Psa 24:2 | KingComments | STEP | Psalm 24 connects to Psalm 23. The LORD, Who is the Shepherd and guides His own and brings them home (Psalm 23), is also the One to Whom everything belongs (Psalm 24). Here He is the chief Shepherd of the sheep, Who will come to give His reward, the crown of glory, to His own. Psalm 22 is about Christ for His own, the good Shepherd; Psalm 23 is about Christ with His own, the great Shepherd; Psalm 24 is about Christ above His own, the chief Shepherd. The LORD will assert His right to all by helping His people as a Warrior against the enemy. To that end, He is coming to the city with the ancient doors, which is Jerusalem. Just as Psalm 23 describes the way of the Lord Jesus – and of every God-fearing with Him – to God’s house, so in Psalm 24 we get the description of the way to the throne of His glory. However, the horizon here is not just Israel, but all the world ( ). After all, God’s purpose is to bless all nations through Israel ( ). For us, it means the way to the Father’s house and the way to the throne of the kingdom. Psalm 24 used to be read by the Jews on the first day after the sabbath. The first day of the week, that points to the beginning – begins with creation – or to a new beginning, that is the realm of peace, the restored creation. It is possible that David wrote this psalm on the occasion of bringing the ark to Jerusalem ( ). The ark is a beautiful picture of the Lord Jesus, Who is called “the King of glory” five times in this psalm ( ). We can divide the psalm as follows: 1. The LORD is the Creator and therefore the Owner of the universe ( ; cf. ). 2. He is also the LORD, which is His Name as the faithful God of the covenant. As a result, He has a double right – as Creator and as Redeemer (cf. Revelation 4-5) – to His people: a. He declares who among men may approach His holy habitation ( ) and b. comes to take possession of His rightful property ( ). For “a Psalm of David” ( ) see at Psalm 3:1. The psalm begins by presenting the sovereignty of God. He is the rightful Owner of creation because He is its Creator and Sustainer. He is the Possessor of “the earth … and all it contains, the world, and those who dwell in it” ( ; ; ). God has an absolute right to men, to their services, to their talents, to everything they can acquire through labor and skill. He has a right to everything that flies in the air, walks on the earth and swims in the sea. All the treasures of the soil and what the field yields also belong to Him. By “the world” is meant the inhabited world. He “formed it to be inhabited” ( ). God has done everything. The earth is not a composition of all kinds of elements on which a multitude of gods worked. Nor did anyone help Him make the plans or carry them out. Everything was brought about by the one, true and living God. The earth became what it is by this simple fact that God founded and established the earth. Therefore, the earth and all that it produces is His. In it says why the earth is His: “For” He has “founded” the earth. In doing so, He has acted with wisdom ( ). There is order in His actions. He caused the dry to emerge from the waters on the third day of creation, thus showing His control over it ( ; ). That He has “established” it, given the tense form of this word, is not a one-time act, but He is constantly engaged in it. He created and maintains His creation. He makes sure that the earth remains in its place ( ; ).

‏ Psalms 24:2

Introduction

Psalm 24 connects to Psalm 23. The LORD, Who is the Shepherd and guides His own and brings them home (Psalm 23), is also the One to Whom everything belongs (Psalm 24). Here He is the chief Shepherd of the sheep, Who will come to give His reward, the crown of glory, to His own. Psalm 22 is about Christ for His own, the good Shepherd; Psalm 23 is about Christ with His own, the great Shepherd; Psalm 24 is about Christ above His own, the chief Shepherd. The LORD will assert His right to all by helping His people as a Warrior against the enemy. To that end, He is coming to the city with the ancient doors, which is Jerusalem.

Just as Psalm 23 describes the way of the Lord Jesus – and of every God-fearing with Him – to God’s house, so in Psalm 24 we get the description of the way to the throne of His glory. However, the horizon here is not just Israel, but all the world (Psa 24:1). After all, God’s purpose is to bless all nations through Israel (Gen 22:16-18). For us, it means the way to the Father’s house and the way to the throne of the kingdom.

Psalm 24 used to be read by the Jews on the first day after the sabbath. The first day of the week, that points to the beginning – Psa 24:1 begins with creation – or to a new beginning, that is the realm of peace, the restored creation.

It is possible that David wrote this psalm on the occasion of bringing the ark to Jerusalem (2Sam 6:1-19). The ark is a beautiful picture of the Lord Jesus, Who is called “the King of glory” five times in this psalm (Psa 24:7-10).

We can divide the psalm as follows:

1. The LORD is the Creator and therefore the Owner of the universe (Psa 24:1-2; cf. Rev 4:9-11).

2. He is also the LORD, which is His Name as the faithful God of the covenant. As a result, He has a double right – as Creator and as Redeemer (cf. Revelation 4-5) – to His people:

a. He declares who among men may approach His holy habitation (Psa 24:3-6) and

b. comes to take possession of His rightful property (Psa 24:7-10).

The Earth Is the LORD’s

For “a Psalm of David” (Psa 24:1a) see at Psalm 3:1.

The psalm begins by presenting the sovereignty of God. He is the rightful Owner of creation because He is its Creator and Sustainer. He is the Possessor of “the earth … and all it contains, the world, and those who dwell in it” (Psa 24:1b; Psa 50:11; 1Cor 10:26).

God has an absolute right to men, to their services, to their talents, to everything they can acquire through labor and skill. He has a right to everything that flies in the air, walks on the earth and swims in the sea. All the treasures of the soil and what the field yields also belong to Him. By “the world” is meant the inhabited world. He “formed it to be inhabited” (Isa 45:18).

God has done everything. The earth is not a composition of all kinds of elements on which a multitude of gods worked. Nor did anyone help Him make the plans or carry them out. Everything was brought about by the one, true and living God. The earth became what it is by this simple fact that God founded and established the earth. Therefore, the earth and all that it produces is His.

In Psa 24:2 it says why the earth is His: “For” He has “founded” the earth. In doing so, He has acted with wisdom (Pro 3:19). There is order in His actions. He caused the dry to emerge from the waters on the third day of creation, thus showing His control over it (Gen 1:9-10; Psa 136:5-6). That He has “established” it, given the tense form of this word, is not a one-time act, but He is constantly engaged in it. He created and maintains His creation. He makes sure that the earth remains in its place (Psa 104:5; 1Sam 2:8).