The Father’s Message to Jesus
Many Christians like to concentrate on the positive prophecies, the ones of peace and love. However, not all of them were. Consider the following one for example. Psalm 110 reads as follows:
1 The Lord says to my Lord:
“Sit at my right hand,
until I make your enemies your footstool.”2 The Lord sends forth from Zion
your mighty scepter.
Rule in the midst of your enemies!
3 Your people will offer themselves freely
on the day of your power,
in holy garments;
from the womb of the morning,
the dew of your youth will be yours.
4 The Lord has sworn
and will not change his mind,
“You are a priest forever
after the order of Melchizedek.”5 The Lord is at your right hand;
he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath.
6 He will execute judgment among the nations,
filling them with corpses;
he will shatter chiefs
over the wide earth.
7 He will drink from the brook by the way;
therefore he will lift up his head.
How do I know this is a prophecy? Christ said so Himself in Matthew 22:
41 While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, 42“What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?”
”The son of David,” they replied.43 He said to them, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says,
44 ” ‘The Lord said to my Lord:
”Sit at my right hand
until I put your enemies
under your feet.” ‘45 If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?”
46 No one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions.
No more questions? That seems odd. Just for saying that? Well, He didn’t say just that. Mark 12 elaborates a bit on how much more Jesus actually said in reference to Psalm 110:1…
38 As he taught, Jesus said, “Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted in the marketplaces, 39 and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. 40 They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men will be punished most severely.”
Luke echoes John’s account almost word for word (or was it John echoing Luke?). Then later, during a challenge to Jesus about His future acts, the following transpired:
62 Then the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, “Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” 63 But Jesus remained silent.
The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.”64 “Yes, it is as you say,” Jesus replied. “But I say to all of you: In the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”
So, it is pretty clear to me that Jesus considered the word Lord in this Psalm to be a prophetic reference to Himself, the Christ. But, let us look more closely at this Psalm, and understand better what was being prophesied.
1 The Lord says to my Lord:
“Sit at my right hand,
until I make your enemies your footstool.”
Where is Jesus right now? Well, Stephen was stoned to death for answering that question, in Acts 7…
55 But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
57 At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, 58 dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul.
59 While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
The man Saul was later renamed Paul, and testified by letter to the truth that Stephen revealed to him that day.
19b That power is like the working of his mighty strength, 20 which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Usually, we stop with that verse, but David did not. He kept writing…
2 The Lord sends forth from Zion
your mighty scepter.
Rule in the midst of your enemies!
Well, let me see. When is Jesus set to rule? Well, some believe He is ruling now. In that case, it makes sense that David would tell Him to rule in the midst of His enemies. After all, they are everywhere. On the other hand, if you believe that Millennium is yet to come, then it would seem that the world will still have enemies of God in this world, even after the Tribulation is complete. But makes sense, given the prophecies in Revelation of Armageddon which are to follow Christ’s rule. After all, how can there be enemies of God on earth after His rule, if there are none during it?
3 Your people will offer themselves freely
on the day of your power,
in holy garments;
Personally, I think this rules out this time as part of Christ’s reign, for while He reigns in our lives, He does not reign in this world with His people offering themselves freely in Holy garments. No, during this time, the Church is concentrated on Christ’s offering to us, with the good Church exhorting congregations who need to begin offering themselves freely back, but do not. But, according to this Psalm, they will. I just do not believe it has happened yet… lest this be an age with even fewer people of God than even a jaded Christian might think there are.
from the womb of the morning,
the dew of your youth will be yours.
A reference to Christ’s birth? This has shades to me of Day 2 of Creation, as it echoes Jesus’ life, which was in David’s future. Yet it reads to me like a prophecy to Jesus’ future, using a reference to Jesus’ birth… a reference to His second coming? I think Jesus would have read that, and understood it as such, and known from the scriptures that David was writing of His future still.
4 The Lord has sworn
and will not change his mind,
“You are a priest forever
after the order of Melchizedek.”
And then David changes perspective from writing to the Son, to writing to the Father…
5 The Lord is at your right hand;
he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath.
6 He will execute judgment among the nations,
filling them with corpses;
he will shatter chiefs
over the wide earth.
7 He will drink from the brook by the way;
therefore he will lift up his head.
And John echoes the violence that is to come, the death that must take place. I invite Christians to consider that our views of the world, and often of Christ, are misguided, in that we think of nothing but the peace that God promised. However, that peace, the promised eternal peace, has not yet arrived. If you believe Christ’s reign is now, then perhaps the United States is His instrument of wrath… and that must give one pause as we consider whether our wars are righteous and Holy or human and unholy. On the other hand, if you believe Christ’s reign is yet to come, then consider that Christ’s nation will not be the only one on this earth during His reign, which I believe is a literal one that is yet to come… yet His reign will be one of peace, and then finally His victory over His enemies will be undeniable.
David wrote many psalms of violence, war, and wishing ill on his enemies. How much more is there to glean? I do not know, and I would hate to follow an example of wishing ill on my own enemies. But, they are in the scriptures and do mean something… something about which the Church is surprisingly silent. I believe that is as it is supposed to be for now… at least from the perspective that we don’t pay mind, and yet God always brings scriptures to His followers’ attention just when they need to heeding it. And based on that, I fear that one day we will need to pay a mind to them… but no harm in looking ahead, right?