**The Glorious City of God: A Story Inspired by Psalm 87**
In the ancient days, when the earth was still young and kingdoms rose and fell like the tides, there stood a city unlike any other—Zion, the holy mountain of the Lord. It was not merely a city of stone and mortar but a dwelling place of the Most High, a beacon of divine glory shining upon the nations. The Lord had chosen it above all others, setting His love upon its foundations and decreeing that it would be the birthplace of His salvation.
The psalmist sang of this city with awe:
*”His foundation is in the holy mountains.
The Lord loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God!”*
And indeed, the glory of Zion was not in its towering walls or its golden palaces, but in the One who reigned within it. The Lord Himself had established it, and its gates stood open to all who sought His face.
### **The Gathering of the Nations**
One day, as the sun cast its golden light upon the city, a great assembly gathered at its gates. People from every nation—Egypt, Babylon, Philistia, Tyre, and Ethiopia—came with reverence, drawn by the fame of Zion’s God. They had heard of His wonders, of His mercy that reached beyond the borders of Israel, and they longed to know Him.
Among them was a man from Egypt, once a worshiper of idols, now seeking the truth. Beside him stood a woman from Babylon, weary of empty rituals, her heart yearning for the living God. A warrior from Philistia, once an enemy of Israel, now humbled by the stories of the Lord’s power, stood in quiet awe. Merchants from Tyre, accustomed to wealth and splendor, found themselves speechless before Zion’s holiness. And from the distant lands of Ethiopia, a prince had journeyed far, seeking the wisdom of the God of Jacob.
### **The Lord’s Decree**
As the people waited, a voice thundered from the heavens, shaking the very foundations of the earth. It was the voice of the Lord, declaring His sovereign will over the nations:
*”I will make mention of Rahab and Babylon to those who know Me;
Behold, O Philistia and Tyre, with Ethiopia:
‘This one was born there.’”*
The crowd gasped in astonishment. The Lord was proclaiming that these foreigners, these strangers to the covenant, would be counted as citizens of Zion! It was unheard of—Israel had long been the chosen people, set apart from the nations. Yet here was the Almighty declaring that even those from enemy lands would be called children of God.
A priest of Zion, robed in white, stepped forward and explained the Lord’s words:
*”The Lord records in the register of the peoples:
‘This one was born in Zion.’”*
Tears filled the eyes of the Egyptian, the Babylonian, the Philistine, the Tyrian, and the Ethiopian. They had come as outsiders, yet the Lord was writing their names in His book, granting them a place in His holy city.
### **The Joy of Salvation**
Then, as if in response to this divine decree, a chorus of voices arose—singers and dancers, musicians with harps and tambourines, lifting their praises to the God who had welcomed them home.
*”All my springs are in you, O Zion!”* they sang.
For they knew now that true life, true joy, and true belonging flowed only from the presence of the Lord. The wells of salvation were found in Zion, and they would never thirst again.
And so, the city of God stood forever as a testimony of His grace—a place where the nations would find redemption, where the lost would be called His own, and where every tongue would confess that the Lord alone is God.
**The End.**
