Oh sing to the Lord a new song,
    for he has done marvelous things!
His right hand and his holy arm
    have worked salvation for him.
The Lord has made known his salvation;
    he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations.
He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness
    to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
    the salvation of our God.

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth;
    break forth into joyous song and sing praises!
Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre,
    with the lyre and the sound of melody!
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
    make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord!

Let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
    the world and those who dwell in it!
Let the rivers clap their hands;
    let the hills sing for joy together
before the Lord, for he comes
    to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness,
    and the peoples with equity.

God’s love is worthy of praise.

This Psalm, like some many others, exhorts us to praise the Lord. There are a few things about the nature of God the writer wants to acknowledge as worthy of praise. First of all, there is the love of God. He loves everyone He has created. In love He has provided the means by which mankind is granted salvation, indeed, in which the entire world is redeemed. This is the means by which the Lord can enjoy fellowship with mankind and vice versa. Therefore all the earth, all peoples, not just Israel should praise the Lord. The Lord is also worthy of praise because He is righteous and just. He punishes iniquity but also grants mercy.

The Lord chooses and calls into His service those who are imperfect. These remain imperfect even after they have entered by faith into relationship with Him. The Lord is true to us even when we do not remain true to Him. We do not deserve to be forgiven yet because He has entered into covenant with us, He continues to forgive and grant mercy. This does not mean that He does not punish us or that sin has no consequences. The punishment that falls on the wicked, however, does not sanctify or cleanse them. In fact to those who do not surrender their lives to the Lord, His punishment has no positive value. But the Lord disciplines those He loves, often allowing them to endure punishment which is a direct or indirect result of their sins. When the Lord punishes those He loves it is with the goals of growth in godliness as well as closer fellowship with Him.