Line upon Line

Ascend into the Hill of the Lord

In Psalm 24, we learn what it truly means to stand in holy places.

Psalm 24:3–4

3 Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? or who shall stand in his holy place?

4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.

ascend

To go up or climb.

hill of the Lord

In the scriptures, a hill can symbolize the temple. The hill of the Lord represents a higher spiritual place where we can be closer to God. We “ascend into the hill of the Lord” when we prepare to enter the temple and then enter it.

clean hands, and a pure heart

We have clean hands when we try to live righteously and repent when we have sinned. Our hearts are pure when we are actively striving to have good, virtuous thoughts and righteous intentions.

lifted up his soul unto vanity

Vanity is excessive pride in or admiration of one’s own looks, abilities, or achievements. Instead of vanity, we should try to be humble and modest in what we say and wear and in how we treat others.

sworn deceitfully

A person who “ascend[s] into the hill of the Lord” should be honest. We must try to be people of integrity.