the sky (as aloft · definite article + noun, common masculine plural absolute
rejoice
יִשְׂמְח֣וּyis.me.Chu
H8055
probably to brighten up · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural
earth
הָאָ֑רֶץha.'A.retz
H776
the earth (at large · definite article + noun, common feminine singular absolute
glad
וְתָגֵ֣לve.ta.Gel
H1523
properly · conjunction + verb, qal jussive, 3rd person feminine singular
sea
הַ֝יָּ֗םhai.Yam
H3220
a sea (as breaking in noisy surf) or large body of water · definite article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
roar
יִֽרְעַ֥םyir.'Am
H7481
to tumble · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
fulness
וּמְלֹאֽוֹu.me.lo.'O
H4393
fulness (literally or figuratively) · conjunction + noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Psalms 69:34 Let the heaven and earth praise him, the seas, and every thing that moveth therein.
Isaiah 49:13 Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the LORD hath comforted his people, and will have me…
Psalms 97:1 The LORD reigneth; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof.
Psalms 98:7-9 Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.
Psalms 148:1-4 Praise ye the LORD. Praise ye the LORD from the heavens: praise him in the heights.
Isaiah 44:23 Sing, O ye heavens; for the LORD hath done it: shout, ye lower parts of the earth: break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and eve…
Luke 2:10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
Luke 2:13-14 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Psalms 96:10–end
We have here instructions given to those who were to preach the gospel to the nations what to preach, or to those who had themselves received the gospel what account to give of it to their neighbours, what to say among the heathen; and it is an illustrious prophecy of the setting up of the kingdom of Christ upon the ruins of the devil's kingdom, which began immediately after his ascension and will continue in the doing till the mystery of God be finished.
I. Let it be told that the Lord reigns, the Lord Christ reigns, that King whom God determined to set upon his holy hill of Zion. See how this was first said among the heathen by Peter, Act 10:42. Some of the ancients added a gloss to this,…
Let the heavens rejoice,.... At the coming and kingdom of Christ; at what is said and done in the Gentile world; even the hosts of heaven, as the Targum, the angels that dwell there, and never left their habitation and first estate: these rejoiced at the incarnation of Christ, at the first setting up and appearance of his kingdom in the world; and as they rejoice at the conversion of a single sinner, much more must they be supposed to do at the conversion of multitudes in the Gentile world, and at the increase of the Redeemer's interest there: or heavenly men, such as are born from above, partakers of the heavenly calling; these rejoice when the kingdom of Christ is enlarged, and his cause f…
Psalm 96:10-13
10. Say among the heathen, Jehovah reigneth; also the world shall be established, it shall not be moved: he shall judge the peoples [89] in righteousness, [literally, in righteousnesses.] 11. Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea thunder, and the fullness thereof. 12. Let the field be joyful, and all that is therein; likewise let all the trees of the wood rejoice. [90] 13. Before Jehovah; for he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth: he shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth. [91]
10. Say among the heathen, Jehovah reigneth His language again implies that it is only where God rules and presides that he can be wors…
The Church Fathers
"Let the Sea Roar (Be Moved), and the Fulness Thereof." By these words it is signified that the preaching of the Gospel will be spread abroad over the seas and the islands in the ocean, and among the people dwelling therein, who are here called "the fulness thereof." And that word has been made good. For churches of Christ fill all the islands, and are being multiplied every day, and the teaching of the Word of salvation is gaining accessions.
"Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad" [Psalm 96:11]. Let the heavens, which declare the glory of God, rejoice; let the heavens rejoice, which the Lord made; let the earth be glad, which the heavens rain upon. For the heavens are the preachers, the earth the listeners. "Let the sea be stirred up, and the fullness thereof." What sea? The world. The sea has been stirred up, and the fullness thereof: the whole world was roused up against the Church, while it was being extended and built over all the earth. Concerning this stirring up, you have heard in the Gospel, "They shall deliver you up to councils." [Mark 13:9] The sea was stirred up: but how should the sea ever conquer Him who made it?
Furthermore, let no one maintain that the heavens or the heavenly bodies are animate, for they are inanimate and without feeling. So, even though sacred Scripture says, "Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad," it is really calling on the angels in heaven and the people on earth to rejoice. Of course, Scripture can personify inanimate things and talk about them as if they were alive, as for example, "The sea saw and fled; Jordan was turned back," and, "What ailed you, O sea, that you did flee? and you, O Jordan, that you were turned back?" and again, "Mountains and hills are asked the reason for their skipping." In just the same way it is customary for us to say that "the city was gathered together," not intending to mean the houses but the occupants of the houses. Still again, "the heavens show forth the glory of God" not by speaking in voice audible to sensible ears but by manifesting to us through their own greatness the power of the Creator, and when we make comments about their beauty, we give glory to their Maker as the best of all artificers.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
That which is to be said among the peoples is the joyous evangel of the kingdom of heaven which is now come and realized. The watchword is "Jahve is King," as in Isa 52:7. The lxx correctly renders: ὁ κύριος ἐβασίλευσε
(Note: In the Psalterium Veronense with the addition apo xylu, Cod. 156, Latinizing ἀπὸ τῷ ξύλῳ; in the Latin Psalters (the Vulgate excepted) a ligno, undoubtedly an addition by an early Christian hand, upon which, however, great value is set by Justin and all the early Latin Fathers.)
for מלך is intended historically (Rev 11:17). אף, as in Psa 93:1, introduces that which results from this fact, and therefore to a certain extent goes beyond it. The world below, hithe…
The psalmist exhorts the created order to respond with joy to the news of the Lord’s coming. Cp. a similar theme in 98:7-9.
Spurgeon's Treasury of David on Psalms 96:11
Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof.
Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad. Above and below let the joy be manifested. Let the angels who have stood in amaze at the wickedness of men, now rejoice over their repentance and restoration to favour, and let men themselves express their pleasure in seeing their true prince set upon his throne. The book of creation has two covers, and on each of these let the glory of the Lord be emblazoned in letters of joy. Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof Let it be no more a troubled sea, wailing over shipwrecked mariners, and rehearsing the griefs of widows and orphans, but let it…
