Psalm 100--Exegetical Thoughts

Make a Joyful Noise by Dave Becker

Thus far in this semester's exploration of the Psalms, we've heard a lot of different noises: instructive voices, cries of the suffering, an imaginative prayer. But here, arriving at Psalm 100, we get to hear some real music. McCann points out that the bold claim of the Psalms is that life and praise of God are inextricably bound--to stop praising God is to die (54), and so, we find an expression of this praise and thanksgiving here.

Mays points out that praise born of thanksgiving isn't just a happy smile. Rather, he says it is "the gladness that wells up from the whole person" (Preaching 179). A part of the function of Psalm 100 is instructive (a pattern in the Psalms). Limburg explores how Psalm 100 teaches us who we are (God's still-loved creation), what we are to do (praise God), and why we should praise (because of God's steadfast love; 337-338). In his Psalms commentary, Mays indicates that Psalm 100 functions in two ways to facilitate praise--first, as an initiation into worship (as a call to worship and movement into the presence of God), and as a theology of worship.

Worship reorients. It moves us away from our self-centeredness and into an awareness of God's grace. The seven imperatives of Psalm 100 express this movement: make (vs. 1), worship (vs. 2), come (vs. 2b), know (vs. 3), enter (vs. 4), give (vs. 4b), and bless (vs. 4b). The direction I would like to take with Psalm 100 begins with the opening imperative--"Make a joyful noise to the Lord."

Our reorientation begins with noise. Joyful noise. Often assumed to be singing. The significance of singing as a human activity is one that cannot be denied. And we know from the liturgical notes in the Psalms themselves that their being sung was likely a part of the worship of the Hebrew people. In the Christian tradition, congregational singing has ebbed and flowed; a brief overview of Christian singing can be found here. By the time of the Reformation, congregations stood mute as the music was made by professionals. Reformers changed this, bringing music to the congregations, changing the words to popular music to theologically rich imagery. The first hymnal was printed in 1532, and music became a main vehicle of theology for the average church-goer. However, technological advances, changing tastes in music, and the explosion of mega-churches has found that congregational singing is on the decline. Joyful noises seem only to be for those with polished enough voices (or with enough familiarity with the music) to be up on stage.

In the view of Psalm 100, this is a shame. "All the earth" is called to this joyous form of worship of God. And I believe that new science about the effects of group singing on our very physiology confirm that joining in with others in musical praise of God leads us to be able to to act out the subsequent imperatives of Psalm 100. 

In her article "Ode to Joy," Stacy Horn provides an easily-to-understand description of the physiological occurrences during song, with links to supporting research. She writes:  

Music is awash with neurochemical rewards for working up the courage to sing. That rush, or “singer's high,” comes in part through a surge of endorphins, which at the same time alleviate pain. When the voices of the singers surrounding me hit my ear, I'm bathed in dopamine, a neurotransmitter in the brain that is associated with feelings of pleasure and alertness. Music lowers cortisol, a chemical that signals levels of stress. Studies have found that people who listened to music before surgery were more relaxed and needed less anesthesia, and afterward they got by with smaller amounts of pain medication. Music also releases serotonin, a neurotransmitter associated with feelings of euphoria and contentment.  “Every week when I go to rehearsal,” a choral friend told me, “I'm dead tired and don't think I'll make it until 9:30. But then something magic happens and I revive ... it happens almost every time.”  "Ohio State music professor David Huron believes singing may generate prolactin, which is released in nursing women, and in tears of sorrow. Prolactin has a tranquilizing, consoling effect, and this is why sad music makes us feel better, according to Huron. There's even evidence that singing about death not only feels good, it's good for you. Researchers discovered that a choir singing Mozart's Requiem showed an increase in s-IgA, an immunoglobulin that enhances our immune defense.It doesn't even matter if you can sing well. I can't. The best I can manage is singing in tune. Most of the time. Hopefully. One of my main goals in our weekly rehearsals is not being heard. Over the years I've become a master in the art of voice camouflage, perfecting a cunning combination of seat choice, head tilt, and volume. Luckily, in a 2005 study, investigators found that group singers experienced the same benefits even when “the sound produced by the vocal instrument is of mediocre quality.” It’s arguable whether my vocal instrument even reaches that level, but I’m happy to reap the benefits nonetheless.While any singing has rewards, there are reasons you should find a choir rather than simply singing in the shower and leaving it at that. Studies have found that group singing releases oxytocin, a chemical that manages anxiety and stress and, according to McGill University professor Daniel Levitin, enhances feelings of trust and bonding."

Singing physically makes it possible for us to come, know, enter, give thanks, and bless. More than that, group singing actually syncs us up physically, as reasearch has found that singers in a group actually sync up their heart rates. Now, if God's will for us is to do justice, to be in community with one another, singing together does so in a way that brings us together not just emotionally, but biologically.

In Psalm 100, humanity is instructed to make a joyful noise with the understanding that it is reorienting act. Most interpretation has focused on this in a theological or social way. But in a time of praise bands, of decreasingly participatory worship, and of rampant individualism, it seems that a reading of Psalm 100 from the biological effects of singing might just have a profound impact on how we worship. In a new way, Psalm 100 leads us into worship and instructs us about what worship is at a biological level.