Psalm 110 - Your right hand

Read: Psalm 110 vs 1-7

Today we come to Psalm 110. This is a ‘signpost Psalm’, pointing us forward on a journey that ultimately takes us from the Old Testament into the New. These words of David begin in vs 1 with a ‘lord’ (a phrase simply used to refer to an important person) being spoken to by the ‘LORD’ (an Old Testament way of referring to God Himself).

In vs 2 this lord is promised a throne from God, and a Kingdom that will triumph over its enemies. This promise is guaranteed with God putting His own name behind it (vs 4). The name ‘Melchizedek’ in vs 4 is another signpost word, although it points back, not forwards. We meet Melchizedek in Genesis 14. He is a mysterious character who appears in Genesis 14:18. He is the King of Salem (which would later become Jerusalem). He is a King but also a Priest and he blesses Abram in the Lord’s name. 

Hebrews 7:3 picks up on the fact that in the Old Testament story Melchizedek simply appeared from nowhere and then disappeared, he is someone who is ‘without beginning of days or end of life’ and as such he is seen as a person who points us to Jesus, a King and a Priest sent to reign over us and bring us to God.

Back to Psalm 110 the various strands within it begin to focus in on the identity of this ‘lord’. When Peter stood up on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2 it was to Psalm 110 that he turned as he sought to help people understand who Jesus really was. Quoting Psalm 110:1 in Acts 2:35 Peter makes the connection that Jesus is this lord - and yet this Lord came and was rejected and crucified (Acts 2:36).

The choice to make Jesus our king and to accept Him as our priest goes against the flow of a world which does not recognise Him for who He is. Psalm 110 encourages us to name Jesus as our Lord; a naming that opens a doorway to a whole new identity and to a new life, now and into eternity (Romans 10:9).

Prayer: Lord Jesus You are a King, but You are also a Priest. Thank You that You are able to cleanse those who trust in You and to lead them into the presence of God Himself. In Your Name I pray. Amen.