LIVE AS A KING Live as a king! Psalm 1 presents the royal way of the righteous. This is the way which unites us with God's word night and day. Thus we are able to enjoy a blessed life and avoid the destroying way of the wicked. In Psalm 2, the psalmist presents the Messiah, "the prevailing Lord," as being the narrow but holy way. Through Him, we enter the spiritual battle of the cross and become kings according to Rev.1: 6 "He has made us kings and priests." (rev1: 6) ROYAL PSALMS The most important Royal psalms are (Ps. 2, 18, 20, 21, 45, 72, 89, 101, 110, 132, 144). Leopold Sabourin states, [The traditional view which held that David wrote most of the psalms was inclined to increase considerably the number of "royal psalms." When the Davidic authorship was reappraised the opposite tendency came to the fore. Mowinckel tells us what happened next: "But in its earlier phase modern scientific study of the psalms tended to deny the presence of any royal figure in the psalms... Where we do meet a royal figure, as in the so called "Messianic" psalms, this figure was interpreted as a personification of the people of Israel. Gunkel was the first to reinterpret the royal psalms with an actual royal figure and place this interpretation on a firm scientific foundation."1] We can find in these psalms many aspects: 1. Psalms of the community: The relationship between God and man in the Old and the New Testaments is based essentially on two integral attitudes: the communal and the personal. In the Old Testament the king was the representative of the whole community, therefore the covenant between God and him and between God and the people is one and the same thing. The importance of the king in this light explains why the psalms have been composed in his honor2. In these psalms "I" and "we" realize the same role, for the worshiper who utters them is the king who represents the whole or the community who is not separated from the king. 2. Psalms of Christ: The Old Testament shows Jehovah as the true King of His people (Exod. 15: 18; 1 Sam 8: 7, 21). Therefore the king's throne in Jerusalem was called the "throne of the Lord" (1 Chor. 29: 23) or "the throne of the kingdom of the Lord" (1 Chor. 28: 5). The king who represents the whole congregation represents the Lord also, therefore he was called the "Messiah of the Lord," a figure of the Christ who is the King of kings, the Mediator between the Father and the people. He who is one with His Father in essence received the church as His own body, interceding on her behalf by His precious and sacrificial blood. This concept explains why the royal psalms are seen to be specifically concern the Messiah, king and Savior of mankind. 1 The Psalms, their origin and meaning. Vol. 2, p. 209-210. 2 Ibid, p. 209. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 2 3. Psalms of the inner life: Christ came to establish His kingdom within us (Luke 17: 21), granting us the grace of spiritual kingship as a gift of His Holy Spirit. In Christ - the King of kings- we became kings (Rev. 1: 6). THE MESSIANIC KING Ps. 1 begins and Ps. 2 ends with a "beatitude." The blessed nature the psalmist hopes for in Ps. 1 can be realized only through the Universal Messianic King who is revealed in Ps. 2. For in our Lord Jesus Christ believers from all nations are renewed and sanctified by His Holy Spirit. This psalm is frequently quoted in the New Testament, where it is applied to Christ as the King, the great Son of David and God's Anointed (Acts 4: 25ff; 13: 33; Heb. 1: 5; 5: 51.) Jewish and Christian traditions alike consider Ps. 2 as Messianic, like Ps. 110, which seems to follow and depend on it 2. Arno C. Gaebelein states: [The Messianic interpretation among the Jews was the only interpretation up to the tenth and eleventh century. Then, to contradict the Christian exposition, the Jews limited the meaning of the psalm to David3.] This psalm reveals our Savior; by prophesying through David's kingdom, the kingdom of the Messiah, the Son of David, and that is the primary intention and scope of the psalm.4 St. John Chrysostom distinguishes between two divine kingdoms saying,[ The scriptures acknowledge two kingdoms of God, the one by appropriation, the other by creation. Thus, He is King over all, both Greeks and Jews and devils and His adversaries, as they are all His creation. But He is also King over the faithful and those willing to be His subjects, thereby making them His own. This is the kingdom which is said also to have a beginning according to His words in the second psalm: "Ask of Me, and I shall give You the heathen for Your inheritance" [8]. Relevant to this also, He Himself said to His disciples, "All authority has been given unto Me by My Father" (Matt. 28: 18)5.] The Messiah (Christ) entered into a continuous spiritual battle against Satan, to prepare the royal way for our victory. He accepted to be rejected on our behalf. This rejection (1-3; Acts 4: 25-28) continues throughout the ages and culminates in the abysmal apostate of the great tribulation. We are not a party in the battle, but we have to be hidden in one of the two parties. If we are hidden in Christ we will be rejected for His Name's sake, but surely we will conquer, and God will judge the Christ- rejecting world. That has denied Him. A CORONATION PSALM This royal psalm is called "a coronation psalm," perhaps as it was composed for the coronation of David as king. It was evoked by the promise of 2 Sam. 7: 8-16, and has probably been used at the coronation of David's successors, not to hail them as the Messiah, but to remind them of the one they symbolize. 1 The NIV Study Bible, 1985, p. 787. 2 Sabourin, Vol. 2, p. 213. 3 Arno C. Gaebelein: The Book of Psa;ms, 1982, p. 21. 4 Matthew Henery, Psalm II. 5 In Cor. Hom. 39: 11. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 3 Carroll Stumueller says, [While Psalm 1 comes from the sapiental movement with a more humanistic outlook, Psalm 2 originated in a more political setting, related to the coronation ceremony of new kings at Jerusalem temple and the royal palace. Because royalty protected the sapiential movement - King Solomon became the wise person per excellence (cf. 1 Kings 4: 29- 34)1 - the combination of the sapiential Psalm 1 and the royal Psalm 2 as a prologue to the Psalter is not surprising.] Ps 2 declares how the pagan kings are against the new anointed and coroneted king who is a symbol of the Messianic King. Some scholars see this psalm as a coronation psalm sung in the following order: * Verses 1-2 were sung by the temple choir about the rebellion of the pagan kings against God's rule as exercised through His anointed king. * Verse 3: A special choral group speaks in the name of these kings. * Verses 4-6: The heavenly setting, mirrored in the temple, for the coronation ritual (Divine derision). This stanza voices God's reaction to the kings' rebellion. The mere words of God suffice to terrify pagan kings. * Verses 7-9: The enthronement, spoken by a prophet in the name of the Lord (Divine decree). This stanza shows the king's confidence based on God's word. * Verses 10-12: A call to universal submission addressed to the kings. WHO IS THIS KING ? 1. The Anointed One: "The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and His Anointed" [2]. Many royal psalms are concerned with the sacred office of the king; here specially shown as chosen by God. The king's anointing was a sacred act (1 Sam. 10: 1); the king was "the Lord's anointed" applied to both Saul and David2. The revolt against the anointed king is also against God. This is the same thing: the hatred of the world against the church and her saintly children is against Christ Himself, as He said to Saul (Acts 9: 5.) The English word "Messiah" comes from the Hebrew word "Mashiah" for "anointed one," and the English word "Christ" from the Greek word Christos for "anointed one." He is anointed to represent us in the spiritual battle, granting us His own victory (1 John 2: 13). In Him we also become the anointed ones (through the Chrism), members of His holy Body, children of God, and victims of love on behalf of others. He means by the kings and rulers the wicked leaders who had separate interests, but at the moment of the crucifixion they were united against Christ. Not only the mighty but also the mob and the people, were united and cried, "crucify Him! Crucify Him!" Our Lord says: They have hated both Me and My Father (John 15: 24). They hated Him and His Father saying, "Let us break Their bonds asunder, and cast away Their yoke from us" [3]. They refused to be under their government, and could not endure their yoke of love and holiness, saying, "We will not have this Man to reign over us" (Luke 19: 14). The wicked hate us also as we are the anointed ones. Our Lord says, "For if they do these things to the green wood, what will be done to the dry?" (Luke 23: 31). 1 C. Stuhlmueller, p. 62. 2 Nelson: A New Catholic Comm. On Holy Sripture, p. 444. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 4 2. The Heavenly enthroned One [2, 4]: The agitation and rebellion on earth [1] are confronted with the picture of the sublime peace that reigns in heaven. The helpless kings of the earth are contrasted with the superior might of God who is the King of heaven1. In Him we attain the heavenly life and the pledge of eternal life. "He who dwells in the heavens shall laugh at them" [4] If by "heaven" we understand holy souls, God (who dwells in His saints), foreknows what is to come, and "shall laugh at them, and shall hold them in derision." St. Augustine He is in the heaven, out of the reach of all their impotent menaces and attempts. There He has prepared His throne for judgment; therefore the attempts of the enemies are easily ridiculed. He laughs at them as a company of fools. He shall hold them in derision, and therefore His Church, the virgin and the daughter of Zion, has despised them (Isa. 37: 22). She is built upon a rock, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against her (Matt. 16: 18). St. Cyril of Alexandria says that He who dwells in the heaven shall laugh at them, because the Lord indeed, being the Son, and Heir since He is in essence one with the Father and enjoys the authority of God the Father, having become Man, called those who believe in Him unto communion and participation of His heavenly kingdom and of His eternal glories. But the wicked in their pride, refused, thinking that they could reign without Him.2 This prophecy has been fulfilled when the Jews rejected our Lord. St. John Chrysostom says, [Christ Himself declares, "Behold, your house is left unto you desolate" (Matt. 23: 38). And His parables declare the same thing when He says, "What shall the Lord of that vineyard do to those husbandmen? He shall miserably destroy those wicked men", (Matt. 21: 40,41)3.] 3. The King In Christ the True King, we become kings (Rev. 1: 6), and have authority over our emotions, senses, bodies, minds etc... Christ as a King reigns over our hearts not through authority but through love, so that we also as spiritual kings must gain others through the openness of our hearts to all mankind. 4. The Only-Begotten Son [7] "You are My Son, today I have begotten You." St. Paul quotes this verse (Heb. 1: 5) to prove that Christ has a more excellent name than the angels, being the Onlybegotten Son of God not by adoption but by inheritance, and having the same nature with the Father. 1 Weiser, p. 112. 2 Comm. On Luke, hom. 134. 3 In Joan, hom, 53. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 5 The Father says, "I have begotten;" He does not say, "I have created." And the Son doesn't call God His Creator in the eternity of His divine Generation, but Father1. The word "today" and not "yesterday," refers to that which was spoken of the assumption of our flesh to the eternity of the divine generation2. St. Ambrose The Father shows Him to be His own proper and only Son, saying, "You are My Son," [7] and "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matt. 3: 17). Accordingly, the angels ministered unto Him, as being one beyond themselves, and they worshiped Him, not as being greater in glory, but as being someone beyond all the creatures, and beyond themselves, and alone the Father's proper Son according to essence3. St. Athanasius of Alexandria In Him we become children of God. It is worthy to note that many pagan peoples believed that their kings were begotten by the deity. The Old Testament rejected the idea of the physical divine sonship of the king as incompatible with its spiritual notion of God (Ps. 89: 26f.; 2 Sam. 7: 14; 1 Chor. 28: 6). 5. The High-Priest The Messiah is the King, The Son of God and the High-priest, who has the authority to enter heaven and intercede for the whole nation offering His self-sacrifice. The psalmist refers to Christ as the Advocate of believers [8], after mentioning His kingdom and His sonship to the Father. This intercession is the hope of the world (John 17: 20). "Ask of Me, and I will give You the nations for Your inheritance" [8]. This has at once a temporal sense with reference to the Manhood which He took upon Himself, who offered Himself in a Sacrifice which replaces all other sacrifices, who also makes intercession for us... St. Augustine 6. The Saviour of the world [10] In Him we become members of the universal Church, at the same time we feel the responsibility of witnessing to Him before the world. THE RAGED PEOPLE AND KINGS When, in the great empires of the ancient Orient, the mighty ruler died, then all nations were in a state of extreme agitation. At such times, the nations which had been brought into bondage screamed and the yearning for freedom was aroused. It was often the primary and the most urgent task of a new king on his accession to the throne to consolidate and establish afresh the power of his great empire4. The psalmist expresses his surprise that the nations and their kings did the same on the occasion of the enthronement of the Messianic King on the cross, for He establishes His spiritual 1 Of the Christian Faith, 5: 10 (122). 2 Ibid, 5: 1 (24). 3 Four Discourese against the Arians, 2: 23. 4 Weiser, p. 109. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 6 kingdom to liberate them from the tyrant king. That tyrant king is the devil, who has long had an usurped kingdom and exercised dominion to such a degree that he has been called the prince of the power of the very air (Eph. 2: 2), we breathe in and the god of this world where (2 Cor. 4: 4) we live . Satan knows very well that as Christ's kingdom rises he falls aground. Our Lord says, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven" (Luke 10: 18). Power was granted unto Satan (Luke 22: 53) and the Jews to rise up against Christ: but they dug for themselves the pitfall of destruction. For He indeed saved, by means of His passion, all those under heaven, and rose the third day, having trampled under foot the empire of death. But they brought down upon their own heads inevitable condemnation in company with that traitorous disciple. Let them hear, therefore, the Holy Spirit, who says through the voice of the Psalmist, "Why have the heathen raged, and the nations meditated vain things? The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and against His Christ ...[1] These wretched beings then involved themselves in the crime of murdering their Lord; but we praise Him as our Savior and Deliverer our Lord Jesus Christ1. St. Cyril of Alexandria The Jews in their imagination, and in their plotting to act unjustly against the Lord, forgot that they were bringing wrath upon themselves. Therefore does the Word lament for them, saying, "Why do the people exalt themselves and the nations imagine vain things? [1]. For vain indeed was the imagination of the Jews, meditating death against Life, and devising unreasonable things against the Word of the Father2. The imagination of the Jews, and of those who are like them, was vain, since the result was not such as they contemplated, but turned out adverse to themselves; and at both of them He that sits in the heaven shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision [4]. Hence, when our Savior was led to death, He restrained the women who followed Him weeping, saying, "Weep not for Me" (Luke 22: 28); meaning to show that the Lord's death is an event, not of sorrow but of joy, and that He Who dies for us is alive3. St. Athanasius of Alexandria "Why do the heathens rage, and the people imagine vain things?" [1]... It is said "Why?" as if it were said, in vain. For what they wished, namely, Christ's destruction, they accomplished not; for this is spoken of our Lord's persecutors, of whom also mention is made in the Acts of the Apostles. St. Augustine This is the position of the wicked who rejected Him as the spiritual King, but for us His dominion is joyful and His yoke is very sweet. If we humbly lower our neck to receive the yoke of Christ, it will carry us rather than be carried by us; for though the yoke of the world always presses a man down, Christ's yoke is wont to lift him up. Now since every man is either raised up by carrying Christ 1 Comm.. On Luke hom 148. 2 Paschal letters, 11: 5. 3 Ibid, 11: 14. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 7 or pressed down to lower things by bearing the yoke of the world, each one should examine his own conscience1. Fr. Caesarius of Arles Our Savior, who destroyed demons as evil kings, enthrones His believers as spiritual kings. St. Augustine says, [O you who are now kings, since you are able, on the one hand, to govern whatever is base and sensual in yourselves, and, on the other, to fight, not as beating the air,to chastise your bodies and bring them into subjection (1 Cor. 9: 26, 27)... Now that I am hence forth enthroned as king, be not sad]. It is worthy to note that the anger or the wrath of the Lord is not a revenge for Himself, but it is an expression of God's righteousness that cannot accept sin or evil. THE NEED FOR DISCIPLINE [10-13] Weiser says that the psalm reverts to its starting-point by addressing the rulers of the earth, exhorting and warning them. They must humble themselves before the Almighty God and must serve Him with fear and trembling. The phrase "kiss His feet" is applied to God in a truly human fashion and is probably derived from the custom of kissing the feet of the king as an act of homage, a custom which is well known to us from Babylonian and Egyptian documents. Rabbi Ibn-Ezra understands this phrase "kiss His feet" as indicating the Messiah2. After warning the rulers and nations who rage against God and His Christ, David mentions discipline as a method of correction, as he says, "Embrace correction and discipline, lest the Lord be angry, and you perish through leaving the right way." To be chastised of the Lord, and instructed, is deliverance from death3. St. Clement of Alexandria Discipline is the safeguard of hope, the bond of faith, the guide of the way of salvation, the stimulus and nourishment of good dispositions. Discipline is the teacher of virtue that causes us to abide always in Christ, and to live continually for God, and to attain the heavenly promises and divine rewards. To follow her is wholesome, and to turn away from her and neglect her is deadly4. St. Cyprian Discipline is a kind of protection and defense against all that might harm us. We must not think of the Lord's anger [5] as implying any disturbance of mind. Rather it is the power whereby He asserts His rights in all justice, since every creature is subject to His service5. St. Augustine "SERVE THE LORD WITH FEAR AND REJOICE IN HIM WITH TREMBLING" [11] 1 Sermon 107: 4. 2 Nelson, p. 444. 3 Paed. 1: 7. 4 Treatise 2: 1. 5 Disc. On Ps. 2. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 8 In worshiping God we should have our hearts filled with a holy awe of God, but at the same time borne up with a joyful confidence in Him. Consequently, the early Fathers see a kind of integration between the holy fear of God and spiritual joy. For worship and spiritual discipline create not only a kind of fear and awe but also an inner joy. Concerning fear of God we quote the following statements: Let us see what sort of person a saint ought to be: gentle, meek, sorrowful, mournful, and contrite. A man then who jests in his dealings is no saint. For where filthiness is, there also is jesting; and where unseasonable laughter is, there also is jesting. Hearken to what the prophet says, "Serve the Lord in fear, and rejoice with trembling" [11]. Jesting renders the soul soft and indolent. It excites the soul unduly, and often it teems with acts of violence, and creates wars1. St. John Chrysostom When you repeat a psalm, consider whose words are repeated and delight yourself more with true contrition of soul, than with the pleasantness of a trilling voice. For God sets a higher value on the tears of one thus praising him, than on the beauty of his voice; as the prophet says, "Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling." Now, where there is fear and trembling, there is no lifting up of the voice, but humility of mind with lamentation and tears2. Pseudo- Sulpitius Severus Though it is a great thing to serve God, and it is said, "Serve the Lord in fear" and it is a great thing for you to be called My servant (Isa. 49: 6);... yet it is said to the apostles, " I no longer call you servants, for the servant knows not what his Lord does..." (John 15: 15). You see then that there are different stages of perfection, and that we are called by the Lord to walk from high things to still higher ones in such a way that he who has become blessed and perfect in the fear of God, moves as it is written "from strength to strength" (Ps. 84: 7)3. Abbot Chaeremon It is appropriate that we stand before God with a wakeful and attentive mind, combining a sense of awe and trembling with the spiritual fervor of joy and deep love (Rom. 12: 11-12).4 Fr. Marturius If you remember the Judge only when you are in difficulties as One who inspires fear and who is incorruptibly honest, then you have not as yet learned to "serve the Lord in fear and to rejoice in him with trembling5. Fr. Evagrius Ponticus There is exultation, that we may give thanks; trembling, lest we fall6. Fr. Caesarius of Arles 1 In Eph. Hom. 17. 2 Letter 2: 19. 3 Cassian, Conf. 11: 12. 4 Book of Perfection, 2. 5 Chapters on Prayer, 143. 6 Sermon, 134: 3. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 9 The author of the Book of Steps, written in the fourth century says, [When someone has been delivered from servitude to death, he serves the Lord in joy, and not in sorrow1]. THE RISEN CHRIST According to Coptic tradition, we sing this psalm in the Morning Prayer, as a psalm of the Risen King. C. Stuhlmueller says, [Jesus fulfills the psalm by becoming king, not at his birth from the Davidic line, acquired through his foster-father Joseph (Matt. 1: 16-17; Luke 1: 32), but rather through his resurrection from the dead, enthronement at God's right hand and sending of the Spirit (Acts 4: 25-26; 13: 33; Heb.1: 5; 5: 5).] This psalm is concluded by the words, "Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him" [12]. Trust is more than faith. For when we believe that the Son of God is our Teacher, we trust that His teaching is true2. St. Clement of Alexandria 1 Discourse 18: On the Tears of Prayer, 1. 2 Stromata, 5: 13.
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