Psalm 45:1
My heart overflows with a
pleasing theme;
I address my verses to the
king;
my tongue is like the pen
of a ready scribe.
This psalm is a love song
written in honor of the king for his marriage. The author will honor the king,
as he describes his kingdom and wishes for him a prosperous reign with his new
bride.
Reading this psalm could
leave us somewhat perplexed about its application for us today, but there are two
aspects that impressed me as edifying reminders to us.
This king is anointed by
God, and therefore his God-given role is to rule well with righteousness; and
in this marriage, he has been given the new bride, who will support him in his
endeavors.
Psalm 45:4
In your majesty ride
out victoriously
for the cause of truth and
meekness and righteousness;
let your right hand teach
you awesome deeds!
Psalm 45:6-7
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;
We have no idea who this
king was; very possibly he was of the Davidic line, related to the eternal
King, Jesus Christ, the King who will rule forever with perfect justice and
glory.
We are certainly blessed
to have the Lord as our King! He does rule with justice, His kingdom is forever,
and even though it seems often that our world is gone very far from the
standards set by God, He is still in control. No one comes to power, if not
permitted by God for His eternal purposes.
We do have a
responsibility to pray for our authorities. Our prayers should be that we may
live in an environment conducive to the progress of the Gospel.
1 Timothy 2:1-6
First of all, then, I urge
that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all
people, 2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may
lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. 3 This
is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our
Savior, 4 who desires all people to be saved and to come
to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God, and
there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ
Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the
testimony given at the proper time.
At all times, our prayers
for our leaders should have eternal purposes. We should be praying earnestly
that, as they rule, we would have freedom to share with other people the
message that the only mediator between God and man is Jesus Christ. Too often,
when we remember to pray for our authorities, we are driven by our frustration
and our desire to make our lives easier, and possibly to see more righteousness
around us. Rather, our prayers should be driven by our desire to see more
people come to know Christ, that they would be driven to trust Him alone for
their eternal destiny.
God is in control, and our
focus should be to reach the people around us with the Gospel. To that end, we
should be in constant prayer. This kind of focus would certainly lift us out
from our tendency to complain and encourage us to be faithful servants in
sharing the truth of salvation.
Secondly, this psalm
reminds us of the precious role a woman has, when she marries her husband.
Psalm 45:10-11
Hear, O daughter, and
consider, and incline your ear:
forget your people and
your father's house,
11 and the king will
desire your beauty.
Since he is
your lord, bow to him.
Psalm 45:16
In place of your fathers
shall be your sons;
you will make
them princes in all the earth.
There are obviously many
aspects of marriage taught in the Scriptures that should not be neglected, but
here we find the bride leaving her house and uniting with the King to form a
family.
I am afraid that in so
many marriages today, the joy and pleasure of having children and creating a loving
home has been replaced by many other distractions.
Paul, in his inspired
instructions, reminds the older women to teach the younger women to be mindful
of the eternal purposes in their marriages.
Titus 2:3-5
Older women likewise are
to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine.
They are to teach what is good, 4 and so train the young women to
love their husbands and children, 5 to be self-controlled,
pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own
husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.
The home is certainly a
place where the Word of God must be manifested and honored. It should be a
place where the husband is honoring God by sacrificially loving his wife. The
wife should be devoted, for the sake of the Gospel, to loving her family and
making her home a place where the Gospel is lived out and proclaimed.
Many marriages begin with
a focus on meeting one’s own needs and dreams, more than desiring for it to be
an image of the love that Christ has for the church and the church’s desire to
submit to Christ.
There is so much that
could be said about our authorities and our marriages, but may this psalm drive
us to prayer for our leaders and our marriages. May we be willing to submit to
the Word of God and have our lives shaped by the eternal purposes of God.
WE NEED TO PRAY!
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