Psalm 87

What’s Happening?

Psalm 87 describes how the nation of Israel will one day be the home of people from all over the world. On a mountain called Sinai, God chose Israel to be his people. And on another mountain called Zion, he established his people’s capital—Jerusalem (Psalm 87:1). Jerusalem is God’s favorite city, and he loves it more than all other places in Israel (Psalm 87:2). It’s a glorious place, celebrated by both citizens and foreigners alike (Psalm 87:3). And the reason Zion (or Jerusalem) is so glorious is because it’s filled with foreigners.

A census of God’s city has been taken. And the psalmist reveals that nations that once harmed God’s people and even attacked Jerusalem are now accepted as citizens. Egypt and Babylon, both monstrous political powers, have been adopted. Philistines, constant enemies of Israel, are now countrymen. Tyre, who are at best are fickle trading partners, is now a native. And even the faraway people of Cush are included in God’s new city (Psalm 87:4). People from all over the world are now brothers, united by a shared allegiance to God’s city, Jerusalem (Psalm 87:5). And while there is no uniform ethnicity or nationality, all people in God’s city have this in common: God’s census has claimed them to be true children of Zion (Psalm 87:6). And everyone in the city praises God for being their common source, like a fountain spring branching off into many rivers (Psalm 87:7).

Where is the Gospel?

On some of the first pages of the Bible, God promised a man named Abram that his descendents would form a nation, and this nation would bless the world and experience God’s goodness (Genesis 12:1-3). This hope and promise is remembered in Psalm 87, but it comes true in the life of Abram’s descendant, Jesus (Matthew 1:1-17). 

Jesus came to create a new nation (Matthew 4:17); not an earthly nation bound by geographic features, but a heavenly Kingdom inclusive of all tribes, nations, and languages (John 18:36). While Jesus lived, his followers included not just Israelites, but citizens of enemy nations. Roman centurions, Samaritans, and Greeks all followed Jesus (Matthew 8:5-13; John 4:1-42, 12:20-36), not to mention the moral-outsiders like Roman-sympathizing Jews, prostitutes, and sinners that Jesus accepted as part of his company (Matthew 9:9-12). In his life, Jesus demonstrated that he was building a nation not based on geography, language, or even moral virtue but by his people’s shared allegiance to him. The deep love God has for Jerusalem in this psalm was shown when God sent Jesus to the world, so that all who believe in him will live with God in his city forever (John 12:32; Philippians 3:20). 

While it’s true that Jesus came to make all people citizens of his one final Kingdom, it’s just as common for the Bible to describe this reality as adoption (Hebrews 2:10-11; Galatians 4:4-5).  We are members of Jesus’ family because he came and died to make us so (John 1:12-13). Where there used to be division between God’s people and the rest of the world, Jesus tears those barriers down and forms a new humanity, a new nation, and a new city of God (Ephesians 2:14-18). And the best news is that even rebellious and disobedient enemies of God are invited to join. When we pledge ourselves to Jesus, he secures not just our forgiveness or citizenship, but our inclusion as full members of God’s family (Romans 5:7-8).

See For Yourself

I pray that the Holy Spirit will open your eyes to see the God who makes foreigners native citizens of his Kingdom. And may you see Jesus as the one who adopts all peoples into his new city and Kingdom.