Amen. Well I wonder if you would turn with me to Psalm 45, one of the most gloriously joyful psalms in the Bible. Page 471 in the pew Bibles. It’s been a year of big weddings here at First Pres. It wasn’t that long ago that the Youth House married off their own prince charming to his fairy tale bride! Romance has been in the air! So what better time to turn to an invitation to a royal wedding. That’s what we have before us now – an invitation to celebrate and rejoice in the marriage of a king. But as we read, we need to remember that behind any human marriage, let alone the marriage of an anointed Israelite king, God is giving us a glimpse of that greatest love story ever told of the King who came from heaven to claim a holy bride. So let me pray for God’s help and then we’ll enjoy this wonderful song together. Let’s pray.
Father God, Your Word is rich and colorful and full of a glorious Gospel. Thank You that You know exactly how to reach our hearts and You know exactly what doubts and longings fill those hearts. And so we pray, would You help us once more this evening, to be awestruck by Your majestic Son, and by Your Holy Spirit, give us what we need this week to keep resting upon Him. Amen.
Psalm 45:
To the choirmaster: according to Lilies. A Maskil of the Sons of Korah; a love song.
My heart overflows with a pleasing theme; I address my verses to the king; my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.
You are the most handsome of the sons of men; grace is poured upon your lips; therefore God has blessed you forever. Gird your sword on your thigh, O mighty one, in your splendor and majesty!
In your majesty ride out victoriously for the cause of truth and meekness and righteousness; let your right hand teach you awesome deeds! 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. The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of uprightness; you have loved righteousness and hated wickedness. Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions; your robes are all fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia. From ivory palaces stringed instruments make you glad; daughters of kings are among your ladies of honor; at your right hand stands the queen in gold of Ophir.
Hear, O daughter, and consider, and incline your ear: forget your people and your father’s house, and the king will desire your beauty. Since he is your lord, bow to him. The people of Tyre will seek your favor with gifts, the richest of the people.
All glorious is the princess in her chamber, with robes interwoven with gold. In many-colored robes she is led to the king, with her virgin companions following behind her. With joy and gladness they are led along as they enter the palace of the king.
In place of your fathers shall be your sons; you will make them princes in all the earth. I will cause your name to be remembered in all generations; therefore nations will praise you forever and ever.”
Amen. This is God’s Word and life and hope to us this evening.
As we dig into this psalm, let me present you with a health warning. It’s just possible that one or two of you may be the sort of Christian who prefers a stiff British handshake to a lingering hug, and if you are forced into touchy-feely territory, you go for that Presbyterian hug, precisely three of your manliest backstraps to make your point. If that is you, come and join me outside of your emotional comfort zone, because Psalm 45 is unashamedly aiming for the heart, and it answers a longing we’ve all known at some level. And so for the first and probably the last time in this pulpit, our guide to this psalm isn’t Calvin or Lewis or any of the usual worthies. No, just this once the person who captures it perfectly is Freddie Mercury, a man disastrously chasing all the wrong kinds of love in all the wrong places, and yet he wrote a song every human heart knows – “Somebody, somebody, can anybody find me somebody to love?” Some of us hide that longing, others sing it from the rooftops, but to every human being who’s ever cried out for someone to love, here is an ancient psalmist who says, “Yes, I can find him for you! And let me tell you all about him!”
Royal weddings, they come around once a generation where I’m from, and one half of the country puts up streamers and organizes street parties and joins the fun, and then there’s the cynical half who moan about the sentimentality of it all and the extra day off work and do everything they can to sit it out. Well this is a wedding that claims you no matter which side of that divide you fall on. This is a wedding worth celebrating because the King involved is a King worth loving, which is why our psalmist’s title ends with those three promising words – “A love son.”
So let me lay my cards out on the table straight away. First of all, this psalm celebrates the wedding of a real, historical king of Israel. We don’t know which one, but we do know that he stood in David’s royal line and physically governed the nation under God. And yet at the same time, the praise poured out on this historical ruler clearly spills over and finds fulfillment in a greater King. And so the New Testament takes Psalm 45 in its very fullest sense as a love song to Jesus Himself. What we read applies first to an ancient king of Israel with a well deserved place in the history books, but if that is true, how much more does it apply to the risen King who is reigning now and forever.
Now there’s one last person for us to meet before we start and that is the rather unlikely author of this love song. The title tells us he is a “son of Korah,” a name that we’ve met once already this summer and not a name to be proud of. Korah may have been Israel’s most famous rebel. Think of him as their Guy Fawkes or their Benedict Arnold. You’ll find his story in the book of Numbers. He was the guy swallowed up by the earth for his plotting against Moses, along with 250 of his fellow conspirators. And only Korah’s sons, Numbers tells us, were spared that judgment, presumably the sons who in time became musicians in the temple. And so here we are, hundreds of years later, with a love song to the king, written by the descendants of a treasonous rebel, men whose very existence was owed to the Lord’s extraordinary mercy and grace.
And so notice how the song begins. Not flattery or propaganda or tacky sentimentalism. No, this is the praise of a heart overflowing with love for God’s gracious king. “My heart overflows with a pleasing theme; I address my verses to the king; my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.” Well his song falls into three parts, marked out by who the psalmist is addressing. And it begins just as he promises – by singing to the king himself. And so firstly, verses 1 to 9, we’ve got the praiseworthy king. “You are the most handsome of the sons of men; grace is poured upon your lips; therefore God has blessed you forever.”
Now you may wonder if our poet is laying on the poetic license a little bit thick. Perhaps you remember those poor men whose job it was to paint a flattering portrait of fat old King Henry VIII. We are terribly suspicious, aren’t we, of spin and flattery when it comes to human rulers. And so what convinced our psalmist that this king is the real deal? Well the psalmist praises him first for the glory of his personal character, and then from verse 6 for the immense glory and dignity of his office as God’s anointed king. Why does he deserve our love? Well firstly, his personal character, his grace and his justice and his meek might demand it from us. Even his speech, verse 2, is uniquely gracious. Every judgment he utters is tinged with that character of God’s own heart.
You can tell it, can’t you, the moment you open up a gospel and hear Jesus talk. Remember what they said about Him? “No one ever spoke like this man.” Friends, if you haven’t listened to His voice in a while, let me encourage you to open a gospel, to do exactly that. It takes about two sentences from His mouth to realize that Jesus Christ is marvelous. The very words of His lips give you confidence in Him. Don’t you love Him when you hear Him speak? Grace is poured upon His lips and God’s blessing is eternally poured upon Him, verse 2. And yet He is no precious prince. This is a king who rides out in majesty to fight for His kingdom. You see, the Davidic king is a warrior king. Yes, verse 4, He is meek, but His meekness or humility is exercised in the cause of truth and righteousness. He comes, verse 3, not to bring peace but girded with the sword, intent on justice. By verse 5, He has taken up the bow, plunging arrows deep into enemy hearts. He had to fight for His bride, to battle and bleed for you and me. And the world and the flesh and the devil try to keep us from Him, but surely no king was ever more beautiful than when He was despised and rejected and crowned with thorns because He was fighting with every breath for the soul of His bride. “Let your right hand display awesome deeds,” the psalmist sings, deeds which make Him someone to love if you are His friend, but someone to fear if you are on the wrong side of His justice.
And so if the talk of royal weddings has conjured up a picture of someone a bit like Prince Charles, well it’s time to think again. Here is a King who can truly be called both gracious and righteous, meek and all conquering. “The scepter of Your kingdom is the scepter of uprightness. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness. Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions.” Do you see how He embodies everything we long for in a ruler? His character makes Him so easy to admire. We can so easily think of Jesus, can’t we, as a bit of a pushover or a little bit moping and miserable or as a slightly girly man fawning about in old paintings. This guy is not at all that, is He? Notice twice the psalm talks about Him as the merry King, anointed with gladness beyond His companions. Christ is a joy to be around. He is a man you can’t help but respect and look up to and want to be like. And His kingdom is shaped by His heart, the things He loves and He hates, which makes Jesus’ kingdom the most wonderful place we could ever hope to be. Get to know God’s King well, and following Him should be a longing, not a chore, because His character is worthy of the throne that He sits on.
Well in verse 6, the poetry turns from the glory of His character to the immense glory due to Him because of that throne itself. Think of the respect that we give every president simply because of the dignity of the office he holds. Whether we like him or we love him, the respect doesn’t change. And so how much more honor belongs to a King who is the real deal all the way through, so great that verse 6 gives Him the most breathtaking title ever bestowed on a mortal man. Remember, first the psalmist speaks of a real, historical, human king, and so let the shock of what he is about to say sink in. “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.” You see, this real king of Israel stood in God’s place, governing the kingdom of God’s behalf. And so although it stretches language to breaking point, there is a sense in which an Old Testament king can be addressed with God’s own name. And because he loved the things God loved and he governed justly, verse 7, God has lavishly poured out His blessing. Look at all the anointing oil, the rich fragrant robes, the ivory palaces, the beautiful queen. They are all signs of the enormous dignity in which the Davidic king stood, dignity worthy of a son who God loved.
And yet, surely the poetry does spill over there, doesn’t it, into more glory than any one historical king of Israel could ever hold. One writer says, “It’s as if the Old Testament language is bursting its banks at this point. It’s a little clue that the psalmist knows ultimately this will find fulfillment in another bridegroom, one King who will be truly God of gods and yet truest man.” And so the writer to the Hebrews has no qualms in taking Psalm 45 that way. “To what angel did God ever speak like this?” he asks. But of the Son, he says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.” So there is our praiseworthy King. Not only does His grace and justice and meek might demand our love, but His righteousness rule deserves the Father’s everlasting exaltation and our deepest respect.
Well before we turn then to his queen, let me ask, “Can you join this song so far?” There’s no need to be like those self-conscious men in church, mumbling through the hymns with half of a heart. Surely we can sing out these words with pride and joy. Here is a King you can love and praise without restraint. In fact, here is a King you must. But let me ask you as well, “What is it that you love to praise the Lord Jesus for? Why do you love God’s King?” Is it for who He is and what He loves? For His grace and His justice and His humility? Or is it merely for what He can do for you? It’s terribly easy to pretend that we are singing love songs to Jesus when in reality we are singing to ourselves. Often, in truth, we don’t love these qualities. It’s why we so rarely look for them in our own human leaders. And yet these are the reasons the Father has set His Son upon the throne. And our psalmist thinks they are the most loveable things in all the world.
Well with his beautiful queen at his right hand, verse 9, the psalmist turns to address the bride herself. All eyes are on here now, verses 10 to 15 – the people’s princess. The people’s princess.
“Hear, O daughter, and consider, and incline your ear.” And so what advice would you give to a young woman about to marry a king like this? Perhaps you can picture her. She has the dress picked out. We don’t see it until verse 13, but don’t worry, she’s going to go big; it won’t disappoint! The truth is though, this is an anxious time. She has a new beginning ahead of her, but there is also an old life coming to an end. She needs to leave old loyalties behind and cleave to her new love. And so she has to know that what she has to gain will be far, far more than she ever loses. It is a joy to belong to God’s Christ, and so that is just how the psalmist encourages here. “Hear, O daughter, and consider, and incline your ear. Take my advice. Forget your people and your father’s house, and the king will desire your beauty.” It’s an echo not just of the very first marriage back in the book of Genesis, but every marriage. Leave and cleave. New love brings new loyalties. And so her calling now is to love, honor and obey her husband. “Since he is your lord,” verse 11, “bow to him.”
But if that is the cost to her, just look in verse 11 at what’s to gain. This king will desire your beauty. Who could believe it? This king, the one who could have anything, has chosen you and not grimly, not stoically. He is literally enthralled by you. And look at the dignity and the status that comes simply with belonging to him. Wedding gifts come flooding in, verse 12, from far and wide. Even the rich and powerful people of Tyre. She matters now, not just to Israel, but to all the peoples of the earth. And so submitting to him means a new name and a new identity and a worth that this queen never possessed before.
Bowing to God’s King is the most wonderful thing in the world. You cease to be the person you once were. Whatever label you put on yourself is gone. Ordinary, rich, sinful, academic, sporty, moral, straight, cis, whatever. All of them are gone now because your all is found in Him. You are royalty now and the crown takes precedence.
And so at last, verses 13 to 15, comes the wedding itself. The people’s princess is transformed into a glorious queen, robed in gold and leading her virgin bridesmaids in a long wedding procession. Do you see how the excitement mounts in verse 14 as she is led to her king? Imagine the drama, the music, the choirs, the craning necks, as she walks down the aisle. And what is the climax? The greatest reward of turning her back on the old life, well, verse 15, it is the joy and gladness of finally being united to her king.
And there, friends, is the difference between Psalm 45 and a fairy tale. You see, we usually watch royal weddings, don’t we, safe in the knowledge that “It will never be me.” That’s what makes it a fairy tale. But we don’t read this psalm in quite the same way because in one very important sense, this bride truly is the people’s princess, someone just like ordinary you and me. Because like this bride, like every believer down the ages, you and I are called to leave our old loyalties behind and to be united to Christ and to share in the wonderful glories that belong to Him alone. And just like her, the message to us is, “Don’t look back.” Bowing the knee to the new love of King Jesus means leaving the old behind but gaining far, far more.
Now I don’t know what old loyalties hold you back from submitting all of your heart to the Lord Jesus. Likely, like mine, they are nothing unusual. We worry about the cost. There’s an identity that we’ve got that I’m kind of proud of. There’s an independence we cherish. Behaviors that we don’t want challenged and interfered with. And yet the point, I’m sure you would agree with, is that a husband like this deserves the undivided heart of His bride. This whole love song has been designed to thrill us so much with the glory and beauty and grace of Jesus Christ that we get to verse 11 and say, “Yes! I want that! He deserves my full loving loyalty!” And verse 11 is asking us for something stronger than romantic feelings, isn’t it? Maybe we all sing along happily with Freddie Mercury, longing for somebody to love in our own kind of way, when the problem is that
actually we aren’t prepared to offer the real thing to the one we were made to love.
Notice the challenge to this bride is not just to feel good things about Jesus. She is to honor her King as her Lord, giving Him not just our hearts but our lives, our obedience. And if we see that as a chore, then bowing the knee won’t come easily. But if like our psalmist, our hearts overflow with His gracious love, well that surely changes everything. “With joy and gladness,” verse 15, “they are led along as they enter the palace of the King.” At His great wedding feast, the wedding of the Lamb, I can promise you this, there will not be a dry eye in the house. We’ll all be ugly crying with Felker, won’t we? Crying with joy.
Well finally, like any good royalist, the poet turns his attention from the wedding to the marriage bed and to children. So lately in the final two verses, he thinks of God’s perpetual promise. Like it or not, this is always going to be a very public relationship because the Davidic marriage bed matters to everybody. The future, not just of Israel but of the whole kingdom of God, is bound up in this king’s heirs. So if you think Will and Kate felt the pressure with the tabloid speculating, imagine this! Think of the lengths that kings have gone to throughout the ages to protect their dynasty. Six miserable marriages for Henry VIII and still it didn’t work. But not this couple. For the third time in the poem, we are reassured that the reign of this King will last forever and ever. It’s future, the future of Christ’s kingdom, is safe in God’s hands. “In place of your fathers shall be your sons,” verse 16, “and you will make them princes in all the earth. I will cause your name to be remembered in all generations; therefore nations will praise you forever and ever.”
Well then what do you make of this King? It is a crucial question now, isn’t it, because that perpetual promise makes Him very relevant indeed. If this was just a love song to a long-dead historical figure, well then we could admire it politely the way a scholar admires a precious old manuscript, gently handling it with —– and gloves. But these last two verses, they won’t let us do that, will they? They tell us this is not a King we can hide from and admire safely from a distance because at this very moment He is sitting on the throne, a prince over all the earth. No precious prince, one who is armed with a sword, who some day soon will subdue every last opponent. And many of us, we still live in dread of that day. Jesus’ coming might be a day to fear. And yet not for these rebel sons. For them, that was a day to sing about with joy. For them, it was a day they knew, that like every former enemy who has looked on Jesus in love, they will be robed in spotless splendor and led to their bridegroom.
And so if that is us, well, what should His rule over our lives look like now? Let’s remember as we close how love has worked on our psalmist. Sometimes application in the Bible works at us on different levels, doesn’t it? And poetry like this is really targeting the way we think and feel about Jesus Himself. I think if we listen to this song you can hear our writer’s heart and mind and will, all being changed. His heart bursts with praise for his King. Serving Him is a joyful duty, not a chore. Christ is a King we can serve wholeheartedly with valor and honor and pride. And yet his mind, too, is learning to love the things He loves, to praise grace and justice and truth. And his will has been moved, like the princess, to bow to a new Lord, to leave behind old loyalties for the surpassing worth of this King’s delight. And so friends, listen to his song. “Here is your King,” he’s saying, “seated on the throne. Adore Him. Lay your crowns before Him. And since He is Lord, bow before Him with joy.”
Well let’s pray.Lord Jesus, thank You that You are our King and that we are Your people, Your bride. Thank You, Lord, that in Your humility, the King of heaven, were glorified on a cross instead of a throne, crowned with thorns instead of honor. Thank You, Lord, that You rose victorious and will come again, not in weakness but in power and majesty and that every knee will bow before You. Thank You, Lord, that we whom You have redeemed can look forward to that day with joy, and by Your grace can serve You now with real gladness. And so help us Lord to love and honor and obey You, all for the glory of Your great Gospel. Amen.