You who love the Lord, hate evil! He preserves the souls of His saints; He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked. Light is sown for the righteous, And gladness for the upright in heart. Psalm 97:10, 11
The LORD’s Dominion and Power
Psalm 97, one of the series of royal psalms (Ps. 93-99), has a particularly apocalyptic tone in its description of God’s final judgment on the wicked before He establishes His great kingdom. God reigns, idols are empty, and those who worship the Lord are guarded from the wicked. God reigns over creation. The heavens display His awesome power. Idolaters are put to shame, but God’s people rejoice. The response of the godly to the reign of God is to hate evil, rejoice in the Lord, and offer Him praise.
97:1 The Lord reigns is the key phrase of the royal psalms. The earth as a whole and its smallest arts – the isles – join together in rejoicing at the prospect of God’s reign on earth.
1 The Lord reigns; Let the earth rejoice; Let the multitude of isles be glad!
97:2 Clouds and darkness may be rephrased “impenetrable clouds,” an indicator of the final judgment and God’s awesome power (Joel 2:2; Zeph. 1:15). Righteousness and justice may be rephrased as “absolute righteousness.” The foundation of God’s coming judgment will be His integrity; His judgments will be correct.
2 Clouds and darkness surround Him; Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne. 3 A fire goes before Him, And burns up His enemies round about. 4 His lightnings light the world; The earth sees and trembles. 5 The mountains melt like wax at the presence of the Lord, At the presence of the Lord of the whole earth. 6 The heavens declare His righteousness, And all the peoples see His glory.
97:7, 8 The continuing practice of idolatry throughout world history is a grave offense against the Lord. Such behavior will finally end in shame and terror. Worship Him: Anything that serves as an object of worship will one day bow before the true God.
7 Let all be put to shame who serve carved images, Who boast of idols. Worship Him, all you gods. 8 Zion hears and is glad, And the daughters of Judah rejoice Because of Your judgments, O Lord. 9 For You, Lord, are most high above all the earth; You are exalted far above all gods.
97:10, 11 To hate means to reject; to love means to choose. Since both are an expression of the will and not merely an emotion, the Bible commands both love and hatred. Light is sown: The picture is that of someone sowing seed, with the seed being light and joy. This speaks of the restoration of the earth (Ps. 110).
10 You who love the Lord, hate evil! He preserves the souls of His saints; He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked. 11 Light is sown for the righteous, And gladness for the upright in heart.
97:12 Rejoice: The psalm begins and ends on a note of rejoicing.
12 Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name.
** We are surrounded by dark, evil intent to destroy us. But have no fear. Darkness can’t put out the light sown in us by God Himself. “Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart.” Psalm 97:11 Let the seed of light keep growing until we see Him returning. Until He makes our joy full and complete.
97 1 The Lord reigns; Let the earth rejoice; Let the multitude of isles be glad! 2 Clouds and darkness surround Him; Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne. 3 A fire goes before Him, And burns up His enemies round about. 4 His lightnings light the world; The earth sees and trembles. 5 The mountains melt like wax at the presence of the Lord, At the presence of the Lord of the whole earth. 6 The heavens declare His righteousness, And all the peoples see His glory. 7 Let all be put to shame who serve carved images, Who boast of idols. Worship Him, all you gods. 8 Zion hears and is glad, And the daughters of Judah rejoice Because of Your judgments, O Lord. 9 For You, Lord, are most high above all the earth; You are exalted far above all gods. 10 You who love the Lord, hate evil! He preserves the souls of His saints; He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked. 11 Light is sown for the righteous, And gladness for the upright in heart. 12 Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name.
