In the first part of Revelation 14, we see a vision of God’s people (the 144,000 we met earlier in Revelation 7:4) in heaven and hear a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder or like harpists playing their harp. We are told they sang a new song, a phrase that is used frequently to speak of the joy which God’s salvation brings to His people. The psalms frequently use this phrase:
- Sing to him a new song;play skilfully, and shout for joy. (Ps 33:3)
- He put a new song in my mouth,a hymn of praise to our God (Ps 40:3)
- Sing to the Lord a new song;sing to the Lord, all the earth (Ps 96:1)
- I will sing a new song to you, my God;on the ten-stringed lyre I will make music to you (Ps 144:9)
- Praise the Lord. Sing to the Lord a new song;his praise in the assembly of his faithful people. (Ps 149:1)
- Sing to the Lord a new song; his praise from the ends of the earth ( 42:10).
In what sense is this song new? J. Hampton Keathley III says, ‘A new song is a consequence of a deeper or clearer grasp of the person and works of God so that it results in a fresh and meaningful impulse of gratitude and joy in the soul as it is expressed in songs of praise and adoration. A new song is not necessarily a song new in time, but one fresh with a new response and understanding so that it is sung as though it were new.’
Singing remains a vital element of praising God, one which lifts the spirit of the one singing as much as it does those who listen!
