The psalms are filled with exclamations. In them you see the affections of the author as he represents the people. While they are filled with truth, they often give expression to the way that truth affects the heart of author. As such, they show us how truth can and should move our own hearts. Salvation becomes more than just a story to read about, it becomes tangible. Psalm 96 is a great example.
Oh sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth!
Sing to the Lord, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day.
In fact, we see that God’s salvation is so great, his arm so powerful, that nothing short of the world benefits from it.
Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength!
Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering, and come into his courts!
The glory of God demands to be worshiped. It beckons and calls to all the earth to come and see, for nothing short of that will do. That is the magnitude of God’s glory. It is like the compulsion you feel when you read a really good book or see a good movie. You want to share it with others, for the goodness of the story demands it! This is God’s glory only infinitely so. And the reason it is so is because he brings justice to the earth. Finally, all that has been wrong in the world will be set right! Oppression will end, righteousness will rule. Those who bow to Him as king, who look to him for salvation, even salvation from their own sin-stained hearts, have reason to rejoice, for they will finally be set free to stand without shame in the glory of God.
