Psalm 110
The Psalms
Psalm 110
Short psalm—long blessings!
Psalm 110
1 Of David. A psalm.
The LORD says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” 2 The LORD will extend your mighty sceptre from Zion; you will rule in the midst of your enemies. 3 Your troops will be willing on your day of battle. Arrayed in holy majesty, from the womb of the dawn you will receive the dew of your youth.
4 The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind: “You are a priest for ever, in the order of Melchizedek.”
5 The Lord is at your right hand; he will crush kings on the day of his wrath. 6 He will judge nations, heaping up the dead and crushing the rulers of the whole earth. 7 He will drink from a brook beside the way; therefore he will lift up his head.
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Psalm 110 – Short psalm—long blessings!
(Verses 1-3) For a better grasp of these verses, read Matthew 22:41-46, Mark 12:35-37, and Luke 20:41-43. These show how Jesus puts these truths to Pharisees who try to trap Him and deny His Deity.
He takes the initiative from the Pharisees and asks them whose son is the Christ (or ‘Messiah’). They reply, ‘the Son of David’. Correct! The Messiah’s line comes from David. An ancestor can be called ‘father’ and a descendant ‘son’, so Jesus is the ‘Son of David’. But there is more! The Pharisees reject Jesus as God. So, Jesus shows that Christ is both David’s Lord and also his descendant. The ‘LORD’ God, God the Father, says David calls Him ’Lord’. Jesus shows that, as Messiah, He is both David’s descendant and David’s divine eternal Lord. Jesus is both God and sinless man.
We read too that the Lord Jesus Christ rules and will have the final victory on earth and in Heaven. That follows His earlier victories on the cross, at the tomb, and in His ascension. As God the Son, He shares all His victories with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. Jesus’ willing followers reflect God’s ‘holy majesty’ and will also triumph finally as they follow Jesus (Revelation 19:11-21).
(Verse 4) Another deep truth follows from both Old and New Testaments. Note that when God gives His word, He keeps it! Rely completely on His word, the Bible. Study it each day. God’s faithfulness includes that, if you repent of your sins, believe Jesus died and was punished by God the Father for you on the cross, and receive Him into your heart as your Lord and Saviour, you are saved. You receive eternal life. God cleanses you from all sin, and lives in your heart by the Holy Spirit.
God also keeps His word about the work of Jesus. Jesus is a ‘priest for ever in the order of Melchizedek’. Priests descended from Aaron. They all died or retired. Their regular and many sacrifices never could take away sins. Sinners were forgiven until the next sacrifice. Unique Melchizedek appeared and took tithes from Abraham.
He is a type of Christ: some think he is an Old Testament appearance of Jesus. As king of ‘righteousness’ and ‘peace’, he had no (human) father or mother, and neither start nor end. ‘Like the Son of God, he remains a priest forever’ (Hebrews chapters 5, 6 and 7, especially 7:1-3). He pictures Jesus, who sacrificed His life to pay the penalty for our sins once and forever. He continues as Priest eternally. The final Priest made the final Sacrifice for sins—Himself. His sacrifice is complete.
(Verses 5-7) The LORD is ‘at your right hand’, if He is your Saviour. He will judge all sinners and nations. Think of brook Kidron flowing in Gethsemane, where Jesus prayed before going to the cross for us. He drank from it and prayed: ‘My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.’ (Matthew 26:39). How brave, loving and sacrificial. Trust, love and follow Him.