Psalms 95:1
in Psalms 95Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD; let us shout to the Rock of our salvation!
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Oh come, let us sing unto Jehovah; Let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
KJV
O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
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This verse in Psalms 95
Commentary
8 notes on this verseBy this he showed that the outward worship of God principally consisted in the sacrifice of praise, and not in dead ceremonies. He enjoins haste upon them; by which they might testify their alacrity in this service. For the Hebrew word qdm, kadam, in the second verse, which I have rendered, let us come before, etc., means to make haste.
This site's exposition
let us sing for joy
on Psalms 95:1-2
The psalm opens with a call to sing and shout to the LORD, the Rock of salvation. Verse 2 names the way in, entering His presence with thanksgiving, then a joyful noise in song. The Rock is the place to stand.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
"O come, let us sing unto the Lord" (ver. 1). He calleth us to a great banquet of joy, not one of this world, but in the Lord. For if there were not in this life a wicked joy which is to be distinguished from a righteous joy, it would be enough to say, "Come, let us rejoice;" but he has briefly distinguished it. What is it to rejoice aright? To rejoice in the Lord. Thou shouldest piously joy in the Lord, if thou dost wish safely to trample upon the world. But what is the word, "Come"? Whence doth He call them to come, with whom he wisheth to rejoice in the Lord; except that, while they are afar, they may by coming draw nearer, by drawing nearer they may approach, and by approaching rejoice? But whence are they afar? Can a man be locally distant from Him who is everywhere? ...It is not by place, but by being unlike Him, that a man is afar from God. What is to be unlike Him? it meaneth, a bad life, bad habits; for if by good habits we approach God, by bad habits we recede from God. ...If therefore by unlikeness we recede from God, by likeness we approach unto God. What likeness? That after which we were created, which by sinning we had corrupted in ourselves, which we have received again through the remission of sins, which is renewed in us in the mind within, that it may be engraved a second time as if on coin, that is, the image of our God upon our soul, and that we may return to His treasures. ...
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
O come, let us sing unto the Lord,....
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
O come, let us sing unto the Lord. Other nations sing unto their gods, let us sing unto Jehovah. We love him, we admire him, we reverence him, let us express our feelings with the choicest sounds, using our noblest faculty for its noblest end. It is well thus to urge others to magnify the Lord, but we must be careful to set a worthy example ourselves, so that we may be able not only to cry "Come", but also to add " let us sing", because we are singing ourselves.
O come, let us sing unto the Lord. Other nations sing unto their gods, let us sing unto Jehovah. We love him, we admire him, we reverence him, let us express our feelings with the choicest sounds, using our noblest faculty for its noblest end. It is well thus to urge others to magnify the Lord, but we must be careful to set a worthy example ourselves, so that we may be able not only to cry "Come", but also to add " let us sing", because we are singing ourselves. It is to be feared that very much even of religious singing is not unto the Lord but unto the car of the congregation: above all things we must in our service of song take care that all we offer is with the heart's sincerest and most fervent intent directed toward the Lord himself. Let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. With holy enthusiasm let us sing, making a sound which shall indicate our earnestness; with abounding joy let us lift up our voices, actuated by that happy and peaceful spirit which trustful love is sure to foster. As the children of Israel sang for joy when the smitten rock poured forth its cooling streams, so let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. The author of this song had in his mind's eye the rock, the tabernacle, the Red Sea, and the mountains of Sinai, and he alludes to them all in this first part of his hymn. God is our abiding, immutable, and mighty rock, and in him we find deliverance and safety, therefore it becomes us to praise him with heart and with voice from day to day; and especially should we delight to do this when we assemble as his people for public worship. it becomes us to praise him with heart and with voice from day to day; and especially should we delight to do this when we assemble as his people for public worship.
O come, let us sing - Let us praise God, not only with the most joyful accents which can be uttered by the voice; but let us also praise him with hearts tuned to gratitude, from a full sense of the manifold benefits we have already received. The rock of our salvation - The strong Fortress in which we have always found safety, and the Source whence we have always derived help for our souls. In both these senses the word rock, as applied to God, is used in the Scriptures.
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
O come, let us sing unto the Lord - The word here rendered come, means properly “go;” but it is used here, as it often is, as a formula of invitation, in calling on others to share in what is done by the speaker. It is here to be understood as used by one portion of an assembly convened for worship addressing the other portion, and calling on them to unite in the praise of God. Let us make a joyful noise - The word used here means commonly to make a loud noise, to shout, Job 30:5. It is especially used (a) of warlike shouts, Jos 6:16; 1Sa 17:20; (b) of the shout of triumph, Jdg 15:14; (c) of the sound or clangor of a trumpet, Num 10:9; Joe 2:1. It may thus be used to denote any shout of joy or praise. In public worship it would denote praise of the most animated kind. To the Rock of our salvation - The strong ground of our confidence; the basis of our hope; our security. See the notes at Psa 18:2.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
This is what Israel is saying to each other in the days of the Messiah, to sing to the Lord that redeemed them. And we have already explained that “lechu” are words of ziruz (alacrity/enthusiasm) in the action, not literally walking.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
6 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| לְ֭כוּ | lekhu | come | H1980 → | 1546 times |
| נְרַנְּנָ֣ה | neranenah | let us sing for joy | H7442 → | 54 times |
| לַיהוָ֑ה | layahweh | to Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| נָ֝רִ֗יעָה | nariah | let us shout for joy | H7321 → | 44 times |
| לְצ֣וּר | letzur | to [the] rock of | H6697 → | 78 times |
| יִשְׁעֵֽנוּ׃ | yishenu | salvation our | H3468 → | 36 times |
לְ֭כוּcome
lekhuH1980 →1546 times
נְרַנְּנָ֣הlet us sing for joy
neranenahH7442 →54 times
לַיהוָ֑הto Yahweh
layahwehH3068 →6520 times
נָ֝רִ֗יעָהlet us shout for joy
nariahH7321 →44 times
לְצ֣וּרto [the] rock of
letzurH6697 →78 times
יִשְׁעֵֽנוּ׃salvation our
yishenuH3468 →36 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
1 Corinthians 10:4and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.
it leads to
- Exodus 17:6
Behold, I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. And when you strike the rock, water will come out of it for the people to drink.” So Moses did this in…
- John 7:37
On the last and greatest day of the feast, Jesus stood up and called out in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink.
- Isaiah 48:21
They did not thirst when He led them through the deserts; He made water flow for them from the rock; He split the rock, and water gushed out.
- Exodus 17:6
Through
Psalms 150:6Let everything that has breath praise the LORD! Hallelujah!
it leads to
- Psalms 145:21
My mouth will declare the praise of the LORD; let every creature bless His holy name forever and ever.
- Revelation 5:13
And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying: “To Him who sits on the throne and to…
- Psalms 103:22
Bless the LORD, all His works in all places of His dominion. Bless the LORD, O my soul!
- Psalms 145:10
All You have made will give You thanks, O LORD, and Your saints will bless You.
- Psalms 148:7–11
Praise the LORD from the earth, all great sea creatures and ocean depths,
- Psalms 145:21
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Psalms
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Augustine of Hippo, On the Psalms; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 4; John Calvin, Commentaries; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.