Psalm 99, the last of the kingship psalms, proclaims, “The Lord hath reigned, let the people be angry: he that sitteth on the cherubims: let the earth be moved,” and repeats like a refrain that God is holy. It invites us: “Exalt ye the Lord our God, and adore his footstool, for it is holy.” In the Douay-Rheims it is numbered Psalm 98. Below is the full Catholic text, what the psalm means, how the Church uses it, and a prayer.
Psalm 99 in the Douay-Rheims Bible
A psalm for David himself. The Lord hath reigned, let the people be angry: he that sitteth on the cherubims: let the earth be moved.
The Lord is great in Sion, and high above all people.
Let them give praise to thy great name: for it is terrible and holy:
And the king’s honour loveth judgment. Thou hast prepared directions: thou hast done judgment and justice in Jacob.
Exalt ye the Lord our God, and adore his footstool, for it is holy.
Moses and Aaron among his priests: and Samuel among them that call upon his name. They called upon the Lord, and he heard them:
He spoke to them in the pillar of the cloud. They kept his testimonies, and the commandment which he gave them.
Thou didst hear them, O Lord our God: thou wast a merciful God to them, and taking vengeance on all their inventions.
Exalt ye the Lord our God, and adore at his holy mountain: for the Lord our God is holy.
Psalm 99 or Psalm 98?
The Douay-Rheims Bible follows the numbering of the Latin Vulgate and the Greek Septuagint, while most modern Bibles follow the Hebrew. So the Douay’s Psalm 98 is Psalm 99 in the New American Bible and other modern translations. In Latin the psalm begins Dominus regnavit, irascantur populi. See how many psalms are there?
“Adore his footstool”
In the Temple, God’s “footstool” was the Ark of the Covenant beneath the cherubim. St. Augustine, puzzling over how one may adore a footstool without idolatry, found the answer in Christ: the earth is God’s footstool (Isaias 66:1), and Christ took flesh from the earth and gives us that flesh to eat. “No one eats that flesh,” Augustine wrote, “unless he has first adored it.” His commentary became a classic text on the adoration of Christ in the Eucharist. See Eucharistic adoration prayers.
What the psalm means
- God is King: enthroned on the cherubim, great in Sion.
- “Holy is he”: the refrain sounds three times, like the Sanctus.
- A King who loves justice: “the king’s honour loveth judgment.”
- Intercessors: Moses, Aaron and Samuel called on God, and he answered them.
- Forgiving and just: “thou wast a merciful God to them.”
How the Church uses Psalm 99
- In the Liturgy of the Hours.
- Before the Blessed Sacrament, as a psalm of adoration.
- With the other kingship psalms (93, 95–98). See Christ the King Sunday.
A prayer with Psalm 99
Written for this page:
The Lord is King; let the earth tremble before him.
Holy are you, Lord our God, enthroned above the cherubim.
I bow down and adore you, present in the Most Holy Eucharist.
Answer us as you answered Moses, Aaron and Samuel, for you are holy. Amen.
Frequently asked questions
What does “worship at his footstool” mean?
The footstool was the Ark of the Covenant in the Temple; St. Augustine applied it to the flesh of Christ, adored in the Eucharist.
What is Psalm 99 about?
God’s holy kingship over the world and his faithfulness to those who call on him.
More psalms and prayers
Texts and sources
- Scripture: Psalm 98 (99); Isaias 66:1, Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner), public domain.
- The prayer was written for this page.