i-Sing-Pesukei d’Zimrah-Elul Kavanot-Yehi Chivod

“God is King; God was King; God will be King, for ever and ever.” This order appears to be incorrect. It should be, “God was King,” then, “God is King.”

The reason for saying it in this order is as follows: a person may be suddenly summoned by death, and if the order of recital were first, “He was King,” he would not have acknowledged that God is King at the time that he died (Reb Shmelke, Shemen haTov, page 43).

During the month of Elul, we prepare for Rosh Hashanah, the day we celebrate the coronation of God as King. We can prepare by making sure that the concept of, “God is King,” is always expressed in our words and actions, as if to say that although we are approaching a day on which we will be judged for life or, God forbid, death, we only want to face God with the words, “God is King,” on our lips.