Psalm 21

“But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.”

{John 11:22} (NIV 1984) 

Martha got up immediately to go and meet Jesus, in spite of her grief. That is faith -  to go to God in the midst of trial! 

Martha believed that if Jesus had been present, her brother would not have died. That is faith - to believe in the protection of the presence of Jesus! 

Martha believed that her brother would rise in the great resurrection of the dead. That is faith - the faith that Job expressed - a faith in seeing God with our own eyes!

Martha believed that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God, who came to the world. That is faith- the saving faith that Jesus commended Peter for! 

Martha said that she believed that God would give Jesus WHATEVER He asked. That is faith- the faith in the relationship of the Heavenly Father and His Son whom He loves! 

The Jews praised God for giving their king the desires of his heart. 

What about us my friend? Do we praise God for answering the prayers of Christ Jesus? Do we believe that God will give Jesus whatever he asks?

Psalm 21

“This is the confidence we have in approaching God;…”

{1 John 5:14,15} (NIV 1984)

The Jewish people were confident that the LORD would hear their prayers for their king and act on his behalf. Even more than that, they were confident that the LORD heard the prayers of their king and answered him by giving him a great victory. 

Why does God answer prayer? Prayer happens when a person on earth, asks our God and Father in heaven, to reach down to earth and change reality, in time and space. We are so insignificant compared to God. We are a mist; we are but the grass of the field. Yet in God’s grace, He has established prayer as a means to achieve His purposes on earth. God’s people pray and God acts on behalf of their prayers. God’s will is then done on earth as it is in heaven. 

May we follow the example of the Jews who sang Psalm 20 and 21. May we be people of prayer today. May we be as confident as the apostle John was as we approach God in prayer!

Psalm 21

“Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, the LORD, is the Rock eternal..”

{Isaiah 26:4} (NIV 1984)  

I have never forgotten what a professor at a preaching workshop said to all of us; “We only have one message to preach, because the Bible has only one message in it. That message is TRUST GOD!” How true that statement is and we see it in this verse from Isaiah. The LORD blesses those who trust Him. God is trustworthy. Do we trust Him enough to obey His commands today? His blessing will pour out upon us if we do. Do we trust Him enough to accept this trial from His hands that we are going through today? We will know His comfort and His joy if we do. Psalm 20 tells us that the people trust in the Name of the LORD. Psalm 21 tells us that the king trusts in the LORD, and that the LORD delivered the king from His trial because of the king’s trust.  

Oh Heavenly Father may we trust you enough today, to obey you. May we trust you enough today to run to Your side as we face this trial.

Psalm 21

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith,

 who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame,

 and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

 {Hebrews 12:2} (NIV 1984)

The Man of Sorrows had His eyes fixed on the joy that He would experience in the throne room of the Most High God. This joy is described in Psalm 21:1 as a joy whose objects are God’s strength and the victories that God’s strength brought to the king. 

We would do well to follow the example of David and of our Lord. May the objects of our joy be the strength of God and the victories that the strength of God will bring for us. Nowhere will the strength of God be stronger, nor the victory greater, than over our physical death. 

May we fix our eyes on our joyful Saviour, who went before us, enduring pain, scorning shame, looking forward to rejoicing in the victory over sin and death that the strength of God brings those who trust in Him!

Psalm 21

"By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men."

{2 Peter 3:7} (NIV 1984) 

There is a day set aside by the Most High God, a place, in time and space, when the King of Kings will come back to earth in power. Our Psalm calls it “the time of your appearing” (vs. 9). The Bible is clear, our Lord was clear; this “day” will bring about the destruction of the enemies of Christ. They will burn in fire, there will be no opportunity for them to flee. Our Psalm actually teaches that God will cause them to turn their backs to better receive His arrows of destruction. 

Oh friend, no one likes the doctrine of hellfire! But let us not follow others in their error of denying this truth. No! Let us accept the Word as it is written, praise our Righteous Lord for His Justice and Righteousness, and get about His work of rescuing lost sinners from that terrible Day of Wrath!  

Oh Lord may you open my eyes that I may see, the true state of my unsaved friends. Oh Lord may you open my heart that I may go and speak your message of love.

Psalm 21

“Are you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate. 

“Yes, it is as you say,” Jesus replied.”

{Mark 15:2} (NIV 1984)

David wrote Psalm 20 and 21 as songs to be sung by the Jews for their king. Perhaps he wrote them for King Saul, but it seems more likely that David wrote them to be sung about himself and his descendants. 

Our Lord’s claim to Pilate, that He is the king of the Jews, means that our Lord Jesus Christ is the subject of this song. This truth brings a deep, deep meaning to the crown of gold, length of days, many victories, majesty and splendor and eternal blessings. There would be some meaning in regards to an earthly king. But what we have here, is a look into the throne room of heaven. We are seeing the Lord Jesus Christ entering God’s presence after rising from the dead, and ascending on high. He is sitting at the right hand of God, waiting for His enemies to be crushed.

O worship the King, all glorious above,
O gratefully sing His power and His love;
Our Shield and Defender, the Ancient of Days,
Pavilioned in splendor, and girded with praise.