1 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.

2 Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.

3 Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

5 For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

Commentary

Verse 1

John Calvin Bible Commentary
Make a joyful noiseThe Psalmist refers only to that part of the service of God which consists in recounting his benefits and giving thanks. And since he invites the whole of the inhabitants of the earth indiscriminately to praise Jehovah, he seems, in the spirit of prophecy, to refer to the period when the Church would be gathered out of different nations. Hence he commands (verse 2) that God shouldbe served with gladness, intimating that his kindness towards his own people is so great as to furnish them with abundant ground for rejoicing. This is better expressed in the third verse, in which he first reprehends the presumption of those men who had wickedly revolted from the true God, both in fashioning for themselves gods many, and in devising various forms of worshipping them. And as a multitude of gods destroys and suppresses the true knowledge of one God only, and tarnishes his glory, the prophet, with great propriety, calls upon all men to bethink themselves, and to cease from robbing God of the honor due to his name; and, at the same time, inveighs against their folly in that, not content with the one God, they were become vain in their imaginations. For, however much they are constrained to confess with the mouth that there is a God, the maker of heaven and earth, yet they are ever and anon gradually despoiling him of his glory; and in this manner, the Godhead is, to the utmost extent of their power, reduced to a nonentity. As it is then a most difficult thing to retain men in the practice of the pure worship of God, the prophet, not without reason, recalls the world from its accustomed vanity, and commands them to recognize God as God. For we must attend to this short definition of the knowledge of him, namely, that his glory be preserved unimpaired, and that no deity be opposed to him that might obscure the glory of his name. True, indeed, in the Papacy, God still retains his name, but as his glory is not comprehended in the mere letters of his name, it is certain that there he is not recognized as God. Know, therefore, that the true worship of God cannot be preserved in all its integrity until the base profanation of his glory, which is the inseparable attendant of superstition, be completely reformed.
McArther Bible Commentary
This well-known psalm, emphasizing the universal nature of God's kingship, is a benediction to the series of psalms which are occupied with the Lord's kingdom rule (Pss. 93; 95-100). Most of it is a call to praise and thanksgiving, while verses 3 and 5 fix the reasons for that worship.
Bible Cross References
Numbers 10:29 2 Chronicles 29:30 Psalm 48:10 Psalm 66:1 Psalm 67:4 Psalm 95:1 Psalm 98:4 Psalm 98:6 Psalm 99:9

Verse 2

Bible Cross References
Deuteronomy 12:11 Deuteronomy 12:12 Deuteronomy 28:47 Psalm 67:4 Psalm 95:2

Verse 3

John Calvin Bible Commentary
The prophet next makes mention of the great benefits received from God, and, in an especial manner, desires the faithful to meditate upon them. To say God made usis a very generally acknowledged truth; but not to advert to the ingratitude so usual among men, that scarcely one among a hundred seriously acknowledges that he holds his existence from God, although, when hardly put to it, they do not deny that they were created out of nothing; yet every man makes a god of himself, and virtually worships himself, when he ascribes to his own power what God declares belongs to him alone. Moreover, it must be remembered that the prophet is not here speaking of creation in general, (as I have formerly said,) but of that spiritual regeneration by which he creates anew his image in his elect. Believers are the persons whom the prophet here declares to be God’s workmanship, not that they were made men in their mother’s womb, but in that sense in which Paul, inEphesians 2:10, calls them,Τὸ ποιημα,the workmanship of God, because they are created unto good works which God hath before ordained that they should walk in them; and in reality this agrees best with the subsequent context. For when he says,We are his people, and the sheep of his pasture, he evidently refers to that distinguishing grace which led God to set apart his children for his heritage, in order that he may, as it were, nourish them under his wings, which is a much greater privilege than that of merely being born men. Should any person be disposed to boast that he has of himself become a new man, who is there that would not hold in abhorrence such a base attempt to rob God of that which belongs to him? Nor must we attribute this spiritual birth to our earthly parents, as if by their own power they begat us; for what could a corrupt seed produce? Still the majority of men do not hesitate to claim for themselves all the praise of the spiritual life. Else what mean the preachers of free-will, unless it be to tell us that by our own endeavors we have, from being sons of Adam, become the sons of God? In opposition to this, the prophet in calling us thepeople of God, informs us that it is of his own good will that we are spiritually regenerated. And by denominating usthe sheep of his pasture, he gives us to know that through the same grace which has once been imparted to us, we continue safe and unimpaired until the end. It might be otherwise rendered,he made us his people, etc.But as the meaning is not altered, I have retained that which was the more generally received reading.
McArther Bible Commentary
Know. In the sense of experiencing and being completely assured of the truth. the Lord, He is God. A confession that Israel's covenant God, Jehovah, is the only true God. made us. Though God's actual creation of every human being is understood here, this phrase seems to refer to God's making and blessing Israel as a nation (cf. Deu 32:6, Deu 32:15; Psa 95:6; Isa 29:22-23; Isa 44:2). His people … His pasture. The shepherd image is often ascribed to the king of Israel, as well as to the Lord (cf. Psa 78:70-72; Isa 44:28; Jer 10:21; Zec 10:3; Zec 11:4-17; also Psa 23:1; Psa 28:9; Psa 74:1; Psa 77:20; Psa 78:52-53; Psa 80:1; Psa 95:7). The figure suggests intimate care (cf. Luk 15:3-6). According to the NT, the Lord is also the Shepherd of saints in the church age (Joh 10:16).
Bible Cross References
Deuteronomy 4:35 1 Kings 18:39 Job 10:3 Job 10:8 Psalm 46:10 Psalm 74:1 Psalm 74:2 Psalm 79:13 Psalm 95:6 Psalm 95:7 Psalm 119:73 Psalm 138:8 Isaiah 19:25 Isaiah 40:11 Isaiah 43:7 Isaiah 64:8 Ezekiel 34:30 Ezekiel 34:31 Ezekiel 36:38

Verse 4

John Calvin Bible Commentary
Enter his gatesThe conclusion of the psalm is almost the same as the beginning of it, excepting that he adopts a mode of speech which relates to the worship of God which obtained under the law;in which, however, he merely reminds us that believers, in rendering thanks to God, do not discharge their duty aright, unless they also continue in the practice of a steady profession of piety. Meanwhile, under the name of the temple, he signifies that God cannot be otherwise worshipped than in strict accordance with the manner prescribed in his law. And, besides, he adds, thatGod’s mercy endureth for ever, and thathis truth also is everlasting, to point out to us that we can never be at a loss for constant cause of praising him. If, then, God never ceases to deal with us in this manner, it would argue the basest ingratitude on our part, if we wearied in rendering to Him the tribute of praise to which he is entitled. We have elsewhere taken notice of the reason why truth is connected with mercy. For so foolish are we, that we scarcely feel the mercy of God while he openly manifests it, not even in the most palpable displays of it, until he open his holy lips to declare his paternal regard for us.
McArther Bible Commentary
His gates … courts. The gates and courts were those of the temple.
Bible Cross References
Psalm 42:4 Psalm 92:13 Psalm 95:2 Psalm 96:2 Psalm 116:17 Jeremiah 33:11 Ezekiel 40:14

Verse 5

McArther Bible Commentary
the Lord is good. God is the source and perfect example of goodness. His mercy. See note on Psa 85:7. His truth. In the sense of keeping His promises, i.e., His faithfulness.
Bible Cross References
1 Chronicles 16:34 2 Chronicles 5:13 2 Chronicles 7:3 Ezra 3:11 Psalm 25:8 Psalm 86:5 Psalm 106:1 Psalm 107:1 Psalm 108:4 Psalm 117:2 Psalm 118:1 Psalm 119:68 Psalm 119:90 Psalm 135:3 Psalm 136:1 Psalm 145:9 Jeremiah 33:11 Nahum 1:7