The Cosmic Ovation at the Great Assize Text: Psalm 98:7-9
Introduction: A Terrifying Joy
The modern Christian, particularly the Western Christian, has a peculiar and unbiblical allergy to the concept of God's judgment. For many, the word "judgment" conjures up images of a wrathful deity, angry, distant, and looking for any excuse to condemn. It is a thing to be feared, a terrible day to be avoided, a cosmic court date we hope to postpone indefinitely. And so, when we come to a passage like this, our wires get crossed. The psalmist summons the entire created order, from the oceans to the mountains, to break out in uproarious, joyful celebration. And what is the reason for this cosmic festival? "For He is coming to judge the earth."
This is not a misprint. The reason for the joy is the judgment. The motivation for the mountains singing is the arrival of the Judge. This is a profound disconnect for us, because we have been catechized by a sentimental, therapeutic gospel that wants a Savior who never judges, a King who never rules, and a victory that never settles any arguments. We want the comfort of salvation without the sharp-edged reality of a world set right. But the Bible will not have it. The good news of the gospel is not just that our sins are forgiven, but that God, in Christ, is going to fix everything. And you cannot fix a broken, rebellious, and unjust world without judgment.
Judgment is not a cosmic temper tantrum. It is the long-awaited arrival of the divine Chiropractor. It is the day when every crooked thing is made straight, every lie is exposed, every injustice is answered, and every tear is wiped away. For those who have profited from the crookedness, this is terrifying news. But for the saints, and for the groaning creation itself, it is the best news imaginable. This is why the sea roars its approval and the rivers clap their hands. They are not afraid of the Judge; they are longing for Him. They are cheering for the restoration of all things. This psalm teaches us to recalibrate our hearts, to see the final judgment not as a source of dread, but as the ultimate reason for our deepest and most explosive joy.
The Text
Let the sea roar, as well as its fullness,
The world and those who dwell in it.
Let the rivers clap their hands,
Let the mountains sing together for joy
Before Yahweh, for He is coming to judge the earth;
He will judge the world with righteousness
And the peoples with equity.
(Psalm 98:7-9 LSB)
The Roar of the Redeemed Cosmos (v. 7)
We begin with the summons to the largest parts of creation:
"Let the sea roar, as well as its fullness, The world and those who dwell in it." (Psalm 98:7)
The psalmist is not engaging in mere poetic flourish here. This is inspired theology. The whole creation is personified and called to worship. Why? Because the whole creation was subjected to futility by Adam's sin (Romans 8:20). When man fell, he dragged the cosmos down with him. Thorns and thistles grew in the garden, and a principle of corruption and decay was introduced into the very fabric of the material world. The creation groans, Paul tells us, like a woman in labor, waiting for the revealing of the sons of God.
So when the Judge comes, it is liberation day for the cosmos. The sea is summoned to roar. This is not the roar of a chaotic, threatening monster, like the pagan deities of the deep. This is the roar of acclamation, a stentorian bass note in the global anthem of praise. And it is not just the water, but its "fullness" that joins in. Every creature in the deep, from the whale to the plankton, is to add its voice to the chorus. This is a total mobilization of the created order.
And then the summons expands: "The world and those who dwell in it." This encompasses the dry land and all its inhabitants. The word for "world" here refers to the inhabited land, the stage of human history. All of humanity is included in this summons. Of course, we know that not all will rejoice. For the unrepentant, this day is a day of terror. But the call goes out to all, because the judgment will affect all. The earth is the Lord's, and the fullness thereof, and He is coming to reclaim it, to cleanse it, and to rule it. This is a picture of a comprehensive, worldwide restoration, and the creation itself is the first to applaud.
The Applause of the Arteries (v. 8)
The imagery continues, moving from the vast oceans to the inland waterways and high places.
"Let the rivers clap their hands, Let the mountains sing together for joy" (Psalm 98:8)
This is glorious anthropomorphism. Rivers don't have hands, and mountains don't have vocal cords. But the Spirit of God uses this language to communicate a profound reality. The creation is not a neutral, mute backdrop to the story of redemption. It is an active participant. The joy of the coming judgment is so overwhelming that it cannot be contained by human voices alone. The very landscape erupts in celebration.
The "rivers clap their hands." Think of the steady, rhythmic rush of a mighty river, or the crashing of waves on the riverbank. It is like a great crowd giving a standing ovation. The rivers are the arteries of the land, carrying life and sustenance. They have witnessed the blood and filth of human sin, the pollution of idolatry and injustice. Now, at the prospect of the Judge's arrival, they applaud. The cleansing is coming. The restoration is at hand.
And the mountains "sing together for joy." The mountains are symbols of stability, of ancient authority, of God's majesty. They have stood as silent witnesses to millennia of human rebellion. But they are not silent here. They join their voices in a chorus of joyful song. This is not a solo; they sing "together." There is a unity in this cosmic praise. From the depths of the sea to the heights of the mountains, all of creation is of one mind. The King is coming, and it is good news.
The Reason for the Rejoicing (v. 9)
The final verse gives the reason for this explosion of universal praise. Why all the roaring, clapping, and singing? What is the event that prompts this celebration?
"Before Yahweh, for He is coming to judge the earth; He will judge the world with righteousness And the peoples with equity." (Psalm 98:9)
Here is the heart of it. The Lord, Yahweh, the covenant God of Israel, is coming. His coming is not for a casual visit. He is coming "to judge the earth." And this is presented as the climax of all history, the resolution of all conflict, the answer to every prayer for justice. This is the great "eucatastrophe," the sudden, joyous turn in the story.
Notice the instruments of His judgment: righteousness and equity. This is not arbitrary power. This is not vengeance fueled by caprice. This is the perfect application of God's own holy character to the affairs of men. "Righteousness" is the straight edge, the divine standard. God is going to apply His perfect law to this world, and He will measure everything by it. All the crooked deals, the perverted laws, the corrupt systems, and the self-justifying lies will be exposed and condemned by this perfect standard.
He will judge the peoples with "equity." This means fairness, impartiality, justice. In God's courtroom, there are no backroom deals. There is no bribery. Your social status, your wealth, your power, your political connections, they all mean nothing. The case will be judged on its merits, and the judgment will be perfectly true. For those who have been oppressed, for the widow and the orphan, for the persecuted church, for all who have cried out "How long, O Lord?" this is the sweetest news in the world. The righteous Judge is coming, and He is going to make everything right.
The Postmillennial Ovation
We must understand that this judgment is not a single event at the very end of time, after which God scraps the whole project and starts over somewhere else. The Bible teaches that the coming of Jesus Christ, His death, resurrection, and ascension, was the decisive invasion. He came to judge the earth two thousand years ago. He bound the strong man and began plundering his house. His kingdom was established, and He is now on the throne, ruling from heaven.
The judgment of God is therefore a process that unfolds in history, culminating in a final, climactic judgment. Christ is reigning now, putting all His enemies under His feet (1 Corinthians 15:25). The gospel is the primary instrument of that judgment. When the gospel is preached, it is a savor of life unto life for those who believe, and a savor of death unto death for those who reject it (2 Corinthians 2:16). It is a declaration of righteousness that reorders societies. It topples idols, rewrites laws, and transforms cultures. The progressive victory of the gospel throughout history is the progressive judgment of the world.
So when the sea roars and the mountains sing, they are not just cheering for a far-off, distant event. They are cheering for the reality that was inaugurated at the first coming of Christ and continues to this day. They are cheering for every mission field that opens, every tyrant that falls, every unjust law that is repealed, and every knee that bows to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. They are cheering because the kingdom is advancing, and the knowledge of the glory of the Lord is filling the earth as the waters cover the sea (Habakkuk 2:14).
The final coming of Christ will not be to a world that has gone from bad to worse, with the church cowering in a corner. It will be to a world that has been largely discipled, a world where the sea's roar and the mountains' song have been joined by the voices of billions of redeemed saints from every tribe and tongue and nation. He will come to wrap things up, to judge the remaining rebels, and to raise the dead. And that final judgment, that final act of setting all things right, will be the cause of the greatest celebration the cosmos has ever known. It is a terrifying joy, but for those who are in Christ, it is all joy.