The King and His God - Psalm 21
Introduction
This psalm fits with the previous one. David wrote Psalm 20 as a prayer before a battle. And David wrote Psalm 21 as a praise after that battle. Like “Amazing Grace” this song would fit a number of contexts like coronation ceremonies and renewal ceremonies.
Many Psalms, like this one, use parallel themes to structure the Psalm. The first verse and last verses form as bookends for the entire passage. David says he enjoys God’s strength in v. 1 and the congregation praises God for His strength in verse 13. The entire Psalm praises God for His strength.
The two main sections of this psalm focus on what God does for the King and what God does against His enemies. In the first section, from verse 1 to verse 7, David praises God for delivering Him and taking care of Him. In the second section, from verse 8 to 13, David explains how God defeats His enemies, which causes the entire kingdom to praise God.
After David comes home from victory, He makes sure the awaiting kingdom knows God was the hero on the battlefield. God delivered David. God defeated Israel’s enemies because they were God’s enemies.
God Delivers and Defeats
In verses 1 through 7, David portrays God as the generous king. God gives David his desire, his distinction, and his delight.
David’s desire. Whatever David asks for, God gives Him (v.2). David trusts God wants to give Him good gifts.
David’s distinction. In verse 3, David receives good gifts and even a crown of gold. But notice, David isn’t earning, retrieving, or meeting God to get those gifts. God meets David to give Him those gifts. All of God’s presents are handmade and hand delivered. We see also in verse 4, one of those hand delivered gifts was “length of days forever and ever.” This refers to God’s promise that David’s throne will endure for eternity (2 Samuel 7:12-13). God crowned David with gold and robed him with majesty and splendor (v. 5).
David’s delight. David enjoys God because He enjoys God’s blessings. Every good thing David enjoys, He knows it comes from God.
Verses 8 through 13, David shifts the focus from how God delivered him to how God defeated His enemies in battle. Its unclear who the “you” is in verses 8 through 12. Is it God or David? For the time being, let’s just say it’s God. He has been the “you” from verse 1.
God finds his enemies (v. 8). Notice David doesn’t refer to these enemies as his enemies, but God’s. When a bully picks on your younger brother, that bully is your brother’s enemy, but he’s also your enemy. And God doesn’t wait around to strike His enemies. Like a carpenter rubbing his hand on a cabinet searching for imperfections in the wood, God grazes His hand over the world looking for those who hate Him.
God obliterates His Enemies (v.9). Once God finds evildoers, He turns them into a furnace. He consumes them with His wrath. We Christians are used to our Republican politicians in power not using that power like they promised. Not so with God. He promised to defeat His enemies and He will.
God destroys His enemy’s children (v. 10). God created this world generationally. In Genesis 1, He expects humanity to spread generation after generation (Genesis 1:28). We don’t think generationally with bumper stickers that say “spending my child’s inheritance.” God does think generationally. So, when people invite judgment on themselves, they also invite judgment on their children.
God stops His enemies (v. 11). Many times evil people believe they can defeat God. Out lawing Christianity. Making fun of the Bible. All of these things evil men do to attack God become the weapon God uses against them.
God surrounds His enemies (v. 12). Imagine God shooting a bow at His enemies, they turn and run. Then they find God immediately in front of them with a bow in hand. God will stop His enemies one way or another.
God Delivers and Defeats through His Son
All of scripture ultimately points to Jesus. This passage is no different. David wrote this song so that one day, his great grandson would sing it.
God Delivers King Jesus.
Jesus rejoiced in God His father (v.1). He wanted to do God’s will (John 8:29). God’s will was for Jesus to die in your place, to pay for your sin. Jesus, though fully God, was also fully man. Which means He too had to trust in His father (v. 7). There is a reason Jesus had to pray in the garden that He would do God’s will (Luke 22:42). But remember, God promised to do anything Jesus asked (v.2). If Jesus asked for legions of angels to rescue Him, God would have sent them (Matthew 26:53). Instead, Jesus prayed for a unified church (John 17:20-21). David received a crown of gold from God (vv. 3-4) while Jesus received a crown of thorns (Matthew 27:29). But after completing God’s mission and dying for our sins, God raised Jesus up and gave Him a name more majestic, splendid, and glorious than any other name (v. 5). On the last day, when that name is shouted from heaven, every knee will bow, and tongue confess that Jesus is Lord (Philippians 2:9-11). God delivered Jesus because He is the king over everything (Matthew 28:18). Now, we see the reason for the ambiguity and mystery with verses 8 through 13. Jesus is both God and King.
King Jesus Defeats God’s Enemies.
Right now, Jesus is ruling from heaven (1 Peter 3:22) accomplishing God’s mission of the entire earth being filled with His glory like the water is wet (Habakkuk 2:14). Jesus is currently finding all God’s enemies and placing them under His feet and the last enemy He will kill is death itself (1 Corinthians 15:25-26). Jesus uses death to gather and keep all His enemies like gathering strawberries in a bucket, so that in eternity all God’s enemies, including death, will be destroyed with fire (v. 9; Revelation 20:10, 14-15). In the meantime, Jesus ensures that the children of Satan do not overtake the children of God (v.10). Remember Satan has children (1 John 3:8, 10). Jesus actively destroys the children of evil people in one of three ways: first, through outright judgment; second, through giving parents over to the murder of their own children (i.e., child sacrifice, abortion, etc.); third, through saving the evil child and adopting them into the family of the righteous. Jesus will win, not the evil world (v.11). God doesn’t win by losing. He wins by winning.
God Delivers and Defeats for His People
Lean into the Language of Scripture. If I were to read one of the reports Todd has to write up as an engineer, I would likely not understand much of what’s going on. I don’t know the words in engineering world even though I live in a world largely made by engineers. Likewise, we live in God’s world but we don’t understand what goes on because we don’t use the language He uses. How many of the songs do you listen to sound like the psalms we’ve studied thus far this summer? On Christian radio, I hear more songs talking about the emotional state of the singer than I do about God. I have some psalms and songs for us to learn for the future that gives us the language of scripture.
Sentimentality is one of God’s Enemies. In Genesis 19, God punishes Sodom for their sin. But He also punishes Lot’s wife for her sin (Genesis 19:26). We all know Sodom was guilty of sexual perversion (Genesis 19:5). They also refused to help the needy (Ezekiel 16:49-50). But what was Lot’s wife’s sin? She was sentimental for Sodom. We in America struggle with a sentimental faith rather than a scriptural one.
A sentimental faith results in no one hating you, while a scriptural faith results in many people hating you. A sentimental faith believes all of this lost world is merely indifferent to God. A scriptural faith believes God loves a world that hates Him.
Trust in Your God and in Your King Who Both Want to Give you Good Gifts. Jesus will one day crown all His people with righteousness (2 Timothy 4:8) and eternal life (James 1:12). Jesus is saving the best gifts for later. But He still gives good gifts now. When the Bible talks about sin, its not trying to keep you from a good time. God actually wants to give you the best time. He wants to give you extra mashed potatoes, extra time with your grandkids, and extra recognition for the work you do. Sin gets in the way of that by promising short-cuts and ruining God’s good gifts.
Conclusion
Our God and King goes out to war and He comes back victorious. But remember, we go out to battle with Him. And most importantly, we come back with Him too! Listen to these verses from the song, the Son of God Goes Forth to War.
The Son of God goes forth to war
A kingly crown to gain.
His blood-red banner streams afar;
Who follows in His train?
Who best can drink His cup of woe, Triumphant over pain,
Who patient bears his cross below-- He follows in His train.
A noble army, men and boys,
The matron and the maid,
Around the Savior's throne rejoice,
In robes of light arrayed.
They climbed the steep ascent of heav'n Through peril, toil, and pain.
O God, to us may grace be giv'n To follow in their train!