Who shall ascend into the mount of Jehovah? and who shall stand in his holy place?
Psalm 24 opens by declaring that the whole earth is God's. Then it turns to people: verse 3 asks twice over who may come up to where He is.
Verse 3 is not a change of subject. The earth belongs to the Lord, so the next question is who will govern it for Him:
"The earth is the LORD's and the fullness thereof" is the proclamation of Psalm 24. Then the challenge goes out: "Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD?" That is, who will take the government of this earth and all that fills it? The answer comes by another challenge to the city gates: lift up your heads to the Lord of hosts, the King of glory.
The verse names two places, and they are not the same. One writer ties the question to Christ's own perfection:
The kingdom of Christ will be the answer, not only to His rights as Creator, but to the perfect life He lived. The hill — Mount Zion — speaks of the reign of righteousness established in grace. The holy place speaks of the temple, and access to God in worship. Who then is morally fit to reign over men from Zion, and who can approach God in His temple?
Verse 4 answers with two marks: clean hands and a pure heart. One writer explains what each one means, and which one leads:
In Psalm 24 we read, "Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD? And who shall stand in His holy place?" The condition is that he must have "clean hands" — that points to righteousness — and "a pure heart" — that points to holiness. The pure heart governs the movements of the clean hands.
Another writer links the question to the evil God has already put down, and to what daily life shows:
Rampant evil has been put down: "who" now "shall ascend the hill of the LORD? And who shall stand in His holy place?" The answer is clear: it is the one who has clean hands and a pure heart. His daily life is no religious act, but the real index of the man himself.
The challenge reaches further than hands and heart:
The demand which this challenge makes is very sweeping. It reviews hands, heart, soul and mouth, and it demands perfect holiness. Of all the millions who have walked the earth, only One has ever shown holiness like this. There has been this One, and so He enjoys what we may call the freedom of the house. Its doors are flung wide open before Him, and He is free to enter. Not only does He enter, He enters in a blaze of glory, and as the leader of a host of people joined to Him.
The psalm does not end with one man alone. The same writer asks where the others get their fitness:
So, after all, there are to be others who answer the challenge and finally stand in His holy place. There is to be this "generation of those who seek Him" (verse 6), and holiness marks them too. They have become what He always was in His own perfection. Their clean hands and pure heart are the result of a work of God, both for them and in them.
One writer marks out where this hill is, and what the climb does not mean:
Verse 3 asks, "Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD?" This is not about entering heaven. It is about entering the earthly blessing of the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus. The answer draws a sharp line. "He who has clean hands and a pure heart" means the hands must be free from evil works, and the heart free from evil thoughts.
- Ownership asks. Because the earth belongs to the Lord, the psalm asks at once who may come up to His hill. It is a question about who will govern it and who may draw near.
- Two places. The hill points to a reign of righteousness from Zion; the holy place points to the temple and access to God in worship.
- One standard. Clean hands mean righteousness, a pure heart means holiness — and the heart is what steers the hands.
- One qualifier. The demand covers hands, heart, soul and mouth. Only One has ever met it. The doors open wide, and He enters as leader of a company joined to Him.
- Many follow. A whole generation who seek God stand there too. Their clean hands and pure heart come from God's work for them and in them.
He that hath blameless hands and a pure heart; who lifteth not up his soul unto vanity, nor sweareth deceitfully
Psalm 24 opens by declaring that the earth and everything in it belongs to the Lord. It then asks who may climb His hill and stand in His holy place. Verse 4 is the answer. It sets out four tests: hands, heart, soul and speech.
The question names two places, and each stands for something different.
The hill — Mount Zion — speaks of the reign of righteousness established in grace. The holy place speaks of the temple, and access to God in worship. Who then is morally fit to reign over men from Zion, and who can approach God in His temple?
Many readers take this psalm as a test for getting into heaven. One writer answers that directly:
This is not a question of entering heaven, but of entering the earthly blessing of the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus.
Another writer looks ahead to that day:
after_note: none
The hill of the Lord and His holy place will stand high among people. So the question comes: who will be fit to climb the one, or to stand in the other? Verses 4 and 5 give the answer. The fitness required is moral fitness. Those holy places are kept for the holy — those whose hands are clean, whose hearts are pure, who have turned away from all vanity and deceit.
The two words are not a repetition. They point to different things, and they stand in a fixed order.
The requirement is that he must have "clean hands" — that points to righteousness; and "a pure heart" — that points to holiness. The pure heart governs the movements of the clean hands.
That order is what rules out mere show. Hands can be scrubbed in public; the heart cannot.
It is not enough to cleanse the hands; we must also judge the evil of our hearts. The Pharisees could make a great show of outward cleansing by washing their hands, but the Lord has to say, "Their heart is far from Me" (Mark 7:3, 6). The one who ascends the hill of the Lord and stands in His holy place must have "clean hands and a pure heart" (Ps. 24:4). The heart is where the Christian's affections live. They need to be cleared of everything that does not fit God's will.
The third test reaches the inner life. The ESV says "who does not lift up his soul to what is false." Older translations say "unto vanity." One writer traces that emptiness back to its root:
The answer is clear. It is the one who has clean hands and a pure heart. His daily life is not an outward show of religion, but the true index of the man himself. He "has not lifted up his soul to vanity." Pride, more than anything else, ties in with that emptiness and ends in it. As one has said, "the moment we step out of our nothingness, we step into it." Nor has he "sworn deceitfully."
The fourth test concerns the tongue. All four tests assume an audience who cannot be fooled.
"He who has clean hands and a pure heart" means the hands must be free from evil works and the heart untouched by evil thoughts. Of course, only God can see the true state of the heart, though it always shows itself in some way. In the same way, idol worship may be covered up for a time, but it cannot stay covered. Swearing deceitfully may sound convincing to people, but God knows at once that it is false, and the deceit will come out in the end.
Set the four tests against real human lives and only one name survives.
The demand which this challenge makes is very sweeping. Hands, hearts, soul and mouth are all brought under review, and perfection of holiness is required. Of all the countless people who have walked the earth, only One has ever shown holiness like this. There has been this One, and as a consequence He enjoys what we may call the freedom of the house. Its doors are flung wide open before Him, and He has full liberty of entrance.
The psalm does not end with one qualified Man standing alone. Others do enter, and one writer says where their fitness comes from:
There is to be this "generation of those who seek Him" (verse 6), and they too are marked by holiness. They have become what He always was in His own perfection. Their clean hands and pure heart are the result of God's work, both for them and in them.
And the entry is not restricted by birth. What is examined at the door is the person, not the pedigree:
And though those more immediately concerned may be of the fountain of Israel, still the door is open to everyone coming up with clean hands and a pure heart. So it is not principles on which the crowd of ungodly is avoided, but the personal state of the person who comes — not the character described, but the state.
- Four tests. Hands, heart, soul and mouth all come under review, and the standard is perfect holiness.
- Heart first. Clean hands point to righteousness, a pure heart to holiness. The pure heart governs what the hands do.
- No hiding. Covered idolatry and convincing lies work on people for a while; God knows at once, and the deceit comes out.
- One qualifies. Of all who have walked the earth, only One met this, and the doors of the house are flung open to Him.
- Others follow. Those who enter have become what He always was. Their clean hands and pure heart are God's work, both for them and in them.
He shall receive blessing from Jehovah, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.
Verses 3–4 ask who may climb God's hill and stand in His holy place. Verse 5 gives the answer, and the answer is a gift, not a wage. Both halves of it come down from God's side: blessing, and righteousness.
The verse closes a short exchange about fitness. What qualifies a person for that hill is not rank or background but character:
When the millennial day comes at last, the earth will plainly be the Lord's, and the whole world will be under Him. God will lift His hill and His holy place high among men. Who then will be fit to climb the one, or to stand in the other? Verses 4 and 5 give the answer. The fitness required is moral fitness. God keeps those holy places for the holy — those whose hands are clean, whose hearts are pure, who have turned away from all emptiness and deceit.
The verse names two things, and neither is produced by the person who receives them:
"He will receive blessing from the LORD and righteousness from the God of his salvation" (v. 5). Blessing is a general term for what brings happiness to the heart. This comes from God, and so does righteousness, for we have no righteousness of our own. God gives it on the basis of faith, for He counts faith as righteousness (Rom. 4:5), and faith itself is "the gift of God" (Eph. 2:8).
The word receive is the hinge of the verse. One writer works out what must happen before God can hand righteousness to anyone at all:
The recompense follows: blessing and righteousness from God. No man can find absolute righteousness in himself, so God cannot award it to him. Righteousness that is merely comparative will not do for the presence of God. For this, two things must come in. We have already seen one of them; the Old Testament does not clearly reveal the other at all. One is the work for men — atonement. The other is the work in men: the gift of a divine nature. That nature is perfect in itself, though many things in this life keep it from showing perfectly. In both these ways the righteousness is indeed a gift received from the God of our salvation. From first to last all is of grace, and so of God.
The description in verse 4 is exacting enough that commentators look past David to Christ. The promise of verse 5 is then read first as His recompense, and only then as ours:
Will all this perfection receive no answer, no recompense in the coming glory? Surely it will. Verse 5 says of such a person that he will receive blessing and righteousness from God. But if Christ alone answers perfectly to these requirements, there is still a generation that has walked in godly fear and that seeks God. They too will be associated with Christ in His reign.
Read of Christ, "He shall receive righteousness" points to something already accomplished — His public vindication after the injustice done to Him:
Christ was treated with shameful unrighteousness in the world. But Psalm 24:5 had already said, "He will receive … righteousness from the God of His salvation." He has received righteous treatment in heaven. God has set Him in a place that is His by right. The Holy Spirit's presence here is a demonstration of this.
The psalm's setting is Israel's, yet the promise of verse 5 is not fenced off. Note who is included:
When the earth is Jehovah's (Ps. 24), who shall ascend His hill, or stand in His holy place? Here, notice, the door has become open to all. Only Jacob has the place of acceptance and nearness to Jehovah. But blessing and acceptance in favour from God, who is their salvation, belong to everyone who has purified himself to seek Him — the God who has placed His blessing in Jacob. The psalm describes the character of such people, and the Gentiles who have that character have access to Jehovah's holy hill. Christ Himself enters there in triumph as Jehovah.
- Standard. The hill and the holy place are for the holy; what qualifies a person is moral fitness, not privilege.
- Gift. No one has righteousness of his own, and being better than others will not do for God's presence. So righteousness must be received — God's work for us in atonement, and His work in us in giving a new nature.
- Giver. Blessing and righteousness have one source. God gives the happiness that fills the heart, and He gives the righteousness no one owns by nature.
- Pattern. Christ alone answers the description of verse 4. He has already received righteous treatment in heaven, in the place that is His by right.
- Reach. The door stands open. A generation that seeks God — Gentiles, the nations outside Israel, among them — shares Christ's blessing and His reign.
This is the generation of them that seek unto him, that seek thy face, O Jacob. Selah.
Psalm 24 has just asked who may climb God's hill and stand in His holy place. Verse 6 turns from that question to the people who answer it, and gives them a name.
The word "generation" here is not counting years or measuring a lifespan. It marks out a type, and the Psalms use it that way again and again.
A dictionary gives one meaning of genea as "Men of like quality and disposition, though of neither one place nor age." This is fully borne out: "You shall keep them, O Jehovah, You shall preserve them from this generation forever" (Ps. 12:7). Here "generation" is not limited to the people alive at any one time on the earth. Again, "God is in the generation of the righteous" (Ps. 14:5). "The generation of those who seek You" (Ps. 24:6)... In these verses a certain moral character or kind of persons is implied.
Verses 3 and 4 set a standard so high that it seems no one could meet it. Verse 6 says someone does — and explains where their fitness came from.
So, after all, there are to be others who answer the challenge and finally stand in His holy place. There is to be this "generation of those who seek Him," (verse 6) who also are characterized by holiness. They have become what He always was in intrinsic perfection. Their clean hands and pure heart are the result of a work of God, both for them and in them.
Commentators read the psalm as looking ahead to the day when the Lord reigns on earth. They see this seeking company as drawn from more than one nation.
The psalm's questions about who may ascend God's hill have nothing to do with the church. At that time the church is with the Lord as His glorified body. When He comes back to earth to dwell in Zion, those who enter His presence and share the blessings of the kingdom will be marked by practical righteousness, which is the fruit of faith. This company includes Israelites who believed during the tribulation and turned to the Lord. It also includes Gentiles who learn righteousness when the judgments of the Lord are in the earth (Isaiah 26:9).
The ESV reads "the face of the God of Jacob." Older translations read "your face, O Jacob." Commentators differ over which is right. One writer keeps the older reading and finds a clear sense in it.
"Jacob" can hardly be taken as the name of those who seek their God. Its place in the sentence is awkward for that meaning, and the name itself seems unsuited to the connection. Read in the simplest way, the verse is perfectly clear. God dwells in Jacob, and will do so in the coming days the psalm speaks of. So those who seek His dwelling-place must seek the people among whom He dwells.
On that reading, the nations turn toward Israel because of the God who lives there.
They will acknowledge the special place of favour and supremacy given to Israel, and will render respectful homage. They will seek Jacob's face, as Psalm 24:6 tells us, because God is in Jacob's land.
Of all the names available, the psalm reaches for the one attached to a man who had nothing to plead for himself.
The name Jacob is to remind us that Israel has come from Jacob, who fully admits himself to be unworthy of the least of God's mercies (Gen. 32:9-10), but was blessed by the pure grace of God. Whatever Jacob's failures were, he still did seek the face of God.
This character belongs to those who will stand in the holy place. It also marks anyone who wants nearness to God today.
They will enter as a company identified with the King of glory. He has a perfect and absolute title to the home of Jehovah's holiness, both because of what He is and because of what He has done. The day of manifested glory is approaching, and it is going to be like this with us then. So let us make sure that holiness marks us now. "Without holiness no man shall see the Lord" is a saying capable of a double application; a present as well as a future. We may be perfectly clear in our doctrine... yet if we do not pursue holiness we shall be sadly poor and weak in drawing near to God.
- Generation — not an age group but a kind of person. The Psalms speak the same way of "the generation of the righteous."
- Grace — their clean hands and pure heart are God's work in them. The name Jacob recalls a man who called himself unworthy of the least mercy and was blessed anyway.
- Reach — the company is wider than one nation. Commentators see believing Israel joined by Gentiles who learn righteousness.
- Dispute — translations divide over "your face, O Jacob" and "the God of Jacob." One reading makes Jacob the people sought; the other makes God the One sought.
- Result — those who seek Him enter with the King of glory. So holiness is a pursuit for now, not only a description of later.
Lift up your heads, ye gates, and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of glory shall come in.
Psalm 24 claims the whole earth for the Lord, then asks who may climb His holy hill. At verse 7 the song becomes a shout at a city's gates: which gates are these, and who is the King they must open for?
The psalm belongs to a set of three, and the set moves in a clear direction.
In Psalm 22 we see the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. In Psalm 23 we find the Shepherd, in His tender care, feeding and keeping the sheep and lambs of His flock, so dearly bought and so dearly loved. In Psalm 24 we gaze upon the "King of glory," "the Lord strong and mighty in battle," the "Lord of hosts," coming into His kingdom. The "everlasting doors" (of Zion on earth, I think) are told to lift themselves up to receive Him. It is like Revelation 19, where the double doors of heaven are thrown open. There the "King of kings" and "Lord of lords," on His white horse of victory, sets out from heaven on His triumphant journey to earth.
These gates were not standing open. They had closed against the King Himself.
Here we see the Lord Himself enter His temple, to rest at last, after the long strife is over. He is the glorious King, so long refused or ignored, now clothed with irresistible might. The challenge goes out to the gates that had shut Him out. They must lift up their heads and let in a greater Visitor than they had ever known before. Yet back comes the question, as if those who asked it still did not know His majesty: "Who is this King of glory?" ... No doubt the words may look back to David's capture of Zion in the power of God. But that was a picture, and the psalm looks on to the day it comes true... It is not easy for the gates to lift themselves so high. But it must be: His grace will take no refusal.
The ESV calls them "ancient doors." Older translations read "everlasting doors," and that second word carries the point here.
For centuries men have closed the gates of their hearts to the true King of Israel, and the nation Israel has been especially guilty here. What a change when the Lord Jesus comes to claim His own rights! Jerusalem will then open its gates wide to receive Israel's true Messiah. And the psalm calls those doors "everlasting." Why? Because He will take His place of supreme authority for ever. Nothing can ever again challenge this King of God's appointment.
The psalm asks who this King is, and answers with a name.
The Psalms teach His deity clearly and plainly. Psalm 24:7-10 calls "the King of glory" by the name "the Lord of hosts." But this King of glory is also "mighty in battle." He is the same Victor we see in Psalm 45 with a sword strapped to His thigh. And He is none other than "the Word of God" (Revelation 19:11-16).
Commentators differ over which doorway the psalm means. Some read it of Christ's return to reign on earth. Others read it of His entry into heaven after the cross. One writer allows both, but not equally.
Many take this passage as an application rather than an interpretation, and make it refer to our Lord's entry into heavenly glory. That is surely allowed. Still, the point here is the public glory that is yet to come. As far as this world goes, it is not enough for Him to be glorified in private. He must have public glory too. And He must have that full glory in the very place where He was publicly shamed.
On the heavenly reading, the welcome rests on work already finished.
Wherever He enters, the gates open wide to receive the "King of glory." This is true of His earthly city, and true of the heavenly Jerusalem that the earthly one pictured. He enters the glory by His own blood. And the welcome He is given there, as King of glory, rests on this: He has accomplished an eternal redemption and has glorified God.
Jerusalem shut Him out. Jerusalem will welcome Him.
What a welcome awaits Him inside those gates, outside of which they once put Him to death. With what joy and triumph will He enter, where He was once led out in sorrow and shame. He will be her glory then.
- Shut — these gates had shut Him out, and their question shows they still do not know His majesty.
- Suffering first — Psalm 22 gives the Lamb, Psalm 23 the Shepherd, Psalm 24 the King coming into His kingdom. The crown follows the cross.
- Strong — the King of glory is the Lord of hosts, mighty in battle. The psalm's answer is His deity, not just His royalty.
- Settled — older translations call the doors everlasting, because no one can ever challenge the King who enters them.
- Same city — He is welcomed in the very place where He was shamed, and He enters on the ground of a redemption already accomplished.
Who is this King of glory? Jehovah strong and mighty, Jehovah mighty in battle.
The psalm has just asked who may climb God's hill and stand in His holy place. Now a greater question rings out at the city gates: who is the King coming through them? The answer is not a description. It is a name.
The question is asked twice, and both times the answer is the divine name. Where the ESV has "the LORD," the writers below use the older rendering "Jehovah." One writer says the question is asked so that no one can miss who this King is.
"Who is this King of glory?" The answer is clear and decisive: the King, the Lord Jesus, is Jehovah strong and mighty, Jehovah mighty in battle. The question is asked so that people will be challenged to recognise that the Lord Jesus is no less than Jehovah. In fact, the answer is given a second time, with the same question asked again (vv. 9-10), because the matter is one of the greatest importance.
This same figure is traced elsewhere in Scripture. One commentator links Him to the rider in Revelation:
In the Psalms we have His deity clearly and distinctly taught. "The King of glory" in Ps. 24:7-10 is declared to be "Jehovah of hosts." But this King of glory is also "mighty in battle," and is identical with the Victor who is seen in Ps. 45 with sword girded on His thigh, and He is none other than "the Word of God" (Rev. 19:11-16).
Which battle makes Him "mighty in battle"? One reading points backwards, to a victory already fought and finished.
The closing verses of the psalm celebrate the entry of Christ, as the King of glory, into the sanctuary among His people. The answer tells us of the glory of His person and His work. For His people He gained the great victory at the cross, over every enemy. So we have not only His claims to the kingdom as Creator, and not only His rights as the perfect Man, but also the righteous ground of all blessing for His people: the mighty victory of the cross.
Others look forward. On this reading He comes to the gates straight from a victory still future, and the cross won a victory of another sort.
First, He is "Jehovah strong and mighty, Jehovah mighty in battle." He will come fresh from His victories — the victories foretold in Psalm 2. There He will mock the kings of the earth and their rulers. There He will break the rebellious nations with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a clay pot. But the One who will ride in triumph then once suffered and was forsaken, so that He might win a victory of another sort at the cross.
The gates in the psalm had been shut against Him. When they are told to open, the reply that comes back is another question.
Now we see Jehovah Himself enter His temple and rest at last, the long struggle over. He is the glorious King, refused or ignored for so long, and now clothed with unstoppable might. The gates that had been shut against Him are challenged. They are told to lift up their heads and let in a greater Visitor than they had ever known. But the answer comes back as a question, as if those who asked it still did not grasp His majesty: "Who is this King of glory?"
Many have taken these verses to be about Christ entering heavenly glory after the cross. Commentators differ on whether that is the psalm's own meaning or a fair use of it. One writer allows the use, but says the psalm's own point is public glory:
Many take this passage as an application rather than an interpretation, making it refer to our Lord entering heavenly glory. That is quite allowable, no doubt… Still, the point here is the public glory that is yet to come. It is not enough for Him to be glorified in private, as far as this world is concerned. He must have public glory too.
Another writer names the ground of His welcome:
Wherever He enters, the gates open wide to receive the "King of glory" — whether His earthly city, or the heavenly Jerusalem that the earthly one pictured. He enters the glory by His own blood. His welcome there as King of glory rests on His having accomplished an eternal redemption and having glorified God.
This verse sits inside a group of three psalms:
In Psalm 22 we see the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. In Psalm 23 we find the Shepherd, tenderly feeding and caring for the sheep and lambs of His flock… In Psalm 24 we gaze on the "King of glory," "the Lord strong and mighty in battle," the "Lord of hosts," coming into His kingdom… His head circled with "many crowns" — God's answer to that "crown of thorns."
- Named. The question gets a name, not a description. The King of glory is Jehovah — no less. The psalm says it twice so no one can miss it.
- Fought. "Mighty in battle" rests on real conflict — the great victory gained for His people at the cross, over every enemy.
- Ahead. One day that might will be public. He comes fresh from the victories foretold in Psalm 2, breaking the rebellious nations.
- Opened. The gates once shut against Him are told to lift their heads and let in a greater Visitor than they had ever known.
- Grounded. Earthly city or heavenly, His welcome rests on redemption already accomplished. Psalm 22's Lamb and Psalm 23's Shepherd are Psalm 24's King: the crown of thorns answered by many crowns.
Lift up your heads, ye gates; yea, lift up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of glory shall come in.
Verse 7 gave this same command, and here it returns almost word for word. Twice the gates hear the call to open. Twice the same question comes back: "Who is this King of glory?" The next verse gives the name — Jehovah of hosts.
One writer sees wonder behind the delay, and a King who will not be refused.
The appeal is made again. But from the gates the question comes yet again: "Who is He, this King of glory?" Long ago, in the presence of the risen Lord, the disciples did not believe for joy, and wondered. So here too the wonderful truth is too great to be taken in at once. It is not easy for the gates to lift themselves so high. But it must be: His grace will take no denial. With the magnificence of His universal title He will put down all resistance to His will.
Another writer sees the repeated question as a challenge to the reader.
The reason for asking the question is that men might be challenged to recognise that the Lord Jesus is no less than Jehovah. In fact, the psalm makes the declaration a second time and asks the same question again (vv. 9-10). The matter is of the greatest importance. If people will not face this, they are guilty of insulting Jehovah. Such unbelief must end in eternal destruction.
One writer explains how far the title "Jehovah of hosts" reaches.
Scripture reveals that there is a mighty heavenly host, and principalities and powers in the unseen world. God is the God of them all, as well as God of all the elements of nature, which He has often used to punish His enemies... In Psalm 24:10 the Lord Jesus is shown to be "Jehovah of hosts: He is the King of glory."
This King is a fighter as well as a sovereign, and that links Him to other pictures of Him in Scripture.
This King of glory is also "mighty in battle." He is the same Victor seen in Psalm 45 with a sword strapped to His thigh. He is none other than "the Word of God" (Revelation 19:11-16).
One writer takes the gates as those of Jerusalem, and of hearts long closed to the King. Where the ESV reads "ancient doors," older translations read "everlasting doors," and he builds on that word.
For centuries the hearts of men have stayed closed to the true King of Israel. Israel as a nation has been especially guilty in this. What a change will take place when the Lord Jesus comes to claim His own rights! At that time the gates of Jerusalem will open wide to receive Israel's true Messiah. And the doors are called "everlasting." Why? Because He will take His place of supreme authority for eternity. Nothing can ever again challenge this King of God's appointment.
The city that opens to Him is the same city that once drove Him out.
What a welcome awaits Him inside those gates, outside of which they once put Him to death. With what joy and triumph will He enter the place where He was once led out in sorrow and shame.
Commentators differ over whether this entry has already happened. Some read it strictly of the future.
Here we have the glorious appearing and entry of the King into His House and dwelling place. It is a most magnificent description. It has nothing to do with the ascension of our Lord. This is His glorious return and entry into the earthly Zion, to fill it once more with His visible glory.
Others allow the wider use while holding the same primary sense.
Many take the passage as an application rather than an interpretation. They make it refer to our Lord's entrance into heavenly glory. This is quite permissible, no doubt. He has been glorified "at once" in the presence of God, in keeping with His own words in John 13:32. Still, the public glory that is yet to come is strictly the point here... And He must be abundantly glorified in the very scene of His public dishonour.
His entry rests on work already finished, not only on who He is.
Wherever He enters, the gates open wide to receive the "King of glory." This holds for His earthly city, and for the heavenly Jerusalem which the earthly city pictured. He enters by His own blood into the glory. The welcome He is given there, as King of glory, rests on this: He has accomplished an eternal redemption, and He has glorified God.
- Repeated — The call comes twice because the truth is too great to take in at once. The gates hesitate, but "His grace will take no denial."
- Named — The second answer removes all doubt: the King is Jehovah of hosts, God of angels, armies and all created power.
- Armed — He is mighty in battle, the same Victor of Psalm 45 and Revelation 19, so no resistance can hold the gates shut.
- Everlasting — The doors are called everlasting because His authority is settled for eternity. Nothing can challenge this King again.
- Purchased — He enters by His own blood, into the very scene of His shame. The welcome rests on an eternal redemption already accomplished.
Who is he, this King of glory? Jehovah of hosts, he is the King of glory. Selah.
The psalm ends by asking a second time who this King of glory is. This time the answer is a name, not a description. The name settles who He is and what He is coming to do.
Older translations print this name as "Jehovah of hosts," where the ESV has "the LORD of hosts." The name has a history in Scripture, and a reach wider than armies.
We do not meet with this name until 1 Samuel 1:3. It came in with prophetic testimony, faith laying hold of Jehovah's glory when Israel had corrupted themselves and were in a weak and low estate. Scripture reveals that there is a mighty heavenly host, and principalities and powers in the unseen world. God is the God of them all, as well as God of all the elements of nature... In Psalm 24:10 the Lord Jesus is shown to be "Jehovah of hosts: He is the King of glory," compare Ephesians 1:20-21; Colossians 1:16. The same title occurs in the New Testament as the LORD OF SABAOTH, Romans 9:29 (in a quotation from Isaiah 1:9), and James 5:4.
The Hebrew word behind "hosts" is used broadly across the psalms, of armies, of angels, and of sun, moon and stars.
The answer names Him. The One at the gates is God Himself.
The Psalms teach His deity clearly. Psalm 24:7-10 declares "the King of glory" to be "Jehovah of hosts." But this King of glory is also "mighty in battle." He is the same Victor we see in Psalm 45 with a sword strapped to His thigh, and He is none other than "the Word of God" (Revelation 19:11-16).
One writer takes the repeated question as a challenge to people who avoid answering it.
The question is asked to challenge people to recognise that the Lord Jesus is no less than Jehovah. In fact the psalm declares it a second time, and asks the same question again (vv. 9-10), because the matter is of the greatest significance.
Another writer hears wonder in the repeated question, not resistance.
Long ago the disciples saw the risen Lord, and their joy was so great that they could not believe it, and they wondered. It is the same here. The wonderful truth is too great to be taken in at once, and it is not easy for the gates to lift themselves so high. But it must be... Listen: "Jehovah of hosts! HE is the King of glory."
A commander of hosts brings others with Him.
He is the Lord of hosts, for others are joined with Him. Revelation 19:14 shows us that He will come out as a Warrior to judgment. The armies of heaven will follow Him — His heavenly saints, who are to wear His likeness and share His triumphs. In them, and in others too, He will see the fruit of the suffering of His soul.
One writer traces the same Person from the cross, through the wilderness, into the kingdom.
He is the One strong and mighty who maintained the holiness of God and won a great victory for His people at the cross. As the Shepherd, He led His people through the wilderness journey. As the King of glory and the Lord of hosts, He will bring His people into the millennial blessing of the kingdom.
Commentators differ on the scene. Some hold the psalm speaks only of Christ's future entry into Jerusalem.
Here we see the King appear in glory and enter His house and dwelling place... It has nothing to do with the ascension of our Lord. It is His glorious return and entry into the earthly Zion, to fill it once more with His visible glory... He who was forsaken on the cross is now crowned with many crowns.
Others allow a wider use of the words. The strict sense, they hold, is still the public glory on earth.
Many take the passage as an application rather than an interpretation, and read it of our Lord entering heavenly glory. That is quite fair, no doubt, for God has glorified Him at once in His own presence, as the Lord said in John 13:32. Still, the point here is the public glory that is yet to come... And especially, He must be richly glorified in the very place of His public dishonour.
For one writer, the call to the gates is a question about who will govern the earth.
The challenge goes out: "Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD?" That is, who shall take the government of this earth and all that fills it? The answer comes as another challenge to the city gates, calling them to lift up their heads to the Lord of hosts, the King of glory. It is a fervent way of saying that the Lord, in strength and victory, the Lord as Redeemer and Avenger, will take the government.
- Named. The answer is a name, not a description: Jehovah of hosts. The New Testament carries the same title over as Lord of Sabaoth.
- Divine. The name settles who He is. The King of glory is God Himself, the Victor of Psalm 45 and the Word of God in Revelation 19.
- Won. The glory rests on a battle already fought: the One crowned with many crowns is the One who was forsaken on the cross.
- Shared. He does not come alone. The armies of heaven follow Him, and His saints wear His likeness and share His triumph.
- Governing. When the gates open, rule changes hands. The earth's government passes to the Redeemer, in the very place where men dishonoured Him.