Psalm 47
Praise the Lord Christ the King!
Intro
√ Christ the King!
Psalm 47 is a song of celebration about the Lord, the King of kings!
Bible students have classified this kind of psalm as an "enthronement psalm" because it celebrates the Lord's universal reign over all the earth.
Other enthronement psalms are Ps. 93, psalms 95-99.
It is interesting to note that it is also prophetic in the sense that the
psalmist is celebrating the future
Ap. Make some noise!
You'll note that the psalmist isn't shy when it comes to expressing his praise regarding the coming king.
Clapping
Shouting
Loud singing
Of course who wouldn't be excited about the return of the King and the establishment of His kingdom!
If you can't get excited about Jesus' return to the earth…
…nothing will excite you!
So, let's study together and allow this song to stir our hearts to celebrate with great anticipation the soon return of Jesus to the Earth!
His great victory! (vs. 1-4)
Ps. 47:1 Oh, clap your hands, all you peoples! Shout to God with the voice of triumph!
Ps. 47:2 For the LORD Most High is awesome; He is a great King over all the earth.
Ps. 47:3 He will subdue the peoples under us, And the nations under our feet.
Ps. 47:4 He will choose our inheritance for us, The excellence of Jacob whom He loves. Selah
√ His great victory
In these verses we find the psalmist celebrating the Lord's
great victory over all the nations of the world. Fascinating because
Smaller than
About 5 million people
Surrounded by enemies
Victims of continuous occupations (
Targeted for future oppression by the armies of Magog &
the Muslim hoards, the AntiChrist, all the nations who gather against
Yet, God has promised that the day will come when He will
rescue
Ex. Other prophetic references
Zechariah 12-13 speak of
Zechariah 14 speaks of the Coming of Messiah
Rev. 16:12-14
Rev. 16:12 Then the
sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river
Rev. 16:13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.
Rev. 16:14 For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.
And Rev. 19:11-21
Rev. 19:19 And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army.
Rev. 19:20 Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone.
Rev. 19:21 And the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh.
God's promise is to gain victory over all
Today we can see the evidence that God is already fighting for His people.
Ex. Wars which
Will ultimately climax with Jesus' return to the earth to
rescue
So, the psalmist
celebrates God's Great Victory!
His great throne! (vs. 5-7)
Ps. 47:5 God has gone up with a shout, The LORD with the sound of a trumpet.
Ps. 47:6 Sing praises to God, sing praises! Sing praises to our King, sing praises!
Ps. 47:7 For God is the King of all the earth; Sing praises with understanding.
√ His great throne
Here we find the psalmist praising God as He "goes up" to take His rightful place as ruler over all the earth.
Two-fold prophecy…
Picture of Jesus' Ascension to His throne in heaven
(Acts 1:9-11) at the close of His earthly ministry during His 1st Advent.
Eph 1:20 which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,
Picture of Jesus' Ascension to His throne on earth in the Millennial kingdom at the beginning of His earthly ministry during His 2nd Advent.
Zec. 14:16 And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.
Ap. Jesus promises that we'll share His Throne! Rev. 3:21
√ Praising the King
Look again at vs. 6…
Ps. 47:6 Sing praises to God, sing praises! Sing praises to our King, sing praises!
…four times the psalmist calls us to sing our praise to the Lord our King!
Reminding us that our life, both now and in eternity, we have been created for this purpose…
…to praise the Lord!
And, not out of a grudging obligation, but rather, from a heart that is overflowing with thanksgiving!
Ap. I long for a righteous Ruler!
As wonderful as our nation is, perhaps the most pure form of human government that has ever existed…
…it is still ripe with corruption, many of our leaders lack integrity & morality, its given to manipulation by the powerful and wealthy, unjust laws allow criminals to escape and victims to be exploited, etc.
I would trade our democracy for His Theocracy in a heart beat!
Don't you long for the day in which…
We are governed by a perfect king!
Righteousness rules
Justice prevails
Evil is done away with
We live in a perfect environment
Ex. Running barefoot through the forest without ever tiring, without a worry, breathing the sweet perfume of the Creation, drinking from crystal waters, and enjoying the warmth of His smile!
His Kingdom is coming and it is to our advantage to praise Him even now. For while it is true that Satan is the "god" of this current age, the day is coming quickly when Jesus the King will put an end to Satan's rule!
That's something to shout about!
His great reign! (vs. 8-9)
Ps. 47:8 God reigns over the nations; God sits on His holy throne.
Ps. 47:9 The princes of the people have gathered together, The people of the God of Abraham. For the shields of the earth belong to God; He is greatly exalted.
√ His great reign
In these closing verses the psalmist foresees the day in which God will rule all the nations of the world.
Today of course God's kingdom is not seen with our physical eyes, for it is a spiritual kingdom.
Ex. Jesus before Pilate
John 18:36 Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.”
Yet, God still rules the affairs of the nations!
Pro. 21:1 The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, Like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes.
And…
Rom. 13:1 Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God.
As citizens of God's kingdom we can rejoice knowing that God is ultimately in control and will bring about His will - both now and in eternity.
Ap. Gives us confidence as we minister in a dying world!
We can be discouraged by what appears to be the victory of Satan over the cause of Christ (ie. Removing the 10 commandements from the Alabama court room.)
Ex. The disciples under threat from the rulers in their day - Acts 4
Acts 4:23 And being let go, they went to their own companions and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them.
Acts 4:24 So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and said: “Lord, You are God, who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in them,
Acts 4:25 “who by the mouth of Your servant David have said: ‘Why did the nations rage, And the people plot vain things?
Acts 4:26 The kings of the earth took their stand, And the rulers were gathered together Against the LORD and against His Christ.’
Acts 4:27 “For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together
Acts 4:28 “to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done.
Acts 4:29 “Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word,
Acts 4:30 “by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.”
Acts 4:31 And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.
God granted them the power and boldness to counter the power and authority of those earthly rulers.
While Christians certainly want to be active in the political process, let us never forget that our King reigns over all the earth and our most powerful political weapon will always be…
…prayer!
Ap. So make some
noise!
We can…
Clap
Shout
Sing loudly
Because of our excitement about the return of the King and
the establishment of His kingdom!
If you can't get excited about Jesus' return to the earth…
…nothing will excite you!
So, let's be faithful
to loudly praise Christ the King!
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