Greetings to you on this Thursday morning, my brother! May Our Good God pour His blessings and His peace upon you and your loved ones today!
Read Psalm 24. Selah.
It is thought that this Psalm of David was written at the time that the ark of The LORD was brought into Jerusalem after having been captured by the Philistines. According to 2 Samuel 6: “So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with gladness. And so it was, when those bearing the ark of the LORD had gone six paces, that he sacrificed oxen and fatted sheep. Then David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was wearing a linen ephod. So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting and with the sound of the trumpet.”
King David was celebrating the return of the glory of the LORD, which dwelt with the ark – it was the place of His glory. The ark was where His glory abided, and when it was taken by the Philistines according to I Samuel 4 “The glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been captured.”.
These historical passages do serve to support the idea that Psalm 24 celebrates the return of the glory of the LORD to Israel. In the final three verses of this short psalm, the phrase “King of glory” appears five times; notably, this is the only place in all of scripture that this title for the LORD appears. This idea of the glory of the LORD, the actual presence of His glory, is significant.
And while there are other portions of Psalm 24 that are worthy of our consideration, today we will focus on one other phrase (vv 1): “The earth is the LORD’s, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein.”. This statement is really meaningful – the psalmist is painting a picture that everything in the world, every corner of the earth, belongs to God, and He intends to fill it.
So, let’s put these two concepts from today’s psalm together – the LORD is the King of glory; and He intends to fill the earth He created. How does He accomplish this? Through you and I ((vv 1) “those who dwell within”)! Each of us were created in His image, we bear His image; and because His Spirit is within us, we are vessels of His glory. Numbers 14 puts it this way: “Then the LORD said: “I have pardoned, according to your word; but truly, as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD”. And Psalm 72 says “And blessed be His glorious name forever! And let the whole earth be filled with His glory. Amen and Amen.”
So, my brother, as you go out today, remember that you are bearing His image; and you are taking His glory. You are on a mission from the KING OF GLORY to fill the earth with His glory.
My prayer for each of us today is from Psalm 71: “Let my mouth be filled with Your praise And with Your glory all the day.” Amen!