awareness of what was to come…and saw Jesus crucified…and resurrected? Surely David has been in awe of the words God led him to write in this psalm all those years ago.
In his notes on the first verse of Psalm 98, Spurgeon wrote that, “We had a new song before (Ps 96:1-13) because the Lord was coming, but now we have another new song because he has come and seen and conquered. Jesus, our King, has lived a marvelous life, died a marvelous death, risen by a marvelous resurrection, and ascended marvelously into heaven. By his divine power he has sent forth the Holy Spirit doing marvels, and by that sacred energy his disciples have also wrought marvelous things and astonished all the earth. Idols have fallen, superstitions have withered, systems of error have fled, and empires of cruelty have perished. For all this he deserves the highest praise.” This is not just some grand story that we admire from the bleachers as it unfolds over space and time…but a story that God has called us into and fully equipped us to play a role in!
Every Believer in Jesus Christ has a part to play in this beautiful narrative. Do you know your part? Do you realize the importance of your role? He wants to use you to make his salvation known and reveal his righteousness to the nations (v. 2). King David was looking forward as he wrote this beautiful song, but Mary was living in the midst of its fulfillment as she wrote hers (Lk. 1:46-55). She appears to echo David’s words with her own, even a thousand years after his were penned…
DAVID: “Sing to the LORD and new song.” MARY: “My soul does magnify the LORD.”
DAVID: “He has done marvelous things.” MARY: “He that is mighty has done great things.”
DAVID: “With his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him.” MARY: “He has shown strength with his arm and scattered the proud.”
DAVID: “The LORD has made his salvation known.” MARY: “His mercy is on them that fear him, from generation to generation.”
DAVID: “He has remembered his love and his faithfulness to Israel.” MARY: “He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful.”
One day, all of creation is going to join in on the celebration as Jesus will redeem even the material world, rescuing it from its decay (Rom. 8:18-25). The seas and rivers and rocks and mountains…all of them will resound in praise and echo the magnificence of God’s salvation and righteous judgment (v. 7-9). The question for us to wrestle with is this: What are we doing to echo all of these things? In what ways are we “singing, resounding, and clapping” regarding all that God has done, is doing, and will do? Perhaps today we can “sing to the LORD a new song” by sharing what He has done in our lives with an unbelieving friend, neighbor, or co-worker? Perhaps you and I will play our parts well this week by making salvation known…by echoing that most glorious Good News!
