The Meaning of Psalms 96:9 Explained

Psalms 96:9

KJV: O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth.

YLT: Bow yourselves to Jehovah, In the honour of holiness, Be afraid of His presence, all the earth.

Darby: Worship Jehovah in holy splendour; tremble before him, all the earth.

ASV: Oh worship Jehovah in holy array: Tremble before him, all the earth.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

O worship  the LORD  in the beauty  of holiness:  fear  before  him, all the earth. 

What does Psalms 96:9 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalms 96:1-13 - "the Lord Reigneth"
This psalm is found also in 1 Chronicles 16:1-43. Note the thrice-repeated command, Sing, sing, sing, Psalms 96:1-2; the corresponding, thrice-repeated, Give, give, give, Psalms 96:7-8; the triple call for joy from heaven, sea, and land, Psalms 96:11-12. It is good to read these psalms; they impart the burning devotion of these olden saints. They break on our lethargy as the bugle-call on the sleeping soldier. Notice that we call men to a Jubilate, not a Miserere, when we invite them to come home to God.
What a stately procession escorts the King to the throne of the world! He comes to reign in equity. Righteousness and truth which had fled the world return with Him. Honor and majesty are His avant-couriers. Strength and beauty stand in His court-circle. When we are brought into the divine Kingdom, and are at one with God, we detect the unison of nature in her song of praise. The seas provide the bass; the quivering leaves, the song of buds, the hum of insect life provide the tenors and altos; while the stars in their courses sing the treble. To the anointed ear, the new song has already begun. [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalms 96

1  An exhortation to praise God
4  for his greatness
8  for his kingdom
11  for his general judgment

What do the individual words in Psalms 96:9 mean?

Oh worship Yahweh in the beauty of holiness Tremble before Him all the earth
הִשְׁתַּחֲו֣וּ לַ֭יהוָה בְּהַדְרַת־ קֹ֑דֶשׁ חִ֥ילוּ מִ֝פָּנָ֗יו כָּל־ הָאָֽרֶץ

הִשְׁתַּחֲו֣וּ  Oh  worship 
Parse: Verb, Hitpael, Imperative, masculine plural
Root: שָׁחָה  
Sense: to bow down.
לַ֭יהוָה  Yahweh 
Parse: Preposition-l, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
בְּהַדְרַת־  in  the  beauty 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: הֲדָרָה  
Sense: adornment, glory.
קֹ֑דֶשׁ  of  holiness 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: קֹדֶשׁ  
Sense: apartness, holiness, sacredness, separateness.
חִ֥ילוּ  Tremble 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine plural
Root: חוּל 
Sense: to twist, whirl, dance, writhe, fear, tremble, travail, be in anguish, be pained.
מִ֝פָּנָ֗יו  before  Him 
Parse: Preposition-m, Noun, common plural construct, third person masculine singular
Root: לִפְנֵי 
Sense: face.
הָאָֽרֶץ  the  earth 
Parse: Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֶרֶץ  
Sense: land, earth.