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Psalm 97[a]

The Divine Ruler of All

I

The Lord is king; let the earth rejoice;
    let the many islands be glad.(A)
Cloud and darkness surround him;
    justice and right are the foundation of his throne.(B)

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Footnotes

  1. Psalm 97 The hymn begins with God appearing in a storm, a traditional picture of some ancient Near Eastern gods (Ps 97:1–6); cf. Ps 18:8–16; Mi 1:3–4; Hb 3:3–15. Israel rejoices in the overthrowing of idol worshipers and their gods (Ps 97:7–9) and the rewarding of the faithful righteous (Ps 97:10–12).

Psalm 97

The Lord reigns,(A) let the earth be glad;(B)
    let the distant shores(C) rejoice.
Clouds(D) and thick darkness(E) surround him;
    righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.(F)

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Fire goes before him,
    consuming his foes on every side.
His lightening illumines the world;
    the earth sees and trembles.(A)

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Fire(A) goes before(B) him
    and consumes(C) his foes on every side.
His lightning(D) lights up the world;
    the earth(E) sees and trembles.(F)

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The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,
    before the Lord of all the earth.(A)
The heavens proclaim his justice;
    all peoples see his glory.(B)

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The mountains melt(A) like wax(B) before the Lord,
    before the Lord of all the earth.(C)
The heavens proclaim his righteousness,(D)
    and all peoples see his glory.(E)

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II

All who serve idols are put to shame,
    who glory in worthless things;
    all gods[a] bow down before him.(A)

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Footnotes

  1. 97:7 All gods: divine beings thoroughly subordinate to Israel’s God. The Greek translates “angels,” an interpretation adopted by Hb 1:6.

All who worship images(A) are put to shame,(B)
    those who boast in idols(C)
    worship him,(D) all you gods!(E)

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