Psalm 96

Background and themes

According to Rabbi David Kimhi (Radak), this psalm was composed by David when he brought the Ark of the Covenant up to Jerusalem. On this day, David composed two songs—Hodu and "Sing to the Lord, the entire earth" (verse 2 of this psalm, which is also recorded in 1 Chronicles 16:23). As recounted in 1 Chronicles 16:7, David instructed Asaph and his brothers to sing these songs daily. Hodu was sung before the Ark every morning, and Psalm 96 was sung before the Ark every afternoon, until the time the Temple was constructed and the Ark was moved into it. However, Alexander Kirkpatrick associates the "newness" of the song with the deliverance of Israel from Babylonian captivity, inaugurating "a new stage in the nation’s history". He notes that the Septuagint's title for this psalm is "When the house was being built after the Captivity".

In Hebrew, this psalm is known as Shiru Lashem ("Sing to the Name"), and repeats the word "sing" three times. According to the Midrash Tehillim, these three instances allude to the three daily prayer services "when Israel sings praises to God". They are: Shacharit, the morning prayer, corresponding to "Sing a new song to the Lord" (verse 1); Mincha, the afternoon prayer, corresponding to "Sing to the Lord, all the earth" (verse 1); and Maariv, the evening prayer, corresponding to "Sing to the Lord, bless His Name" (verse 2).

In Baptist minister Charles Spurgeon's assessment, Psalm 96 is a "missionary hymn". He argues that it was specifically paired with Psalm 95, which described "Israel's hard-heartedness" toward God in the desert. Christian scholars assert that Israel employed that same hard-heartedness to reject Jesus as the Messiah, so now the Christians have the task of proselytizing the Gospel to the world. Matthew Henry interprets verses 10 to 13 in this psalm as instructions of what to say for those who preach the Gospel.

Biblical scholars note numerous thematic and structural similarities between Psalm 96 and Psalm 97, which are both "Kingship of YHWH" psalms.

Textual witnesses

Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in Hebrew are of the Masoretic Text tradition, which includes the Aleppo Codex (10th century), and Codex Leningradensis (1008).*

The extant palimpsest Aq includes a translation into Koine Greek by Aquila of Sinope in about 130 CE, containing verses 7–13.

Uses

Judaism

Psalm 96 is the second of six psalms recited during the Kabbalat Shabbat (Welcoming the Shabbat) service in Ashkenazic, Hasidic and some Sephardic communities. These six psalms represent the six days of the week, with Psalm 96 corresponding to the second day of the week (Monday).

Verses 4 and 9 are part of Selichot.

Psalm 96 is recited to increase joy among family members.

Catholicism

The final three verses in Latin, "Laetentur caeli", comprise the offertory antiphon used in the Mass During the Night for the Nativity of the Lord.

Coptic Orthodox Church

In the Agpeya, the Coptic Church's book of hours, this psalm is prayed in the office of None.

Musical settings

Calling to sing, Psalm 96 has been paraphrased in hymns, and often set to music. "Laetentur caeli" (vv. 11–13 of the Psalm) was set by Orlando di Lasso for four parts, and by Giovanni Bassano for double choir, among others. Handel set the psalm around 1712, and a movement of his Chandos Anthems in 1717 or 1718. German settings of the Baroque era:

• Heinrich Schütz set Psalm 96 in German, "Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied", for choir as part of his composition of the Becker Psalter, SWV 194.
• Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied, previously attributed to Georg Philipp Telemann as TWV 1:1748, is Melchior Hoffmann's 1708 setting of Psalm 96, as a church cantata for New Year's Day.
• Telemann's Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied, TWV 7:30 is a setting of Psalm 96.

In the 19th century, Mendelssohn quoted from Psalm 96 in movement 10 of his choral symphony Lobgesang on biblical texts in 1810. Czech composer Antonín Dvořák quoted the psalm, combined with verses of Psalm 98, in the final movement of his Biblical Songs of 1894.

In the 20th century, Zoltán Gárdonyi set Psalm 96 as part of three motets in German, "Singet dem Herren", for mixed choir a cappella, along with a Finnish song and Psalm 23, published by Schott. James MacMillan wrote "A New Song" in 1997, with lyrics taken from this Psalm.

Hymns referring to the psalm include the 1901 "This Is My Father's World", and "Sing to the Lord a new made song". Music inspired by the psalm also includes a gospel blues by Blind Willie Johnson, "Church, I'm Fully Saved To-Day", based on the hymn "Fully Saved Today".

Text

The following table shows the Hebrew text of the Psalm with vowels, alongside the Koine Greek text in the Septuagint and the English translation from the King James Version. Note that the meaning can slightly differ between these versions, as the Septuagint and the Masoretic Text come from different textual traditions.A 1917 translation directly from Hebrew to English by the Jewish Publication Society can be found here or here, and an 1844 translation directly from the Septuagint by L. C. L. Brenton can be found here. Both translations are in the public domain. In the Septuagint, this psalm is numbered Psalm 95.

Verse 1

:Oh, sing to the Lord a new song! :Sing to the Lord, all the earth. These words match those of the prophet Isaiah in .

Verse 10

:Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns; :The world also is firmly established, :It shall not be moved; :He shall judge the peoples righteously. Many Old Latin manuscripts read Dominus regnavit a ligno, that is "The Lord reigns from the wood" or "The Lord reigns from the tree". This reading does not appear in any Hebrew manuscripts, and its only appearance in a Greek Old Testament manuscript (as ἀπὸ τῷ ξύλω) is in a bilingual Greek-Latin manuscript, the Codex Veronensis. Neither does it appear in the parallel passage in . However, Justin Martyr references it in his Dialogue with Trypho (c. 160 AD), accusing the Jews of having omitted it. Augustine quotes it in his commentary on the psalms (c. 430 AD), relating it to the crucifixion of Jesus, as do several other Church Fathers such as Tertullian, Cyprian and Lactantius. Jerome did not include it in the Vulgate because he could not find it in any Hebrew manuscripts. Despite this, it entered Christian hymnological and liturgical texts, such as the Psalterium Romanum, the hymn Vexilla regis prodeunt and the Coptic Agpeya, thus becoming familiar to many Christians.

Most Biblical critics believe that the words "from the wood" were added by an early Christian scribe, perhaps as a gloss that was then incorporated into the main text. However, Fr John Hunwicke hypothesized that, if the verse is original, it might have originally referred to the wooden Ark of the Covenant and its victory over the Philistine god Dagon.

Notes

References

| access-date = 31 August 2011

Sources

References

1. Parallel Latin/English Psalter, [http://medievalist.net/psalmstxt/ps95.htm Psalmus 95 (96)]. {{webarchive. link. (2017-05-07 Medievalist.)
2. "Psalm 96:1 Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth.".
3. "TanakhML Project. Text Browser. BHS".
4. {{bibleverse. 1. Chronicles. 16:23. HE
5. {{bibleverse. 1. Chronicles. 16:7. HE
6. Kirkpatrick, A. (1906), [https://biblehub.com/commentaries/cambridge/psalms/96.htm Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges] on Psalm 96, accessed 20 April 2022
7. "Midrash Tehillim / Psalms 96". matsati.com.
8. (2019). "Charles H. Spurgeon's Treasury of David". Christianity.com.
9. Cole, Steven J.. (2009). "Psalm 96: Worshiping, Witnessing, Waiting". bible.org.
10. Henry, Matthew. (2019). "Matthew Henry Bible Commentary". Christianity.com.
11. (2014). "The History of the Jewish People in the Age of Jesus Christ: Volume 3.i". A&C Black.
12. (2004). "Teaching Tefilah: Insights and Activities on Prayer". Behrman House.
13. Brauner, Reuven. (2013). "Shimush Pesukim: Comprehensive Index to Liturgical and Ceremonial Uses of Biblical Verses and Passages".
14. "Emotions/Fear/Behavior". Daily Tehillim.
15. "Gregorian Propers • St. René Goupil Gradual".
16. "None". agpeya.org.
17. {{CPDL. Laetentur coeli (Orlando di Lasso). Laetentur coeli (Orlando di Lasso)
18. {{CPDL. Laetentur coeli a 8 (Giovanni Bassano). Laetentur coeli a 8 (Giovanni Bassano)
19. {{CPDL. Laetentur caeli. Laetentur caeli
20. {{IMSLP. O Sing unto the Lord a New Song, HWV 249a (Handel, George Frideric)
21. [http://www.emmanuelmusic.org/notes_translations/translations_other/t_handel_h253.htm G. F. Handel: "O Come Let Us Sing Unto the Lord," H. 253 (Chandos Anthem 8)] [[Emmanuel Music]]
22. [https://www.baerenreiter.com/en/shop/product/details/BA5952/ Schütz, Heinrich / Der Beckersche Psalter SWV 97a-256a] [[Bärenreiter]]
23. {{IMSLP. Singet dem Herrn, TWV 1:1748 (Telemann, Georg Philipp)
24. {{RISM. 150204809; {{RISM. 452014932
25. {{ChoralWiki. Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied (Georg Philipp Telemann)
26. [http://www.musiqueorguequebec.ca/catal/telemann/telgp02.html#sec07 Georg Philipp Telemann – ''Catalogue TWV'' – 02–15: Cantates diverses – 07. Psaumes] at {{url. www.musiqueorguequebec.ca website.
27. {{RISM. 452513236
28. "Biblical Songs".
29. "James MacMillan - A New Song".
30. [https://hymnary.org/browse/scripture/Psalms/96?sort=totalInstances Hymns for Psalm 96] hymnary.org
31. Wirz, Stefan. "Blind Willie Johnson discography".
32. "Fully Saved Today".
33. "Psalms – Chapter 96". Mechon Mamre.
34. "Psalms 96 - JPS 1917". [[Sefaria.
35. "Psalm 95 - Septuagint and Brenton's Septuagint Translation". Ellopos.
36. {{bibleverse. Psalm. 96:1. NKJV: [[New King James Version]]
37. {{bibleverse. Psalm. 96:10. NKJV: [[New King James Version]]
38. Justin Martyr. "Ante-Nicene Christian Library".
39. St Augustine. "Exposition on Psalm 96".
40. "Psalm 96:10 Commentary".
41. "Psalm 96 Study Guide".
42. Fr Hunwicke, John. (13 April 2022). "Regnavit a ligno Deus".