The glory of his name is a very difficult phrase to understand as the direct object of the verb Ascribe. Something like “Proclaim (or, Tell) how glorious (or, majestic) is the name of the LORD” is more meaningful (compare the discussion of 96.7-8a). And if name is taken to stand for “Yahweh” (see 5.11 and comments), then it is possible to translate as Bible en français courant has done: “Come proclaim the glory of the Lord.” The glory of his name must often be recast in such a form as “that his name is great” or “that he is great.”
The last phrase, translated in holy array, is variously understood. The Hebrew phrase appears here and in 96.9, and 1 Chronicles 16.29; the word translated array appears also in 2 Chronicles 20.21; Proverbs 14.28 (“glory”), and nowhere else in the Old Testament, and seems to mean “adornment.” Weiser has “when he appears in his sanctuary,” and Biblia Dios Habla Hoy “in his beautiful sanctuary.” New English Bible and New Jerusalem Bible have “the splendour of holiness”; Toombs “when he appears in his holiness”; New Jerusalem Bible “majestic in holiness”; Traduction œcuménique de la Bible “when his holiness shines forth”; New American Bible “in holy attire”; Bible en français courant “when he reveals his holiness”; and Dahood “when the Holy One appears.” The diversity of translations shows there is no agreement on the exact meaning of the phrase, and a translator should feel free to use the rendering that seems to best fit the context. If the translator follows Good News Translation‘s “Holy One,” meaning God, it is usually impossible to use the terms for “holy” which are associated with objects or with persons (see comment at 28.2). Some languages use such terms as bright, shining, pure, and brilliant. It is important to avoid using a term which has the central meaning of clean or cleansed.
Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Reyburn, William D. A Handbook on the Book of Psalms. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1991. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .