Hosannah in the Highest
It was a great day, a day of joy and of great rejoicing. The streets were teeming with people streaming out of their homes to meet Him. Another crowd from out of town followed behind. Many of them were spreading their garments on the road before Him. Men and boys were cutting down branches and scattering these along the road. And the crowd, coming from everywhere, ahead of Him and behind, were all shouting, “Hosanna! Hosanna!” “Hosanna to the Son of David, Blessed (praised, glorified) be He Who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” (Mat 21:9 Amplified Version).
What was the big occasion? And who was this One riding majestically on a donkey?
This incident happened to fulfill what had been spoken by Zechariah the prophet: “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Lo, your King comes t0 you; He is just, having salvation—triumphant and victorious; patient, meek, lowly, and riding on a donkey, upon a colt, the foal of a donkey” (Zech 9:9).
The King was entering Jerusalem, and the multitude recognized and celebrated the occasion. By calling Jesus “Son of David,” they were proclaiming him as the promised Messiah, the anointed King. This was the usual title by which the Messiah was known among the Jews. The Messiah is the anointed king, the son of David, whom they had been waiting for to come and sit upon the throne of David and deliver them from the dominion of the Romans. There was a longing and eager expectation in Israel for the Messiah, the one to come and redeem them. We see this when they sent messengers to John.
“And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ.
“And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No” (John 1:19-21).
So as He rode triumphantly into Jerusalem on an ass, the multitude recognized Him as the Messiah, the Anointed One, the King of Israel. And a great multitude came to meet Him and spread their garments in the way. Others cut down branches from trees and strewed them along the road. “And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest” (Mat 21:9).
The crowd began to proclaim His entry into the city by saying “Hosanna!” to him. This was done with loud acclamations and the united shouts of the companies before and behind; they ascribed all praise, honor, glory, majesty, and blessing to Him. And as they exalted him as King, they were also praying to Him as Supreme Deliverer to save them, for the Hebrew word “hosanna” means “save now” or “save, I beseech thee.” It was a form of acclamation used among the Jews and used frequently along with “hallelujah” to respond to praise. It was also a form of acclamation for Jehovah, used during the celebration of the great festivals, especially during the great feast of Tabernacles. When singing the psalms, the Jewish people responded frequently by saying or singing “hallelujah” or “hosanna.” Their use of it on this occasion entering Jerusalem was a joyful acclamation and praise to the arriving King of kings.
“Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.” These words are taken out of Psa 118:26. These words ascribe blessing and praise to Jesus, the Messiah, who, sent by God, came from him with authority. So, recognizing this, they crowned Him with praise and blessings of divine goodness. And they rejoiced because He had come unto them with salvation, riding upon an ass as predicted in the Scriptures.
Hosanna in the highest! “Save now, I beseech thee, O Lord!” was what the multitude were saying to the exalted King. The true sense and meaning of this is that the multitude who followed Christ on the way to Jerusalem sang songs of praise to him, as the true Messiah. They applied the above Scriptural passage to him and earnestly wished him all success and prosperity, as they also importunately prayed for salvation by him.
Mark adds that they shouted, “Blessed be the kingdom of our father David, that cometh in the name of the Lord!” They were speaking blessings to the kingdom “promised” to David, (1Ki 2:4; 1 Ki 8:25), according to the “promise” of the Lord. This can be expressed thus: “Prosperity to the reign of our father David, which is now coming to pass according to the promise made to him, and about to be established by the long predicted Messiah, his descendant.”
They were in essence singing a version of “the Hosannas of the great Hosanna,” certain words of prayer and praise used on the seventh day of the feast of Tabernacles. These are taken from the 118th Psalm, and usually sung as the conclusion of the feast. And these verses were very accurately used on this occasion, for they were speaking about the Messiah, the One who was to come.
Hosanna in the highest! Beloved, let songs of praise, hosannas, be sung to God the Most HIGH, who is in the highest heavens, for all his goodness towards us. And to Christ the KING of kings and LORD of lords be glory, honor, power, dominion, and majesty for ever and ever, Amen.
“And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this? And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.
“And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves,
“And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves” (Mat 21:10-13).
Upon entering Jerusalem, He did not go to the palace or to visit the chief priest or some political big shot: He went straight into the Temple and began cleanup. The King began the job of cleaning up His kingdom and laying down the rule of the kingdom. “My Father’s house shall be a house of prayer,” He said as He threw out the wheeler-dealers who turned the house of God into a place of merchandising. These are the ones who think gain is godliness. But the Apostle told us that it is not so, but that “godliness with contentment is great gain.”
The Holy Ghost spoke of this through the mouth of Malachi the prophet, saying: “Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
“But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap:
“And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.
“Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the LORD, as in the days of old, and as in former years” (Mal 3:1-4).
This passage seems to be answering the sneering of the scoffers who think they can do whatever they want in the house of God and nothing can stop them. God is saying here, “Look, here He comes; His coming is at hand; the long-expected Messiah is ready to appear.” This prophecy is proclaiming that God will raise up a righteous King to set things in order, even the king Messiah. And this King will start with purification in the house of God. Judgment will begin in the house of God.
Uncleanliness and abuses must first be purged out, and the plants not of God’s planting must be plucked up, before His kingdom is established. The great Redeemer will appear as a great Reformer, and will turn away ungodliness from Jacob. Yes, the Lord Messiah, “whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come.” But when He comes, who will be able to stand in the day of cleansing and purging?
He cast out all them that were buying and selling and changing money in the temple, defiling the sanctuary, and profaning the Sabbath. Though their buying and selling and changing money had the pretense of being for spiritual purposes, it still defiled the temple of God. They sold beasts for sacrifice and they changed money for those who needed change to use for the outward business of the house of God, and yet Christ was displeased by it. He would not allow it. Great corruptions and abuses come into the Church by the practices of those whose seek gain and think worldly gain is godliness. The Apostle admonishes in the Epistle to Timothy, “From such withdraw thyself” (1 Tim 6:5).
The Lord Jesus Christ, purging this abuse, “cast them out that bought and sold with a scourge of small cords” (John 2:15). He did this as the King with authority. It was nothing less than supernatural that He would do this alone, clearing the temple, and not be opposed by those who made their living in that way and were backed by the priests and elders. It was an exercise of His authority and power as King over the spirits of men.
“And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple; and he healed them.
“And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the Son of David; they were sore displeased,
“And said unto him, Hearest thou what these say? And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?” (Mat 21:13-16).
After cleansing the Temple, the Lord began to heal. He opened blind eyes. He made the lame to walk. And the children began to sing the song with which they heralded His entry in Jerusalem. The children were singing, ”Hosanna, Hosanna, to the Son of David!”
Why just the children? Why wasn’t everyone singing Hosanna as they had earlier? It was because the grownups were cowards. They were in the temple now and were afraid of the priests and the scribes. If they sang, they might be thrown out of the synagogue. They were crippled by fear.
But the children were not cowed by this. They opened their mouths and sang boldly as before. They probably wondered what had gotten hold of their parents’ tongues, but they went ahead singing, “Hosanna to the Son of David, Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord, Hosanna in the Highest!”
The priests and the scribes were irate. You probably could see fumes of fire coming out of their nostrils. The Scripture says that they were not just displeased, but “sore displeased.” There was nothing they could do about it. God had used the little ones to silence the mighty. The grownups were weak and cowardly, so God ordained strength in the mouths of the babes and sucklings.
Not knowing what to do, the priests and scribes turned to the Lord Jesus and said, “Don’t you hear what these kids are saying?” By this they meant “Won’t you stop them? Won’t you cause these children to stop singing Hosanna in the synagogue?” But the Lord turned to them and said, “Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?”
My heart’s desire is to join those little ones in singing His praise. I desire to be among those who sing continually at the court of the King of kings. A couple of these songs are rising in my heart as I pen these lines.
O Glory, Glory, Glory to the Lord—2x
Hallelujah, Hosa—nna,
Hosanna, Hosanna,
Blessed be the Name of the Lord.
And the second is like the first, and it’s the title of this chapter:
Hosanna in the Highest
Hosanna in the Highest
The angels are singing
Hosanna to the LORD.
Hosanna in the Highest
JESUS is the Highest
We also are singing
Hosanna to our LORD.
My prayer for you and me in this this hour, is that we will sing these songs unashamedly and without fear, like those little ones, all the days of our lives; that God will through our mouths ordain strength and silence His enemies. And like Paul, we’ll say, “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek” (Rom 1:16). “And God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Tim 2:17).
“And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;
“Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.
“And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever” (Rev 5:11-13).
“And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.
“And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
“And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King of kings, and Lord of lords” (Rev 19:11-16).
He Reigns In Me
It had been around forty days since He rose from the dead, and the disciples weren’t sure of what was next. They had gathered around Him in fellowship and listened to Him teach, but they were not quite sure what to expect. So they made up their minds to ask. They’d been thinking about this since before His crucifixion; now they had to ask. He had undergone the most horrific ordeal of the cross and the grave and now He’s alive. What else could be next? So they asked Him, ”Lord, is this the time?” They’d been itching to ask Him about this for a long time. To them, this matter concerning His earthly reign as the Messiah was a question whose time had come. They, therefore, presented this burning question before Him.
“So when they were assembled, they asked Him, Lord, is this the time when You will reestablish the kingdom and restore it to Israel?” (Act 1:6,7).
When Jesus the Lord came to earth the first time (for He’s coming back again soon), His own people did not receive Him because He did not meet their expectations of the Messiah. For centuries they had cherished the hope that the moment the Messiah, the Anointed One, appeared, He would immediately seize authority, cast down the current ruling empire, and begin His reign over the nations of the earth. They expected that He would immediately smite down the Caesars, topple their thrones, and restore the kingdom to Israel. His natural brethren and relatives also had this understanding and wished He would do mighty works openly in their big cities for the world to see so they could make Him King.
Even His disciples were filled with this doctrine. They had been planning to ask Him about this, and around forty days after His resurrection, they finally summoned enough courage to ask this burning question.
“Wilt Thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” But He answered, “It is not for you to know the times and seasons which the Father hath put in His own lower, but ye shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you” (Act 1:6-7).
The Jewish people, unto whom He came, did not understand that this King who had come from glory was not going to set up an earthly kingdom yet. He first had to carefully choose and prepare that blessed company, God’s sons, who were to reign and rule with Him. He first had to set up His throne and reign in their hearts, bringing them to His exact likeness and image, knowing full well that when they had all become partakers of His Spirit, they would be ready to take the kingdom and reign with Him. And it would not be a limited, confined, and restricted kingdom, but the whole earth and everything in it.
This then is the beginning of Christ’s reign—silent, unpretentious, and unnoticed as He reigns in the hearts of those elect whom He has chosen. This preparation will make them fit to reign with Him in the ages to come. He must reign in them and transform them into His own image. “Reign in me, Lord Jesus, reign in me!”
LORD of Lords
“One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all” (Eph 4:5,6).
The passage above establishes this fact that there is but one Lord. But then, we might want to ask, “Who is it? Who is this Lord?” This One who is Lord over all must be Master over the good and the evil, over the living and the dead, over the angels and the demons, over the subatomic particles and over the planetary bodies, over the heavens and the earth, and over principalities and powers. “Yes,” we must ask, “who is this Supreme Ruler?”
The Apostle Peter, speaking on the day of Pentecost, revealed the identity of this supreme Lord. Under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, Peter spoke, saying: “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ” (Act 2:36). Jesus Christ the Anointed One is the LORD. God Almighty has made Him Lord over all. In Hebrew Scriptures He is “Adonai,” the Lord, the Master, who is over all and above all.
He is the one who has the keys. He has all dominion and power. What He shuts no man can open, and what He opens no man can shut. He is the Lord God, “Adonai Elohim.” He is the One who speaks and is obeyed; when He commands, it is done. Even the winds and the waves obey His voice, and “fire, hail, snow, vapour, and stormy winds fulfill His words” (Psa 148:8).
Peter started with a quotation from the prophecy recorded in the 110th chapter of the Book of Psalms. In this prophecy, we see how God the Father ordained Jesus as LORD of all and sat Him in the highest position of Lordship. After He completed the work of our redemption, God the Father sat Him at His own right hand of power, giving Him absolute authority. The apostle Peter referring to this psalm, said:
“This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.
“Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.
“For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, Until I make thy foes thy footstool.
“Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ” (Act 2:32-36).
The message in the second chapter of the Epistles to the Philippians is even more emphatic: “And every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phi 2:11). This passage tells us how God highly exalted Him and made Him Lord over all.
“He is Lord, He is Lord
He is risen from the dead
And He is Lord,
Every knee shall bow,
Every tongue confess
That JESUS CHRIST is the LORD” (Worship Song)
I sang a not-so-correct version of the fourth line of this powerful song for a long time. I was not taught that way; I just found myself, probably out of a militant zeal without knowledge, tenaciously singing a modified version of the fourth line. I used to sing this fourth line as “Every knee must bow” instead of “Every knee shall bow.” The revelation that the Spirit of God is giving us in this song is not that every knee will be forced to bow before Christ, but that every knee will willingly bow and submit to the Lordship of Master Jesus. Every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall acknowledge that Jesus the Christ is Lord.
I am glad, and I give thanks to God Almighty, that I am one of those who have willingly chosen to bow the knee to JESUS the LORD and acknowledge Him as my Lord, Master, Savior, Redeemer, and King. And I hope this is true for you, my reader, too.
He is my Lord. He is my king. He reigns in me and rules over my life. He is not the type of king Aristotle described, for Aristotle’s God is a “do-nothing” king. His king reigns but does not rule. The Aristotelian God is a “roi fainéant,” a do-nothing king. Our God reigns, but He also rules. Our God is involved in our lives. He is seated upon the highest Throne above the heaven of heavens, and yet rules in the lives of His saints down here. Not only this, but Jehovah God the Lord rules in the kingdom of men (Dan 4:17).
Our Lord is a man of war. He’s the Commander-in-Chief and leads His army to victory. “When He ascended on high, He led captivity captives and gave gifts unto men.” He is the Lord and is also the supreme Judge of All.
The Lord Jesus reigns. Not only that, He rules the universe by the word of His mouth. He is in charge. He is in control. And He is steering the cosmos to the desired destination. The third verse of the opening chapter of the Epistle to the Corinthians tells us this about Him:
“Yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live” (1 Cor 8:6).
The Amplified Bible renders this verse as saying:
“Yet for us there is [only] one God, the Father, Who is the Source of all things and for Whom we [have life], and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through and by Whom are all things and through and by Whom we [ourselves exist].”
Here in this verse, the message is simply summarized. There is only one God and He is the Father, the Source and Originator of all things. Life came from Him, and it is for Him we live. And there is only one Lord, Jesus Christ, who is the channel for all. God is the Source, but Christ is the channel through whom all things come and exist. He is the Lord of all. He upholds, maintains, and guides all things by His power. He receives from the Source and blesses the universe with abundance.
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love” (Eph 1:3,4).
God never deals with us except through Him. Creation began in the Son of God and was carried out through Him. Redemption began in the Son of God and is being carried out through Him. Access to God the Father is only through Him. And the revelation of the Father cannot be received outside of Him. He is the Revealer of the Father, for “no man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him” (John 1:18).
“No man has ever seen God at any time; the only unique Son, or the only begotten God, Who is in the bosom [in the intimate presence] of the Father, He has declared Him [He has revealed Him and brought Him out where He can be seen; He has interpreted Him and He has made Him known]” (Amplified Version, John 1:18).
This passage tells us that no one has ever literally seen God, but that Christ, who is in the bosom of the Father, makes Him known. We get to know God through Him. He is the Image, the Expression, the Unfolder, the Effulgence of God the Father. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Anyone who desires to approach the Father must go through Him. He is the only means through which we may know God. We therefore affirm that all is sourced in God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and all is channeled through the Son.
All spiritual blessings come from God. He is the source of all good and perfect gifts. But these get to us through Christ Jesus, whom God appointed heir of all things. It is also through Christ Jesus that all things have been created, whether in heaven or on earth. All things were made by Him and for Him.
“And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,
“Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fullness of him that filleth all in all” (Eph 1:19-23).
He is Lord of All; Lord of the living and the dead; Lord over the realm of life and over the realm of the damned; Lord in heaven, Lord on earth, and Lord over hell. He is Lord over the angels and Lord of the devil.
“For Christ died and lived again for this very purpose, that He might be Lord both of the dead and of the living” (Rom 14:9).
“The LORD said unto my Lord,
Sit Thou at my right hand,
Until I make Thine enemies Thy footstool….
The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent,
Thou art a Priest for ever
After the order of Melchizedek” (Psa 110:1,4).
A new kingdom has come. A new way to God has been instituted. A new King-Priest has been anointed and set at the right hand of Majesty in the heavens. He is the King of Peace, the King of Righteousness. He is the High Priest after the order of Melchizedek. This priesthood is to be administered directly from the throne of God in the heavens. This new office has both the anointing of the priesthood and that of a king wrapped up in one. What the old anointing of priesthood could not do because it was weak, this new King-Priest anointing has the power to achieve. “For where the word of a king is, there is power.”
The foundations of this new Kingdom are righteousness and peace. The very name “Melchizedek” means “King of righteousness.” This Melchizedek reigned over the city of Salem, which means “peace.” We do not need to know who Melchisedek was; the secrecy of his origin makes him a more fitting type of the Christ whom the world knows not. Melchisedek is said to have been “without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually” (Heb. 7:3). His name is nowhere to be found in the genealogies of the Levitical priestly records. So it is with Christ. As far as the Levitical priestly records are concerned, He did not exist. He entered the scene of priestly ministry from obscurity. He came fresh from the bosom of God and now rules and reigns as a King-Priest on a “better” throne, and in a “better” priesthood, in the Kingdom of Life. The scepter of His kingdom is the Scepter of Righteousness.
He reigns from the heavenly Zion. This is to ensure that His ministry is more effectual, more enduring, more universal than it could ever be were He to rule from some geographic location on earth. He reigns and rules over the heavens, over the earth, and over all beings underneath the earth. He is Lord both of the living and of the dead. Men may not think this is the best way: many sense-knowledge people think His reign would only be effective if He were physically, flesh and blood, located in a geographical palace on earth. But this seemed expedient to God. Therefore the Almighty God issued a decree establishing our King in the heavenly Zion:
“Yet have I set my King upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree; The LORD hath said unto Me, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten Thee” (Psa 2:6,7; Heb 5:5,6).
This decree He reaffirmed again and again through the mouths of His holy apostles and prophets. God is satisfied that His King will be able to “subdue all enemies” under His feet as He reigns from a heavenly throne established upon Mount Zion.
“Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of his holiness. Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King. God is known in her palaces for a refuge” (Psa 48:1-3).
“But ye are come unto Mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect” (Heb 12:22,23).
Exalted in the heavens, the King of kings has absolute power, not only over the earth, but also in the heavens (Mat 28:18). Earthly power is not sufficient, because earth’s real problems are with “principalities and powers,” and these are in the heavens. Earth’s main problems are with Satan, who is “the prince of the power of the air.” Therefore, God’s decree has to establish a Man with power in the heavens, to reign as a “Priest on the throne,” ruling on the highest throne in the universe, from which He can dominate the forces of evil. Therefore, God exalted Him and set Him at His own right hand of power in heavenly places, “Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church” (Eph 1:21,22).
In the fourth chapter of the Book of Revelation, John is caught up in the Spirit and begins to see and hear wonderful things from around the Throne. In this chapter, we get a good description of He who sits upon the throne. The passage begins with a description of the twenty-four elders.
“And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald. And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold” (Rev 4:1-4).
The revelation continues concerning He who sat upon the throne. Let’s hear what they say as they exalt Him:
“And they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.
“And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever, The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying,
“Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created” (Rev 4:9-11).
Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Anointed One, is the same one seen seated on the throne here. He is One to whom the twenty and four elders are singing. He is holy. He is the King upon the Throne. He is the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. He is the King up there, and He is King down here. He is “the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David” (Rev5:5). He is described further as “he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth” (Rev 3:7). Yes, He is “the root and the offspring of David, the bright and morning star” (Rev 22:16). He is the King and Priest forever after the order of Melchisedek.
As the Lord God He sits upon the highest Throne in the heavens. He’s Almighty God, the Everlasting Father, the God of the overcomers. As Christ, the anointed man, we see Him in union with His Body. He is the Son of man, the firstborn among many brethren, the Chief Cornerstone of the Temple of God. As Lord, He is the preeminent One, bringing many sons to glory. And God the Father has appointed Him as both Lord and Christ. God the Father has exalted Him and placed Him in the highest position possible. Of Him, God said, “Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows” (Heb 1:8).
Let us worship and praise Him, for He is worthy. Let us lift Him up, He who was lifted up for us, and He will draw all men unto Himself.
Let us lift Him up high above the heavens, for He is worthy. Let us join the twenty and four elders (Rev 4:11) in worshipping Him saying, “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive Glory and Honor and Power.” Let us worship the Lamb upon the Throne and sing, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive Power, and Riches, and Wisdom, and Strength, and Honor, and Glory, and Blessing.” Let us continually ascribe these seven divine attributes to Him, the King of kings and Lord of lords.
“Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the Highest!”