Let's Sing to the LORD
Venite, exultemus Domino
Psalm 95 summary: what it means
Psalm 95 is a call to worship in two movements. The first seven verses invite the listener to sing, shout, come with thanksgiving and kneel. The reasons come as the psalm goes: the LORD is a great King above all gods, the depths and the mountains are his, and he made the sea and the dry land. Verse 7 adds a closer reason: we are the people of his pasture and the sheep in his care.
Halfway through verse 7 the tone changes. The line Today, oh that you would hear his voice introduces a warning spoken in God's voice. The listener is told not to harden their heart as their fathers did at Meribah and Massah. The psalm ends abruptly, with God's oath that that generation would not enter his rest.
Psalm 95: Let's Sing to the LORD
World English Bible, public domain. allpsalms.com/psalm-95
Psalm 95 commentary: explained verse by verse
Oh come, let’s sing to the LORD.Let’s shout aloud to the rock of our salvation!
O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
The psalm opens with an invitation to sing and shout aloud. God is called the rock of our salvation, a picture of something solid to stand on.
Also read Psalm 100:1, Jeremiah 33:11, Psalm 34:3, Psalm 107:8
Let’s come before his presence with thanksgiving.Let’s extol him with songs!
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.
The invitation continues: come before his presence with thanksgiving and praise him with songs. Worship is described as something done together and out loud.
Also read Psalm 7:7, Psalm 17:13, Psalm 81:2, Jeremiah 31:12-13
For the LORD is a great God,a great King above all gods.
For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.
The first reason for praise is given. The LORD is a great God and a great King above all gods.
Also read Malachi 1:14, Exodus 18:11, Psalm 47:2, Matthew 5:35
In his hand are the deep places of the earth.The heights of the mountains are also his.
In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also.
God's rule covers the full height of the world, from the deep places of the earth to the heights of the mountains. Nothing too low or too high is left outside his hand.
Also read Habakkuk 3:10, Job 9:5, Nahum 1:5, Psalm 21:2
The sea is his, and he made it.His hands formed the dry land.
The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land.
The sea and the dry land both belong to God because he made them. The verse rests ownership on creation.
Also read Psalm 146:6, Jeremiah 5:22, Jonah 1:9, Job 38:10-11
Oh come, let’s worship and bow down.Let’s kneel before the LORD, our Maker,
O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker.
The invitation changes posture. The listener is called to worship, bow down and kneel before the LORD our Maker.
Also read Isaiah 54:5, 1 Kings 8:54, Psalm 72:9, 1 Corinthians 6:20
for he is our God.We are the people of his pasture,and the sheep in his care.Today, oh that you would hear his voice!
For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice,
This verse holds the psalm's turn. It first gives the closest reason for worship, that we are the people of his pasture and the sheep in his care, then begins the warning with Today, oh that you would hear his voice.
Also read Psalm 100:3, Isaiah 40:10-11, Acts 20:28, Revelation 3:20
Don’t harden your heart, as at Meribah,as in the day of Massah in the wilderness,
Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness:
The warning is not to harden your heart as at Meribah and Massah in the wilderness. The psalm names these places as examples not to repeat.
Also read Daniel 5:20, Hebrews 3:13, Acts 19:9, Hebrews 12:25
when your fathers tempted me,tested me, and saw my work.
When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work.
God speaks of how the fathers tempted and tested him, even though they had seen his work. The fault named is testing God in spite of what they had already seen.
Also read Psalm 78:56, Psalm 78:40-41, Matthew 11:20-22, John 15:24
Forty long years I was grieved with that generation,and said, “They are a people who err in their heart.They have not known my ways.”
Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways:
God speaks of forty long years of grief with that generation. He describes them as a people who err in their heart and have not known his ways.
Also read Proverbs 1:22-29, Isaiah 63:17, Hebrews 3:17, Numbers 14:33-34
Therefore I swore in my wrath,“They won’t enter into my rest.”
Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest.
The psalm ends with an oath sworn in God's wrath: they will not enter my rest. It closes on the warning rather than returning to praise.
Also read Jeremiah 6:16, Numbers 14:28-30, Deuteronomy 1:34-35, Genesis 2:2-3
A prayer from Psalm 95
LORD, I come to sing to you and to shout aloud to the rock of my salvation. I come before your presence with thanksgiving. You are a great God and a great King. The deep places of the earth are in your hand, and the heights of the mountains are yours. The sea is yours, and your hands formed the dry land. I bow down and kneel before you, my Maker. I am one of the people of your pasture, a sheep in your care. Today, help me to hear your voice and not to harden my heart. Amen.
Psalm 95 Bible study questions
- In verses 4 and 5, which parts of creation are said to belong to the LORD?
- In verse 7, what two pictures describe the people in relation to God?
- Verse 7 says today, oh that you would hear his voice; what might hearing his voice today mean for you?
- Why do you think the psalm moves from joyful worship in verses 1 to 7 to a warning in verses 8 to 11?
- Psalm 100:3 also calls the people the sheep of his pasture; how does it compare with Psalm 95:7?
Questions about Psalm 95
What is the meaning of Psalm 95?
It is a call to worship God as King and Maker, followed by a warning not to harden your heart the way an earlier generation did in the wilderness.
Who wrote Psalm 95?
The psalm has no heading, and its text does not name an author.
What does Psalm 95:6-7 say in the KJV?
The King James Version reads: "O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker. For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand."
Why is Psalm 95 called the Venite?
In Latin it is known as Venite exultemus, or simply the Venite, from its opening words. It may be sung as a canticle at Anglican and Lutheran Morning Prayer, where it goes by that name.
How is Psalm 95 used in Catholic worship?
It forms the invitatory, sung daily at the beginning of Matins or of Lauds.
Is Psalm 95 quoted in the New Testament?
Yes. Verses 7 to 11 are quoted in the Letter to the Hebrews, in chapters 3 and 4.
Psalm 95 KJV: the King James Version
O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.1
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.2
For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.3
In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also.4
The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land.5
O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker.6
For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice,7
Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness:8
When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work.9
Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways:10
Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest.11
Psalm 95 in Hebrew
The Hebrew text from the Westminster Leningrad Codex, public domain. Verse numbers follow the Hebrew Bible, which counts a psalm's heading as verse 1, so they can run one ahead of English Bibles.
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1 לְ֭כוּ נְרַנְּנָ֣ה לַיהוָ֑ה נָ֝רִ֗יעָה לְצ֣וּר יִשְׁעֵֽנוּ׃
2 נְקַדְּמָ֣ה פָנָ֣יו בְּתוֹדָ֑ה בִּ֝זְמִר֗וֹת נָרִ֥יעַֽ לֽוֹ׃
3 כִּ֤י אֵ֣ל גָּד֣וֹל יְהוָ֑ה וּמֶ֥לֶךְ גָּ֝ד֗וֹל עַל־כָּל־אֱלֹהִֽים׃
4 אֲשֶׁ֣ר בְּ֭יָדוֹ מֶחְקְרֵי־אָ֑רֶץ וְתוֹעֲפ֖וֹת הָרִ֣ים לֽוֹ׃
5 אֲשֶׁר־ל֣וֹ הַ֭יָּם וְה֣וּא עָשָׂ֑הוּ וְ֝יַבֶּ֗שֶׁת יָדָ֥יו יָצָֽרוּ׃
6 בֹּ֭אוּ נִשְׁתַּחֲוֶ֣ה וְנִכְרָ֑עָה נִ֝בְרְכָ֗ה לִֽפְנֵי־יְהוָ֥ה עֹשֵֽׂנוּ׃
7 כִּ֘י ה֤וּא אֱלֹהֵ֗ינוּ וַאֲנַ֤חְנוּ עַ֣ם מַ֭רְעִיתוֹ וְצֹ֣אן יָד֑וֹ הַ֝יּ֗וֹם אִֽם־בְּקֹל֥וֹ תִשְׁמָֽעוּ׃
8 אַל־תַּקְשׁ֣וּ לְ֭בַבְכֶם כִּמְרִיבָ֑ה כְּי֥וֹם מַ֝סָּ֗ה בַּמִּדְבָּֽר׃
9 אֲשֶׁ֣ר נִ֭סּוּנִי אֲבוֹתֵיכֶ֑ם בְּ֝חָנ֗וּנִי גַּם־רָא֥וּ פָעֳלִֽי׃
10 אַרְבָּ֘עִ֤ים שָׁנָ֨ה ׀ אָ֘ק֤וּט בְּד֗וֹר וָאֹמַ֗ר עַ֤ם תֹּעֵ֣י לֵבָ֣ב הֵ֑ם וְ֝הֵ֗ם לֹא־יָדְע֥וּ דְרָכָֽי׃
11 אֲשֶׁר־נִשְׁבַּ֥עְתִּי בְאַפִּ֑י אִם־יְ֝בֹא֗וּן אֶל־מְנוּחָתִֽי׃
Psalm 95 in the Catholic Douay-Rheims Bible
The Douay-Rheims Bible, 1899 edition, public domain. It follows the Greek and Latin numbering, so this psalm is Psalm 94 there.
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1 Come let us praise the Lord with joy: let us joyfully sing to God our saviour.
2 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving; and make a joyful noise to him with psalms.
3 For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods.
4 For in his hand are all the ends of the earth: and the heights of the mountains are his.
5 For the sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land.
6 Come let us adore and fall down: and weep before the Lord that made us.
7 For he is the Lord our God: and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand.
8 Today if you shall hear his voice, harden not your hearts:
9 As in the provocation, according to the day of temptation in the wilderness: where your fathers tempted me, they proved me, and saw my works.
10 Forty years long was I offended with that generation, and I said: These always err in heart.
11 And these men have not known my ways: so I swore in my wrath that they shall not enter into my rest.
Psalm 95 in Latin
The Clementine Vulgate, public domain, where this psalm is Psalm 94.
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1 Laus cantici ipsi David. Venite, exsultemus Domino; jubilemus Deo salutari nostro;
2 præoccupemus faciem ejus in confessione, et in psalmis jubilemus ei:
3 quoniam Deus magnus Dominus, et rex magnus super omnes deos.
4 Quia in manu ejus sunt omnes fines terræ, et altitudines montium ipsius sunt;
5 quoniam ipsius est mare, et ipse fecit illud, et siccam manus ejus formaverunt.
6 Venite, adoremus, et procidamus, et ploremus ante Dominum qui fecit nos:
7 quia ipse est Dominus Deus noster, et nos populus pascuæ ejus, et oves manus ejus.
8 Hodie si vocem ejus audieritis, nolite obdurare corda vestra
9 sicut in irritatione, secundum diem tentationis in deserto, ubi tentaverunt me patres vestri: probaverunt me, et viderunt opera mea.
10 Quadraginta annis offensus fui generationi illi, et dixi: Semper hi errant corde.
11 Et isti non cognoverunt vias meas: ut juravi in ira mea: Si introibunt in requiem meam.
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Psalm 95 at a glance
| Verses | 11 |
| Heading in the text | No heading |
| Attributed to | The psalm has no heading, and the text does not name its author. |
| Type | Praise |
| Number in Greek and Latin Bibles | Psalm 94 |
| Latin first line | Venite, exultemus Domino |
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Psalm 95 in other translations
This page prints the World English Bible and the King James Version because both are public domain. The NIV, ESV, NKJV, NLT and NASB are under copyright, so they cannot be printed in full here. You can read Psalm 95 in those translations at Bible Gateway.
Where Psalm 95 belongs
How this page was made
The psalm text comes from public domain translations and is not edited. The summary, the verse notes and the answers are written for this page from the text of the psalm itself. Where a claim goes beyond the text, it is sourced below.
Sources
- Text: World English Bible and King James Version, both public domain, from ebible.org source
- Latin name, liturgical use and Hebrews quotation: Wikipedia, Psalm 95: known in Latin as Venite exultemus or the Venite; the invitatory at Matins or Lauds; a canticle at Anglican and Lutheran Morning Prayer; verses 7 to 11 quoted in Hebrews 3 and 4 source
- Hebrew text: Westminster Leningrad Codex, public domain, from ebible.org source
- Douay-Rheims: Douay-Rheims Bible, 1899 edition, public domain, from ebible.org source
- Latin text: Clementine Vulgate, public domain, from ebible.org source
- Numbering: Greek and Latin psalm numbering, Wikipedia, Psalms source