We are in chapter seventeen of Exodus with our word for today. כֵּ֣ס seat, throne, chair, seat of honor. It is used just this one time in Old Testament. The root of our word is used 133 times in the Old Testament. We find it used most as the chair of state for a monarch or other official. Exodus 11:5 Every firstborn son in Egypt will die, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh, who sits on the כִּסְא֔וֹ throne, to the firstborn son of the female slave, who is at her hand mill, and all the firstborn of the cattle as well. Deuteronomy 17:18 When he takes the כִּסֵּ֣א throne of his kingdom. 1 King 1:30 I will surely carry out this very day what I swore to you by the Lord, the God of Israel: Solomon your son shall be king after me, and he will sit on כִּסְאִ֖י my throne in my place. 1 Kings 2:12 So Solomon sat on the כִּסֵּ֖א throne of his father David, and his rule was firmly established.
God’s power to rule is described with our word. Psalm 47:7-8 For God is the King of all the earth; sing to him a psalm of praise. God reigns over the nations; God is seated on his holy כִּסֵּ֬א throne. One of the way’s kings rule with power is to destroy evil. Proverbs 20:8 When a king sits on his כִּסֵּא throne to judge, he winnows out all evil with his eyes. God is also described in this same way. In both of these senses ruling by destroying evil and God being described as seating on a throne are seen in how our chapter uses our word. Exodus 17:14-16 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this as a memorial in a book and recite it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” And Moses built an altar and called the name of it, The Lord Is My Banner, saying, “A hand upon the כֵּ֣סthrone of the Lord! The Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.” This idea of YHWH or God of reality, siting on his throne to judge is seen throughout the Bible. Psalm 11:4-6 The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord is on his heavenly כִּ֫סְא֥וֹ throne. He observes everyone on earth; his eyes examine them. The Lord examines the righteous, but the wicked, those who love violence, he hates with a passion. On the wicked he will rain fiery coals and burning sulfur; a scorching wind will be their lot.
I’ll close with this great Psalm where David is praising God for being just and defending his cause. Psalm 9:2-10 I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High. My enemies turn back; they stumble and perish before you. For you have upheld my right and my cause, sitting לְ֝כִסֵּ֗אenthroned as the righteous judge. You have rebuked the nations and destroyed the wicked; you have blotted out their name for ever and ever. Endless ruin has overtaken my enemies, you have uprooted their cities; even the memory of them has perished. The Lord reigns forever; he has established his כִּסְאֽוֹthrone for judgment. He rules the world in righteousness and judges the peoples with equity. The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.
