“Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth; Break forth in song, rejoice, and sing praises.” – Psalm 98:4, NKJV

Years ago, I was a member of a church that was situated across the road from a traditional leader’s house.

Then one day, we were shocked to find the entire road blocked to prevent access to the church.

We were told that the traditional leader was tired of the church ‘making noise’ for him.

Worldwide, Balokole (Born Again Christians) are despised and sometimes even hated because of their characteristic ‘noise-making.’

This is because the services of most traditional religions are comparatively silent, which they call being ‘reverent.’

However, our meditation today admonishes believers to “shout joyfully to the LORD.”

This implies that when believers shout, they’re not shouting to themselves or to the listeners; they are shouting to the LORD.

Psalm 47:1; “Oh, clap your hands, all you peoples! Shout to God with the voice of triumph!”

Biblically, ‘shouting’ is the preferred response to the coming of the King. Zechariah 9:9 says; “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem!  Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation.”

Shouting is a weapon of war. The great walls of Jericho crumbled when all the people “shouted with a great shout” (Joshua 6:20-21).

“Oh, clap your hands, all you peoples! Shout to God with the voice of triumph!”

I really like the portion of Scripture in 1 Samuel 4:5-7: “And when the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD came into the camp, all Israel shouted so loudly that the earth shook. Now when the Philistines heard the noise of the shout, they said, “What does the sound of this great shout in the camp of the Hebrews mean?” Then they understood that the Ark of the LORD had come into the camp. So, the Philistines were afraid, for they said, “God has come into the camp!” And they said, “Woe to us! For such a thing has never happened before.”

Like it did to the cultural leader I mentioned earlier, shouting scares the living lights out of the heathen.

According to Zephaniah 3:14-15, shouting is a prophetic act: “Sing, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O Israel!  Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!  The LORD has taken away your judgments, He has cast out your enemy.  The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; You shall see disaster no more.”

Our Lord Jesus did not have a problem with noise and shouts of joy; He actually encouraged it.

Luke 19:37 – 40 says that when Jesus came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen.”

As usual, some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, tell your disciples to shut up!”

Then Jesus replied, “If they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”

Indeed, apart from people, the Bible also admonishes; “Shout, O heavens and rejoice, O earth” (Psalm 49:13).

According to scientists, nature, indeed the entire universe, is not silent.  

The planets, oceans and deserts are unapologetically noisy as creation continually praises their Maker.

Neither is heaven silent, you know.

Revelation 14:2-3 says; “And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps. And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders.”

I guess the Christians who detest noise in Church would most likely be very uncomfortable in heaven as well.

It’s okay and biblical to make a joyful noise to the Lord!