Psalm 45 - Anointed One

Psalm 45:1-2, 4, 6-7, 9-11, 17 NIV

My heart is stirred by a noble theme as I recite my verses for the king; 

my tongue is the pen of a skillful writer. 

You are the most excellent of men 

and your lips have been anointed with grace, 

since God has blessed you forever. 

In your majesty ride forth victoriously in the cause of truth, humility and justice; 

let your right hand achieve awesome deeds. 

Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever; 

a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom. 

You love righteousness and hate wickedness; 

therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions 

by anointing you with the oil of joy.

Daughters of kings are among your honored women; 

at your right hand is the royal bride in gold of Ophir. 

Listen, daughter, and pay careful attention: 

Forget your people and your father’s house. 

Let the king be enthralled by your beauty; 

honor him, for he is your lord.

I will perpetuate your memory through all generations; 

therefore the nations will praise you for ever and ever.

Psalm 45 is a royal psalm directed toward the king of Israel who rules from Jerusalem. This is not a prayer to God. It is a celebration of the anointed one placed upon the throne by divine appointment.

It's hard to relate to this material because we live in a democracy not a monarchy. We don't laud praise on our president like this. The closest we get to this kind of literature in our contemporary society is perhaps in People magazine. We laud honor and glory upon our stars. We spend time talking about what they wear, what they drive, where they live, and what they do in their spare time. And for Americans there some kind of weird obsession with the royal family in Great Britain. They too are celebrated in our pop magazines.

But for me, I read this psalm thinking about King Jesus, the ultimate expression of the Anointed One of God. The word Christ means anointed one. The Hebrew word for Anointed One is Messiah. Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the one appointed and anointed by God to rule a kingdom that lasts forever and has no end. The kingdom of Jesus reaches to the ends of the earth. The kingdom of Jesus reaches to the highest heaven and the depths of creation.

One verse that is very interesting in Psalm 45 is the verse that refers to the king as God!

Psalm 45:6 NIV

Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever;

It was not uncommon in the ancient world to think of kings as god on earth. Perhaps they did not think of the man as literally a god, but he came as close to a god they would ever get. In their minds, the king was a divine representative of the gods. But in the case of Jesus of Nazareth, Jesus the Christ, he is literally God!

Reading Psalm 45 as addressed to Jesus turns this poetry into a form of worship. The psalm refers to the women wed to the king. Reading the psalm in reference to King Jesus, His bride is the church. We are to obey our king and bring honor to His name by our manner and appearance.

Let us happily worship and serve the King of kings who loves righteousness and rises out to battle for the cause of truth, humility, and justice. Let the church perpetuate the glorious name of Jesus forever and ever.