What a wonderful day to celebrate God’s wonderful plan of salvation and Christ’s obedient pilgrimage to the cross, the tomb, and then back to the Father!

Nicole and I had a great treat this weekend visiting Messiah Bible Church in Tom’s River, NJ. Pastor Bobby and his wife Cecile were true servants of Christ. We stayed in their home and enjoyed some good filipino food at the church. Seth and Sophia had a blast with their children Steve, Brandon and Belle. Steve was the state spelling Bee champ this year and is now teaching himself Japanese in his free time…all at the ripe age of 14.

One of the things Messiah Bible Church does is stress Christian unity. Almost the entire church takes a spiritual retreat each year for three days. During the retreat they are able to build relationships, seek the Lord and cast vision.

Pastor Bobby truly has a heart for leadership development and from what I could tell does a fantastic job of empowerment and accountability -no small feat in the church world.

I am reminded of how Jesus empowered His disciples before the crucifixion and then during the time before His ascension. When you think about it, empowerment is really the only legacy you can leave. Those who seek to horde power take it with them, leaving nothing behind. They really have no legacy at all. It’s almost like the Emperor with no clothes –claiming leadership development but never empowering leaders. Jesus was the antithesis of this. He was incredibly secure in who He was and the mission He came to accomplish that He felt the freedom to proclaim “greater works than I have done shall you do.”

Thank you Lord Jesus for being the perfect model of godly servanthood!

Introduction

One of the hallmarks of great leadership is the ability to successfully replicate leadership skills in others. This is particularly true in training one’s future replacement. Sadly, those in ministry leadership often neglect actively seeking and training a successor for their role. For reasons that range from fear to low self-confidence to complacency, ministers oftentimes see planned ministry transition as negative and even unspiritual (Weese and Crabtree 2004, 14). The Scriptures are not silent on this issue. The characters and stories of the Bible model both positive and destructive leadership succession. There are numerous examples of strong men-of-faith training leaders to succeed them. In the Old Testament, Moses and Joshua as well as Elijah and Elisha are standard-bearers of successful leadership transitions. In the New Testament, Jesus provides us with an example of one to whom ministry is transitioned and then later of one who transitions ministry to others. A thoughtful, well-planned ministry succession plan can be both biblical and energizing to Christian organizations.

Moses and Joshua

In the Old Testament, Moses is seen as the quintessential leader. He is revered by Jews and Christians alike for leading the people of God out of Egypt and preparing them to enter the Land of Promise. Moses’ calling, training, and leadership provided a prototype for the biblical leaders that would follow him. While his life and leadership skills were not without disappointment, his deep connection with God provided a sense of balance and direction as God fulfilled His promise to the patriarch Abraham through the nation of Israel. Moses’ leadership lasted a mere forty-year period and because of his disobedience to God, he was not chosen to lead the people into the land of promise. It is in fact Moses’ death, and the choosing of Joshua, his successor, that marks the beginning of the fulfillment of the Israelite destiny. “Now it came about after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, that the LORD spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ servant, saying, Moses My servant is dead; now therefore arise, cross this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them, to the sons of Israel (Josh 1: 1-2, [NASB]).

While Moses began his leadership career with the nation of Israel lacking self-confidence and claiming the inability to speak God’s words of judgment to Pharaoh, he died with the affirmation of God. His leadership abilities are encapsulated in the final three verses of Deuteronomy:

Since that time no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face, for all the signs and wonders which the LORD sent him to perform in the land of Egypt against Pharaoh, all his servants, and all his land, and for all the mighty power and for all the great terror which Moses performed in the sight of all Israel (Deut 34: 10-12).

Even though Moses quite possibly was saddened by God’s refusal to allow him to enter the Promised Land, he was certainly affirmed by God’s words that there had never been another leader like Moses.

Before Moses’ death, God had a plan of leadership succession for the nation of Israel. The plan had its genesis in the Exodus account of the Israelites at Mount Sinai. They spoke to Moses “Speak to us yourself and we will listen; but let not God speak to us, or we will die” (20: 19). Moses recalls this statement in one of his final discourses to the Israelites…”The Lord your God will raise up from you a prophet like me…This is according to all you asked the Lord your God at Horeb [Sinai]” (Deut 18: 15-16). God chose Joshua, son of Nun to succeed Moses as the leader for the Israelites.

Joshua had been with Moses since the Israelites fled Egypt and entered the wilderness. He was one of two spies who entered the Promised Land and returned with a favorable report. He was with Moses throughout the forty-years of the desert wanderings. Joshua eventually led the people to the Promised Land achieving military, organizational and political success along the way. While Moses was one of the greatest leaders in historical Judaism, it was Joshua who God chose to lead His people into their promised destiny.

The succession of leadership from Moses to Joshua was planned and well organized. While the Scriptures are not explicit in exactly what these men of faith knew about their ultimate role, it is clear Moses felt the need to prepare Joshua for a future leadership role. The battle with Amalek in Exodus 17 begins the training of Joshua as a military leader. Moses commands him to choose his warriors and defeat the enemy. After the battle is won, God speaks to Moses “Write this in a book as a memorial and recite it to Joshua” (17:14). Later as Moses climbed to the top of Mount Sinai (24:12) and spoke to God at the tent of meeting (33: 8-11), Joshua was at his side. It is through these events that Joshua was being immersed in the spiritual tenets of leadership. As Moses passed the baton of leadership to Joshua, he did so before the entire congregation of Israel. Numbers 27: 18 states:

So the LORD said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him; and have him stand before Eleazar the priest and before all the congregation, and commission him in their sight. You shall put some of your authority on him, in order that all the congregation of the sons of Israel may obey him.

This visible proclamation of Joshua as the new leader-in-waiting was essential to the eventual journey into the Promised Land.

Elijah and Elisha

A second example of leadership transition is found in the ministries of Elijah and Elisha. While Moses was chosen to proclaim the Law to the Children of Israel; Elijah, a prophet during a turbulent time of Israel’s history, was called to defend it. Elijah existed during the reign of the Kings of Israel and provided prophetic leadership at a time when many people were turning their hearts toward pagan rituals and gods. That Elijah was an important part of God’s plan is an understatement. He showed the people God’s power through miraculous signs and wonders, pronounced judgment upon unruly royalty, and anointed new kings in both Israel and Syria. Like Moses, Elijah was not without his share of short-comings. However, his life illustrates the hope of the faithful who persevere in their calling. As he was nearing the end of his ministry, the Bible indicates that he was “caught up” in a chariot to heaven and never died.

Elijah’s successor, Elisha, was chosen as he was out plowing with twelve yolk of oxen (1 Kings 19: 19). The biblical narrative of Elijah and Elisha makes it clear that God orchestrated this leadership succession. It is also clear that God wanted a time where Elisha would learn from Elijah and eventually continue the prophetic work. The Scriptures indicate that Elisha became the attendant or servant of Elisha during this time of transition (19: 21). The legacy of Elisha’s humble service to Elijah is communicated in II Kings 3: 11. King Jehoshaphat was seeking a word from the Lord and asked “‘Is there not a prophet of the LORD here, that we may inquire of the LORD by him?’ And one of the king of Israel’s servants answered and said, “Elisha the son of Shaphat is here, who used to pour water on the hands of Elijah.”

The transition of leadership from Elijah to Elisha is one of the most unique events in the Old Testament. The biblical account states:

And it came about when the LORD was about to take up Elijah by a whirlwind to heaven, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. Elijah said to Elisha, ‘Stay here please, for the LORD has sent me as far as Bethel’ But Elisha said, ‘As the LORD lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.’ So they went down to Bethel (II Kings 2: 1-2).

Later Elijah offers to commit some act of service for Elisha before he is taken up. When asked what he would like, Elisha replies “Please, let a double portion of your spirit be upon me” (2:9). This desire reflects a genuine servant relationship and is the ultimate expression of Elisha’s desire to follow and serve Elijah (Patterson 2005, 2). Elisha mourned in his traditional custom, tearing his clothes in grief, when the Lord finally took Elijah in the whirlwind.

John the Baptist, Jesus and The Disciples

In the New Testament, the proclamation of the gospel is transitioned to Jesus by John the Baptist. While John was initially unsure about who the Messiah actually was, it became very clear to him that Jesus would be taking his place in ministry. John boldly proclaimed to the hypocritical Pharisees and Sadducees his expectancy that he would be succeeded by one greater than himself: “He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals…” (Matt 3: 11). While the transition from John to Jesus was not as lengthy as that of Moses to Joshua or Elijah to Elisha there are some particularly salient features of this transition that are applicable to Christian leadership.

Jesus’ ministry took on a very different character than that of John the Baptist. In fact, his ministry was so different that John at one point was prompted to send messengers to Jesus to ask if He really was the Messiah. Jesus nonetheless was very affirming to John personally as well as to the work he had done: “Among those born of women, there has not arisen anyone greater than John…” (Matt 11:11); “For John came to show you the way of righteousness…” (Matt 21:32). In these statements, Jesus expressed His love and respect for the divine purpose John had played. When a ministry is working through a transition process it is very helpful to affirm the pervious leader (Weese and Crabtree 2004, 16).The death of John was difficult for Jesus. The Bible indicates that when He heard of John’s death, He withdrew away to be to Himself.

As the Son of God, Jesus began His ministry career fully knowledgeable about His time-frame for training His successors. While the twelve disciples He eventually chose would not have been considered prodigious leaders, they would eventually cause the world to be transformed by the message Jesus taught. Jesus used most every moment to teach His disciples and desired them to produce long term results (Weese and Crabtree 2004, 16). “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you to go bear fruit –fruit that will last” (John 15: 16 NIV). “Jesus understood John the Baptist’s role as preparatory to His work…Jesus [also] understood His own work as preparatory to that of His disciples” (Weese and Crabtree 2004, 20). Jesus was the transitioning link between the ministry of John the Baptist and the missionary efforts of His own disciples.

Conclusion

There is a pattern of God-ordained leadership transition in the Scriptures. Planned leadership succession is biblical and necessary to the health of the local church body and the body of Christ at-large. While many leaders see the necessity of training and developing new people for ministry leadership there has been a failure by many to train their eventual replacement. Career transitions, retirement and death are events that are often overlooked because of a lack of motivation to deal with issues that reflect human mortality. According to Weese and Crabtree, when strong pastoral leaders are faced with their eventual transition, many of them simply stop leading (Weese and Crabtree 2004, 20). Examining the context of many of the relationships in Scripture yields an abundance of information on succession, yet it is one of the least discussed topics in pastoral ministry. The biblical accounts of transition from Moses to Joshua, Elijah to Elisha, John to Jesus, and Jesus to His disciples provide a crucial model of leadership succession to those in ministry today.

–thoughts from a read of Working the Angles by Eugene Peterson

The Angle of Scripture

The primacy of God’s Word in the personal disciplines cannot be understated. It is here that we get our bearing for life. The study and meditation upon the Scriptures becomes the lifeblood for the true spiritual leader. Philippians 4: 8 states “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.” It is here that scripture fills all these qualities. The Apostle Paul plainly understood that the Word of God must be primary in the life of the believer. He also knew that there were many Christians who were giving their lives for the sake of the God’s Word; this made knowledge of the Scriptures in the daily life of the believer all the more important.

As the centuries have passed since the initial writing of God’s Word, the Christian community has continually looked to it for purpose and guidance through the mire of secularism and heresy. Continually God has breathed His Word afresh on generation after generation. It is this communing with His Spirit through the Holy Scriptures that we find strength for today and that bright hope for tomorrow. Two hundred years before the Reformation, John Wycliffe helped hand Europe its first translation of the Scriptures in over one thousand years. It was this zeal for the Word of God being in the hands of every man that led to Wycliffe’s persecution by the Catholic Church…the pope ordering his bones exhumed and burned forty-four years after his death. Wycliffe was a man who realized the importance of the truth of God’s Word speaking to the hearts of men in a meaningful way.

Peterson echoes these same thoughts. To encounter the Scriptures on a regular basis provides a person with fodder to combat existence in a secular world. The enemy of our soul can easily become spiritual tinnitus that at first is bothersome and unnerving but if left to run its course deafens us to still voice of the Lord. He seeks to enchant us by the news of the day or the hurriedness of work and life that draw us away from the discipline of scripture. Richard Foster in the Celebration of Discipline speaks of the Word of God as “replacing old destructive habits of thought with new life-giving habits.” Romans 12: 2 speaks particularly to this point. “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will (NASB).” Transformation only happens through reading, understanding, applying and listening to the Scriptures as they touch our hearts for the Glory of God.

The Angle of Spiritual Direction

Christian leadership and ministry is a calling that is regularly scrutinized by many in society. The morally bankrupt minister who publically fails becomes the poster-child for all those who have a chip on their shoulders with regards to professional ministry. Each case provides new coals with which to burn the fire of rebellion and secularism. Scores of ministers find themselves felling alone and without close camaraderie in ministry. They are left without a community of faith to undergird them and to help them find direction when they have lost their way. As even the Trinity exists in community, so should the Christian believer and particularly those who are placed in leadership in the Kingdom of God. A well balanced walk in Christian leadership is monitored by spiritual directors who are able to challenge, rebuke and encourage the man or woman of God.

Peterson places a very high value upon acquiring a Spiritual Director. He states “Being a spiritual director means a readiness to clear space and arrange time to look at these elements of our life that are not at all peripheral but are central –unobtrusive signals of transcendence.” This concept is foreign to many in ministry. John Wesley’s General Rules for Methodist Fellowships released in 1743 included, “Watch over one another in love.” This was the key to his success in retaining those who were converted through revivals. In class meetings and one-to-one, they cared for one another. Wesley, the great holiness preacher, understood that to maintain and live in holiness one must consistently subject oneself to the watchful eye of another believer who consistently acted in love.

Other professions and groups consistently provide for peer interaction and evaluation. In the Medical profession there is time and again feedback from peers in the field. New doctors are regularly assigned seasoned physicians as coaches and mentors to help them navigate the challenges of their vocation. Clinical counselors also commonly meet with those in the field to make sure that there is healthy interaction between counselor and counselee. It does seem that often those in professional ministry are either threatened or indifferent to the need of giving and receiving spiritual direction. Nonetheless, it is spiritual direction and spiritual directors that lend integrity to the minister. Without accountability, the Christian leader is finds him or herself in a dismal cavern alone and useless.

This is a paper which was submitted for a class on the Psalter.

“The Psalter is the jewel-case from which the saints of God obtain rare and precious gems of thought and spiritual strength to comfort and stimulate them on their journey along life’s pathway.” This consideration by Aaron Kligerman, while true for those who read the psalms today is also applicable to those who wrote and read the psalms during the day of the ancients. As one of the most oft quoted texts in the New Testament, the Psalms regularly present to us clear messianic hope. While expressing a joyous celebration or a heartfelt lament, the cries of the psalmist yearn for the anointed of God. Psalm 110 declares The Lord shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thy enemies (KJV). The earnest expression through the poetic writing of this Psalm typified the longing to see the Lord rule in Zion. Even though enemies are on every side, the Lord will conquer and rule in their midst. The Israelites looked to the Psalter as a means of hope and destiny as well as confirmation that there would indeed be a day when the messiah would vanquish their enemies and rule as King triumphant. The psalmist’s prophetic voice gave the children of Israel as well as Christian believers’ hopeful anticipation of a mighty messiah who would live, die, rise and return again. This hope extended through the mosaic community, the Old Testament and the Psalter and is illustrated in Psalm 2 and Psalm 110.

Messianic Hope in the Mosaic Community

Walter Brueggemann in The Prophetic Imagination describes biblical prophecy as seen in the Psalms drawing its paradigm from the covenantal tradition expressed by Moses and embraced by the children of Israel. Moses, while adopted into the Egyptian royal family, shattered the imperialist consciousness lived out by the Israelites during the slavery to Pharaoh. For this newly freed nation, Moses was the mouthpiece from man to God and God to man. What he gave the Israelites was the antithesis of what was offered in the provinces of Pharaoh. It was this radical departure from the imperial reality of Egypt that Brueggemann refers to the re-birth of prophecy during the exodus having a consequential impact upon the Israelites and the modern believer.

While the Exodus was long before the writing of the Psalter, it does lay the framework from which the prophetic cries of the psalmist for messiah become reality. While in the captivity of Egypt the Israelites were subjected to the gods and pagan rituals of their taskmasters. Now, having been delivered by the mighty hand of Yahweh, they have been first hand witnesses to the miraculous plagues, the pillar of fire by day, the pillar of cloud by night, and have walked on the dry Red Sea bed. Here the awareness of their God is in striking contrast to what they have known while in the bondage of Egypt. In Egypt, the gods served the purposes of the Pharaoh and expanded his dominion over the people. Moses as the mouthpiece of the true God “dismantles the politics of oppression and exploitation by countering it with a politics of justice and compassion.” It was here that the taste for messiah touched the hearts of those chosen to hold the oracles of God.

It is indeed this thirst for messianic rule that informs the psalmist’s poetic discourses. While the Israelite deliverance from the Egyptians presented an immediate visible blow to the god of social injustice, the implications of this deliverance reverberated to Israel’s own royal era. Now written on the phylacteries of the heart was the indelible proclamation that “Yahweh makes possible and requires an alternative theology and an alternative sociology” as well as the notion that “Prophecy begins in discerning how genuinely alternative he [Yahweh] is.” This understanding, while acknowledging Israel’s future rejection of Yahweh’s political and social order, gives us insight into why their very heart would come to yearn for messiah.

Messianic Hope in The Old Testament

To the Christian reader and student of the New Testament, the messianic hope of the Old Testament is clearly evident. It is for many seen as the ultimate unifying element of the Scriptures. While the messianic prophecies of the Old Testament have been the subject of much scholarly debate, it is clear that the Hebrew mindset insisted upon a redeemer messiah. It is noteworthy that the New Testament church was engaged in a polemic with the Jews that foundationally accepted there would be a messiah. The question then was not “Is messiah coming?” but “Is Jesus that messiah?”

Apart from the Writings, the Prophets give us the clearest glimpse into the hope of the Hebrew race for a redeemer King. In the book of Isaiah we see the birth of the messiah and His reign in the political and socio-economic spheres of existence.

For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore the zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this.

The prophet Isaiah places within the heart of the Hebrew nation a desire for a ruler who will bring peace, justice and righteousness to those who have been plagued with oppression. John Walvoord mentions this passage as signifying the desire of Israel for a redemptive earthly kingdom. However, entering the scholarly debate, he asserts that there is most likely a dual meaning in this particular prophecy. First, that which has been fulfilled. Christ came as a babe and was literally born into the Israelite community. Second, that which has yet to be fulfilled. Christ has yet to establish His literal government –although the argument is made that it has been spiritually established already.

The magnificence of this passage cannot be understated. God has divinely ruled that the messiah will come and will return all things to the glory of the beginning. Even to the reader who is not learned in the Scriptures (as certainly was not the case for the average Hebrew child) this passage elicits a hope which can only be described as marvelous. To the Israelite schooled in the ways of Judaism the purpose and intent of this passage becomes not only futuristic anticipation of a political system, but finally a righteous judgment on the wicked and the re-establishment of the golden age of Davidic rule.

Again the cry for messiah comes to us through the prophet Jeremiah.

“Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will fulfill the good word which I have spoken concerning the house of Israel and the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch of David to spring forth; and He shall execute justice and righteousness on the earth. In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will dwell in safety; and this is the name by which she will be called: the LORD is our righteousness.”

Here again we find the messiah to be the hope for troubled Israel. Speaking of the glorious throne of David, the prophetic illustration is so clearly portrayed. Yahweh loves His people, not because they offer Him joy, but because He rejoices in them. This passage reminds the reader that though the fulfillment of the Word of the Lord may tarry, it will be fulfilled. Referencing those things which He has spoken about the coming Redeemer, He reminds the student of Scripture that His Word is true and will be fulfilled.

One final application in the prophetic writings can be found in the words of Ezekiel regarding the coming of messiah. “Then I will set over them one shepherd, My servant David, and he will feed them; he will feed them himself and be their shepherd. And I, the LORD, will be their God, and My servant David will be prince among them; I the LORD have spoken.” Here again we see the messianic fulfillment being rooted in the age of the Davidic kingdom. David, who is consistently acknowledged as a fallible man who earnestly sought the infallible God, will be replaced by one who will be the true Prince of God. This Divine Servant will provide and protect as the good shepherd providing for his sheep.

It is noteworthy that many of the prophetic writings within the prophetic books are centered on a spiritual return to the kingdom of David. David, who himself expressed messianic hope through his poetic writings, becomes the key earthly figure whereby Scripture illustrates God’s divine plan. The messiah will be of the root and seed of David. Like David, He will execute judgment on the enemies of Israel and thus the enemies of God. He will prosper His people and they will dwell in the land in peace and safety. A theocratic kingdom will be established that will subjugate all peoples, nations and tongues to its rule and at its helm will stand the messiah.

Messianic Debate in the Psalms

Within modern scholarship there has been much debate as to the proper form for interpretation of the messianic Psalter. Some have suggested that the message originally penned anticipated an earthly messiah who would sit upon a traditional throne. However, as the centuries have passed by, the Holy Spirit has interpreted that message in different manners according to those who were spiritually able to receive. Walter Kaiser Jr. quotes Prosper Grech as stating:

The Holy Spirit is not only the author of the written word, but also of its interpretation. Earle Ellis remarks [Paul's Use of the OT (London:1957), 25ff] rightly that although all Scripture is the work of the Spirit, if it is not interpreted according to the Spirit, it remains gramma, not graphē.

While this manner seems somewhat selective, to many it does have merit. It allows for the continual elucidation of Scripture according to the influence of the Holy Spirit. However, the difficulty is encountered, as Kaiser rightly notes, that seemingly only those who are “spiritually prepared” can receive the contemporary interpretation.

Especially in modern society where Pentecostal and Charismatic theology has impacted much of modern evangelical scholarship this concept does hold some merit. Nevertheless, this line of reasoning must always guard against the tendency to return to the pre-reformation period where only a few were learned or reasoned enough to interpret the Scriptures. Since the Holy Scripture is God breathed one must be careful not to limit God to place and time. While God interacts with humanity in the realm of the clock, He is not bound by it. Understanding this, the Word of God becomes relevant to all places and times interpreted by the Divine Paraclete to those who wish to receive.

Others have suggested that when God inspired the authors to write the Psalter He at once gave them a word for their time and culture but also a word for the future. “The literal historical sense and the [future] fulfillment were conceived as one piece. Both were intimate parts of one total whole work of God.” While this viewpoint has merit as well, the tendency is to seek for the culturally relevant meaning at the time of writing rather than relying on the current interaction of the Holy Spirit with the children of God. Hebrews 4:12 states “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” This Scripture points us to the regular interaction between the Word of God and those who choose to encounter it.

In Review and Expositor, John I. Durham advocates the position that in order to truly understand the Psalms, the Christian initially must be willing to separate the inherent wedding of messiah and Jesus Christ. He proffers that what and who the messiah is as seen by the psalmist is essential to understanding the true nature of the Psalter. Since the Psalter was written centuries before the first advent of Christ, Durham –as do others, advocate looking at the original viewpoint of the psalmist. He espouses the concept that messiah in the psalms always refers to the ruling king of Davidic ancestry who was the anointed of Yahweh. In the original context the references to the messiah were not intended to be predictions of Christ Jesus.

After the Exodus, and once the nation of Israel settled in the Promised Land they cried out to be like the other nations. They wanted a king. While this saddened the heart of God he relented and gave them their wish. The earthly king only became a pacifier until the fullness of time would come and the messiah would find its fulfillment in Jesus the Christ. It is this period from the enthronement of the earthly king until the advent of the Heavenly King that tension between hope and reality existed in the nation of Israel. It is similar in merit to the tension of the Christian believer that exists from the first advent to the coming second advent of Jesus Christ. While we fully anticipate a restoration to the spiritual and political system of the Garden of Eden we have yet to fully comprehend what that may look like. Eschatological morsels of Scripture draw our attention in one direction or another, yet in the end we find ourselves seeing through a glass darkly as described by the Apostle Paul.

Durham, acknowledging the tension in Israel, sees the progression for Israel from seeking a human fulfillment of the messianic hope to seeking a Divine Ruler. He states:

…the thinkers of the Old Testament began to shift their emphasis from a human king whose authority is guaranteed by Yahweh to a more-than-human king who is at once an eschatological figure, a deliverer without parallel, who is yet to come, and an anointed one who will be Yahweh’s servant with a loyalty and “status” no human king could ever exemplify.

The rigors of everyday life in the Davidic kingdom presented a paradigmatic strain to the average hearer of the Psalter. On the one hand was the belief that the inspired Word was from Yahweh to His people. On the other hand was the common interpretation of that Word which led the hearer to be disappointed by the reality of the fallible human ruler. Not willing to deny the authority or integrity of the Scriptures the Hebrews began to turn their attention to seeking redemption from political and spiritual oppression in a heavenly messiah.

Nonetheless, it was the very failure of the Davidic royalty and the inauguration of a true messianic hope that begins to lay the framework for an informed Christological interpretation. The royal psalms as designated by Hermann Gunkel, or more distinctly the messianic psalms as designated by others, present to us a picture of the sacral king of Israel who never truly measures up to the standards set by the psalms themselves. Again, it is through this line of thought that the Jewish tradition began to look for the fulfillment of Yahweh’s anointed in someone other than a human king. In fact, the coronation of the messianic ruler in the royal psalms became the hope of Israel. The Anointed of the Lord, while in the lineage of the Davidic rule, would exist in human form yet in the substance of Yahweh. It was this indistinct expectation in Israel that kept hope alive through wicked rulers, civil war, economic strife, merciless captivity and utter destruction.

Messianic Hope in the Psalms

Psalm 2

As part of the gateway into the Psalter, psalm 2 gives us a glimpse into the royal psalms and thus into the messianic hope displayed therein. This particular psalm is referred to as one of the Coronation Psalms. It was a poem articulated for the passing of the Davidic torch from one ruling elite to the next. While psalm 1 deals with the pursuits of the individual, psalm 2 deals with the purpose and desires of peoples and nations. The interpretation of the psalm is dualistic. As a Coronation Psalm, King David is the historical antecedent of all Hebraic royal lines, and thus the earthly focus of this psalm. However, the inference in the psalm points us to a much higher royalty. Affirming Durham’s final interpretation of the messianic Psalter, we see at once a historical meaning as well as an affirmation that the Anointed One does indeed point us to Jesus.

Psalm 2 is eschatologically important as well. Reformation scholars such as Luther and later Wesley see this psalm as anticipating the second advent of Jesus Christ. It is here that the distinction must be made between the Christian student of Scripture and all others. It is the Christian who sees the whole of the Old Testament and more particularly the psalms as pointing to Christ. It is a lens which one cannot remove once touched by the power of the salvific relationship with Jesus. While the argument for the historical interpretation can and should be made, the overarching question of all biblical scholarship is what does this indicate about and how does this inform my relationship with Christ?

It is with this understanding that we look to the interpretation of psalm 2. While there is no title, that this psalm is Davidic in origin cannot be disputed. In Acts 4:25- 26 Peter and John, after their release from being questioned by the Sanhedrin quote this particular psalm and ascribe it to David. This psalm is a dialogue of sorts between the thoughts or wondering of David and answers from the Lord. In the initial verses we see David’s thoughts as he looks at the nations conspiring against the Lord. It is then that the Lord declared His power and judgment over the rulers of the earth. Ending with an exhortation, presumably from David, the rulers of the earth are cautioned to fear the Lord lest they be destroyed.

“Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? The Kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against His Anointed One. ‘Let us break their chains,’ they say ‘and throw off their fetters.’” The first three verses of this psalm articulate the escalation of the climactic battle between good and evil. Through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit the psalmist sees the vain hopes of the earth to get rid of the Holy rule. The literal analysis here is that the nations are raging or plotting vanity against the Lord. The frequent Hebrew parallelism is revealed in the second verse, yet its subject of the rulers of the earth is more specific than nations and peoples. Then finally in verse three we see the desire which they intend to make reality. “They no longer want to be submissive to God, His King or His Kingdom.”

While in verses four and five the confidence of God as He rebukes the rulers of the earth is clearly evident; verses six through nine have direct messianic implications as it relates to Jesus Christ.

“I have installed my King on Zion, my holy hill.” I will proclaim the decree of the LORD: He said to me, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession. You will rule them with an iron scepter; you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”

God has now intervened in the affairs of men. He is not the Clockmaker God of the Intelligent Design camp where He created and then sits and watches from afar. He is the God who has directly and deliberately intruded in the earthly circumstance. The Holy Hill has been established and upon it sits the King of Zion. As Spurgeon proclaimed “God has already done what the enemy seeks to prevent.”

While the case can be made for Davidic implications in these several verses the messianic references to Christ are undeniable. God has spoken. His Son now sits enthroned and will rule with a scepter of Iron. The nations will be subject to Him. As Lussier states “Nothing can be done against an authority which is derived from God.” Kligerman quoting Charles A. Briggs states “Psalm 2 represents the messiah enthroned on Zion at the right hand of God as His Son, citing the divine decree entitling Him to the position, with all the prerogatives of universal and everlasting sovereignty.” This Coronation Psalm has crowned as Ruling Potentate the Lord Jesus Christ who will justly and righteously rule the peoples of the earth.

The final verses of this psalm are a warning message to those who govern upon the earth. “Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.” The Scriptures affirm that the mercies of the Lord endure forever and indeed in the last verse of Psalm 2 we see the mercy of the Lord evident to the rulers of the earth. “While it is the nations that are in revolt against Christ, it is the nations that are promised to Him.” The imperative to serve the Lord with fear (vs. 11) is the pathway to escape the coming judgment.

Psalm 110

Like Psalm 2, Psalm 110 is seen as a Coronation Psalm as well. The messianic implications of Psalm 110, like others in the Psalter, are the subject of much scholarly debate. The camps divide along the lines of those who interpret the Scriptures from a purely scholarly viewpoint and those who interpret the Scriptures in light of the work of Christ. In the first instance, the Scriptures are interpreted according to original intent. In the second instance the Old Testament Scriptures are interpreted through the medium of the New Covenant. Academic works on Psalm 110 follow this pattern in particular. That this psalm does not have implications of Christological import is dubious since the reference to the priestly order of Melchizedek clearly references Christ in other passages in the Old and New Testaments.

“Psalm 110 is the linchpin psalm of the first seven psalms of Book Five of the Psalter.” Psalm 107- 109 thematically are pleas for deliverance; Psalm 110 introduces us to the God of deliverance and then Psalm 111- 113 express praise for deliverance. With the wide agreement among scholars that this psalm is of Davidic origin it also seemingly expresses a divine oracle with the authority of a prophet. This oracle again points us to the messiah in the person and work of Jesus Christ. Interesting as well is the notion that this psalm provides eschatological inference beyond the coming of messiah to the gathering of His people to join Him in battle.

The first verse of Psalm 110 states: “The LORD says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” This verse followed by the next three are quoted extensively in the New Testament (Matt. 22: 41-46; Mark 12: 35-37; Luke 20: 41-44; Heb. 1:13; 5: 6; 7:11-28) and referenced as prophetic utterances pointing to Jesus. When Jesus quoted these verses of Scripture, He was pointing to the incontrovertible fact that the implications of one assuming the messianic role was much more daunting than a human ruler could undertake and it was indeed of a divine order. This, coupled with the fact that the author uses the prophetic formula “The Lord says,” (which is found only in the prophets and nowhere else in the psalms), indicates that this psalm most certainly does not refer to David but to someone who would come after him. Terrance Callan states that “Psalm 110:1…implies the assumption of eschatological sovereignty which gives content to the belief that Jesus is the messiah.”

Jesus uses this passage in the New Testament after He was confronted and questioned by the Pharisees. Luke records in chapter 20: 41-47 a dialogue that happens between Jesus and His questioners. After quoting psalm 110:1 Jesus states: “Therefore David calls Him [the messiah] ‘Lord,’ and how is He his son?” The Pharisees were not able to answer the Lord’s question. With the understanding of the New Testament and the enlightening of the Holy Spirit one is able to see Christ as the son of David through the virgin birth, but also the Lord of David through the Divine prerogative. This clarification by Christ also affirms the prophetic nature of this passage.

The other verses of this psalm establish the position of Christ in Luke’s gospel as well. Referring to the order of Melchizedek in verse 4 it is clear that this is an office the humanly Davidic ruler could never fill. A king serving in the priestly function was clearly forbidden by the Law. King Uzziah was stricken with leprosy for performing tasks reserved for those of the priesthood (2 Chronicles 26: 16-21). This passage does verify however, that there will be a Melchizedekian King-Priest who will rule in Zion. Moreover, the early Christians understood that after the resurrection of Jesus Christ He would assume this position of full sovereignty at some point in the future.

Undoubtedly this particular psalm has great theological and particularly messianic import. “The content of the psalm shows that it is purely messianic, in contrast to many other psalms. Psalm 110 contributes much to the understanding of messianic prophecy by having been recognized by the authors of the New Testament as a messianic psalm.” Kligerman states “the messianic interpretation [of Psalm 110] is sufficiently justified.” The New Testament affirms the messianic interpretation of the passage again in Hebrews 5: 5-6:

So also Christ did not glorify Himself so as to become a high priest, but He who said to Him, “YOU ARE MY SON, TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU”; just as He says also in another passage, “YOU ARE A PRIEST FOREVER ACCORDING TO THE ORDER OF MELCHIZEDEK.”

Conclusion

Timothy Smith of Christ’s Church in Jacksonville, Florida shares this illustration:

Several years ago in the Boston marathon there was a woman named Rosie Ruiz who competed…and cheated, by riding a bus, winning the prestigious race. The problem with Rosie is that she completed the marathon faster than anyone had ever done it before. When she finished people stared at her in disbelief. A perceptive TV reporter stuck a microphone in her face and said, “Maam, you are either the fastest woman alive, or you are a fraud.”

The same must be true of Christ. Either He is viewed as the lens by which all of Scripture must be interpreted or He is irrelevant even to the very dialogue. That the messianic psalms, particularly Psalm 2 and 110 point to Christ as the fulfillment of the Messianic King is indisputable to the Christian believer. From the prophetic voice of the mosaic community to the prophets themselves and even to the psalmists, Jesus Christ presents the unifying fulfillment of the prophecies as well as the means and mechanism for interpretation.

From the time of Moses to the time of David, the Hebrew nation was looking for messiah. While the portrait details may not have been clear, nor cultural interpretation exact, what was evident was that they were seeking a messiah who would offer peace, redemption and sovereign rule. The first advent of Christ partially fulfilled that quest of the patriarchs; however there is still fulfillment yet to happen. As believers existing in a world in which the nations have plotted and conspired in vain, in which we patiently seek the scepter from Zion and in which we wait for the judgment of the nations, our hope is in the messianic rule of the Lord as communicated in the Psalter.

Works Cited

Bateman IV, Herbert W. “Psalm 110: and the New Testament.” Bibliotheca Sacra 149 (1992): 438-453.

Brueggeman, Walter. The Propetic Imagination. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1978.

Bullock, C. Hassell. An Introduction to the Old Testament Poetic Books. Chicago: Moody Press, 1988.

Callan, Terance. “Psalm 110:1 and the Origin of the Expectation that Jesus Will Come Again.” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 44 (1982): 622-636.

Clements, R.E. “The Messianic Hope in the Old Testament.” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 43 (1989): 3-19.

Davis, Barry C. “Is Psalm 110 A Messianic Psalm.” Bibliotheca Sacra 157 (2000): 160-173.

Durham, John I. “The King as “messiah” in the Psalms.” Review and Expositor 81 (1984): 425-435.

Harrison, Everett. The Wycliffe Bible Commentary. Nashville: The Southwestern Company, 1962.

Kaiser Jr., Walter C.. The messiah in the Old Testament. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1995.

Kaiser, Jr Walter C.. “The Promise to David in Psalm 16 and its Application in Acts 2: 25-33 and 13: 32-37.” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society (1980): 219-229.

Kligerman, Aaron Judah. Messianic Prophecy in the Old Testament. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1957.

Lucas, Ernest C. Exploring the Old Testament: A Guide to the Psalms and Wisdom Literature. Downers Grove: Intervarsity Press, 2003.

Lussier, Ernest. “New Latin Psalter: An Exegetical Commentary.” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 11 (1949): 82-88.

Spurgeon, Charles Haddon. The Treasury of David. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1997.

Walvoord, John F. “The Kingdom of God in the Old Testament.” Bibliotheca Sacra (1982): 111-128.

Williams, Donald M. The Communicator’s Commentary. Waco: Word Books, 1982.

Eugene Peterson in Working the Angles rightly claims that “for the majority of the Christian centuries most pastors have been convinced that prayer is the central and essential act for maintaining the essential shape of the ministry to which they were ordained.” This statement encapsulates the prominence of prayer in the everyday lives of God’s chosen servants throughout the ages. It is not difficult to reflect through the scriptures and see reference after reference to the discipline of prayer. In fact, prayer is seen in the earliest portions of scripture. Job, a man pleasing to the Lord prayed that the Lord would spare his foolish friends. God answered his prayer and relented from His wrath upon them and blessed Job immensely for his faithfulness. In the last chapters written in the canon, we again see the call the prayer. John the Revelator gives us a glimpse of the beautiful prayers of the saints…ever before the Lord as sweet bowls of incense. Prayer indeed is a sweet aroma to God.

The founder of the Salvation Army, William Booth, knew of the importance of leadership covered with prayer. By the time of his death in 1912, the Salvation Army had spread its work of sharing the gospel and providing for the needs of the poor to some 58 countries. It is Booth who said “work as if everything depended upon your work, and pray as if everything depended upon your prayer.” It was clear that Booth understood the necessity of prayer for the task that God had called him to. Working in the slums of England, he would sometimes return home bruised and beaten for preaching the gospel, yet he maintained fervency about the work of the Lord that was almost matchless in his day. The watch words of the Salvation Army in his day were “Blood and Fire” signifying the importance of the need to recognize the blood of Christ and what it stood for as well as the fire of the Holy Spirit that comes through prayer.

Petersons work surely echoes these very thoughts. He describes the stale prayer life as cut flowers that look nice for a while but are in fact already dead. It is here that a true leader must consistently recognize the importance of maintaining a time and place of prayer that is restricted to the Lord. The scriptures tell us that the enemy goes about like a lion seeking whom he many devour. The first piece of us that he seeks to devour is our prayer life. The pastor or church leader must realize the importance and prominence of prayer in everyday life. A life that is steeped in prayer becomes the cornerstone of integrity in the pastoral walk.

Peterson’s reflection on the fact that the prophetic voice has been elevated above that of the psalmist is important to note. In much of modern society the Psalms have been relegated to the periphery of Christendom. The have become a fanciful menagerie that is pulled from the shelf to provide filler in services or a quick devotional that relieves guilt just before laying our head to the pillow. However, it is the Psalms that teach us to pray. The lack of emphasis in the contemporary church on the discipline of prayer as worked out through the Psalms is striking. It seems that now a whole generation has cut their teeth on the pew rarely hearing the Psalms prayed in worship of the Omnipotent. Prayer has degenerated into a litany of wants and desires that give very little back to the Kingdom of out Lord. It is here that one must look critically at ones self taking as a measure the very rule of scripture.

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