Psalms 110:1-7: a reflection

1The LORD says to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool for your feet.” 2The LORD will send out the rod of your strength out of Zion. Rule among your enemies. 3Your people offer themselves willingly in the day of your power, in holy array. Out of the womb of the morning, you have the dew of your youth. 4The LORD has sworn, and will not change his mind: “You are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.” 5The Lord is at your right hand. He will crush kings in the day of his wrath. 6He will judge among the nations. He will heap up dead bodies. He will crush the ruler of the whole earth. 7He will drink of the brook on the way; therefore he will lift up his head.

This short psalm is quoted in the New Testament more than any other, because Jesus and the apostles saw him in it. The LORD says to my Lord, it begins, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool. David calls someone his Lord who is also his descendant, the Messiah seated at God's right hand, given the seat of honor and rule.

But notice the second title the psalm gives him: you are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek. That is a striking pairing. He is King, enthroned at the right hand, ruling; and he is also Priest, the one who represents his people before God and intercedes for them. In one person, the throne and the altar.

Sit with what that means for you. The one seated at the right hand of God is not a distant ruler who has forgotten you; he is also your priest, whose lasting work is to intercede for you before the Father. Your King prays for you. When you feel small before the powers of the world, remember who sits at God's right hand, and remember that he is not only reigning there, he is praying there, for you.

Lord Jesus, you are seated at the Father's right hand as King, and you are my priest forever, interceding for me. When I feel small before the world, remind me that the one who reigns is also the one praying for me.