Jesus throughout the Scriptures: Psalms 2 (7)
Pray Psalm 24.3-6.
Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD?
Or who may stand in His holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol,
Nor sworn deceitfully.
He shall receive blessing from the LORD,
And righteousness from the God of his salvation.
This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him,
Who seek Your face.
Selah
Sing Psalm 24.3-6.
(Foundation: How Firm a Foundation )
O who may ascend to the LORD’s holy place?
And who may appear to His glorious face?
All they who are clean in their hearts and their hands
and true in their souls with the Savior shall stand.
A blessing all they from the LORD shall receive
who seek Him and on His salvation believe.
For these are His people, the children of grace,
who earnestly, eagerly seek for His face
Read Psalm 24.1-10; meditate on verses 7-10.
Preparation
1. To what do the “gates” and “doors” refer?
2. From the psalm, what do we know about this King?
Meditation
This psalm of David may have been used to celebrate his bringing the ark back to Jerusalem (2 Sam. 6.12-15). The ark of the tabernacle was the “mercy seat” where God sat to receive the petitions of His people made by the high priest. It was regarded as the Presence of the Lord, making God “Immanuel”, the God Who dwelled among His people and was with them.
All were allowed to come before the holy of holies in the tabernacle, behind which the ark was situated, to bring praise, worship, and offerings to the Lord. If they came with clean hands and a pure heart, and if they had not lifted their hands up to an idol nor sworn deceitfully to their neighbors, they could be assured of a blessing from the Lord: He would declare them righteous and grant them His salvation.
Now that King of glory has taken up residence in the soul of everyone who believes in Him. Jesus dwells in us by His Spirit and Word in all their fullness. Yet He arrives day by day, as it were, to claim more of His dwelling as His own—more of our soul and life, that we might be made more like Him and be more faithful in our calling to His Kingdom and glory (1 Thess. 2.12).
We open the gates and raise the doors of our soul as we come humbly, expectantly, earnestly, and with rejoicing before the Word of God, that it may penetrate the depths of our being to show us Jesus and make us more like Him.
Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
The Word of God penetrates “the depths of our being to show us Jesus and make us more like Him.”
“The Word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to Whom we must give account” (Heb. 4.12, 13).
So, we may as well go into it willingly, determinedly, and joyfully, so that we may become more like Jesus. For there is nothing more important than that. Spending intimate time in, and with, the Word of God is the most important thing we can do to grow, and to work out our own salvation in fear and trembling (Phil. 2.12). “They are not just idle words for you—they are your life” (Deut. 32.47 NIV).
As Solomon encouraged his own son, God also encourages us, about His words:
“My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings.
Do not let them depart from your eyes; keep them in the midst of your heart;
For they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh.
Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life” (Prov. 4.20-23).
When we dwell on this King of glory, we see what living in the Kingdom is all about.
When we meditate on, when we watch Jesus, in all the ways He lived within His Personal Mission Field, we get a glimpse of what it is like to please the Father.
Jesus had clean hands and a pure heart.
Jesus never lifted up His soul to an idol.
Jesus never lied.
Jesus never broke one commandment.
Not inwardly or outwardly.
Our King is perfect.
Jesus, the Word, became flesh and dwelt among us, “and we beheld His glory,
the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (Jn. 1.14).
And we behold His glory in the Word.
“Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD?
Or who may stand in His holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, nor sworn deceitfully.
He shall receive blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation” (Ps. 24.3-5).
“And the King of glory shall come in” (Ps. 24.9)!
Into my heart, into my heart,
Come into my heart, Lord Jesus;
Come in today,
Come in to stay,
Come into my heart, Lord Jesus.
(Wieand/Clarke, 1924)
Reflection
1. Why is Jesus the “King of glory”? What is glory and how does it relate to your walk with and work for Jesus?
2. What can you do to encourage your fellow Christians to spend more time with Jesus in His Word?
3. Since the earth and everything in it belongs to Jesus, how does that obligate you in your part of His world?
We may apply it to Christ’s entrance into the souls of men by his word and Spirit, that they may be his temples. Behold, he stands at the door, and knocks, Revelation 3:20. The gates and doors of the heart are to be opened to him, as possession is delivered to the rightful owner. Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on Psalm 24.7-10
Pray Psalm 24.1, 2, 7-10.
Pray that the Father will open the gates and doors of your soul to receive more of Jesus, as He is revealed in His Word, so that you may be made more like Him day by day.
Sing Psalm 24.1, 2, 7-10.
(Foundation: How Firm a Foundation )
The earth is the LORD’s, as is all it contains;
all the world and its peoples He daily sustains.
He founded it fast on the seas long ago,
and bid gentle rivers throughout it to flow.
O lift up your heads, all you gates of the soul,
for the Savior would enter and render you whole!
The LORD strong and mighty in battle draws nigh;
He rules in His glory above us on high.
O Who is this King, Who approaches our gate?
His might is before us, His glory is great!
This King is the LORD of all glory above,
Who comes to indwell us in mercy and love!
T. M. and Susie Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
For more teaching about the subject of this series, “Jesus throughout the Scriptures”, download our free ReVision study, “We Would See Jesus”, by clicking here.
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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
