Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice; let the sea resound, and all that fills it.
Parallel translations
- WEB Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice. Let the sea roar, and its fullness!
- KJV Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof.
- NKJV Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; Let the sea roar, and all its fullness;
- NASB ¶May the heavens be joyful, and may the earth rejoice; May the sea roar, and all it contains;
- NLT Let the heavens be glad, and the earth rejoice! Let the sea and everything in it shout his praise!
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Let the heavens be glad, the earth rejoice, and the sea roar with praise. All creation is summoned to rejoice in God's reign.
Overview
The psalmist calls the whole created order, heavens, earth, and sea, to join in jubilant praise. Creation itself responds to the good news of God's righteous kingship. This anticipates the renewal of creation that groans for redemption and will rejoice at Christ's coming (Romans 8:19-21; Isaiah 55:12).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Isa 49:13Shout for joy, O heavens; rejoice, O earth; break forth in song, O mountains! For the LORD has comforted His people, and He will have compassion on His afflicted ones.
- Ps 69:34Let heaven and earth praise Him, the seas and everything that moves in them.
- Ps 97:1The LORD reigns, let the earth rejoice; let the distant shores be glad.
- Ps 98:7–9Let the sea resound, and all that fills it, the world, and all who dwell in it.
- Ps 148:1–4Hallelujah! Praise the LORD from the heavens; praise Him in the highest places.
- Isa 44:23Sing for joy, O heavens, for the LORD has done this; shout aloud, O depths of the earth. Break forth in song, O mountains, you forests and all your trees. For the LORD has redeemed Jacob, and revealed His glory in Israel.
- Luke 15:10In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who repents.”
- Luke 2:13–14And suddenly there appeared with the angel a great multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying:
- Rev 19:1–7After this I heard a sound like the roar of a great multitude in heaven, shouting: “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God!
- Luke 2:10But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid! For behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people:
- Rev 12:12Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea; with great fury the devil has come down to you, knowing he has only a short time.”
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.
How Psalms 96:11 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.