Ps. 100.1-2

Raise a shout / to Yhwh / all the earth
Serve Yhwh / with gladness
come before him / with joyful songs. 

 We have seen it in several of the preceding psalms: the ‘Name’ is revealed to Israel, and it resides in Zion, but it is ‘aimed’ at all the earth. Its objective, through Israel, is to be revealed to “all the people”. We have variously described this process as Adam-izing and Zion-izing the earth—Adam-izing the people and Zion-izing creation, such that all people will be Adam-priests in Creation-as-now-Temple. In many other psalms this ‘drama’ or process moves from Israel to the nations. Here, the psalm begins, directly from the outset, with “all the earth” “raising a shout to Yhwh”. In other words, this psalm begins at what is ‘Act 2 (or 3)’ of many other psalms—the point at which all of creation enters in praise to “the name”.  This is “the beginning of the beginning” (not, the end). Along these lines, what we will see, is that this psalm is very similar to other psalms that follow a pilgrim’s journey further into the Temple. Again—this is key—this is not simply Israel approaching the Temple, but “all the earth”. This is the ‘new Eden’, that place to which and from which the ‘image of God’ dwells and walks with God. Importantly, at this ‘beginning’ (both of the psalm and theologically), the earth “comes before Yhwh” awash in gladness and joy. This is the mark of creation’s redemption—that it “shouts” to Yhwh; that its service to him is “in gladness”; and its songs are “joyful”. It should be said that this is a ‘type of homecoming’ because, as indicated above, this is ‘Adam’ coming home to ‘Eden’. ‘All the earth’ comes home to itself, when it comes ‘before Yhwh’ in his Temple.