Psalms
Chapter 99
The Lord Reigns, Let the Nations Tremble
The Lord reigns and the nations tremble. He is enthroned upon the cherubim; the earth gets distraught.
Great is the Lord in Zion; he is high over all the nations.
May they give glory to your name, great and terrible: “Holy is he:
this is the mighty King who loves justice.” For you come, to install fairness; to establish, in Jacob, right and justice.
Extol the Lord, our God; worship at his footstool. Holy is he! And mighty!
Among his priests were Moses and Aaron; and Samuel, among those who called on his name. They called to the Lord, and he answered them.
In the pillar of cloud, he spoke to them; and they kept his statutes and the decrees he gave them.
O Lord our God, you responded to them; you were a patient God for them; but you punished their wrongs.
Extol the Lord our God; worship at his holy mountain. Holy is the Lord our God!
Commentaries
99
Our God is almighty, infinitely above our world, but not distant from it. The world depends on his word. His law is the rule of life. The church is the place of contact between the holy God and the people called to be holy.
Holiness does not mean avoiding the world, but rather committing to it. Those who pray this psalm desire divine holiness to sanctify God’s name and transform the world.