Psalm 21:1-2 - The King's Joy

While David was the king of Israel when he wrote this psalm, he does not use first person pronouns to describe the king, but rather, the third person. That's because David is not talking about himself as the king in this psalm. Instead, he is looking forward to the King of kings and Lord of lords. Jesus Christ is not merely a king, He is the king – the king above all kings, and the king that David is praising in this psalm.

Because this psalm is so focused on Jesus, we will slow down a little as we study its depths. Please read Psalm 21:1-2 now.

David ends verse 2 with the words “selah.” This has often been interpreted as a musical notation similar to a pause or a rest. It may initiate a musical interlude before the next verse is sung which provides the audience and the singers a chance to reflect on the greatness expressed in the previous verses. Let’s reflect on the greatness expressed in verses 1 and 2.

The “king” in this psalm is none other than Jesus, the King of kings. David begins this psalm by declaring that Jesus takes joy in God’s strength, salvation, and answers to His prayers. We should imitate our Lord and Savior in this regard and attempt to replicate that joy in these aspects of God. However, joy must not be forced. We cannot simply be joyful because we know we should have joy. Rather, we should actually reflect on these aspects of God, and allow His truth to give us great joy.

To begin with, God is the all-powerful Sovereign Lord of the Universe. His strength is great. Jesus, being fully God, is also all-powerful, but in His humanity, our Lord allowed Himself to rely on the strength of the Father. It was only through the power of the Holy Spirit that Jesus was able to do the miraculous work that He did on this earth. Jesus made it a priority to rise early each day and seek the Father’s strength. When He was in great turmoil, He went to the Father in prayer and asked Him for strength.

If our Lord relied on God the Father for His strength, how much more should we? I am nothing without Jesus Christ. I often think of myself more highly than I ought, but the truth is that I need God to strengthen me if I am to accomplish anything of eternal significance. Like Jesus, let us lean on God for strength.

Next, Jesus rejoices in God’s “salvation.” And He doesn’t just mildly rejoice; He rejoices ‘greatly’! The joy of our Lord at the salvation of His chosen ones is too great for words. The author of Hebrews emphasizes that it was “for the joy that was set before Him [that Jesus] endured the cross, despising the shame” (Hebrews 12:2). The complete turmoil that Jesus suffered on the cross was done because He knew the joy that would come as a result.

Through the work that Jesus did on the cross, we can be saved from our sin and spend an eternity with Him. Can you imagine the joy that Jesus must get as He witnesses another sinner transformed into a saint? Can you imagine His joy when the Holy Spirit convicts someone of their sin and uses us to share with them the means by which they may be saved? Can you imagine Christ’s joy when He gets to say to us, “well, done good and faithful servant… enter into the joy of your Master” (Matthew 25:21)?

If you can imagine His joy, perhaps you too can celebrate with Him and experience the joy of God’s salvation!

Finally, Our Lord rejoices that God the Father grants Him “his heart’s desire” and “the request of his lips.” It is out of the overflow of the heart that the mouth speaks, so these two phrases are referring to the same thing. In fact, all of these expressions are referring to the same thing: Jesus’ prayers reflect His deepest heart’s desire – to redeem His people; this is only accomplished through the strength of God and the salvation of God.

Praise God for saving us! Praise Christ for wanting us! Praise God’s Holy Spirit for working in us! May we give all praise to God in imitation of Christ, and may this fill us with the same joy that it gave our King; the joy that is so great that it was worth enduring the cross to attain.