30 Days in the PsalmsSýnishorn

Day #22: Psalm 99

Psalm 99, the final Adonai malakh prayer, begins with an echo of Psalm 96, an invitation to “the peoples” and “the earth” to tremble before the great King in praise and worship (vv. 1–2). After that introduction, the praying poet alternates between addressing God directly and calling God’s people into worship. We can almost picture him as a worship leader, alternately lifting his eyes and hands to heaven and then stretching out his arms to beckon in the gathered assembly of worshipers. Once again, this is not a prayer offered in isolation, but in the company of God’s people.

He begins by addressing God directly (vv. 3­–4). He calls the Lord “Mighty King, lover of justice,” and affirms the same characteristics of the King that were sung about in Psalm 96—equity, justice, and righteousness. He praises the Lord because he and his people have already experienced what it means to live under such a ruler: “You have established fairness, you have acted with justice and righteousness” (v. 4, NLT). On the basis of that experience, he calls God’s people to exalt the Lord and to bow in reverence before his Holy presence (v. 5). As part of that call, he engages in “Holy remembering,” bringing before the people their very own story of God’s faithfulness in the past. He reminds them of prayer warriors like Moses, Aaron, and Samuel, and how God answered their cries (vv. 6–7).

Then he lifts his eyes and hands to address the Lord directly once again. “O Lord our God, you answered them. You were a forgiving God to them, but you punished them when they went wrong” (v. 8). He acknowledges how God’s people have experienced both God’s gracious forgiveness and his righteous judgment. Both are expressions of God’s love and motives for praise, so he turns to the people again. “Extol the Lord our God, and worship at his holy mountain; for the Lord our God is holy” (v. 9, NRSV).

Today is a good day to join with God’s people to praise our King, to thank him for answered prayer, to submit to his correction, and to rejoice in his holiness!