This is the 12th in a series of excerpts from What Every Christian Should Know About the Return of Jesus, released by High Street Press and available at Amazon.com. 

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The second coming of Christ often is linked with the moral struggle between God and his creatures. Psalm 2 is a good example. The psalmist describes the world’s rejection of God’s sovereignty, and then declares God’s purpose: 

“I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain.” I will declare the LORD’s decree. He said to me, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance and the ends of the earth your possession. You will break them with an iron scepter; you will shatter them like pottery.”

Ps. 2:6-9

God fully intends to respond to the nations’ rebellion against him. He installs his Son as king of the earth. Consequently, the kings of the earth are exhorted: 

So now, kings, be wise; receive instruction, you judges of the earth. Serve the LORD with reverential awe and rejoice with trembling. Pay homage to the Son or he will be angry and you will perish in your rebellion, for his anger may ignite at any moment. All who take refuge in him are happy.

Ps. 2:10-12

Another prophecy of the second coming is Psalm 72, likely a coronation prayer used when one Davidic king dies and another comes to power. But it’s more than that. It looks forward to the ultimate Davidic king – Messiah – and his reign on earth. Messiah’s dominion is “from sea to sea” (v. 8). Kings and nations serve him (v. 11).

The promised benefits of the king’s rule are not fulfilled in Solomon’s day – at least not in the manner described in this psalm. Rather, we are to look for a future king who completes the Davidic line and sets everything right.

Psalm 72 ends with this prayer: “Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who alone does wonders. Blessed be his glorious name forever; the whole earth is filled with his glory” (vv. 18-19).

Psalm 96 declares, “The LORD reigns” (v. 10), and the psalmist concludes that the Lord is coming to judge the earth. “He will judge the world with righteousness and the peoples with his faithfulness” (v. 13).

Finally, we should take special note of Psalm 110, the most-quoted psalm in the New Testament. It features the declaration of the LORD (Yahweh) to David’s Lord (the Messiah). Jesus applies this psalm to himself (Matt. 22:42-45). And eyewitnesses of Jesus quote from the psalm to point their readers to him as its fulfillment (e.g., Acts 2:34-35; 1 Cor. 15:25, 27; Heb. 1:13; 10:13). 

The first four verses record Yahweh’s declaration of his Son as king and priest. The last three verses appear to be David’s response to this oracle, with a depiction of Messiah as a warrior. Taking a New Testament perspective, we should see that the present position of Christ seated at the Father’s right hand is temporary, for the day is coming when the LORD (Yahweh) sends forth David’s Lord (Messiah) from Zion to execute judgment on the nations.

This is a fascinating psalm. Space permits just a few observations, beginning with verse 1: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool.” This declaration comes into clear focus only when we get to the New Testament. It shows Messiah is:

1. Greater than David: In his sermon on the Day of Pentecost, Peter reminds his listeners, “it was not David who ascended into the heavens” (Acts. 2:34). And the writer of Hebrews notes, “Now to which of the angels has he [Yahweh] ever said: ‘Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool’?” (Heb. 1:13).

2. Exalted by God though rejected by people: “The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had murdered by hanging him on a tree. God exalted this man to his right hand as ruler and Savior .…” (Acts. 5:30-31).

3. Reigning today as Savior and intercessor: “Christ Jesus is the one who died, but even more, has been raised; he also is at the right hand of God and intercedes for us” (Rom. 8:34).

4. Seated as affirmation of his finished work: “Every priest stands day after day ministering and offering the same sacrifices time after time, which can never take away sins. But this man, after offering one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God” (Heb. 10:11-12).

5. Waiting for the ultimate victory when his enemies surrender: “He is now waiting until his enemies are made his footstool” (Heb. 10:13; cf. 1 Cor. 15:25).

6. Coming as divine warrior to set things right (Rev. 19:11-21). This judgment is severe, complete, and certain. Even kings are unable to escape. The Messiah – his eyes aflame, his robe dipped in blood, and a sword proceeding from his mouth – not only destroys his enemies, he finishes the work he began as the Suffering Servant. He glorifies the saints, judges his enemies, and restores the sinful and fallen world to its pre-fall perfection.

Psalm 110 celebrates the exaltation of Christ to the throne of an endless kingdom and a perpetual priesthood (Zech. 6:13). As Roger Ellsworth notes: “What a unique and delectable position David enjoyed! God had promised that the Messiah would physically descend from him. So the Messiah would be his son. But that same Messiah would be far more than a mere man. He would at one and the same time be God and man. The God-man! God in human flesh! So David’s son would also be his Lord!” 

Next: This same Jesus