Psalm 110:4-7 - The Eternal Priest-King

Psalm 110:4-7

⁴ The Lord has sworn and will not change His mind,
“You are a priest forever
According to the order of Melchizedek.”
⁵ The Lord is at Your right hand;
He will shatter kings in the day of His wrath.
⁶ He will judge among the nations,
He will fill them with corpses,
He will shatter the chief men over a broad country.
⁷ He will drink from the brook by the wayside;
Therefore He will lift up His head.

Message: The Eternal Priest-King

Time: The psalms were written by many different people across a period of a thousand years in Israel's history. They are thought to have been compiled and put together in their present form by some unknown editor shortly after the captivity ended about 537 B.C.

What the Lord is Saying: I continue on, albeit slowly. The day doesn't have enough time in it. Or rather, I guess it does, but I end up spending it on other things. I like this quiet time in the morning. Lord multiply the richness of the time I do have with You. Thank you for Your Word. You are a priest forever.

As I mentioned previously, the consensus is that this passage is Messianic, but is it that alone? Going back to verse 1 is the address that, The LORD said to my Lord. Thus, the words are coming from the Lord and speaking to someone. The Messiah is one of several interpretations for this passage and so the beginning of verse 4 is repeating the address to this individual. The Lord has sworn and will not change His mind, “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.” Notwithstanding, Melchizedek is a mysterious person in the Bible, coming in and out of scenes. He blessed Abraham in Genesis 14, thus he must have a special role. The Book of Hebrews expands on this. David refers also here to Melchizedek. But the greatness of Melchizedek is not limited to him, but engulfs the order of priests that follow after him.

It reminds me of Joseph Smith, who I believe created and established the faith of the LDS and in so doing hones in on this mysterious way of Melchizedek, expanding and creating a doctrine to ordain priests or rather apostles of the LDS movement throughout time (eternally). It was a leap, but one that has kept that faith movement extremely fruitful in its endeavors, though its footing is on terribly shaky, not holy, ground.

Yes, it is clear from Psalm 110 that Melchizedek and the order of priests after him do take on an eternal priesthood. Melchizedek is also a descendant of David. Jesus is our Great High Priest and thus, his sacrifices and atonement is for all people and negates the need for future priests after him.

But, back to Melchizedek. From Genesis 14:18 he was a priest of God Most High. And this priesthood is forever. And this priesthood is also a kingship for Melchizedek was both priest and king. If Jesus is our true intermediary, then why do we need someone else to show us the way. John the Baptist prepared the way. We are called to be disciples and preach the Word to all nations. It seems the priesthoods continued because people didn't have access to the Bible. Or the priests had the access and so they controlled somewhat what the people would hear.

Going back to verse 1, The Lord said to my Lord. There, it is -- adonai speaking to adoni. The second Adoni is one of respect, but the Lord, or God is speaking in the first adonai. And in verse 5 are the words -- The Lord is at Your right hand. Again, the Lord is Jehovah and Jehovah is at your right hand. God is our power and protector. He is our Leader and sustains all. He is our Rock and our fortress. He is the great I am. He is our God, watching over us. He will shatter kings in the day of His wrath.There will be a day of battle and at that time God will be the victor. But He will not only win, but He will shatter the powers of those seemingly in power. It is like an underdog beating the most favored foe. There are those powers that are completely against God and His ways and God will strike them down in this moment. These are heathen nations that God will oppose and have victory over. God is my lord and he at my right hand and he will shatter the heathen kings. 

In verse 6, He will judge among the nations. He will uphold right and wrong and he will decide who has been right or wrong. He instituted a Law for people and who has lived in accordance to it? God will be the judge and decide. The Law was there to point people back to God, showing them that are incapable of keeping it, as we see each day, but this always points us back to God for our help. Our help comes from the Lord. Lord, I admit there are things throughout my day that cause me to be unsettled. Right now, I am feeling down and neglected and not important. And my response is often to pout or to remain depressed rather than look to You for strength and to look to you for comfort. Lord, at times this type of thinking then takes me to discontent where I think that where I am is not right. My thought life Lord gets dark and I start assuming what people are thinking about me, all because I have not gotten some need met. I need to continue to trust You Lord.  

And continuing with the theme that he will judge, his judgment becomes more final through the rest of verse 6 - He will fill them with corpses, He will shatter the chief men over a broad country. Benson commentary says that these words are not meant to be taken literally but figuratively. But it is clear that his wrath is complete; it is not simply a judgment but their is finality in it. There is a resting place for those that oppose God and it is separation from Him. He will shatter the heads of the leaders of those that oppose God. It is not centralized, but global.


And the Messiah here, if represented, Jehovah, my Lord, He will drink from the brook by the wayside; The victorious leader pauses, for a moment, at the brook by the wayside. Drinks often refer to sufferings. The Messiah on the way to be crucified, momentarily shoulders the sufferings of the world. There are different ways to look at this verse and different ways to interpret, but all see it as a pause. Therefore He will lift up His head. On the cross, Jesus took on the suffering of all mankind, breathed out and then lifted his head to conquer sin and death by resurrecting from the dead. The leader here pauses and then commences his task in the lifting of his head. 

I've been on this passage too long. I've had trouble getting through it. It's a passage that has been subscribed to Jesus but it also could be at the time a reference to a leader being led by the Lord.

Promise: God is in charge and sits at the right hand declaring his glory through victory He has over kingdoms and people that oppose Him. The bottom line is God is victorious.

Prayer: Lord, help me to understand Your Word continually and help me to see it as it is. Continue to help me to study it and stay in the practice of leaning on it. Lord, I want to be guided by truth.