The songwriter in
Psalm 84 wrote, "I would rather be a doorkeeper in
the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of wickedness."[1] The impression might be that a doorkeeper is
a lowly and humble vocation. In 1
Chronicles 9:18–20 (ESV), we read:
"18
until then they were in the king’s gate on the east side as the gatekeepers of
the camps of the Levites. 19 Shallum the son of Kore, son of
Ebiasaph, son of Korah, and his kinsmen of his fathers’ house, the Korahites,
were in charge of the work of the service, keepers of the thresholds of the
tent, as their fathers had been in charge of the camp of the Lord, keepers of the entrance. 20
And Phinehas the son of Eleazar was the chief officer over them in time past;
the Lord was with him."
The keeper of the door, in the Bible, is
also known as the "porter". He
was a guard stationed at the entrance in case an unwanted person might enter
and harm the sanctuary. The duties of
the gatekeepers are listed in 1 Chronicles 9:17, 21; 15:17–18, 23–24. It
implied in Psalm 84 that it is a humble job.
When Jesus taught on His role as Shepherd in John 10, He said,
““Truly, truly, I say to you, he who
does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man
is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the
sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his
own sheep by name and leads them out.” (John 10:1–3, ESV)
"The watchman or ‘porter’, probably a hired undershepherd recognizes the
shepherd and opens the gate for him."[2] The speculation as to who
this gatekeeper is abounds through Church literature[3]. Is it a lead angel like Michael? Is it Mary?
Peter? Local church pastors and
elders? Is it God, the Father, the Holy
Spirit, or even Christ Himself? A.W.
Pink has a compelling take on this. He
comments:
"The
'porter' was the one who vouched for the shepherd and presented him to the sheep.
As to the identity of the 'porter' in this proverb there can be no doubt. The
direct reference was to John the Baptist who 'prepared the way of the Lord.' He
it was who formally introduced the Shepherd to Israel: 'that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing' (John
1:31), was his own confession. But, in the wider application, the 'porter' here
represented the Holy Spirit, who officially vouched for the credentials of the
Messiah, and who now presents the Savior to each of God’s elect."[4]
I agree with Pink on this matter, except
that I would interpret it this way:
·
The immediate historical
context supports the notion that John the Baptist is in direct view.
·
Ultimately, the Holy Spirit, in
this New Covenant era is the Gatekeeper.
·
Practically, the Holy Spirit,
through the Word of God is delegated that responsibility to the Elders of
Christ's church. (“Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock,
in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God,
which he obtained with his own blood.” (Acts 20:28, ESV))
Interestingly the task of the doorkeeper is
to keep unwanted saviors out. The sheep
themselves who belong to Christ through election, recognize the voice of the
Shepherd and follow Him. The assumption
of many that the psalmist was communicating a humble and lowly position may not
be the best interpretation. Perhaps what
is being taught (as Spurgeon alludes to) is that door-keeping is a difficult
task. Many find fault with doorkeepers.
Remuneration is often poor. It "is no easy and pleasing task".[5]
It is easy to follow the way of the
wicked. Rarely do difficult, unpopular
decisions have to be made. The
"doorkeeper" – the Elders – of Christ's churches have a very thorny
and disliked task. They often have to say, "That is not the voice of the
Shepherd." That is not an easy job!
Pray for your Pastor and
Elders!
[1] The
Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2001). (Ps 84:10). Wheaton: Standard
Bible Society.
[2] Carson, D. A. (1991). The Gospel according to John (pp. 382–383). Leicester, England;
Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; W.B. Eerdmans.
[4] Pink, Arthur W., Exposition of the Gospel of John,
Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1975, Page 104
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