Psalm 47 comments

 Psalm 47:1 ¶  «To the chief Musician, A Psalm for the sons of Korah.» O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph. 2  For the LORD most high is terrible; he is a great King over all the earth. 3  He shall subdue the people under us, and the nations under our feet. 4  He shall choose our inheritance for us, the excellency of Jacob whom he loved. Selah.

 

This first verse here in Psalm 47 goes against those austere Christians who believe that clapping your hands for God or even showing appreciation for Christian music played to the glory of God is too worldly.

 

Also for verse one of this Psalm see;

 

Psalm 98:4 ¶  Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.

 

Terrible is awe and fear inspiring, greater than we can imagine. Verse 2 has its cross-references;

 

Psalm 66:4  All the earth shall worship thee, and shall sing unto thee; they shall sing to thy name. Selah. 5  Come and see the works of God: he is terrible in his doing toward the children of men.

 

Verse 3 is a promise to Israel and by extension to His people in the end times as well as being a prophecy of Christ’s domination of the kingdoms of the world.

 

Psalm 18:47  It is God that avengeth me, and subdueth the people under me.

 

God will choose what He will give to Israel, to the church, and to all people. See here His love for His people, Israel.

 

Deuteronomy 7:6  For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth. 7  The LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: 8  But because the LORD loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers, hath the LORD brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.

 

Psalm 47:5 ¶  God is gone up with a shout, the LORD with the sound of a trumpet. 6  Sing praises to God, sing praises: sing praises unto our King, sing praises. 7  For God is the King of all the earth: sing ye praises with understanding. 8  God reigneth over the heathen: God sitteth upon the throne of his holiness. 9  The princes of the people are gathered together, even the people of the God of Abraham: for the shields of the earth belong unto God: he is

greatly exalted.

 

Remember God’s visitation of the Hebrew’s on Mount Sinai and the sound of His voice.

 

Exodus 19:16 ¶  And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled.

 

And looking ahead at the end of human history when He calls out His people.

 

Matthew 24:31  And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

 

Please note the following verses in regard to verses 6 and 7. We have every reason to express these every moment of every day.

 

Psalm 96:1 ¶  O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth. 2  Sing unto the LORD, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day.

 

Psalm 149:1 ¶  Praise ye the LORD. Sing unto the LORD a new song, and his praise in the congregation of saints. 2  Let Israel rejoice in him that made him: let the children of Zion be joyful in their King. 3  Let them praise his name in the dance: let them sing praises unto him with the timbrel and harp.

 

Isaiah 12:5  Sing unto the LORD; for he hath done excellent things: this is known in all the earth. 6  Cry out and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion: for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee.

 

Verse 7 also reaffirms verse 2 of this Psalm. To steal the title of some books about a human king God is the once and future king. He is the king of the earth and shall be the king of the earth.

 

Zechariah 14:9  And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.

 

Revelation 11:15  And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

 

For verse 8 remember Psalm 22?

 

Psalm 22:27  All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the LORD: and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee. 28  For the kingdom is the LORD’S: and he is the governor among the nations. 29  All they that be fat upon earth shall eat and worship: all they that go down to the dust shall bow before him: and none can keep alive his own soul.

 

The heathen are in rebellion against their king and they will pay a terrible price for their rebellion.

 

Verse 9 speaks of the triumph of God and Israel through Him because the rulers of the earth, here spoken of as shields, belong to God.

 

Psalm 110:2  The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.

 

Isaiah 49:22  Thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people: and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.  23  And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.

 

This Psalm is one of those great ones that speaks of God’s power and His hand in the affairs of Israel but also seems to look forward to the Lord’s eventual rule over the earth in the millennium. It is essentially the triumph and glory of God, praise we can pray often.