‘Lift Up Your Heads’
The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof,
the world and those who dwell therein, for he has founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the rivers. Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?
And who shall stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully. He will receive blessing from the Lord and righteousness from the God of his salvation. Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob. Selah
Lift up your heads, O gates!
And be lifted up, O ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord, strong and mighty,
the Lord, mighty in battle!
Lift up your heads, O gates!
And lift them up, O ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of hosts,
he is the King of glory! Selah
This Psalm divides easily into three sections: in verses 1 and 2 we have an affirmation of God’s majesty; in verses 3-6 David poses a question related to the holiness of God; and in verses 7-10 there’s an exhortation calling us to embrace God’s presence among us. Also, there’s a mystery - a profound reality - presented here related to Christ. God, who is infinite and transcendent, the one who embodies the cosmos and sustains it in an orderly form has condescended in Christ, the second person of the Trinity, presenting himself in true humanity, so we can understand his love and redemptive grace. And now he dwells by his Spirit in and among his people, the church. The God we serve is incomprehensible and not subject to anyone or anything, and yet he stooped down and entered into fellowship with us. So the Psalm opens with an affirmation of God’s majesty and transcendence and closes with an appeal to his immanence. The God who embodies the cosmos has embraced us and made us his own.
The historical context in which this Psalm was written is debatable, but it seems very likely to be related, either directly or indirectly, to the return of the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem during King David’s reign. The Ark of the Covenant which bore witness to God’s presence with Israel had been captured by the Philistines while Eli was judge and high priest. It was returned after seven months and kept in the house of Abinadab and cared for by his son Eleazer for twenty years. After David was anointed king he attempted to bring the Ark to Jerusalem but Uzzah, one of the attendants, was struck down for touching it and David abandoned the project for three more months. Finally, it’s brought back to Jerusalem with great celebration and set in its proper place in the Tabernacle. This Psalm is related to this event. It was either sung at the event itself or at subsequent celebrations and reenactments of the event. You can imagine what it must have been like. There was a procession, shouts, singing, and dancing. And when the procession arrived at the city gate, the Psalm was sung.
It begins with an affirmation of God’s majesty that underscores his transcendence, creative power, and his rule over all things. The earth and everything that’s in it belongs to the Lord. The planet itself, the cosmos that supports it, and every living thing in it owe their very existence to him. He’s the creator and sustainer of the entire created order.
This is followed by a ponderous question - “Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place?” The more you think about this question the more perplexed you become. God is holy; he’s in a different category of ‘being’ than us. The verbs here are in the imperfect tense and are best translated as permissives - “Who may ascend….and stand in the presence of the Lord?” The answer is clearly stated - “He who has clean hands and a pure heart.” In other words, he who has no sin. There is only one who meets this standard; it’s Jesus. So how can we come into the presence of the ‘holy One’? What’s the basis of our fellowship with him? We can come into the presence of the ‘holy One’ by being in union with the perfect one. Only by being ‘in Christ’ can we safely come into the presence of God, who’s holiness is a consuming fire.
The Psalm ends with a dramatic and moving scene. Perhaps what’s described here is the annual reenactment of the Ark’s entrance into Jerusalem. There are two choirs, one with the procession outside the city gate, and the other inside, and they sing antiphonally. The choir on the outside sings, “Lift up your heads, O Gates! And be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in!” The choir inside responds, “Who is this King of glory?” The choir outside answers, “The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle!” The exchange is then repeated. This is no ordinary entrance, YHWH had stooped down to enter into the presence of his people and dwell among them. In a sense this is a foreshadowing of Christ’s incarnation and entrance into the ‘heavenly Jerusalem’ - his bride, the church - to dwell among them. The question we all have to answer is, ‘how will we receive him?’....reluctantly or eagerly? We should receive him eagerly with hearts opened wide. King David responded this way - “To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust (Ps.25:1).”