Psalm 93 - Robed in majesty

Read: Psalm 93 vs 1-5

The ancient nations of the world were ruled by kings. As far back as the book of Genesis we are introduced the names of kings and the kingdoms that they ruled (Genesis 14:1). The nations had kings, kings who emerged from among the people, kings you could see, kings who lived and who died. God’s people however were to be different, they were to be a people with one King, a King you could not see, a King who was not like them, a King whose reign was eternal. In 1 Samuel 8:6 the people of Israel said to the prophet Samuel: ‘Give us a king to lead us’. They wanted to be like the other nations and this saddened God greatly. However in His graciousness God gave them what they wanted. The books of 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings and 1 and 2 Chronicles record the lives of the kings who ruled over God’s people. These stories are, at best, ‘mixed bag stories’, good kings and bad kings, wise kings and terribly foolish kings, kings who helped the people to flourish and kings who terribly abused the power that they had.

Psalm 93 comes along to refocus the hearts and minds of believing people on their one true King: 

‘The LORD reigns, He is robed in majesty;

The LORD is robed in majesty and armed with strength …’ (vs 1)

There are so so many reasons why we can lose this conviction and lose hold on this reality. We look at a world of apparent chaos, pictured in vs 3-4 as a world of surging waters and it feels at time as if no-one is in control. We long for a leader who we can trust completely, who will command our loyalty unswervingly, who will be mighty to save and rescue their people in all adversity, who will never make a mistake, who will never change and never fail to be there. At this moment of course our hearts tell us that we are looking for a type of ruler (call them a ‘King’, a ‘President’, or a ‘Prime Minister’) who simply can never exist. But what if this ruler, who we long for, has always been there, and is here now? Psalm 93 tells us there is such a King.

Prayer: LORD my King, may my heart be set on worshipping You today and naming You as my King. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.