Psalms 99 and 100: I've reached the last enthronement psalm (99) of Book IV, followed by a hymn. Psalm 99 is slightly different from those previous, recalling the theological history of the Hebrew by invoking the names of "faithful intercessors for Israel" (HC Study Bible): Moses, Aaron, and Samuel. Like the other enthronment psalms, Ps. 99 begins with a declaration of God as king, referring again to the loss of the human king due to the exhile.
The words of Psalm 100 are familiar for several reasons -- many hymns and praise songs in current hymnody use these words, and because I've just read nearly the same text in the first five verses of Ps. 95. That one has more creation imagery, while the five short verses in Ps. 100 uses the sheep/shepherd imagery used earlier in the psalter (Ps. 23 for one) as well as kingly imagery in verse 4: "enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise. " My study Bible says verses 4 and 5, which summon people to praise and thanksgiving are a reflection of a prayer of thanksgiving.
The last verse is another theological affirmation of the mightiness and greatness of God: God is good, God's love endures forever, and so does God's faithfulness. Walker-Jones says this psalm calls for the worship of the God who has created us, an acknowledgement that God is king and the human monarchy has failed.
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Thanks for sharing your thoughts.