God is King!
Opening Prayer
Heavenly Father, today inject the truth of Your wisdom, love, holiness and sovereignty deep down into my heart.
Read PSALM 93
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
1 The Lord reigns, he is robed in majesty;
the Lord is robed in majesty and armed with strength;
indeed, the world is established, firm and secure.
2 Your throne was established long ago;
you are from all eternity.
3 The seas have lifted up, Lord,
the seas have lifted up their voice;
the seas have lifted up their pounding waves.
4 Mightier than the thunder of the great waters,
mightier than the breakers of the sea—
the Lord on high is mighty.
5 Your statutes, Lord, stand firm;
holiness adorns your house
for endless days.
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
The Lord is both powerful and dependable. We can trust his word and character (5). Celebrate his sovereignty. God is in control. We need not fear him but may join in the psalmist’s praise!
This is an enthronement psalm, celebrating the kingship (e.g., Psa. 5:2; 44:4; 47:7; 74:12; 95:3) of God. Many psalms proclaim God’s kingship and we can be fooled into thinking that Israel gladly acknowledged God as its king. However, as soon as Israel had settled in the promised land of Canaan it asked for a human king, thus rejecting God as its true King (1 Sam. 8:6,7). While God allows Israel’s wish, the monarchy turns out to be a disaster, with most of Israel’s kings failing to reflect God’s kingly rule and failing to lead the people in God’s ways. Nevertheless, the Old Testament announces a future Davidic King, who will reign with justice and righteousness forever (e.g., Isa. 9:7).
The New Testament thus continues the idea of God’s kingship in Jesus, the Davidic Messiah. The gospels tell the story of Jesus inaugurating and establishing the kingdom of God, but God’s kingdom is also Jesus’ kingdom and therefore Jesus is also king (John 18:36,37; cf. Eph. 5:5). The absurdity is that Jesus is made King on a cross. The cross is his throne; the crucifixion happens to be his coronation. The King we worship is the crucified One; a Servant-King, who is exalted after humiliation. What makes no sense to the world proves to be the wisdom of God (cf. 1 Cor. 2).
Then, at the end of time, after all his enemies are defeated, Jesus will hand back the kingdom to God the Father (1 Cor. 15:24–28). The glorious theme of God’s kingship reaches its climax in Revelation, with the Father and Son sharing the throne as co-regents—and their reign will last forever! Meanwhile, our King deserves nothing less than our total devotion.
God’s kingdom is in, but not of, this world: a kingdom of peace, joy and righteousness—but also subversive, upholding radically different beliefs, values and norms from the world.
Apply
For what, other than creation, does the psalmist praise God for? Why does the psalm end with praise for God’s statutes?
Closing prayer
Mighty God, I love You, I praise You, I celebrate You. You are King forever. I honor You as my Lord and master.
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