I have been reading in the Psalms and stopped to meditate on Psalm 24. It’s a Psalm of ascent; that is, it was sung on the way up to the temple and is often overshadowed by its more well-known neighbor, Psalm 23.
The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof,
the world and those who dwell therein,
for he has founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the rivers.
Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?
And who shall stand in his holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not lift up his soul to what is false
and does not swear deceitfully.
He will receive blessing from the Lord
and righteousness from the God of his salvation.
Such is the generation of those who seek him,
who seek the face of the God of Jacob. Selah
Lift up your heads, O gates!
And be lifted up, O ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord, strong and mighty,
the Lord, mighty in battle!
Lift up your heads, O gates!
And lift them up, O ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of hosts,
he is the King of glory! Selah Psalm 24 ESV
The Psalm opens with the recognition that everything that exists belongs to God. He is the creator and sustainer of everything in the created universe. With that recognized, the psalm moves quickly to God’s calling for personal righteousness.
Who can come before the Lord and receive His blessings? Only “He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully.“
Of course, we know, as did the ancient people of Israel and Judah, that no one can meet those requirements. They trusted in YAHWEH by faith to redeem them and take away their sin, so they could stand before the Lord. They did not yet know Jesus by name, as He had not come, but they knew the Lord had promised a savior and trusted that promise.
The very city itself is called to open its gates for the coming King. The King of Glory, the Lord of Hosts, is coming. Jesus has come now, but we know He is returning. The King of Glory is coming back to the place He owns.
Will we have clean hands and hearts to be in His presence and receive His blessings?
Will we open our hearts and gates? Will we make Him welcome, or will we close up and try to hold out against His undefeatable power?
With Christ’s imputed righteousness, we too can come before the Lord and be blessed. We must trust in what He has done by faith. He’s coming for the believer and unbeliever, one to eternity in His presence and blessing, the other to eternal separation and damnation.
Let’s be found with open gates, clean hearts and singing praises in anticipation of the day He comes back.
Be blessed, Kevin
Did you enjoy this? Subscribe today for more.
SUMMARY
As I sat with Psalm 24, I was struck by how quickly it moves from declaring God’s ownership of all creation to asking who is fit to stand in His presence, and the answer is a standard none of us can meet on our own. I’m reminded that only through Christ’s imputed righteousness can we approach the King of Glory with clean hands and open hearts, ready for the day He returns.
TAKEAWAY
Everything that exists belongs to God as Creator and Sustainer, which sets the stage for the Psalm’s call to personal holiness
No one meets the standard of clean hands and a pure heart apart from trusting in the Lord’s promised redemption, first by faith in YAHWEH’s promise and now through Christ
The ancient call to “lift up your heads, O gates” points forward to Christ’s return, and the question becomes whether our hearts will be open or closed when the King of Glory comes back
Soli Deo Gloria (For the glory of God alone)
© 2001, 2026 K.F. “Kevin” Corbin, “Gleanings From the Word.” All rights reserved.
From Gleanings From The Word (Kevin Corbin, 2001– ), a Scripture-based devotional work.