I ntroduction: Psalm 24 is seen by many as a psalm written by David to celebrate the taking of Jerusalem and the moving of the Ark into the City of David. For this reason, I would teach this psalm as one of the psalms sung by David and the Levites as they move the Ark into Jerusalem (this would fit nicely with 1Chron. 15). Several times, David speaks of lifting up the gates—presumably the gates of the city—so that the King of Glory might enter (and here, we would understand His entrance to be represented by the entry of the Ark of God into the city.

This is an unusual psalm; the language is very simple and very repetitive. When I do the basic exegesis, sometimes it takes me a full study session to do one or two verses; I did the basic Hebrew exegesis of these 10 verses in 2½ sessions. On the other hand, I found myself with very little to say about these verses, which is a little unnerving.

Like most of David’s psalms, this psalm is very well organized. It can be easily broken down into two sections, vv. 1–6 and vv. 7–10. The first section can be further subdivided into 3 sections of 2 verses each, the 2^nd of each verse either answering the question of the 1^st, or paralleling the 1^st verse. In the final stanza, vv. 7 and 9 are almost identical, and vv. 8 and 10 are almost identical. And, unlike some of David’s psalms, the organization of this psalm is quite apparent. If you read the psalm with any thought at all, you will easily recognize this pattern. To my way of thinking, this would be well-performed by a choir, with one set of voices singing every other verse, and the other set of voices singing the other verses. It simply seems to be designed in this way.

Now, I do not know hymns, apart from a small handful of them, but this strikes me as a psalm which should have been easily put to rousing music and melody. Even the variety of English translations seem to have an easy rhythm to them. I don’t know if anyone has done this yet, but someone ought to. One of the things which has been great fun for me is coming across a passage which has never been properly explained in the past, and to be able to explain it in such a way that the logic and the meaning seem to be obvious, once it is heard. It has amazed me that, after 2000 years or so of intense study by scholars all over the world, scattered throughout time, that some verses have not been properly explained. However, when I come to a psalm like this, is makes me also realize that, this would be the perfect psalm to put to music by the budding musician; that there must be a number of psalms throughout the Bible (and in the book of Psalms, obviously) which have not yet been put to music. They were, at one time, probably put to music, and, in eternity, we will get to enjoy that; however, ultimately, it is the meaning of these words which is important, and that is what remains for us to examine.

In v. 1, we are told that all the earth belongs to God, and, in v. 2, we are told this is because He established it upon the waters. V. 3 asks who can fellowship with God, and v. 4 answers, a man who is pure and clean. V. 5 continues the thought of v. 4, indicating that we receive righteousness and blessings from God, and v. 6, David

points out that this is the generation which seeks after God.

In vv. 7–10, the timber and organization of the psalm changes somewhat to almost a chorus, where vv. 7 and 9 call for the gates to be lifted up fro the Lord of Glory; and vv. 8 and 10 tell us just who this Lord of Glory is.

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Although, to me, this psalm seemed to easily divide up into two parts (the first part having 3 sections); Barnes divides the psalm into 3 sections:
Barnes Outlines Psalm 24
Part	Description
I.	An ascription of praise to God as the Maker and Upholder of all things (Psalm 24:1–2). He is represented as the Proprietor of the whole earth, and as having a right to all that there is in the world, since He has made the earth and all which it contains. This universal claim, this recognition of Him as Lord of all, would be especially appropriate in bringing up the symbol of his existence and His power, and establishing his worship in the capital of the nation.
II.	An inquiry, who would ascend into the hill of the Lord, and stand in His holy place; who could be regarded as worthy to engage in His worship, and to be considered as his friend? Psalm 24:3–6.
III.	A responsive song on the entrance of the procession with the ark into the city (Psalm 24:7–10).

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Nothing in this psalm specifically points to any particular event; however, most commentators associate this psalms with David transporting the Ark into Jerusalem.
Psalm 24: A Celebration of Moving the Ark into Jerusalem
Commentator	Comments
Barnes	The occasion on which the psalm was composed is not designated; but from its contents it was evidently on some public occasion of great solemnity; probably on the removal of the ark of the covenant into its appointed place in Jerusalem, where it was to abide permanently; a solemn entrance of Yahweh, as it were, into the place of his permanent abode (Psalm 24:7–10). This could not have been the temple, because: (a) that was not erected in the time of David; and (b) the description (Psalm 24:7–10) is rather that of entering into a “city” than into a temple or a place of public worship, for the psalmist calls upon the “gates” to lift up their heads – an expression more suitable to a city than to the doors of a tabernacle or a temple. According to this view, no occasion seems more appropriate than that of removing the ark from the house of Obed–edom to “the city of David,” or to Jerusalem, as described in 2Sam. 6:12–17. David indeed placed the ark “in the midst of the tabernacle which he had pitched for it” on Mount Zion (2Sam. 6:17), but the particular reference of the psalm would rather seem to be to the entrance of the ark into the city than into the tabernacle. It was probably designed to be sung as the procession approached the city where the ark was destined to remain. The occasion of thus taking up the ark into the holy hill where it was to abide seems to have suggested the inquiry, who would be suited to ascend the holy hill where God abides, and to stand in his presence (Psalm 24:3–6). On the occasion on which it is supposed that this psalm was written, in bringing up the ark of God, and placing it in the tabernacle provided for it in the capital of the nation, no sentiment could be more appropriate than that which would recognize the universal supremacy of God.
Clarke	It is probable that this Psalm was composed on occasion of bringing the ark from the house of Obed-edom to Mount Sion, and the questions may respect the fitness of the persons who were to minister before this ark: the last verses may refer to the opening of the city gates in order to admit it.
Gill	This psalm is thought by Aben Ezra & Kimchisome (Jewish writers) to have been wrote when the ark was brought from the house of Obededom to the city of David, and put into the place prepared for it by him, (2Sam. 6:17); to which reference is supposed to be had in (Psalm 24:7).
Henry	It is supposed that the psalm was penned upon occasion of David's bringing up the ark to the place prepared for it, and that the intention of it was to lead the people above the pomp of external ceremonies to a holy life and faith in Christ, of whom the ark was a type. This splendid entry here described it is probable refers to the solemn bringing in of the ark into the tent David pitched for it or the temple Solomon built for it; for, when David prepared materials for the building of it, it was proper for him to prepare a psalm for the dedication of it.
Jamieson, Fausset and Brown	The entrance of the ark, with the attending procession, into the holy sanctuary is pictured to us. The repetition of the terms gives emphasis.
Keil and Delitzsch	It was composed when the Ark was brought from Kirjath Jearim to Mount Zion, where David had caused it to be set up in a tabernacle built expressly for it (2Sam. 6:17, cf. 2Sam. 11:11 1Kings 1:39); or else, which is rendered the more probable by the description of Jahve as a warrior, at a time when the Ark was brought back to Mount Zion, after having been taken to accompany the army to battle (vid., Psalm 68).
Kukis	(1) Association with the Ark of God would require clean hands and a pure heart (Psalm 24:4). (2) David, in this psalm, says that his generation is the generation who seeks God (Psalm 24:6); and in 1Chron. 15:13, David says the first attempt to move the Ark went awry because they did not seek God according to His ordinance. The Ark remained in storage throughout Saul’s lifetime, because he and his generation did not seek God. (3) This psalm speaks of raising up the gates of the city for the Lord of Glory to come in (Psalm 24:7, 9). Although the Ark was never thought to be equivalent to God (as an idol would be), it does represent Jesus Christ, the God-man.
McGee (Josephus)	Josephus, the Jewish historian, says that seven choirs of singers and musicians marched before the ark as it was brought to Mount Zion where David had prepared a tabernacle for it until the temple was built.
Spurgeon	This sacred hymn was probably written to be sung when the ark of the covenant was taken up from the house of Obed-edom, to remain within curtains upon the hill of Zion. The words are not unsuitable for the sacred dance of joy in which David led the way upon that joyful occasion. The eye of the Psalmist looked, however, beyond the typical upgoing of the ark to the sublime ascension of the King of glory.

Dr. Allen Ross presents a different perspective: The Israelites have returned from a battle with the Canaanites. They are proceeding up to the sanctuary on the holy mount to give praise to Yahweh for the great and mighty victory in battle, carrying with them the Ark of the Covenant, the symbol of Yahweh’s presence with them.

The problem with this interpretation is, Ross is assuming that the Israelites regularly took the Ark of God with them into battle. We only know of two instances of this, one, when they were directed by God to do so, and one, where they took the Ark out as good luck and were soundly defeated and the Ark was captured. On the other hand, what Ross adds to his introduction makes perfect sense: As they [those carrying the Ark] approach the gate, they are met by the Levites who function as gatekeepers. It is their part to ask who may enter the sanctuary of the Lord; and it is the priests’ part to answer with the stipulations from the Law. Whoever meets these qualifications may enter and fellowship with Yahweh. The worshipers then respond that they are seeking the Lord’s favor, a response that indicates that they want to meet the Lord’s requirements but probably have to bring sacrifices to do it, for gate-liturgies were meant primarily to remind people of the need of sacrificial atonement. The psalm then concludes with the worshipers calling to the gates to make way for Yahweh to come in to His sanctuary, for why should the King of Glory stoop to go under a doorway? What we have in this psalm is clearly an interaction between two parties, and the bringing of the Ark to the gates of Jerusalem.

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Psalm 24 Inscription

Slavishly literal:

Moderately literal:

To David a Psalm.

Psalm

24 inscription

With regards to David, a Psalm [composed on the first Sabbath].

A Psalm Composed by David on the first Saturday (Sabbath).

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:

Latin Vulgate On the first Sabbath a psalm for David.

Masoretic Text To David a Psalm.

Septuagint A Psalm for David on the first Sabbath. This is Psalm 23 in the Greek.

Significant differences: We have the obvious additional text on the first Sabbath included with the LXX and the Vulgate. The English rendering of the Latin has on the first day of the week (which is Sunday). Now, normally, I simply go with the Douay-Reims translation, and sometimes I update it, as representative of the Latin text. However, in this case, we have a clear bending of the text in the English. So, I checked on Latin directly and came up with Prima sabbati, Psalmus David (or, on the first Sabbath, a Psalm of David). So it does appear as though those who translated this verse into the English (the Douay-Reims version) took some liberties with the text here. An online Latin-English interlinear site indicates that this reads For the First Sabbath.

Just in case you did not know, Sabbath means Saturday and not Sunday. I made sort of a big deal here as, people have, for years, blamed the Catholic church for distorting and changing the Bible, and throwing out things they did not like and putting in stuff that they did like. This does indicate that the translators of the Douay-Reims took some liberties (1749–1752), but my memory is that many people incorrect think that the Sabbath and Sunday are the same day (and maybe this is where it started?). Anyway, I have beat this topic to death, only because of the false accusations against the early Catholic church, where it is clear that Jerome did properly render the inscription for this verse.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

CEV (A psalm by David.)

The Message A David psalm.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Bible in Basic English A Psalm. Of David.

Complete Apostles’ Bible A Psalm of David on the first day of the week.

God’s Word™ A psalm by David.

HCSB A Davidic psalm.

JPS (Tanakh) Of David. A psalm.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Updated Emphasized Bible David’s. A Melody.

Young's Literal Translation A Psalm of David.

What is the gist of this verse? Here, we note who wrote this psalm and possibly when it was written (or when it was first performed).

Psalm 24 inscription
Hebrew/Pronunciation	Common English Meanings	Notes/Morphology	BDB and Strong’s Numbers
lâmed (ל) [pronounced l^e]	to, for, towards, in regards to, with reference to, as to, with regards to, belonging to	preposition	No Strong’s # BDB #510
Dâvid (ד̣וָ); also Dâvîyd (די.וָ) [pronounced daw-VEED]	beloved and is transliterated David	masculine proper noun	Strong’s #1732 BDB #187
miz^emôwr (רמז ̣מ) [pronounced mizê-MOHR]	melody, song, poem, psalm	masculine singular noun	Strong’s #4210 BDB #274
The Latin begins with On the first Sabbath and the Greek adds on the first Sabbath to the inscription.

Translation: With regards to David, a Psalm, [composed on the first Sabbath]. As is always the case, we have the lâmed preposition, which, in this case, indicates ownership or authorship. I would expect the bêyth preposition, but that is not used in the psalms (by David, by means of David). What is different is, David’s name comes first; usually this reads a psalm of [to] David.

In both the Latin and the Greek, we have the additional phrase on the first Sabbath. Interestingly enough, the Latin places this first and the Greek places it after a psalm of David. As was discussed, even though there are at least two translations which read on the first day of the week, these translations are incorrect. Given that we find this phrase in both the Latin and Greek, I would suspect that it was somehow dropped out of the original Hebrew text.

It is certainly unclear whether the Ark was moved on a first Sabbath or if David wrote this psalm on a first Sabbath. Www.sacredbible.org tells us this: There are two First Sabbaths. The first of the First Sabbaths is the Sabbath during the Feast of Passover. After that Sabbath, the counting of the Feast of Weeks begins with the very next day. The first week in the counting of the Feast of Weeks ends with the second First Sabbath, that is, the First Sabbath in the count of Seven Sabbaths leading up to the Feast of Weeks. Because there was no clear concept of a number zero (which would, in modern counting be the first Sabbath of Passover), there must be two first Sabbaths.

Quite frankly, I don’t get exactly where they get this from—two first Sabbaths (which seems counterintuitive)—however, that this takes place on the Passover would be a nice touch and fully in line with our understanding of this psalm. In going with the ancient Jewish calendar, the first Sabbath would be the Passover. Although the emphasis of this psalm is not upon our Lord’s death on our behalf, we may reasonably assume that vv. 3–4 allude to it, and our entire foundation of our faith is the true understanding of the Passover. Therefore, nothing would be more apropos than for David to have moved the Ark on the Passover Sabbath.

This could possibly suggest why this phrase would have dropped out of the Hebrew text—there is a lot of work involved here in moving the Ark from Obed-edom’s home to Jerusalem, and we might guess that legalistic Jews dropped this from the text for that reason. However, (1) we cannot absolutely and unequivocally associate this psalm with the moving of the Ark (although most believe that is the correct interpretation); and (2) more importantly, we have no history of the Sacred Text being changed to suit temporal doctrines like the Jewish distortion of the Sabbath. In other words, if these few words should have been a part of the Hebrew text, then they likely fell out of the text due to less nefarious reasons. You may want to refer to a short paper which I wrote, entitled: Serious Old Testament Textual Problems. Believe it or not, this inscription is one of the most substantive textual problems in the entire Old Testament.

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The Earth is God's, as He Founded and Established It

Slavishly literal:

Moderately literal:

To Y^ehowah

the earth and her fullness

a world and those dwelling in her.

Psalm

24:1

To Y^ehowah [belongs]

the earth and her multitudes

the world and those dwelling in it.

To Jehovah belongs

the earth and its people

the world and those who dwell in the world.

Here is how others have handled this verse:

Ancient texts:

Masoretic Text

Septuagint The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness of it; the world, and all that dwell in it.

Significant differences:

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

CEV The earth and everything on it belong to the LORD. The world and its people belong to him.

The Message GOD claims Earth and everything in it, God claims World and all who live on it.

New American Bible The earth is the Lord’s and all it holds,

the world and those who live there.

New Living Testament The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it.

The world and all its people belong to him.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Bible in Basic English The earth is the Lord's, with all its wealth; the world and all the people living in it.

God’s Word™ The earth and everything it contains are the LORD'S. The world and all who live in it are his.

HCSB The earth and everything in it, the world and its inhabitants, belong to the LORD;...

JPS (Tanakh) The earth is the Lord’s and all that it holds,

the world and its inhabitants.

The Scriptures 1998 The earth belongs to הוהי,

And all that fills it – The world and those who dwell in it.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

English Standard Version The earth is the LORD's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein,...

LTHB The earth is Jehovah's, and the fullness of it; the world, and those who live in it.

Young's Updated LT To Jehovah is the earth and its fullness, The world and the inhabitants in it.

What is the gist of this verse? Everyone on this earth and the earth belong to God.

Psalm 24:1a
Hebrew/Pronunciation	Common English Meanings	Notes/Morphology	BDB and Strong’s Numbers
lâmed (ל) [pronounced l^e]	to, for, towards, in regards to, with reference to, as to, with regards to, belonging to	preposition	No Strong’s # BDB #510
YHWH (הוהי) [pronunciation is possibly yhoh-WAH]