Scripture Reading: Psa. 93; Psa. 94; Psa. 95; Psa. 96; Psa. 97; Psa. 98; Psa. 99; Psa. 100; Psa. 101
Psalms 93 through 101 are a group, a cluster. If you read these nine psalms carefully, you will see that the first eight of them are very similar. They are like one psalm, for they speak about the same thing with the same voice, tone, and emphasis. Psalm 101 is the conclusion to this cluster of psalms, showing how Christ will reign and judge in His kingdom. These psalms are on God's recovery of His title and right over the whole earth through the reign of Christ.
Teachers and students of the Bible agree that the Bible is centered on Christ. If we have an intrinsic understanding of Genesis, for example, we will see Christ in this book. Likewise, Christ is unveiled in the book of Leviticus. Dr. Scofield has pointed out that every page of Leviticus shows us Christ. However, in order to see Christ in Leviticus, we need a proper guide who can give us the necessary teaching. In this matter we are like the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts 8 who was reading Isaiah the prophet. Philip asked him, "Do you really know the things that you are reading?" (v. 30). The eunuch replied, "How could I unless someone guides me?" (v. 31a). If we would clearly see Christ in the Psalms, we need a proper guide.
We need to realize that the Psalms is a book which is very strong concerning the unveiling of Christ in God's economy. However, in our reading of the Psalms, it is easy for us to think that the Psalms help us to be godly and pious, to worship, praise, and thank God, and to behave ourselves. Actually the Psalms are not for such things. Rather, the Psalms use these things as a background for the revelation concerning Christ.
In Book 1 of the Psalms we see Christ with some stress on God's house (27:4). In Book 2 we see Christ with God's house and God's city. In Psalm 48 the city is strongly emphasized. In Book 3 we have not only Christ, the house, and the city but also the earth. The last psalm in Book 3, Psalm 89, says that Christ will come to reign and to possess the whole earth from the sea (the Mediterranean) to all the rivers, indicating all the places, of the earth (v. 25). We have pointed out that the seventeen psalms in Book 4 are in four groups. The first group, which includes Psalms 90 through 92, is on the deeper experience of God in the identification with Christ in taking God as our habitation. The second group, Psalms 93 through 101, shows us that God will recover His full title and right over the earth through the reign of Christ.
The front page of the daily newspaper indicates that today's world is filled with darkness and sinfulness, with person fighting against person, society against society, and nation against nation. But Psalms 93 through 101 shout joyfully that God will recover His title and right over the whole earth. God has the right over the earth because the earth with all its fullness — all the different peoples, regardless of race or color — was created by Him. Thus, He is the Possessor of the earth and holds the title deed. He has the full right to claim the earth, and He will do it through the reign of Christ. According to Psalm 101, Christ will reign and judge in lovingkindness and justice.
Psalm 94:15a says, "Judgment will return unto righteousness." This indicates that on earth today judgment has gone astray from righteousness, but when Christ comes back to reign, He will bring in justice and will cause judgment to return to righteousness. Christ is with us in the church, but today's world is without Christ, and for this reason the world is evil, dark, and sinful. However, the coming reign of Christ will make a great difference throughout the earth. Instead of injustice and unrighteousness, there will be justice and righteousness.
Let us now consider some matters related to God's possessing the earth through Christ and then look one by one at Psalms 93 through 101.
Psalm 2:8 says, "Ask of Me,/And I will give the nations as Your inheritance/And the limits of the earth as Your possession." This indicates that God has given the earth to Christ as His possession and the nations as His inheritance. Therefore, the earth with all the nations belongs to Christ. America belongs to Christ, not to the Americans, and Russia also belongs to Christ, not to the Russians.
Revelation 10:1-2 shows us that Christ will come to take possession of the earth by putting His right foot on the sea and the left on the land. Christ's placing His feet on the sea and on the land is His treading on them, and to tread on them is to take possession of them (Deut. 11:24; Josh. 1:3; Psa. 8:6-8). In order to possess the land, one first must possess the sea. For this reason, Christ will possess the earth by putting His foot first on the sea and then on the land.
Revelation 11:15 tells us that the kingdom of the world will become the kingdom of our Lord (God) and of His Christ and that Christ will reign forever and ever.
"Jehovah reigns; He is clothed with majesty./Jehovah is clothed, He has girded Himself, with strength./Indeed the world has been established so that it cannot be moved./Your throne is established from of old;/You are from eternity" (Psa. 93:1-2). These verses indicate that when Christ reigns the earth is established. However, apart from the reign of Christ the earth is easily shaken. When God recovers His title and right over the earth through the reign of Christ, the earth will no longer be shaken but will be established.
Psalm 94 reveals that Christ will execute His judgment over the world. Verse 1 says, "O God of vengeance, O Jehovah, /O God of vengeance, shine forth!" Because there is a great deal of injustice on earth today, there is the need for the God of vengeance to shine forth. When Christ reigns He will shine, and this shining will be His vengeance executed over the unjust world.
Verse 10 says, "He who disciplines the nations,/He who teaches man knowledge, does He not reprove?" When Christ reigns He will discipline the nations. Apparently this is not happening today, for it may seem that God is not doing anything regarding world affairs. Actually, God is reigning and, at least to some extent, He has been disciplining the nations. For instance, in World War II He dealt with Hitler, Mussolini, and Japan. In the coming kingdom age, Christ will discipline every nation much like a father disciplines his children. At that time, the judgment in this world will return unto righteousness (v. 15a).
In these psalms the earth, the world, the peoples, and the nations are mentioned again and again. Psalm 95 unveils Christ as a great King possessing the earth. Jehovah as Christ is a great King above all gods (v. 3). In His hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are His also (v. 4). The sea is His. He made it, and His hands formed the dry land (v. 5). Therefore, the psalmist says, "Come, let us worship and bow down;/Let us kneel before Jehovah our Maker" (v. 6).
In 96:3-13 we see that Christ will come to judge the earth, the world, and the peoples with righteousness and truth and that He will reign over the nations. The word "peoples" in verses 3, 5, 7, 10, and 13 indicates that people of every race and color will be judged by Him. In verse 13 the psalmist concludes by saying that Jehovah "is coming to judge the earth;/He will judge the world with righteousness,/And the peoples with His truth." This surely reveals that God will recover His title and right over the earth through the reign of Christ.
According to Psalm 97:1-2, 4-6, 8-9, and 11 Christ will reign, and the earth will be glad and rejoicing. Today the earth is not pleasant, and thus the inhabitants of the earth are not glad. But when Christ reigns, the earth will be glad and will rejoice.
Psalm 98 declares that all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of God. Verses 2 and 3 say, "Jehovah has made His salvation known;/In the sight of the nations/He has revealed His righteousness./He remembered His lovingkindness and His faithfulness/Toward the house of Israel;/All the ends of the earth have seen/The salvation of our God." The whole earth has seen God's salvation.
Psalm 99 speaks of Christ reigning in Zion and of all the peoples trembling. Today the nations around Israel are trying to destroy her. But when Christ reigns in Zion, all the nations around Zion will tremble (vv. 1-2, 4, 9).
Psalm 100 opens with a charge to all the earth: "Make a joyful sound to Jehovah, all the earth" (v. 1). As Darby points out in a footnote in his translation of the Bible, the Hebrew word translated "joyful sound" here can also be rendered "joyful noise." When we are joyful we will shout, and to shout is surely to make a noise. Sometimes in our meetings we should make a joyful noise to the Lord, praising Him and shouting "Hallelujah!" This will make the Lord happy, and it will put the devil and the demons to shame. When we are silent, we are deadened, but when we praise the Lord with a joyful noise, we are strengthened.
Psalm 101 reveals that lovingkindness and justice will be the base of the reign and judgment of Christ (typified by David — vv. 1, 6, 8). It seems that this psalm does not belong to this section concerning God's recovery of the earth through Christ's reign. This psalm, however, is actually the conclusion of this section.
Psalm 101 is a word spoken to God by Christ, who reigns on the earth for God. At the psalmist's time the name of Christ, the anointed One, had not yet been revealed, so David, God's anointed, was used to typify Christ as the man anointed by God to reign over the earth for God. Therefore, this psalm unveils how Christ will reign over the earth with lovingkindness and justice and deal with all the wicked people. When Christ reigns on earth in the coming age, lovingkindness and justice will be the base of His reign and judgment over the earth.
Verses 1 and 2a say, "I will sing of lovingkindness and justice;/To You, O Jehovah, I will sing psalms./I will give careful heed to the way of the perfect." Remember, the "I" here is the word of David, a type of Christ, indicating that this word is the word of Christ to God. Thus, "I" here actually refers to Christ. Christ will sing to Jehovah of lovingkindness and justice. Christ will also give careful heed to the way of the perfect. If we are on the way of the perfect, Christ will give careful heed to our way.
Psalm 101 speaks in detail concerning the way Christ will reign, rule, and judge in the coming age. As we read through this psalm, we see many virtues that will be manifested in Christ's reign on earth. Today the earth is filled with injustice, but we have the hope that the earth will be recovered. One day God's title and right over the whole earth will be recovered through the reign of Christ. Then the virtues described in Psalm 101 will be manifested.
