December 21 - Messiah - Psalm 24:7-10

December 21 - Messiah - Psalm 24:7-10

Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of Glory shall come in. Who is this King of Glory? The Lord strong and mighty, The Lord mighty in battle.

Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of Glory shall come in. Who is this King of Glory? The Lord of Hosts, He is the King of Glory.

As Handel’s work became popular, performances went over the top.  New parts would be created for extra instruments and sometimes there would be thousands of performers gathered to produce an event.  Within one hundred years of Handel’s death, these ‘improvements’ had completely distorted Messiah and the composer, Berlioz described Handel’s music as “a barrel of roast pork and beer.” Many misconceptions were applied to Handel’s musicianship and Messiah nearly eclipsed every other work he composed except Water Music and Fireworks Music.

Scholars are unsure as to which gates the Psalmist is referring.  It could be that he is calling to the people within the gates of the Temple to fling wide the gates, or he might be addressing the gates themselves.  There is a possibility that if David had written this Psalm, he might be referring to the “ancient doors” of Jerusalem, since the temple had yet to be built.

Jerusalem had long been the city of God.  From the days when Melchizedek ruled there (Genesis 14:18), to the time of David, it had been known as a city of peace, but it became known as the city of God because God chose to dwell there.

Because of this, the people and the city were called upon to receive the arrival of the Great King with joy!

Christmas is a great season to fling open the gates of our hearts in order to receive the King of Glory.