Alleluia

And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God: For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand. And again they said, Alleluia And her smoke rose up for ever and ever. And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia. And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great. And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Revelation 19:1-6 (KJV) emphasis mine

Alleluia in this passage is the Greek word hellelouia, which is simply the Greek form of Hallelujah, meaning praise ye Jah. Jah is a shortened form of Jehovah, meaning the Lord. Alleluia, or hallelujah, is an expression of adoration for the Lord. It was only translated as alleluia by the King James translators four times in the Bible, here in Revelation 19. In the rest of the Bible, we typically see it expressed as “Praise ye the Lord.”

This passage is the New Testament Hallelujah chorus, just as we recognize Psalm 150 as the Old Testament Hallelujah chorus. The point is that all of creation in both heaven and earth are to praise the Lord.

Praise ye the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord. Psalm 150:1-6 (KJV) emphasis mine

Psalms 111, 112, and 113 all start with “Praise ye the Lord,” or Hallelujah. They are each a doxology, a short song of praise giving glory to God. Some of the Psalms begin with “Praise ye the Lord,” while others end with it. In whatever we do, at the start, the end, or in the middle, we are to praise the Lord.

In Revelation 19, we see them praising the Lord, keeping God at the center of their worship. As we praise, God, it will help us keep our focus on the Father, Son, and Spirit, giving them the honor due their name.

Alleluia! Hallelujah! Praise ye the Lord!