Psalms 95

Praise to the LORD, and Warning against Unbelief.

1 O come, let us ¹sing for joy to the LORD, Let us shout joyfully to ²the rock of our salvation.

2 Let us ³come before His presence ⁴with thanksgiving, Let us shout joyfully to Him ⁵with psalms.

3 For the LORD is a ⁶great God And a great King ⁷above all gods,

4 In whose hand are the ⁸depths of the earth, The peaks of the mountains are His also.

5 The sea is His, for it was He ⁹who made it, And His hands formed the dry land.

6 Come, let us ¹⁰worship and bow down, Let us ¹¹kneel before the LORD our ¹²Maker.

7 For He is our God, And ¹³we are the people of His ¹⁴pasture and the sheep of His hand. ¹⁵Today, if you would hear His voice,

8 Do not harden your hearts, as at ¹⁶Meribah, As in the day of ¹⁷Massah in the wilderness,

9 "When your fathers ¹⁸tested Me, They tried Me, though they had seen My work.

10 "For ¹⁹forty years I loathed that generation, And said they are a people who err in their heart, And they do not know My ways.

11 "Therefore I ²⁰swore in My anger, Truly they shall not enter into My ²¹rest."

Psalms 95 Commentary

Chapter 95

part. An exhortation to praise God. (1-7) A warning not to tempt Him. (7-11)

Verses 1-7 Whenever we come into God's presence, we must come with thanksgiving. The Lord is to be praised; we do not want matter, it were well if we did not want a heart. How great is that God, whose the whole earth is, and the fulness thereof; who directs and disposes of all!, The Lord Jesus, whom we are here taught to praise, is a great God; the mighty God is one of his titles, and God over all, blessed for evermore. To him all power is given, both in heaven and earth. He is our God, and we should praise him. He is our Saviour, and the Author of our blessedness. The gospel church is his flock, Christ is the great and good Shepherd of believers; he sought them when lost, and brought them to his fold.

Verses 7-11 Christ calls upon his people to hear his voice. You call him Master, or Lord; then be his willing, obedient people. Hear the voice of his doctrine, of his law, and in both, of his Spirit: hear and heed; hear and yield. Christ's voice must be heard to-day. This day of opportunity will not last always; improve it while it is called to-day. Hearing the voice of Christ is the same with believing. Hardness of heart is at the bottom of all distrust of the Lord. The sins of others ought to be warnings to us not to tread in their steps. The murmurings of Israel were written for our admonition. God is not subject to such passions as we are; but he is very angry at sin and sinners. That certainly is evil, which deserves such a recompence; and his threatenings are as sure as his promises. Let us be aware of the evils of our hearts, which lead us to wander from the Lord. There is a rest ordained for believers, the rest of everlasting refreshment, begun in this life, and perfected in the life to come. This is the rest which God calls his rest.

Cross References

• 1. Psalms 66:1; Psalms 81:1
• 2. Psalms 89:26
• 3. Micah 6:6
• 4. Psalms 100:4; Psalms 147:7; Jonah 2:9
• 5. Psalms 81:2; Ephesians 5:19; James 5:13
• 6. Psalms 48:1; Psalms 135:5; Psalms 145:3
• 7. Psalms 96:4; Psalms 97:9
• 8. Psalms 135:6
• 9. Genesis 1:9, 10; Psalms 146:6; Jonah 1:9
• 10. Psalms 96:9; Psalms 99:5, 9
• 11. 2 Chronicles 6:13; Daniel 6:10; Philippians 2:10
• 12. Psalms 100:3; Psalms 149:2; Isaiah 17:7; Hosea 8:14
• 13. Psalms 79:13
• 14. Psalms 74:1
• 15. Heb 3:7-11, 15; Hebrews 4:7
• 16. Exodus 17:2-7; Numbers 20:13
• 17. Exodus 17:7; Deuteronomy 6:16
• 18. Numbers 14:22; Psalms 78:18; 1 Corinthians 10:9
• 19. Acts 7:36; Acts 13:18; Hebrews 3:10, 17
• 20. Num 14:23, 28-30; Deuteronomy 1:35; Hebrews 4:3, 5
• 21. Deuteronomy 12:9

Footnotes

• [a]. Or "a song of thanksgiving"
• [b]. Or "songs" (with instrumental accompaniment)
• [c]. Lit "Who has the sea"
• [d]. Lit "pasturing"
• [e]. Or "O that you would obey"
• [f]. Or "place of strife"
• [g]. Or "temptation"

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 95

This psalm, though without a title, was written by David, as appears from Heb 4:7, and to him the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, Syriac, Arabic, and Ethiopic versions ascribe it. It belongs to the times of the Messiah, as Kimchi observes; the apostle applies it to the Jews of his time, and bespeaks them in the language of it, Heb 3:7-11, and in which time Israelites, believers in Christ, are called upon to serve and worship him, in consideration of his greatness in himself, and his goodness to them. Theodoret thinks that David spoke prophetically of King Josiah and his times; and wrote it in the person of him, and the priests of God.