Today's passages conclude the Messianic psalms and our present look at psalms in the Chronological Bible. These psalms touch upon not only the character of the Messiah to come, but also speak to the glory that will fill His Kingdom.
In Psalm 45, we learn of the coming King's majesty and how He will "ridge forth victoriously/ in behalf of truth, humility and righteousness... " The King's throne "will last for ever and ever;... You love righteousness and hate wickedness... " These reference calls to mind Revelation 19:11-16, where it describes Jesus's triumphal riding forth to establish His Kingdom:
"I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. 'He will rule them with an iron scepter.' [Psalm 2:9] He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: 'KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.'"
Later in Psalm 45, we learn more about the purity and loveliness of the princess (by analogy, the Church) prepared for the King. Clearly, this coming Kingdom will remain glorious from beginning to end. Its splendor comes from God Himself. Psalm 47 teaches us that God's great sovereignty will be fully displayed in this Kingdom.
In Psalm 110, David addresses the Messiah's chief offices. These are not physical spaces, but rather the responsibilities that the Messiah will carry in His ministry and His Kingdom. David's song of praise reminds us that Jesus will both be priest and king. In addition, as Moses prophesied, Jesus will be a great prophet: "The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him." (Deuteronomy 18:15) Let's take a look at these three offices:
1. Prophet. A prophet speaks on behalf of God. His role is not purely future-telling, but it also involves speaking about past and present circumstances from God's perspective. According to Paul (1 Corinthians 14), prophets must seek God's wisdom through the Holy Spirit; this is not a whimsical or self-driven "talent." Instead, this office typically brings about man's furor, as people are forced to recognize their shortcomings and God's sovereignty. In our rebelliousness, such recongition is painful, yet it either brings about repentance or further hardness of heart. For examples of responses to true prophesy, we might recall Pharaoh's growing hardness of heart in response to Moses's cries to let the Israelites go to worship; David, on the other hand, truly has a change of heart upon hearing Nathan's rebuke for his murder of Uriah and adultery with Bathsheba. Peter argues in 2 Peter 1:19-21 that we have great blessings from having God's Word presented to us: "And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit."
2. Priest. A priest ministers to people, acting as an intermediary between man and God. Moses and Aaron marked the start of the Levite priesthood, as they interceded for the Israelites during their wanderings in the desert. Later, Moses instituted a more formal priesthood, in which the responsibilities morphed into a profession. Jesus goes much further than any man can, however, as He is the only intermediary that can truly save (John 14:6). 1 Timothy 2:5,6 teach us: "For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men—the testimony given in its proper time."
In Psalm 110, David references Jesus's enduring priesthood "in the order of Melchizedek." Fortunately, we have much more elaboration on this topic in Hebrews 7. In short, Melchizedek, king of what would become Jerusalem and a priest of God, blessed Abraham, after which Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. The author of Hebrews explains: "Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, like the Son of God he remains a priest forever." (Hebrews 7:3) Jesus's priesthood, then, stands in contrast to the earthly Levitical priesthood: "Such a high priest meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. For the law appoints as high priests men who are weak; but the oath, which came after the law, appointed the Son, who has been made perfect forever." (Hebrews 7:26-28)
3. King. The kind serves as an earthly example of God's sovereignty. Jesus will sit at the Father's right hand in the coming Kingdom and will provide leadership over the earth. He "judge the nations" and stand firm against evil. The day is coming.
QUESTIONS
1. How could the Israelites have become confused about the nature of Jesus's ministry from these psalms? (Remember: We have the hindsight of history.)
2. How can you remember Jesus's all-encompassing sovereignty this week? How can you praise Him for that?
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