On David's Throne
Following his Resurrection, Jesus began his reign from the messianic throne on “Zion,” as prophesied by David – Psalm 2:6-9.
According to the Psalmist, the “son” will be anointed to reign on the throne of David “on Mount Zion… my holy mount.” As attested in the New Testament, that king is none other than Jesus, and his reign over the earth began following his resurrection and ascension. And ever since, he has been extending his sovereignty to the “uttermost parts of the earth.”
In the New Testament, two Psalms are used to portray Christ as the ideal king who was destined to sit on David’s throne:
- (Psalm 2:6-9) – “Yet I have installed my king, on Zion my holy mountain. Let me tell of a decree, Yahweh said to me: You are My son; I, this day, have begotten you. Ask of me and let me give nations as your inheritance and as your possession the ends of the earth. You shall rule them with a scepter of iron, as a potter’s vessel shalt thou dash them in pieces.”
- (Psalm 110:1) – “Yahweh said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool.”
Through the Psalmist, God promised that his anointed king would reign on the throne of David, which the New Testament applies to the present status of Jesus. Moreover, they place the commencement of his reign at his resurrection and ascension.
Both psalms are prominent in the epistle to the Hebrews. When contrasting the “Son” with angels, the epistle asked, “to which of the angels said he ever, YOU ARE MY SON, THIS DAY HAVE I BEGOTTEN YOU?” Already, the “son” has “achieved the purification of sin and therefore SAT DOWN ON THE RIGHT HAND of the Majesty on high.” As the “son” and designated king, he inherited the name “more excellent than the angels” – (Hebrews 1:3-6, 5:5).
On the day of Pentecost, Peter preached to a crowd of Jewish pilgrims after receiving the Spirit and concluded:
- “God had sworn with an oath that of the fruit of David’s loins he would set one upon his throne. Foreseeing this, he spoke of the resurrection of Christ, that neither was he left to Hades nor did his flesh see corruption. This Jesus did God raise up… Being, therefore, exalted by the right hand of God, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured forth this that you see and hear. For David ascended not into the heavens, but he says, THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, SIT ON MY RIGHT-HAND UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES YOUR FOOTSTOOL. Let all Israel know assuredly that God has made him both Lord and Christ” – (Acts 2:30-36).
Thus, according to Peter, his exaltation to the messianic throne on Zion occurred because of his death and resurrection, where, even now, he reigns as the Lord and “Christ,” the anointed Son of God.
Likewise, the Apostle Paul declared that God promised to raise up a king from David’s seed, and this was fulfilled in the “Savior, Jesus.” Though the Temple leaders conspired to destroy him, “God raised him from the dead,” just as it is “written in the second psalm, YOU ARE MY SON, THIS DAY HAVE I BEGOTTEN YOU.” And He gave him “the holy and sure blessings of David.”
Paul was explicit. The resurrection of Jesus marked the start of his reign on the Davidic throne. Ant this means that he not waiting for any future event for his sovereignty to begin - (Acts 13:22-40, Romans 1:1-4).
Similarly, in Ephesians, Paul reminds us how God “raised Jesus from the dead and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places… And PUT ALL THINGS UNDER HIS FEET and gave him to be the head over all things to the church” – (Ephesians 1:20-22).
Likewise, to the Corinthians, Paul declared that Jesus was raised from the dead and installed to reign on David’s throne, for “he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be abolished is death. For GOD PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS FEET” – (1 Corinthians 15:20-26).
Jesus endured the cross, then “SAT DOWN AT THE RIGHT HAND OF THE THRONE OF GOD.” He achieved the “purification of sins,” and therefore, he now reigns at God’s right hand, “angels and authorities and powers being made subject to him” – (1 Peter 3:22, Hebrews 1:3, 10:12-13, 12:2).
As for “Zion,” in the New Testament, the ancient city of Jerusalem, the “city of David,” foreshadows the true and greater “Zion,” the Jerusalem that is “above.” Under the old covenant, the saints were seeking the “city which has the foundations, whose builder and maker is God… But they desired a better country, that is, a heavenly, wherefore God…has prepared for them a city.”
Likewise, rather than Mount Sinai in the wilderness, the church is approaching “mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem.” Everlasting life and all the covenant promises are attained in the city of “New Jerusalem” – (Hebrews 11:10-16, 12:22, 13:12-14, Revelation 21:1-8).
In the opening salutation of Revelation, Jesus is declared the “RULER OF THE KINGS OF THE EARTH.” His high status is based on his past death and resurrection, for he is “the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead.” He is the long-promised king who “SHEPHERDS THE NATIONS.” And consistently, his present reign on the divine throne is linked to his past death and resurrection – (Revelation 1:4-6, 2:26-27, 3:21, 5:10).
Thus, he is the “Living one, and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore,” and therefore he now possesses the “keys of death and of Hades.” He is the faithful one who holds the “key of David, who opens, and no one closes, who closes, and no one opens.” And he now summons his followers to “overcome” in the very same manner so that they will seat with him on his throne – (“Just as I overcame and took my seat on my Father’s throne” - Revelation 1:17, 3:7, 3:21).
He is the “lion of the tribe of Judah,” but he fulfills that role as the sacrificial Lamb, and all creation declares him “worthy to receive power… To him that sits on the throne and to the Lamb be the dominion forever and ever.” It was the sacrificial Lamb who received all authority and now rules over the Cosmos from the “throne” – (Revelation 1:18, 3:7, 5:5-12, 12:5,22:16).
And in chapter 14 of Revelation, this same “Lamb” is found standing with the priestly company of the 144,000 on “Mount Zion.” This company is the “first fruits” of the greater harvest about to be reaped from the earth. They bear his name on their foreheads and stand on “Zion.” In contrast, the “inhabitants of the earth” take the “mark of the beast” and render homage to him, the “beast” who has the Dragon’s authority and reigns from the “throne of Satan.” Thus, in Revelation, Christ’s reign from “Zion” is a present reality.
The New Testament tells a consistent story. Already, Jesus reigns over the nations at the “right hand of God.” He is the Messiah and Davidic king, the anointed “son” of Yahweh who reigns from on the greater “Zion.” His exaltation and sovereignty resulted from his obedience unto death and subsequent resurrection from the dead.
The reign of the promised Messiah is not waiting for some future date or event. It is a present reality. Nor is it limited to the ancient city of Jerusalem or to the limited territory of Palestine. Instead, he reigns from the throne of God over all nations, the earth, indeed, over the entire Cosmos.
