A Psalm of David. Chapter 24
1 The earth is the LORD's and the fullness thereof,
the world and those who dwell therein,
2 for he has founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the rivers.
3 Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD?
And who shall stand in his holy place?
4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not lift up his soul to what is false
and does not swear deceitfully.
5 He will receive blessing from the LORD
and righteousness from the God of his salvation.
6 Such is the generation of those who seek him,
who seek the face of the God of Jacob. Selah
7 Lift up your heads, O gates!
And be lifted up, O ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
8 Who is this King of glory?
The LORD, strong and mighty,
the LORD, mighty in battle!
9 Lift up your heads, O gates!
And lift them up, O ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
10 Who is this King of glory?
The LORD of hosts,
he is the King of glory! Selah
This Psalm starts out by reminding us of the exhaustive ownership and Lordship of Yahweh. Living beings and nonliving things, animate objects and inanimate objects alike, everything exists for the proclamation of the glory of our Creator. Small wonder when the Lord said that the stones were at risk of crying out for his glory upon his triumphant entry into Jerusalem in Luke 19.
The Psalmist describes the old world science view of the earthbound observer, where God establishes the earth upon the waters below in v.2; then he asks the question ‘who will be welcome in His presence?’ And his answer is given: one with clean hands and a pure heart.
Did the Psalmist truly believe he met those qualifications? In Psalm 18, an early emboldened David proclaimed “According to the cleanness of my hands (God) has recompensed me...I was also blameless with Him, And I kept myself from my iniquity,” suggesting that he did. However a later humbled and disgraced David proclaims in Psalm 51 “I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me...deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, the God of my salvation;”. So which David wrote Psalm 24? The one with ‘clean hands’, or the one with blood on his hands and sin in his heart? Who may ascend to the holy hill where Yahweh resides?
The answer is given to us by describing one who ascends to Zion, entering city gates and doors that are responding to his victorious approach. Like rocks crying out to break the deafening silence. When this King of Glory rides into His city a victorious king, a rapturous praise will emerge such that even the ancient doors and gates will lift their heads! But who is this King of Glory, shrouded in messianic mystery in David’s song?
David epitomizes what a godly king should do. Many kings shrink their worldview into believing that they are the most glorious beings alive. The annals of history are filled with ‘great’ kings or emperors who lived (then died and lived no more) demanding the praises of their subjects. But when David asks ‘Who is this King of glory?’, he gives the answer: the LORD - Yahweh. God warned the people of Israel of the tendencies of a tyrant king when they first demanded that Samuel appoint a king over them in 1 Samuel 8, then they got a taste of what that looked like with Saul. All before giving them their first glimpse at what a messianic king would look like. However, David knew that he wasn’t the true Glorious King that Israel needed. He was merely an emissary - a stand in - for the one True King.