Psalm 99
The LORD reigns, period (1). Therefore, all peoples ought to tremble before Him. For even the physical earth quakes under His reign.
Why? The psalm gives a three-part answer:
First, He is “great” (2), “awesome” and “holy” (3). He is King (4a), and a mighty one at that. In His might He loves justice. He established, or invented even the concept of equity (4b). Thus He executes justice and righteousness (4c). Where?
“In Jacob.” In His chosen people.
Therefore He is worthy to be worshiped at his “footstool.” For He is “holy” (5).
The second part extols his past “priests”, who called upon His name (6a). He answered them (6b) and spoke to them (7), as they kept his testimonies and statutes. Now, one can immediately recall exceptions to that statement. Which leads us to the third part.
God did answer them (8a), and He forgave them (8b), but God was also an avenger of their wrongdoings (8c). God showed them no partiality, though they were His chosen people.
“Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness” (Rom. 11:22). He is the LORD of all; He is King over all the nations, and He is impartially and always true to His own character. He is holy (9).
Paul will later echo this, in Romans 2:9-11:
“There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, 10 but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. 11 For God shows no partiality."
How do you feel, as you read that? The Bible calls this feeling, when we see that He impartially loves justice as much as He loves mercy, “the fear of the Lord.” He is holy - wholly consistent within Himself.
This impartial consistency was never more visible than with His great and perfect prophet, priest and king, Jesus. At His cross, God’s mercy and judgment met and kissed, in complete harmony. For there God roared with justice, crushing him under the weight of His wrath for our sins. Because God loves justice (4a), He killed Jesus. Yet at the same time He was executing justice, He was also “executing righteousness” (4b). At the cross there occurred the Great Exchange. He became sin for us, that we who trust in Him might become the righteousness of God (2 Cor. 5:21). Our sin was counted over to him, and his perfect righteousness was counted over to us.
Moses, Aaron and Samuel - they were only imperfect precursors of the Great High Priest who was to come. Jesus, that Great High Priest, would keep all of God’s testimonies and statutes, in the hard-scrabble moments of real life. He obeyed God for us, and for Moses and Aaron and Samuel, in our place. Thus God spoke to them in clouds, but to Jesus He spoke out in the open, at His baptism.
So when Jesus asked for another way, in the Second Garden - the Garden of Gethsemane - God answered (8) with silence, and a cup, the cup of wrath, which Jesus, for the joy set before him, drank down fully. All of this so that God might avenge our wrongdoings and at the same time be merciful to us (8).
Taking all this in, what is left for us, the nations, but to exalt the LORD our God, and worship at His holy mountain, among the people of God, on the Lord’s Day? For the LORD our God is holy. His ways are not our ways, and this is very good news. He has done all, and thus in Him we must celebrate.