Charles Ellicott Commentary Psalms 93:1

"Jehovah reigneth; he is clothed with majesty; Jehovah is clothed with strength; he hath girded himself therewith: The world also is established, that it cannot be moved." — Psalms 93:1 (ASV)

The Lord reigneth. —Compare to Psalms 97:1 and Psalms 99:1. A better rendering is Jehovah has become king: this is the usual term for ascending the throne (2 Samuel 15:10; 1 Kings 1:11; 1 Kings 1:13; 2 Kings 9:13).

This term is also used in Isaiah of the re-establishment of the State after the Captivity (Isaiah 24:23; Isaiah 52:7), and by the latest of Israel’s poets in that prophetic strain which looks beyond time and this world (Revelation 19:6).

The robing and girding with the sword were part of the ceremony of inauguration of a monarch’s reign (see Note on Psalms 45:3).

The Lord is clothed... —A better rendering of these clauses is: majesty he has put on: Jehovah has put (it) on: with strength has girded himself.

For the same representation of Jehovah as a warrior arranging himself for battle, compare Isaiah 59:17 and Isaiah 63:1, or as a monarch robed in splendour, Psalms 104:1.

The world also is established. —This phrase would better begin Psalms 93:3.

That the earth should be solidly seated in its hidden foundation is itself a marvel. However, this wonder is mentioned only to bring into greater relief the thought of the next verse: that the throne of God—to which the earth is only as a footstool (Isaiah 66:1)—has its foundation firm and everlasting, free from the vicissitudes which beset earthly monarchies.