A Fascinating Study on God's Right Hand

We've heard it countless times before -- "God's right hand".  It's all over Scripture.  But what does it mean?  Typically, it has nothing to do with seating arrangement and everything to do with authority.  It is where the saying "my right hand man" comes from.  If you are at someone's "right hand", you are working under the authority of the one you represent.

We know from many verses in the New Testament that Christ is now seated at the right hand of God.  I won't post all of them, but here are some examples:

Matthew 26:64~
Jesus said to him, “You have said so. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

Mark 16:19~
So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God.

Acts 2:33~
Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing.

Acts 5:31~
God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.

Acts 7:55~
But he (Stephen), full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.

Romans 8:34~
Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised— who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.

Ephesians 1:20~
that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places,

Colossians 3:1~If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

Hebrews 1:3~
He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,

Okay, so what does all this mean?  It means that CHRIST has been given all authority by God the Father to "sit down at His right hand".  There are not two or three Thrones in Heaven, just the one Throne of God, and Jesus is sitting there.  So, too, is the Father.  But Christ has been given all the authority, and He is equal to God. 

Once this concept is established, take a walk through the Old Testament and find the verses that mention God's right hand.  We know Christ was with God before His First Advent on earth.  Therefore, Christ was always at God's right hand.  If this is the case, many many verses open up to a new understanding.  And the book of Psalms is amazingly prophetic!

Psalm 16:11~
You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

This verse goes amazingly hand-in-hand with Ephesians 1:3, which states we have every spiritual blessings in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.  Christ is the fullness of joy!

Psalm 17:7~
Wondrously show your steadfast love, O Savior of those who seek refuge from their adversaries at your right hand. 

This verse even calls God "Savior", who hides His children from adversaries in Christ.

Psalm 18:35~
You have given me the shield of your salvation, and your right hand supported me, and your gentleness made me great.

This Psalm says God's right hand supports him and gave him salvation.

Psalm 20:6~
Now I know that the LORD saves his anointed; he will answer him from his holy heaven with the saving might of his right hand.

Who saves mankind?  Christ!  Who's the saving might of God's right hand?  CHRIST!

Psalm 21:8-9~
8 Your hand will find out all your enemies;
 your right hand will find out those who hate you.
 9 You will make them as a blazing oven
 when you appear.
The Lord will swallow them up in his wrath,
 and fire will consume them.

WOW.  The Second Coming is in Psalm 21!  Christ Himself will return and ferret out the wheat from the chaff.  Read the account in Revelation again when Christ descends from the heavens with His Bride and His Host behind Him!

Psalm 44:3~
for not by their own sword did they win the land, nor did their own arm save them, but your right hand and your arm, and the light of your face, for you delighted in them.

Salvation belongs to our God, by His right hand, not their own arm.

Psalm 45:9~
daughters of kings are among your ladies of honor; at your right hand stands the queen in gold of Ophir.

I LOVE this Psalm.  It is a lovely picture of Christ and His Bride, the Church.  Who stands at the right hand of Christ?  His CHURCH!  

Psalm 48:10~
As your name, O God, so your praise reaches to the ends of the earth. Your right hand is filled with righteousness.

Kind of self explanatory.  :P

Psalm 60:5~
That your beloved ones may be delivered, give salvation by your right hand and answer us!

Salvation is through Christ alone, as there is no other name under Heaven, given among men, by which we must be saved!

Psalm 63:8
My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.

Again, Christ upholds those who call upon Him.

Psalm 74:10-11
10 How long, O God, is the foe to scoff?
 Is the enemy to revile your name forever? 
11 Why do you hold back your hand, your right hand?
 Take it from the fold of your garment and destroy them!

I have half a mind to believe this Psalm is calling for the Second Coming!  How long is God going to wait before He sends His Son back, making His enemies His footstool??

Psalm 80:17
But let your hand be on the man of your right hand, the son of man whom you have made strong for yourself!

Who is the "man at God's right hand"?  CHRIST!

Psalm 98:1~Oh sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things! His right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him.

Again, by Christ, salvation comes!

Psalm 110:1~The LORD says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.”

The LORD (Yahweh) says to my Lord (Yeshua) - this was David talking.  David was the KING of Israel.  The highest you could go in authority.  Then who else is Lord over David but the Messiah?  And how can even the Messiah be Lord over David unless He is also GOD?

Psalm 110:5
The Lord is at your right hand; he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath.

Lord (Yeshua) in small letters does not mean Yahweh, but rather, the Messiah.  This is also a Second Coming verse.  The Messiah comes to shatter kings when He descends to claim His Kingdom.

Getting tired yet?  But wait, there's more!

Song of Solomon 2:6~
His left hand is under my head, and his right hand embraces me!

The Song of Songs is allegory for Christ and His Bride.  It is a love story between Him and His Church.  Therefore, when read in that light, Christ, God's right hand, embraces the woman, or the Church, in love.

Isaiah 48:13~
My hand laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens; when I call to them, they stand forth together.

In Isaiah, we get a remarkable confirmation of John 1:3 - "All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.", as well as Hebrews 1:2 - "Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds".  It's amazing what we can discern when we have the right "glasses"!

Lamentations 2:3-4~
He has cut down in fierce anger all the might of Israel; he has withdrawn from them his right hand in the face of the enemy; he has burned like a flaming fire in Jacob, consuming all around.
He has bent his bow like an enemy, with his right hand set like a foe; and he has killed all who were delightful in our eyes in the tent of the daughter of Zion; he has poured out his fury like fire.

This is a sad, sad Scripture.  In it, we see a prophecy of God removing His right hand (the Messiah) from the Jews and handing His people over to the enemy because they did not believe.  Instead, God gave the Messiah to a people who would honor Him - the Gentiles.  The "burning flame" spoken of is likely when Jerusalem (and the Temple of God) was razed by the Romans in 70AD.  The punishment for forsaking the Holy One of God was to be scattered among the nations for millenia.  It is only until recent times we have seen Israel reborn as a nation (1948), thus fulfilling Isaiah 66:7-8.

Matthew 20:23~
He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”

And finally, we have Christ's own words, given to the mother of James and John, who'd asked Christ if her boys could sit on His right and left sides in His Kingdom.  But Christ answered with a cryptic reply.  What does He mean, "for those whom it has been prepared"?

He is speaking of His Church.

Revelation 3:21 confirms this by saying - "The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne."

This one verse is revolutionary in understanding our FULL INHERITANCE in Christ.  We have established that Christ sat down at the right hand of God.  This means He has all the authority of God.  Christ grants His CHURCH to sit at HIS right hand, thus giving the CHURCH all the authority of CHRIST.

This is amazing.  Astounding.  Something every Christian needs to understand.  We're not just purchased out of Hell, but given a GLORIOUS seat in the heavenlies, right next to Christ, who is right next to the Father.  Not even the angels can boast of that!

Ephesians 2:4-6 says: "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.

Hallelujah, brethren!  We are seated at the right hand of Christ, and every blessing and promise given to the Messiah is also given to us, His Church.  He is One with us, as a husband is one flesh with a wife and as a head is one flesh with its body.  When we accept Him, we become like Him.  Not "gods", but sons of God, and co-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17).

 
This study is by no means exhaustive.  There are many other Scriptures about God's right hand.  For the sake of length, I did not post all of them.  But through this study, we can know and understand that we have a wonderful, amazing, awesome, inspiring, and absolutely BEAUTIFUL GOD!!!  And not only that, but He gives us a wonderful, amazing, awesome, inspiring, and absolutely BEAUTIFUL inheritance in His Son, to Whom He has given us, for the praise of His Glory!  (Ephesians 1:12)

I cannot wait.  I cannot wait.  I cannot wait!!!  \O/

~~Becka