Psalm 45:6-7 (Eternal Throne)
The Prophecy
To the Chief Musician. Set to “The Lilies.” A Contemplation of the sons of Korah. A Song of Love.
My heart is overflowing with a good theme;
I recite my composition concerning the king; My tongue is the pen of a ready writer.
You are fairer than the sons of men; Grace is poured upon your lips;
Therefore God has blessed You forever.
Gird your sword upon your thigh, O mighty One,
With your glory and your majesty.
And in your majesty ride prosperously because of truth, humility, and righteousness;
And your right hand shall teach you awesome things.
Your arrows are sharp in the heart of the king’s enemies;
The peoples fall under you.
Your throne, O God, is forever and ever;
A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of your kingdom.
You love righteousness and hate wickedness;
Therefore God, your God, has anointed you
With the oil of gladness more than your companions.
All your garments are scented with myrrh and aloes and cassia,
Out of the ivory palaces, by which they have made you glad.
Kings’ daughters are among your honorable women;
At your right hand stands the queen in gold from Ophir.
Listen, O daughter,
Consider and incline your ear;
Forget your own people also, and your father’s house;
So the king will greatly desire your beauty;
Because He is your Lord, worship Him.
And the daughter of Tyre will come with a gift;
The rich among the people will seek your favor.
The royal daughter is all glorious within the palace;
Her clothing is woven with gold.
She shall be brought to the king in robes of many colors;
The virgins, her companions who follow her, shall be brought to you.
With gladness and rejoicing they shall be brought;
They shall enter the king’s palace.
Instead of your fathers shall be your sons,
Whom you shall make princes in all the earth.
I will make your name to be remembered in all generations;
Therefore the people shall praise you forever and ever. — Psalms 45:1-17 (NKJV with modified capitalization)
DISCLAIMER: Some people point to Psalm 45 and state that because certain keywords were written in capital letters, it proves that it has to be Jesus. However, unlike English, the original Hebrew manuscripts had no lowercase letters. You will notice that different bible translators choose different words to capitalize. Compare for example the NKJV with the ESV. For clarity, I have dropped some of the capital letters for more natural reading.
Fulfillment
Author of Hebrews
The author of Hebrews quotes this psalm and applies it to Jesus:
But of the Son he says,
“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions.” — Hebrews 1:8-9 (ESV)
Hebrews 1:8-9 correctly quotes Psalms 45:6-7, but Psalms 45 was written by the sons of Korah, and they might not even be referring to Jesus at all.
Christians
Christians interpret this as:
- "Your throne, O God" - Jesus' divine nature
- "Forever and ever" - Jesus' eternal kingship
- "Anointed... with the oil of gladness" - Jesus as the Anointed One (Christ)
- "Loved righteousness and hated wickedness" - Jesus' perfect moral character
The psalm is understood as prophesying Jesus's divinity and eternal reign.
Original Context
A song of love
The heading reads "To the choirmaster: according to Lilies. A Maskil of the Sons of Korah; a love song." This is explicitly a royal wedding celebration, not a messianic prophecy.
- A Song of Love
- I recite my composition concerning the king
- You are
fairerhandsome than the sons of men;Gracecharm is poured upon your lips ("fairer" could mean "handsome" and "grace" could mean "charm" according to the Strong's Concordance) - Listen, O daughter... so the king will greatly desire your beauty
- She shall be brought to the king in robes of many colors
- The daughter of Tyre will come with a gift
- She shall be brought to the king in robes of many colors
- *The virgins, *her companions who follow her, shall be brought to you
- They shall enter the king’s palace
Jesus does not match the description of this king
Jesus was not rich, handsome or charming:
You are more handsome than the sons of men; Charm is poured upon your lips. — Psalms 45:2
The rich among the people will seek your favor. — Psalms 45:12
vs
He had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. — Isaiah 53:2 (ESV)
The crowd answered, “You have a demon! Who is seeking to kill you?”
Jesus answered them, “I did one work, and you all marvel at it... Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.” — John 7:20-24 (ESV)
Did someone teach Jesus how to fight?
Your right hand shall teach you — Psalms 45:4
Jesus does not fight with a sword and arrows:
Gird your sword upon your thigh... Your arrows are sharp in the heart of the king’s enemies; The peoples fall under you. — Psalms 45:3,5
This king has a God
Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness more than your companions. — Psalms 45:7
Note that unlike modern English, in ancient Hebrew, the most important king or leader was also addressed as "Elohim" which could translate to "God". In ancient Near Eastern royal language, kings were sometimes addressed with elevated titles.
In this context the Psalmist reminds the king that God has anointed him. The Sovereign God Almighty had no need to anoint Himself. This verse rather fits a human king, not the divine Christ.
The king's bride
Verses 9-15 extensively describe the king's wedding:
- "Daughters of kings are among your ladies of honor"
- "At your right hand stands the queen in gold of Ophir"
- Instructions to the bride about forgetting her father's house
- "The king will desire your beauty"
Jesus never married. However, some Christians interpret these as a future prophecy of Jesus' Second Coming.
The king's daughters
Some Christians argue that the king's daughters are the Christians because Jesus compared the Kingdom of Heaven to a wedding banquet and in Revelation the church is described as the bride of Christ. However, this interpretation has several problems:
- If the king's daughters are the Christians, then who are the honorable women?
- If this was the intent, then the king would have to marry his own daughters.
Kings’ daughters are among your honorable women — Psalms 45:9
If the bride (supposedly the Christians) is about to be introduced to her king, then who is the other queen?
At Your right hand stands the queen in gold from Ophir. — Psalms 45:9
If this Psalm is meant to be read as a symbolic prophecy, then why is the bride addressed as the "daughter of Tyre"?
And the daughter of Tyre will come with a gift;
The rich among the people will seek your favor.
The royal daughter is all glorious within the palace;
Her clothing is woven with gold.
She shall be brought to the King in robes of many colors; — Psalms 45:12-14
The king's fathers
This king has many "fathers", Jesus only had one Father. This king had authority over his "fathers", while Jesus submitted under the authority of his Father:
Instead of your fathers shall be your sons, whom you shall make princes in all the earth. — Psalms 45:16
The king's sons
Instead of your fathers shall be your sons, whom you shall make princes in all the earth. — Psalms 45:16
This describes:
- The king having biological children
- Those sons succeeding their father as rulers
- A continuing dynasty
Jesus had no biological children and his kingdom is not passed down through hereditary succession.
Trinitarians often confuse Jesus with God the Father because according to the doctrine of the Trinity, they are one being. However, in this psalm, the king addressed as "O God" has "God, your God" above him who anointed him, so in this context they are distinct persons.
Conclusion
Psalm 45 is a royal wedding song celebrating an Israelite king's marriage. The superscription explicitly identifies it as "a love song." The psalm contains numerous earthly details incompatible with Jesus:
- Taking a queen/bride
- Bride from Tyre
- Having a royal lineage of multiple human fathers
- Having biological sons who become princes
While the psalm uses elevated language ("Your throne, O God"), this is royal court language in the context of a specific historical wedding, not a prophecy. The king is both called "O God" and has "God, your God" above him, suggesting the title is honorific, not literal.
The Christian interpretation depends on:
- Extracting two verses (6-7) while ignoring the wedding context
- Disregarding the psalm's explicit label as "a love song"
- Spiritualizing the bride, sons, and earthly details that don't fit Jesus
- Overlooking that the king's physical beauty contradicts Isaiah 53's description of the Messiah
- Treating royal court hyperbole as prophecy of divine Messiah