Yes — the significance is that God's arising pictures the Son rising from His seat at the Father's right hand, ready to return and deal with His enemies in wrath.
Les Feldick teaches that the Old Testament expected the Messiah to sit at the Father's right hand until His enemies became His footstool, and then for Him to arise. This arising meant He was ready to return and deal with His people. Stephen's vision of Jesus standing at God's right hand carried that same implication and provoked the Jewish leaders to stone him.
Psalm 68:1-2 — This is the passage in question; its language of God arising to scatter enemies foreshadows the Son rising from His seated position to confront those who reject Him.
Psalm 68 begins with a cry for God to arise and scatter His enemies: 'Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered: let them also that hate him flee before him.' The following verse pictures the wicked perishing at God's presence: 'As smoke is driven away, so drive them away: as wax melteth before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God.' This is a direct picture of divine judgment against those who oppose Him. Psalm 110:1 gives the complementary picture: 'The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.' The Messiah is seated at God's right hand while His enemies await His action. In Acts 7:55-56, Stephen sees the Son of man 'standing on the right hand of God' — the New Testament moment that matches the 'arising' language of Psalm 68.
Les Feldick takes the sitting-standing imagery as a prophetic signal. He explains that the Old Testament spoke of the Messiah sitting at the Father's right hand until His enemies were made His footstool, and then one of the Psalms says to Israel that He would arise. To the Jew, a standing Christ meant He had arisen from His seated position and was ready to return and deal with His people. Les connects this to Stephen's vision in Acts 7. When Stephen said, 'I see Him standing on the right hand of God,' the Jewish leaders immediately understood the implication: the Son was no longer seated but was ready to come in judgment. They reacted violently, stopping their ears, rushing upon Stephen, and stoning him. Les also places this within the prophetic outline of Psalm 2. After Israel and the Gentiles together rejected and crucified the Messiah, God called Him back to heaven, seated Him at His right hand, then would speak in wrath and vexation before setting His King upon the holy hill of Zion. Les stresses that the Old Testament program expected these events to follow one after another with no 2,000-year gap, and that the early return was hypothetical, based on Israel's obedience and belief.
Les explains that the Jews knew the Messiah was to be seated at the Father's right hand until His enemies were made His footstool. When Stephen said he saw the Son of man standing on the right hand of God, that implied the Messiah had arisen and was ready to return to deal with His people. The leaders caught the implication, stopped their ears, rushed upon Stephen with one accord, and stoned him.
Using Psalm 2 and Psalm 110, Les lays out the prophetic sequence: Jew and Gentile together reject and crucify the Anointed One; God the Father calls the Son to sit at His right hand until His enemies are made His footstool; after the nations reach a point of derision, God speaks in wrath and vexation; then He sets His King upon the holy hill of Zion. Les emphasizes that these events were expected to take place one right after the other, with no room for 2,000 years, but this was conditional on Israel's obedience and belief.
Psalm 68:1 asks God to arise so His enemies will be scattered and those who hate Him will flee. Les's teaching treats this arising as the Son leaving His seated position to execute the wrath described in Psalm 2:5, where God speaks to the nations in His wrath and vexation. The same Jewish leaders who had rejected Christ refused to accept that He had risen to come against them, so rather than repenting they rejected Stephen.
Stephen's Vision and Christ's Readiness to Return
Stephen's vision of Jesus standing shows that Christ, though called back to heaven, was ready to return quickly to fulfill Kingdom promises.
The Seated-to-Standing Picture
Les explains that a standing Christ contradicted the expected seated position, proving He had arisen and was ready to return — which is why the Jews stoned Stephen.
The Psalm 110 Sequence
Les shows the Old Testament program — after Messiah's rejection and ascension, a period of derision, then wrath and vexation, then the King on Zion.
Why the Old Testament Never Mentions the Church Age
As soon as Christ was crucified, in a short period of time could Elapse, then the Tribulation was to come in, Christ was to return, set up His Kingdom to the nation of Israel. Now I'll point this out as we come up through the Old Testament, Psalms chapter 2. Now read this quickly, verse 1, "...why do the heathen," or the non-Jew, "...rage, and the people," the Jews, "...imagine a vain thing.
No Gap in the Prophetic Program
Psalm 110:1 places the Son at the right hand until enemies become His footstool; the Kingdom follows immediately after the Tribulation with no 2,000-year gap.
The Conditional 'If'
Les notes the Old Testament expected the Son to return quickly after His ascension, but only if Israel believed — making the early sequence hypothetical after their rejection.
Psalm 2's Wrath After Derision
Psalm 2 shows God laughing at the nations' rejection, holding them in derision, and then speaking to them in wrath — the consequence that follows when God arises.
Psalm 2's Prophetic Outline
Psalm 2 moves in time-sequenced steps from rejection to derision to wrath to the King set on Zion, an outline Les uses to understand Israel's prophetic program.
Psalm 68:1: Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered: let them also that hate him flee before him.
This is the exact verse in view — God arising to scatter His enemies.
Psalm 68:2: As smoke is driven away, so drive them away: as wax melteth before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God.
It pictures the fate of the wicked when God arises.
Psalm 110:1: The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.
It establishes the seated position that the Son must leave when He arises.
Acts 7:55-56: But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.
Stephen's vision shows the Son standing rather than seated, which Les connects to His being ready to return.
Psalm 68:1 calls on God to arise so His enemies will be scattered and those who hate Him will flee. Les Feldick connects this arising to the Son standing from His seated position at the Father's right hand, ready to return and deal with His enemies.
Les explains that the Jews knew the Messiah was supposed to be seated at God's right hand until His enemies were made His footstool. Standing implied He had arisen and was ready to return, which the leaders did not want to accept, so they stopped their ears and stoned Stephen.
Les does not explicitly discuss Psalm 68 in the provided clips, but he connects the arising language to the wrath and vexation of Psalm 2:5, which he identifies with the Tribulation period before the Kingdom.
Watch the Teaching: Why Israel Rejected Moses — And Then Rejected Christ