Flattering God? Psalm 96:1-13

A text – Psalm 96:1-9, (10-13)

96:1 O sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth.
96:2 Sing to the LORD, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day.
96:3 Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples.
96:4 For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; he is to be revered above all gods.
96:5 For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the LORD made the heavens.
96:6 Honor and majesty are before him; strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.
96:7 Ascribe to the LORD, O families of the peoples, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.
96:8 Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; bring an offering, and come into his courts.
96:9 Worship the LORD in holy splendor; tremble before him, all the earth.
96:10 Say among the nations, “The LORD is king! The world is firmly established; it shall never be moved. He will judge the peoples with equity.”
96:11 Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
96:12 let the field exult, and everything in it. Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy
96:13 before the LORD; for he is coming, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with his truth.

A reflection:

God as judge. It is a frequent metaphor in the psalms. God is worthy to be praised, extolled in song and story, and revered. So say verses 1-9, and then the psalmist also mentions that God will judge.

Is this psalm flattery of God, because God will be the judge of all of us? In our Gospel lesson this week, Jesus was subjected to flattery that he saw through immediately and was, in fact, insulted by. Is praise and reverence to be done in order to flatter God into giving us a generous verdict?

If Jesus could see right through the flattery of the Pharisees, God, the creator of the universe, could see right through the flattery of the psalms. So no, it is not flattery. It is honest praise from the heart. It is the keen and true awareness that the God we worship and extol and love and praise created us and everything around us. That we are small and God is big. That we are flawed and God is perfect. That we are the creatures and God is the creator. And God’s qualities are honor and majesty, strength and beauty, truth and righteousness. We trust God to restore right relationships.  God keeps God’s promises.

And what is even more, God loves us.

A prayer:

Lord God, Thank you for loving us. Thank you for creating us and the world. That you for keeping your promises. Help us always to remember that you love us and want the best for us. You are our loving parent who will right all things wrong in your own time. Amen.