Blessed be His glorious Name
Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19 NRSV
Give the king your justice, O God, and your righteousness to a king’s son. May he judge your people with righteousness, and your poor with justice. May the mountains yield prosperity for the people, and the hills, in righteousness. May he defend the cause of the poor of the people, give deliverance to the needy, and crush the oppressor. May he live while the sun endures, and as long as the moon, throughout all generations. May he be like rain that falls on the mown grass, like showers that water the earth. In his days may righteousness flourish and peace abound, until the moon is no more.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who alone does wondrous things. Blessed be his glorious name forever; may his glory fill the whole earth. Amen and Amen.
Isaiah 4:2-6 NRSV
On that day the branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land shall be the pride and glory of the survivors of Israel. Whoever is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy, everyone who has been recorded for life in Jerusalem, once the Lord has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion and cleansed the bloodstains of Jerusalem from its midst by a spirit of judgment and by a spirit of burning. Then the Lord will create over the whole site of Mount Zion and over its places of assembly a cloud by day and smoke and the shining of a flaming fire by night. Indeed, over all the glory there will be a canopy. It will serve as a pavilion, a shade by day from the heat, and a refuge and a shelter from the storm and rain.
The messianic era is here characterized as an era of restoration. The remnant, the people of God, have survived God’s judgment. The day of the Lord has been a day of terror but also one of purification. The filth of corruption, the fires of rebellion, and the folly of God’s people have been removed and those who are left are now described as holy and their names are recorded in the Book of Life. Having consecrated for himself a new people who will be responsive to him, God assures them of his glorious presence. The glory of the Lord, revealed to Israel in the wilderness, will protect only those who are holy and over whom his judgment has passed.[1]
Heidelberg Catechism Question 31
Why is He called Christ, that is, Anointed?
Because He is ordained of God the Father, and anointed with the Holy Spirit, to be our chief Prophet and teacher, who has fully revealed to us the secret counsel and will of God concerning our redemption; and our only High Priest, who by the one sacrifice of His body has redeemed us, and makes continual intercession for us with the Father; and our eternal King, who governs us by His Word and Spirit, and defends and preserves us in the salvation obtained for us.
O Lord God, govern and guide our hearts and minds by your Holy Spirit, that we may always be mindful of the end of all things and the day of your last judgment, and be stirred up to holiness of living here and dwelling with you forever hereafter; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.[2]
Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Corinthians 4.15).
[1] Willem A. VanGemeren, “Isaiah,” in Evangelical Commentary on the Bible, vol. 3, Baker Reference Library (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1995), 478–479.
[2] From Swedish Psalm Book 1677, found in The Sing! Hymnal, #877.
