John Calvin Commentary Psalms 96:6

"Honor and majesty are before him: Strength and beauty are in his sanctuary." — Psalms 96:6 (ASV)

Strength and honor are before him: I translate the Hebrew word הוד, hod, as strength, and I think those interpreters who render it glory have not properly considered the context. It is evident that the next part of the verse is a repetition, and there it reads, Power and Glory are in his sanctuary. The Psalmist means that we cannot be said to know God if we have not discovered that there is in him an incomparable glory and majesty.

He first takes notice of his power and strength, as that in which his glory consists. There, as God is invisible, he directs the thoughts of his people to the sanctuary, which we have already seen to be the symbol of his presence. Such is the weakness of our minds that we rise with difficulty to the contemplation of his glory in the heavens. The Psalmist reminds us that we have no reason to say that his glory is obscure, since there were emblems of his presence in the temple, the sacrifices, and the ark of the covenant. Let us endeavor, when we speak of God, to conceive of this glory which shines before him — otherwise, if we do not apprehend his power, it is a dead God rather than a living God whom we worship.