Psalm 110

Psa 110:1

SUPERSCRIPTION: "OF DAVID. A PSALM."

HISTORICAL CONTEXT: 2Sa 6: The ark brought to Zion. The king, David, takes part of priest, in linen ephod, offering sacrifice, blessing the people, bringing forth bread and wine, like Melchizedek (2Sa 6:19; cp Gen 14:18; Heb 7:1; Isa 25:6; Luk 22:17,18; Mat 26:26-29). Then there follows 2Sa 8: the king conquers surrounding nations.

THE LORD SAYS TO MY LORD: "Yahweh said unto my Adon." Other OT prophecies of virgin birth: Psa 22:9,10; 69:8; 89:26,27; 132:11; Gen 3:15; Pro 30:19; Isa 7:14; Jer 31:22; Mic 5:2.

SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND: Ct Psa 109:31. A dual occupancy of God's heavenly throne: Rev 3:21; 7:17; 22:1.

RIGHT HAND: Strength (Exo 15:6; Psa 20:6; 63:8; 118:15,16); righteousness (Psa 48:10); authority (Isa 62:8); honor (Gen 48:13-18; 1Ki 2:19); salvation (Psa 17:7; 60:5); and fellowship (Psa 16:11).

UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET: Cp Jos 10:24; 1Sa 17:51: trampling under foot in conquest. Or, alternatively, "footstool" = place where God is worshiped (Psa 132:7), ie the ark (Psa 99:5). So, "until I make your enemies your worshipers"!

Psa 110:2

YOUR MIGHTY SCEPTER: The iron rod to rule God's enemies (Psa 2:8,9; Isa 11:1,4; Rev 2:26,27; 12:5; 19:5; Dan 2:35,45). Cp Num 17:10: Aaron's rod exalted above others.

Psa 110:3

(NT) Or, from LXX, "From the womb before the morning I begat thee!" The virgin birth of Christ!

WILLING: Heb "nedebah" = freewill offerings (RV mg). Cp Exo 25:2; 35:5,21,22,29.

HOLY MAJESTY: "Beauties of holiness" (AV): cp 1Ch 6:29; 2Ch 20:21; Psa 29:10; 96:9. RSV and RV mg have "upon the holy mountains" ("harar" / mountain in Heb, instead of "hadar" / beauty).

DEW: Sym effects of Holy Spirit, causing the resurrection of the faithful in the "morning" of Christ's coming (cp Isa 26:19; 2Sa 23:4; Psa 133:3). Also, sym a multitude (2Sa 17:12; Mic 5:7), enjoying the favor of the king (Pro 19:2); and/or the unfailing compassions of God for His people (Gen 27:28; Lam 3:22,23); and/or the manna fresh every morning (Num 1:9).

The LXX reads: "With thee is dominion in the day of thy power, in the splendours of thy saints: I have begotten thee from the womb before the morning": the Virgin Birth in the OT: Psa 71:6; 89:26,27; 110:3, LXX; Gen 3:15; 49:1,25; Isa 7:14; 49:1; Jer 31:22; Mic 5:1,2; 2Sa 7:14.

Psa 110:4

THE LORD HAS SWORN: The three great and quite immutable oaths of God: to Abraham (Gen 22:16; Luk 1:73; Heb 6:13-18); to Israel (Num 14:21: the Land has not yet been filled with the Glory); and to David (Psa 89:35-37). To this latter oath David himself responded with an oath of his own (Psa 132:2-5). There is also the angelic oath on God's behalf concerning an unchangeable 3 1/2 years at the end of the age (Dan 12:7). Jer 22:5 has another divine oath which within a few years found most tragic fulfillment: "But if ye will not hear these words, I swear by myself, saith the Lord, that this house shall become a desolation."

Psa 110:5

"The Lord at thy (Messiah's) right hand: The apparent contradiction with Psa 110:1 is resolved by reading Psa 110:1 -- along with Psa 16:11 -- (Christ at God's right hand) -- meaning: Christ ascended to heavenly glory; whereas v 5 here (God at Christ's right hand) meaning: Christ upon the earth. Compare v 5 also with Psa 16:8 (God at Christ's right hand) -- this time with reference to Jesus on trial (cp also Psa 109:31).

Psa 110:6

HE WILL JUDGE AMONG THE NATIONS, HEAPING UP THE DEAD: Cp Eze 38:21,22; 39:4,11-20.

CRUSHING THE RULERS OF THE WHOLE EARTH: "He shall wound the heads over many countries" (RV mg) (Gen 3:15). Or, better, "over the wide earth". Or, as JT translates: "He shall strike through the head of a wide dominion." This seems to echo David's experience in 1Sa 17:51,54 -- the slaying of the Philistine champion ("heads", plural = "the great head"?). This will be the real fulfillment of Gen 3:15.

"The High Priest of the universe, when he comes to rule, is not coming with a narcotic and a lullaby. He is coming with power and with purity. He will make no truce with the things which hurt and harm mankind. He will end the paltry tricks of human government which enslave men behind iron or bamboo curtains. He will destroy those who invent diabolical things for the destruction of the earth which was made to reflect the glory of God" (DG).

Psa 110:7

David, when he was pursuing the marauding Amalekites, stopped at the brook Besor and refreshed his company (1Sa 30:9), before going on to win a victory. And Gideon with his 300 men, "faint, yet pursuing", passed over the brook Jordan on his way to a rout of the enemy (Jdg 8:4).

(NT) Finally, Jesus, passing through "the valley of the shadow of death" (Psa 23:4), drinks of the "bitter waters" of tears and sorrows (Psa 102:9; 80:5) -- is this the Kidron, "the king's vale"? Or is this instead the clear, cool brook of the water of life and truth (Isa 55:1; Joh 4:14) -- where Jesus oft refreshed himself spiritually?

THEREFORE HE WILL LIFT UP HIS HEAD: "And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth" (Phi 2:8-10).