Psalms
Chapter 149
1
Sing a New Song to the Lord
Alleluia!
Sing to the Lord a new song,sing his praise in the assembly of his saints.
2
Let Israel rejoice in his Maker;let the people of Zion glory in their King!
3
Let them dance in praise of his name;and make music for him with harp and timbrel.
4
For the Lord delights in his people; he crowns the lowly with victory.
5
The saints will exult in triumph; even at night, on their couches,
6
let the praise of God be on their lips;and in their hands, two-edged swords;
7
to wreak vengeance on the nations,and punishment on the peoples;
8
to bind their kings in chains,and their nobles in iron fetters;
9
to execute on them, the written sentence:this is the glory of all his saints. Alleluia!
Commentaries
149
We join in the song of victory, the triumph of God, and the crushing of the serpent’s head, for we have a part in the victorious struggle, wearing the armor of God, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the spirit.
The ‘loyal ones’ express their devotion vigorously. They oppose the unjust, violent person with a just, violent person. They carry out the sentence dictated by God, and that is their honor. Their religious enthusiasm and faith in God the Creator are meaningful to us because the Gospel reminds us not to respond to violence with the violence of the sword (Mt 26:52-54). Our battle must be ‘against the spirits and supernatural forces of evil’ (Eph 6:12). Evil and sin in our world are an affront to our Creator; the pain of the humble is the pain of the Lord. We pray with this psalm in union with all those who are hungry and thirsty for justice. They are blessed.