Catholic Commentary on Psalm 99

"Exalt the LORD our God and worship at his holy mountain, for the LORD our God is holy." (Psalm 99:9)

Holy, Holy, Holy

Psalm 99, the last of the enthronement psalms, is structured around three stanzas, each ending with a declaration of holiness: he is holy. This triple declaration is the liturgical ancestor of the Sanctus, the Holy, Holy, Holy that the Church has sung at every Eucharist since the earliest centuries, drawn from the vision of Isaiah 6 and the doxology of Revelation 4. The holiness of God is not one attribute among many. It is the attribute that qualifies all the others: his love is holy love, his justice is holy justice, his mercy is holy mercy.

The psalm recalls how God spoke to Moses and Aaron and Samuel in the pillar of cloud, how he answered them and was a forgiving God to them while punishing their misdeeds. This combination is important: forgiveness and consequence coexist in the holy God. He does not overlook wrongdoing in his mercy, nor does he withhold mercy in his justice. The Catechism presents divine holiness as the ground of both his mercy and his judgment: because he is holy, sin is taken with full seriousness, and because he is holy, redemption is freely offered (CCC 208).

Living the Word

Brothers and sisters, the thrice-holy God of Psalm 99 is the God you approach every time you receive the Eucharist. The Sanctus is not merely a beautiful piece of liturgical music. It is the declaration of who is present on the altar. Come with your shoes off, so to speak. Come with reverence. He is holy.

Prayer

Holy, holy, holy is the LORD God Almighty. Great is his name in Zion and his holiness is beyond our comprehension. We exalt you, we worship at your holy mountain, we bow before the one whose name is holy and awesome. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.