Psalms 110

Jesus and Peter both stated that David wrote this psalm (Matt. 22:43; Mark 12:36; Luke 20:42; Acts 2:33–35), and, since David was a prophet, he wrote it about the Messiah (Acts 2:30; 2 Sam. 23:2). He certainly did not write about any of his own descendants, for no Jewish king was ever a priest, let alone a priest forever (v. 4; 2 Chron. 26:16–23). Also, no Jewish king ever conquered all the rulers of the whole earth (v. 6). The psalm is quoted or alluded to in the New Testament more than any other psalm, verse 1 at least twenty-five times and verse 4 another five times. Ten of these quotations or allusions are in the book of Hebrews alone. Jesus used verse 1 to prove His deity and silence the Pharisees (Matt. 22:41–46) and also to answer the high priest during His trial (Matt. 26:64). The psalm presents two pictures of Messiah from the past—His exaltation as King (vv. 1–3) and His consecration as Priest (v. 4)—and a third picture from the future, His victory over the enemies of God (vv. 5–7).

“Jehovah says to my Adonai” is the way the psalm opens, and since David was the highest ruler in the kingdom, his Adonai had to be the Lord Himself. It was this fact that Jesus presented to the Pharisees (Matt. 22:41–46), asking them how David’s Lord could also be David’s son (Messiah). The only answer is by incarnation: the eternal Son of God had to come to earth as a human born into the family of David (Luke 1:26–38). As eternal God, Jesus is the “root [originator] of David” and as man He is “the offspring of David” (Rev. 22:16; 5:5). Had the Pharisees honestly faced this truth, they would have had to confess that Jesus is indeed the Son of God come in the flesh, but they refused to do so.

To sit at a ruler’s right hand was a great honor (1 Kings 2:19; Matt. 20:21). When Jesus ascended to heaven, the Father honored Him by placing Him at His own right hand, a statement repeated frequently in the New Testament. (See Acts 2:33–34; 5:31; Rom. 8:34; Eph. 1:20; Col. 3:1; Heb. 1:3, 13; 8:1; 10:12; 12:2; 1 Peter 3:22). Jesus is “far above all” (Eph. 1:21; 4:10; Col. 2:10; see Phil. 2:9–11). When the Son was exalted and enthroned at His ascension, the Father made three promises to him, that He would defeat His enemies (v. 1), extend His kingdom (v. 2), and give Him a victorious army (v. 3). Note that in verses 1–3, the key phrase is “I will,” the Father speaking to the Son, but in verses 5–7, the key phrase is “he will,” the psalmist speaking about the Son. To use the enemy soldiers as footstools meant to defeat and humiliate them (Josh. 10:24; see 1 Cor. 15:24–25 and Eph. 1:22), and this victory is described in verses 5–7. See also the Messianic promises in Psalm 2. Both David and Solomon extended the borders of the kingdom of Israel, but when Messiah establishes His kingdom, with Jerusalem as the center (2:6), the whole earth will share in the glory and the blessing (72:1–11; Isa. 2:1–4; Mic. 4:1–3). Today, the Lord has enemies who oppose Him, but He is sovereign and rules from His throne even though they refuse to submit. When our Lord was here on earth, the powerful ministry of the apostles brought defeat to the devil (Luke. 10:17–20), and today His church has victory through Him as we pray, share the Word, and depend on the Spirit.

The third promise is that Messiah would have a great army assist Him in the final battle against the enemies of the Lord (v. 3). This army is remarkable in three ways: it is made up of willing volunteers; they are dressed in holy garments like priests (Rev. 19:14); and they are a great multitude, like the dew that falls in the early morning (2 Sam. 23:4). Just as the dawn gives birth to the sparkling dew, so the Lord will “give birth” to this vast holy army. You expect kings to be warriors—David is a good example—but you don’t expect priests to be warriors. However, Benaiah was a priest (1 Chron. 27:5) who was also a soldier. He was one of David’s mighty men (2 Sam. 23:20–23), became captain over the king’s bodyguard (1 Chron. 18:17), and eventually was made general over King Solomon’s army (1 Kings 2:35). Imagine a huge army of men like Benaiah! The book of Revelation indicates that there will be great battles fought in the end times (see 14:14–20; 16:12–16; 19:11–21; 20:7–10) and that Jesus Christ will defeat the enemy.

This central verse of the psalm announces that Messiah will also be a priest, something unheard of in Old Testament history. This verse is important to the message of the book of Hebrews (Heb. 5:6, 10; 6:20; 7:17, 21; see Rom. 8:34) because the present high priestly ministry of Christ in heaven is described in that book. If Jesus were on earth, He could not minister as a priest because He was from the tribe of Judah and not from Levi. But because His priesthood is after the order of Melchizedek, who was both a king and priest (Gen. 14:18–24), He can minister in heaven today. Melchizedek was not an appearance of Jesus Christ on earth; he is only a type of Jesus in His present priestly ministry. (See Heb. 5:1–11; 7–8; Zech. 6:12.) No Aaronic priest was “a priest forever” because each high priest died and was replaced by his eldest son. Being a mere human, Melchizedek died, but there is no record of either his birth or death in the Scriptures. This makes him a type of Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God and the High Priest forever. In Jesus Christ, David has a throne forever (2 Sam. 7:13, 16, 25, 29; Luke 1:30–33) and a priest forever, and all who have trusted Christ share in those blessings. Jesus Christ is our glorified King-Priest in heaven, interceding for us (Rom. 8:34). His throne is a throne of grace to which we may come at any time to find the help we need (Heb. 4:14–16).

All of the “royal psalms” contain predictions about battles and victories for God’s King (2:7–9, 12; 18:16–19, 31–34, 37–42; 20:1–2, 7–8; 21:8–12; 45:3–5; 61:3; 72:8–9; 89:22–23; 132:18). Today is the Lord’s “day of salvation” (2 Cor. 6:1–2) when He is calling sinners to be reconciled to God (2 Cor. 5:18–21). But there will come a day of wrath, “the day of the Lord,” when Jesus the Lamb of God will begin to “roar” as the Lion of the tribe of Judah (Rev. 5:5–6), and judgment will fall on the world. This is the victory the Father promised in verse 1 and also in 2:5, 9. The psalmist describes stacks of corpses on the battlefield with nobody to bury them. Even allowing for poetic license, the picture is not a pretty one—but consider what John (the apostle of love) wrote in Revelation 14:17–20 and 19:11–19 (and see Isa. 66:24). The word in verse 6 translated “heads” (kjv) or “chief men, rulers” (nasb, niv) is singular in the Hebrew. It could be a collective noun or it may refer to the last great world ruler, the Antichrist or Beast (Rev. 13:1–10) whom Jesus Christ will destroy at His coming (2 Thess. 2:1–2; Rev. 19:17–21).

The image in verse 7 is difficult to decipher. The NIV margin reads, “The One who grants succession will set him in authority,” meaning that Christ will win the victory and receive the promised throne. But it is necessary to alter the Hebrew text to get this meaning. The picture is obviously not to be taken literally, for a King riding out of heaven on a horse doesn’t need a drink of water to keep going. The warrior David, who knew something about battles, is saying, “Nothing will detain Him, detour Him, or discourage Him as He attacks the enemy. Like every good soldier, He will linger only long enough to get a sip of water, and then He will raise His head and continue the chase.” We remember that before His crucifixion, Jesus refused to receive the narcotic drink, but tasted death to the full on the cross (Matt. 27:34). Gideon and his men also come to mind (Judg. 7:4–7), for their fitness for the battle was tested by the way they drank at the river.

Jesus Christ is exalted and enthroned in heaven! One day He will come and conquer the devil and his armies and establish His kingdom on earth! Hallelujah, what a Savior!