“I raised my Son from the dead and seated him at my right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion. . . . I put all things under his feet.” (Ephesians 1:20–22)
“I welcomed my Son into heaven. He is at my right hand, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to him.” (1 Peter 3:22)
We submit with reverence to you, O God, because, through your Son, you remove and install the rulers of the world.
“Wisdom and might belong to me. I change times and seasons; I remove kings and set up kings.” (Daniel 2:20–21)
“I loose the bonds of kings and bind a waistcloth on their hips.” (Job 12:18)
“I sent my angel and struck Herod down, because he did not give me glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.” (Acts 12:23)
Indeed, O God, you not only raise rulers and put them down; you govern all their deeds in every age.
“The king’s heart is a stream of water in my hand, says the LORD; I turn it wherever I will.” (Proverbs 21:1)
“I will put an end to the wealth of Egypt, by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. . . . I will break the yoke of Egypt, and her proud might shall come to an end. . . . I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon and put my sword in his hand, but I will break the arms of Pharaoh.” (Ezekiel 30:10, 18, 24)
“I have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, my servant, and I have given him also the beasts of the field to serve him. All the nations shall serve him and his son and his grandson, until the time of his own land comes. Then many nations and great kings shall make him their slave.” (Jeremiah 27:6–7)
“As I have planned, so shall it be, and as I have purposed, so shall it stand. I will break the Assyrian in my land; and his yoke shall depart from my people.” (Isaiah 14:24–25)
“I will make the nations the inheritance of my Son, and the ends of the earth will be his possession. He shall break them with a rod of iron.” (Psalm 2:8–9)
We acknowledge with wonder, O God, that no plan of man succeeds but those which you, in unfathomable wisdom, permit.
“I bring the counsel of the nations to nothing; I frustrate the plans of the peoples.” (Psalm 33:10)
“No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel can avail against me.” (Proverbs 21:30)
And how mighty and wise you are, O God, that no man, no nation, force of nature can thwart your holy plans.
“No purpose of mine can be thwarted.” (Job 42:2)
“I do according to my will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay my hand or say to me, ‘What have you done?’” (Daniel 4:35)
“There is none who can deliver from my hand; I work, and who can turn it back?” (Isaiah 43:13)
So, we bow, as dust in the scales, O God, and confess with joy, that we are as nothing compared to your greatness.
“Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket, and are accounted as the dust on the scales. . . . All the nations are as nothing before me, they are accounted as less than nothing and emptiness.” (Isaiah 40:15, 17)
“I sit above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers. I stretch out the heavens like a curtain, and spread them like a tent to dwell in. I bring princes to nothing, and make the rulers of the earth as emptiness.” (Isaiah 40:22–23)
The joy of our hope, O God, is that you magnify your greatness by lifting up the low, and putting down the proud.
“Who but me can say to a king, ‘Worthless one,’ and to nobles, ‘Wicked man’? I show no partiality to princes, nor regard the rich more than the poor, for they are all the work of my hands.” (Job 34:18–19)
“I shatter the mighty without investigation and set others in their place.” (Job 34:24)
“I look on everyone who is proud and bring him low and tread down the wicked where they stand.” (Job 40:12)
“I the LORD kill and bring to life; I bring down to Sheol and raise up. I make poor and make rich; I bring low and I exalt.” (1 Samuel 2:6–7)
“I have scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; I have brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate.” (Luke 1:51–52)
And so it will be forever, O God. You rule over all, with an everlasting rule, for the sake of the lowly who trust your Son.
“I live forever, for my dominion is an everlasting dominion, and my kingdom endures from generation to generation.” (Daniel 4:34)
“My dominion shall not pass away, and my kingdom shall not be destroyed.” (Daniel 7:14)
“My Son will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” (Luke 1:33)
Therefore, overflowing with praise and thanks, O precious and holy God, we rest in your absolute sovereignty over our lives. And rejoice to hear you say,
“Your times are in my hand.” (Psalm 31:15)
