The Reign of the Lord’s Anointed KingSample

The Divine Decree

God rebukes the rebellious kings of this world for their rejection of his anointed King in Jerusalem. He speaks to them in his wrath, terrifying them! The Lord informs the haughty heathen kings that it is by his divine decree that the King of Israel rules. The ancient Kings of Israel were no ordinary men. The Davidic King did not ascend the throne in Jerusalem by chance or contingency. They were made Kings by God who personally installed them on Zion. The Kings of Israel were anointed with holy oil by the priests and prophets of God (1 Samuel 10:1; 16:13; 2 Kings 11:12).

The sacred rite of anointing sets apart man as holy unto God. He was entrusted to reign over the people of God and save them from their enemies (1 Samuel 10:1). The anointing was a sign of God’s exclusive endorsement for the anointed one to be his representative regent. He was empowered by the Spirit of God to rule in righteousness. Thus, the Davidic Kings were never absolute monarchs like other ancient Kings. They were representative monarchs who ruled God’s Kingdom on God’s behalf by fulfilling God’s sovereign will. Though the Davidic Kings often didn't live up to this holy ideal, they nevertheless were God’s sovereign rulers on earth! They were regents at the divine direction and pleasure of the High King of heaven! This meant that an assault upon the King of Israel was an assault upon God, on whose behalf he reigned. Thus, as the Old Testament scholar, Tremper Longman III observes, “the mere existence of this Davidic king would bring terror to the raving human kings of the nations and thus reassert order.”

The Davidic Kings were Messiahs (Hebrew: mashiach) meaning the anointed One! They were the servants of Yahweh! The New Testament’s equal of this is Christ (Greek: christos). Jesus is the anointed One of God who came to establish God’s Kingdom upon this earth. He is ordained by God to rule over God’s people and save them from their enemies. On the cross, he defeated death and Satan. Rising from the grave, he ascended to heaven, and now sits exalted at the right hand of the Father (Mark 14:62; Acts 2:33, 5:31; Ephesians 1:20-21) from where he reigns until he has put all his enemies under his feet (1 Corinthians 15:25). Hail our King Jesus who reigns forevermore!