A doxology is a hymn of praise ascribing glory to God. Scripture includes many doxological expressions, and several traditional doxologies have developed through use in the historic liturgies of the church. In Christian usage, doxologies are often ascriptions of praise to the Trinity; they constitute an important element in the acts of entrance.
Doxologies in Scripture
The word doxology comes from the Greek doxa, “praise, honor, glory,” and logos, “a speaking, a saying, a word”; hence, it means “a praising, ascription of glory.” In the general sense, the term describes any act of Christian worship that is a verbal declaration of the glory and majesty of God.
Since the Bible is the literary deposit of the covenant people’s experience of the glorious Lord, it is not surprising that doxologies abound in Scripture. In the Old Testament, for example, each of the first four books of the Psalter ends with a doxology (Pss. 41:13; 72:18–20; 89:52; 106:48); Psalm 150, in which the expression praise appears thirteen times, is the concluding doxology for the entire collection of Psalms. Other notable doxologies include that with which David began his prayer at the ascension of Solomon:
Praise be to you, O Lord, God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. Now, our God, we give you thanks and praise your glorious name. (1 Chron. 29:10–13)
The opening words of David’s doxology are echoed in the traditional doxology that ends the prayer Jesus gave his disciples for a model: “For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen” (Matt. 6:13). Although these words do not appear in the oldest Greek manuscripts, they may have been added from liturgical usage in the ancient church, a usage that could have originated in the first century and is certainly consistent with the thrust of the Lord’s Prayer.
Doxologies occur elsewhere in the New Testament, beginning with the narrative of the birth of Jesus, in which Luke records the doxology of the hosts of heaven: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests” (Luke 2:14). The disciples praise God with a variant of this doxology during Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem (Luke 19:37–38). Doxologies also occur in the Epistles; Paul’s letters contain a number of spontaneous doxological outbursts (Rom. 11:36; 16:27; Eph. 3:21; 1 Tim. 1:17). The longest and most comprehensive doxology in the New Testament, and one frequently used as a benediction by pastors, is found in the brief letter of Jude:
To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power, and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen. (Jude 24–25)
In the Revelation to John, the chorus, led by the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders, inserts a number of doxologies into the drama at appropriate points. After the Lamb has taken the book of the seven seals, John hears all created beings ascribing glory to God: “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!” (Rev. 5:13). Another doxological outburst begins in Revelation 19:1: “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God.… ”