This sermon is from the Rev. Charles G. Dennison sermon archive, part of the “Misc. OT Sermons” series, and was preached at Grace Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Sewickley, PA, during a worship service on Sunday, September 6, 1998.
About this sermon
Readers take Psalm 24 in several ways, and the right reading sees God becoming victorious Lord first in creation, then in redemption. The psalm answers the hostile voice that asks ‘who is this King of glory’ in verses 8 and 10. Creation and redemption form one continuous act of the same Lord.
Sermon transcript
The earth is the Lord’s and the fulness thereof, the world and they that dwell therein. For he hath founded it upon the seas and established it upon the floods. Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord, or who shall stand in his holy place? He that hath clean hands and a pure heart, who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn defeatfully. he shall receive the blessing from the Lord and righteousness from the God of his salvation.
This is the generation of them that seek him, that seek thy face, O Jacob. Lift up your heads, O ye gates, and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of Glory shall come in.” Who is this King of Glory? The war of strong and mighty, the war of mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O ye gates, even lift them up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of Glory shall come in.” Who is this King of Glory? The Lord of Hosts. He is the King of Glory.
Psalm 24 has been called, perhaps, the most challenging and thought-provoking of the Psalms. For that reason alone, I’m drawn to it. One reason why this is described as the most challenging and thought-provoking of the Psalms is because of its explicit dramatic quality. And you note that, accented for us at the conclusion of the psalm, the antiphonal structure of this psalm, the voices back and forth. at the conclusion of this psalm. But another reason why this has been described as the most challenging and thought-provoking of psalms is what people perceive immediately upon hearing it or reading it.
That is, its overt disjointedness. or what J. A. Alexander described as its unconnected parts. But even here there have been arguments. Just how many unconnected parts are there? Some, such as Alexander, say two, verses 1 through 6, and then verses 7 through 10. Others, however, say three unconnected parts, verses 1 and 2, verses 3 through 6, and then verses 7 through 10.
Those dividing the psalm this way have noted the radical disjunctions between verses 2 and 3, where one moment We’re talking about creation and the next moment we’re talking about who will ascend God’s holy hill. But as well, these who divide the psalm note the disjunction between verses 3 through 6 and 7 through 10. In the former verses, it is man who ascends the holy hill. In the latter verses, it is God who ascends the holy hill.
But there is also the spectrum of opinion about these parts themselves. Are these divisions actually entirely different psalms, composed even centuries apart, then pasted together for liturgical use? as the liberals, or many liberals, have contended.
Or is there an integrality to this song? An integrality which, despite the apparent unconnected parts, rises from a common hand and a unified vision? If we go in the direction of the common hand and the unified vision, What might we conclude is that unified vision, that consistent theme woven throughout? It has been suggested that the unifying theme in Psalm 24 comes from specific historical events in the life of Israel as a nation. In view, so it is thought, is a yearly enthronement festival in which Israel’s king was regularly honored as a figure whose ascension to the throne provided a picture for God’s triumph over all his enemies.
The problem with this interpretation is not the central theological point which those responsible for it discern in the psalm. Rather, the difficulties are the lengths to which a number of these interpreters have gone to ground this psalm in ancient pagan myths, which the Hebrews have borrowed from their unbelieving neighbors. And, as well, the annoying little fact that there is not the least shred of evidence that Israel ever commemorated in regular festival style the ascension of their present king to the throne. But if a yearly infirmament festival does not provide a unifying theme, what about something more redemptively historically sensitive?
What about grounding this psalm in 2 Samuel 6? and its account of the movement of the Ark of the Covenant from the house of Abinadab to the house of Obed-Edom, and then to Jerusalem where it finally rested. But even at this point, as attractive as this approach is, it lacks unanimity among exegetes and remains still, at best, a conjecture. It may be of interest to you that neither Augustine nor Calvin mention the history of the Ark of the Covenant, its ascent of God’s holy hill, or its approach to Jerusalem’s gates in their exegesis.
Calvin, for instance, moves his interpretation away from the specific event of the Ark’s ascent to the more general history of the movement from tabernacle-centered worship to temple-centered worship in Israel’s history. Calvin’s point being that God has now intensified the emblem of his presence among his people, moving from tabernacle to temple. As God makes it plain that although he is the creator and governor of all mankind, he has chosen the children of Abraham, among whom are those who fear him in sincerity and are prepared to receive the blessings of his greater visitation.” That is, the greater visitation now made evident in the establishment of the temple. Calvin says the movement reflected in the psalm replicates the movement from the tabernacle era to the temple era. but that this movement itself anticipates a greater movement still, out of the shadows of the Old Testament administration as a whole, into the even more scrutinizing and glorious administration of Christ and his Church.
Calvin ends his exposition of Psalm 24 on this sobering note. The God who has come to us in Christ through the word and sacraments of the Church cannot but at length utterly withdraw himself from us if we, in our detestable pride, despise his means of grace. But while Calvin may point us to the patient development in the Old Testament itself, And then, through the patient development from the Old Testament to the New Testament, Augustine cuts directly to the chase.
Augustine picks up on the Septuagint superscription for this psalm, which says that this psalm was, quote, for the first day of the week, unquote. The Jewish rabbis, in working off of this superscription, connected the psalm specifically to the creation of the world, mentioned in verses 1 and 2. The first day of the week, of course, being the beginning of creation. But Augustine would see in this superscription nothing other than a reference to Christ’s resurrection.
In this psalm, therefore, Augustine sees David touching the resurrection of our world, which took place on the first day of the week, now called the Lord’s Day. The earth, mentioned at the beginning of this psalm, now belonging to the Lord, is the realm of the risen Lord’s universal reign in his Church. The ascent of the hill of the Lord, spoken of beginning in verse 3, is then access into the Church.
The gates of obstruction, spoken of beginning in verse 7, are those temporarily belonging to the earth’s rulers and spiritual powers who would block the believer’s access to eternal life and the blessings of conversion. These, indeed, are powers in the administration of this world,” concludes Augustine. But the Lord of powers, he is the King of Glory.
Well, as you can see, this Psalm, Psalm 24, has generated great discussion and diverse opinion. And to those that we have already mentioned, we might well add the poetical interpretation of Cecil Francis Alexander, whose hymn we sang this morning, hymn number 214, which applies Psalm 24 to not the resurrection of Christ, but to his ascension. But where does all of this leave us?
You may have found yourself even momentarily resonating to the approach which saw as central to this psalm the enthronement of the King of Israel, minus, of course, you being of conservative stripe, any dependence upon pagan festival cycles, because, again, given your conservative predilections the profound messianic reach of these words into the New Testament unit itself to proclaim to you Christ and his service. At the same time, you may have been drawn to the hypothesis concerning the arts movement from the House of Abinadab to Jerusalem. You may have even been more impressed by the direction of Calvin’s comments and then found yourself hardly prepared to dismiss Augustine’s perspective. In the midst of all of this then, you may be asking yourself, am I able to come to a settled position on this form at all?
A perspective on the unifying theme of this portion of scripture. Is it possible? You might well ask further. to draw together the valuable insights of all of these approaches. Can I coordinate them somehow? Can I bring them together into a cohesive whole?
Maybe what would be more helpful for you would be something of a clearing of the board. To this end, let me lay aside the various suggestions I have made this evening. In fact, let me be bold and say that Psalm 24 is not in the first place about the festivities surrounding the sacral kingship of Israel, but neither is it in the first place about Israel’s king, nor is it to begin with about the movement of the Ark of the Covenant from place to place. or the movement from tabernacle administration to temple administration, or even in fine prophetic style, about the resurrection and the ascension of Jesus Christ. Now, I know what you’re thinking. This whole thing appears to be a hopeless muddle. So many conflicting opinions, so many attitudes, so many approaches.
What are we to do? It may well seem that, first of all, I’m suggesting to you that you draw together all the approaches that you’ve heard this evening, but then I go on and ask you to discard them all. Well, which is it? Do we incorporate them all, or do we discard them all? Well, actually, it’s both.
What I want from you initially is a clearing of the table, and then a rebuilding appreciative of the various suggestions that you’ve heard. a rebuilding appreciative, that is, to the extent that the text itself will allow. So what is left for us when we clear the table? What is left for us when we clear the table?
Simply this. is about God. The psalm is about God. It is not about festivals. It is not even about the King of Israel. It is not about the movement of the the movement from tabernacle to temple administration, the movement from Old Testament to New. It is not about Christ’s resurrection and ascension.
First of all, it is about God Himself. Psalm 24 is about God becoming the victorious Lord. In the first place, it is about God becoming the victorious Lord in the creation of the world, and then, for his people’s sake, asserting his regained Lordship in his gracious accomplishment of redemption on their behalf. Psalm 24 is about God becoming the victorious Lord in the creation of the world, and then, for His people’s sake, asserting His regained Lordship in His gracious accomplishment of redemption on behalf of His elect. In a brief overview, then, which we will unpack in future messages, we see God in verses 1 and 2 triumphing at the creation over the chaotic seas and brooding floods.
God has gone to war, so to speak, against And in his activity, he has become Lord now in a sense in which he was not Lord previously. The movement is in the Lord himself. The movement is in God himself. The earth and its contents, the world and all who dwell in it, belong to him because he has become Lord by his triumph over opposing forces.” He has become Lord over opposing forces, and that’s specifically focused in the creation. Verses 1 and 2.
But now, while all in the world belong to him, and the world in its entirety, who then will be judged worthy to stand in the presence of this awesome King?” The language that is introduced to us here in verses 3-6 is reflective of Israel’s legal relationship to God, her relationship to the Lord via the law, and the hope she has with respect to her own integrity. But implied here is her failure. a failure which becomes the opportunity for the Lord to gain again his Lordship, this time by a voluntary condescension to his people’s level, that he, on their behalf, might ascend the hill of holiness for them. This time, to claim his Lordship, even establish it, to have it proclaimed, not in reference but in open defiance of hostile, doomed spiritual powers claiming lordship for themselves.”
Verses 7 through 10. If you have not caught it in the way in which I read the psalm, I will make it explicit for you now. When you get to the conclusion of this psalm, verses 7 through 10, the voice that comes from behind the gates, behind the doors, is not a friendly voice. It is a hostile voice. Who is this King of Glory? It is a voice of utter contempt, challenging the right of the one who has made himself water-fresh to enter into that which is his. You see, then, the direction that we are going with our interpretation of this psalm, and how this is going to work itself out in terms of the statement of a marvelous drama that sweeps the span of the entire biblical story.
And now, having cleared the table, we are ready to appreciate and appropriate even the place of Israel’s king, his significance, what significance does he have? The movement of the ark from one place to another, the transition from tabernacle administration to temple administration, even the transition from Old Testament to New. We are able in light of this to appreciate now the resurrection and the ascension of Jesus Christ. the scope presented in this psalm, there is presented to us the whole of the drama. And now all the features that we have spoken of this evening have their place and reveal their meaning.
The God who became more than creation, then circumstance for his people’s sake, asserts his regained lordship in his gracious accomplishment of their redemption.” This is Psalm 24, and what a blessing it will be for us to explore the riches of this song together. Let us pray. our God, the greatness of your word, the reach of it, we are carried by it, Lord, beyond points that we would have imagined were impossible for us. Even as your word and this psalm in particular give expression to the full range of your revelatory and redemptive intention. Wrapped up, O God, in ten brief verses, a declaration of the entirety of the biblical drama from creation to redemption.
And that, Lord, even as we are brought to the gates of heaven and to that position to which our God himself has come for us, that we might ascend, sinners that we are, the fill of the O God, not only how glorious, but how comforting that we, Lord, are considered by you, and because of your great love for us, you have become as we are. You have made yourself one of us, that we, through the perfections of your obedience and through the regaining of your Lordship, might enjoy the glories of heaven. Bless us, O Father, your children, as we approach the table now and partake in your name.
The sermon text provided above is derived from the sermon audio recording making use of generative tools. It has not been manually edited. While transcription tools have a high degree of accuracy, the output may include generative textual, punctuation, and/or formatting errors.