All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God

January 2, 2023 - Monday, Memorial of Saints Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctors of the Church

Psalm 98:1, 2-3ab, 3cd-4

Psalm 98 is a hymn that celebrates the reign of the Lord. God’s reign is evident in his wondrous deeds. We all know that at the heart of Jesus’ message was the reign of God. His ministry began with the proclamation: “repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt 4:17). And many people could experience God’s saving power through Jesus’ powerful deeds: lepers got cleansed, the sick got healed, sinners were forgiven, dead were raised back to life, the hungry were fed, and the poor heard the Good News.

There is a connection between psalm 98 and the book of Isaiah, chapters 40-55, that promises a new exodus for God’s people. The first exodus happened when God’s right hand and His holy arm brought Israel out of slavery in Egypt. Then, another one took place when God brought people back to the promised land from the Babylonian exile. Finally, one more “exodus” happened in Jerusalem on Good Friday that liberated God’s people from slavery to sin. That “exodus” has begun a journey towards the new heaven and new earth described at the end of the Book of Revelation (Rev 21-22).

The structure of the psalm is designed around the symbolic meaning of the number seven. The holy name of the Lord is mentioned seven times. There are seven attributes ascribed to him: miracles, holiness, salvation, justice, grace, faithfulness, and righteousness. God’s wondrous deeds are exemplified in seven different actions: causing and showing his salvation; revealing his righteousness; remembering his kindness and his faithfulness; coming; judging, and ruling over the nations. Even the way to worship the Lord is enumerated with seven verbs: call joyfully, sing, rejoice, play, praise, thunder, and clap. These seven verbs reveal a universal worship of God in which human singing is joined with the cosmos - the sea, the rivers, and the hills (Ps 98:4-8).

Psalm 98 can be titled “the new song for the Ruler and Judge of the world”. Who could it be if not the Son of Man who did not come “to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matt 20:28)? In the liturgy of the Church and through her proclamation, the Lord makes his salvation known to the whole world. The Gospel of Jesus Christ, the crucified Lord of Glory is that “new song” that we sing in honour of the Lamb that was slain and by his blood “ransomed people for God” (Rev 4:9-10). Through that “song” God’s salvation reaches all the ends of the earth.