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Commentary on Psalms 45 verses 10–17
This latter part of the psalm is addressed to the royal bride, standing on the right hand of the royal bridegroom. God, who said to the Son, Thy throne is for ever and ever, says this to the church, which, upon the account of her espousals to the Son, he here calls his daughter.
I. He tells her of the duties expected from her, which ought to be considered by all those that come into relation to the Lord Jesus: "Hearken, therefore, and consider this, and incline thy ear, that is, submit to those conditions of thy espousals, and bring thy will to comply with them." This is the method of profiting by the word of God. He that has ears, let him hear, let him hearken diligently; he that hearkens, let him consider and weigh it duly; he that considers, let him incline and yield to the force of what is laid before him. And what is it that is here required?
1.She must renounce all others.
(1.)Here is the law of her espousals: "Forget thy own people and thy father's house, according to the law of marriage. Retain not the affection thou hast had for them, nor covet to return to them again; banish all such remembrance (not only of thy people that were dear to thee, but of thy father's house that were dearer) as may incline thee to look back, as Lot's wife to Sodom." When Abraham, in obedience to God's call, had quitted his native soil, he was not so much as mindful of the country whence he came out. This shows, [1.] How necessary it was for those who were converted from Judaism or paganism to the faith of Christ wholly to cast out the old leaven, and not to bring into their Christian profession either the Jewish ceremonies or the heathen idolatries, for these would make such a mongrel religion in Christianity as the Samaritans had. [2.] How necessary it is for us all, when we give up our names to Jesus Christ, to hate father and mother, and all that is dear to us in this world, in comparison, that is, to love them less than Christ and his honour, and our interest in him, Luk 14:26.
(2.)Here is good encouragement given to the royal bride thus entirely to break off from her former alliances: So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty, which intimates that the mixing of her old rites and customs, whether Jewish or Gentile, with her religion, would blemish her beauty and would hazard her interest in the affections of the royal bridegroom, but that, if she entirely conformed to his will, he would delight in her. The beauty of holiness, both on the church and on particular believers, is in the sight of Christ of great price and very amiable. Where that is he says, This is my rest for ever; here will I dwell, for I have desired it. Among the golden candlesticks he walks with pleasure, Rev 2:1.
2.She must reverence him, must love, honour, and obey him: He is thy Lord, and worship thou him. The church is to be subject to Christ as the wife to the husband (Eph 5:24), to call him Lord, as Sarah called Abraham, and to obey him (Pe1 3:6), and so not only to submit to his government, but to give him divine honours. We must worship him as God, and our Lord; for this is the will of God, that all men should honour the Son even as they honour the Father; nay, in so doing it is reckoned that they honour the Father. If we confess that Christ is Lord, and pay our homage to him accordingly, it is to the glory of God the Father, Phi 2:11.
II. He tells her of the honours designed for her.
1.Great court should be made to her, and rich presents brought her (Psa 45:12): "The daughter of Tyre," a rich and splendid city, "the daughter of the King of Tyre shall be there with a gift; every royal family round about shall send a branch, as a representative of the whole, to seek thy favour and to make an interest in thee; even the rich among the people, whose wealth might be thought to exempt them from dependence at court, even they shall entreat thy favour, for his sake to whom thou art espoused, that by thee they may make him their friend." The Jews, the pretending Jews, who are rich to a proverb (as rich as a Jew), shall come and worship before the church's feet in the Philadelphian period, and shall know that Christ has loved her, Rev 3:9. When the Gentiles, being converted to the faith of Christ, join themselves to the church, they then come with a gift, Co2 8:5; Rom 15:16. When with themselves they devote all they have to the honour of Christ, and the service of his kingdom, they then come with a gift.
2.She shall be very splendid, and highly esteemed in the eyes of all, (1.) For her personal qualifications, the endowments of her mind, which every one shall admire (Psa 45:13): The king's daughter is all glorious within. Note, The glory of the church is spiritual glory, and that is indeed all glory; it is the glory of the soul, and that is the man; it is glory in God's sight, and it is an earnest of eternal glory. The glory of the saints falls not within the view of a carnal eye. As their life, so their glory, is hidden with Christ in God, neither can the natural man know it, for it is spiritually discerned; but those who do so discern it highly value it. Let us see here what is that true glory which we should be ambitious of, not that which makes a fair show in the flesh, but which is in the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible (Pe1 3:4), whose praise is not of men, but of God, Rom 2:29. (2.) For her rich apparel. Though all her glory is within, that for which she is truly valuable, yet her clothing also is of wrought gold; the conversation of Christians, in which they appear in the world, must be enriched with good works, not gay and gaudy ones, like paint and flourish, but substantially good, like gold; and it must be accurate and exact, like wrought gold, which is worked with a great deal of care and caution.
3.Her nuptials shall be celebrated with a great deal of honour and joy (Psa 45:14, Psa 45:15): She shall be brought to the king, as the Lord God brought the woman to the man (Gen 2:22), which was a type of this mystical marriage between Christ and his church. None are brought to Christ but whom the Father brings, and he has undertaken to do it; none besides are so brought to the king (Psa 45:14) as to enter into the king's palace, Psa 45:15.
(1.)This intimates a two-fold bringing of the spouse to Christ. [1.] In the conversion of souls to Christ; then they are espoused to him, privately contracted, as chaste virgins, Co2 11:2; Rom 7:4. [2.] In the completing of the mystical body, and the glorification of all the saints, at the end of time; then the bride, the Lamb's wife, shall be made completely ready, when all that belong to the election of grace shall be called in and called home, and all gathered together to Christ, Th2 2:1. Then is the marriage of the Lamb come (Rev 19:7; Rev 21:2), and the virgins go forth to meet the bridegroom, Mat 25:1. Then they shall enter into the king's palaces, into the heavenly mansions, to be ever with the Lord.
(2.)In both these espousals, observe, to the honour of the royal bride, [1.] Her wedding clothes - raiment of needle-work, the righteousness of Christ, the graces of the Spirit; both curiously wrought by divine wisdom. [2.] Her bride-maids - the virgins her companions, the wise virgins who have oil in their vessels as well as in their lamps, those who, being joined to the church, cleave to it and follow it, these shall go in to the marriage. [3.] The mirth with which the nuptials will be celebrated: With gladness and rejoicing shall she be brought. When the prodigal is brought home to his father it is meet that we should make merry and be glad (Luk 15:32); and when the marriage of the Lamb has come let us be glad and rejoice (Rev 19:7); for the day of his espousals is the day of the gladness of his heart, Sol 3:11.
4.The progeny of this marriage shall be illustrious (Psa 45:16): Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children. Instead of the Old Testament church, the economy of which had waxed old, and ready to vanish away (Heb 8:13), as the fathers that are going off, there shall be a New Testament church, a Gentile-church, that shall be grafted into the same olive and partake of its root and fatness (Rom 11:17); more and more eminent shall be the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, Isa 54:1. This promise to Christ is of the same import with that Isa 53:10, He shall see his seed; and these shall be made princes in all the earth; there shall be some of all nations brought into subjection to Christ, and so made princes, made to our God kings and priests, Rev 1:6. Or it may intimate that there should be a much greater number of Christian kings than ever there was of Jewish kings (those in Canaan only, these in all the earth), nursing fathers and nursing mothers to the church, which shall suck the breasts of kings. They are princes of Christ's making; for by him kings reign and princes decree justice.
5.The praise of this marriage shall be perpetual in the praises of the royal bridegroom (Psa 45:17): I will make thy name to be remembered. His Father has given him a name above every name, and here promises to make it perpetual, by keeping up a succession of ministers and Christians in every age, that shall bear up his name, which shall thus endure for ever (Psa 72:17), by being remembered in all the generations of time; for the entail of Christianity shall not be cut off. "Therefore, because they shall remember thee in all generations, they shall praise thee for ever and ever." Those that help to support the honour of Christ on earth shall in heaven see his glory, and share in it, and be for ever praising him. In the believing hope of our everlasting happiness in the other world let us always keep up the remembrance of Christ, as our only way thither, in our generation; and, in assurance of the perpetuating of the kingdom of the Redeemer in the world, let us transmit the remembrance of him to succeeding generations, that his name may endure for ever and be as the days of heaven.
"With gladness and rejoicing shall they be brought and shall be led into the Temple of the King" [Psalm 45:15]. The "Temple of the King" is the Church itself: it is the Church itself that enters into "the Temple of the King." Whereof is that Temple constructed? Of the men who enter the Temple? Who but God's "faithful" ones are its "living stones"? [1 Peter 2:4] "They shall be led into the Temple of the King." For there are virgins without the Temple of the King, the nuns among the heretics: they are virgins, it is true; but what will that profit them, unless they be led into the "Temple of the King"? The "Temple of the King" is in unity: the "Temple of the King" is not ruinous, is not rent asunder, is not divided. The cement of those living stones is "charity."
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SUMMARY
Psalm 45:15 provides a resplendent culmination to a royal wedding procession, vividly portraying the jubilant entry of the queen's companions into the magnificent royal dwelling. This verse, rich in its evocative imagery, encapsulates profound theological themes of divine invitation, triumphant celebration, and the ultimate privilege of intimate access to the King's immediate presence, serving as a powerful foreshadowing of the spiritual reality of believers entering God's eternal kingdom.
CONTEXT
Literary Context: Psalm 45 is uniquely designated as a "Maskil of the Sons of Korah," functioning primarily as an exquisite royal wedding song celebrating the marriage of a king. It distinguishes itself within the Psalter through its detailed and highly poetic description of royal splendor, marital joy, and the king's righteous reign. While grounded in an earthly monarch's wedding, its elevated language, divine attributes ascribed to the king, and prophetic undertones have consistently led to a widespread Christian interpretation of it as a profoundly Messianic psalm. In this interpretation, the psalm portrays Christ as the glorious King and the Church as His radiant Bride. The verses immediately preceding Psalm 45:15 (specifically Psalm 45:13-14) meticulously describe the queen's splendor, adorned in gold and brought to the king, and then introduce her virgin companions, emphasizing their purity and noble escort. Verse 15 serves as the climactic moment of this grand procession, depicting their joyful and triumphant entrance into the royal palace, signifying the glorious culmination of the entire celebratory event and the fulfillment of the journey.
Historical & Cultural Context: In the ancient Near East, royal weddings were not merely private affairs but events of immense national and political significance, often accompanied by elaborate public processions and widespread celebrations. The "king's palace" was far more than just a residence; it was the epicenter of political power, judicial authority, and the king's immediate, awe-inspiring presence. To be "brought" into the palace, especially as part of the queen's esteemed retinue, signified the highest honor, complete acceptance, and unparalleled privileged access to the monarch. Such processions were meticulously orchestrated displays of wealth, status, and the king's absolute authority, frequently involving vibrant music, dancing, and great public rejoicing that underscored the prosperity and stability of the kingdom. The inclusion of "virgin companions" further highlights the purity, honor, and distinguished nature of the queen's entourage, reflecting deeply held societal values placed on chastity and proper conduct within the highly esteemed royal circles.
Key Themes: Psalm 45:15 contributes significantly to several overarching theological and narrative themes both within the psalm itself and across the broader biblical narrative. The opening phrase, "With gladness and rejoicing," prominently highlights Exuberant Joy, emphasizing that the entry is not a somber obligation or a reluctant duty, but a profound and overflowing celebration. This theme of joy is consistently echoed in biblical portrayals of God's kingdom, the experience of salvation, and the delight found in His presence, as powerfully articulated in Psalm 16:11. The act of "entering into the king's palace" profoundly underscores Privileged Access, signifying not just physical proximity but also complete acceptance, deep belonging, and intimate communion with royalty, which spiritually points to the believer's ultimate and unhindered access to God's presence through Christ. The use of the passive voice, "shall they be brought," emphasizes Divine Invitation and Leading, highlighting that this glorious entry is not achieved by human striving, merit, or initiative, but by an external, authoritative, and supremely gracious act. This resonates deeply with God's sovereign call and gracious initiative in drawing His people to Himself. Finally, through its widely accepted Messianic interpretation, this verse beautifully embodies Messianic Hope, painting a vivid and triumphant picture of the Church, the radiant Bride of Christ, being presented to the King in glory, anticipating the ultimate union and celebratory feast described in passages like Revelation 19:7.
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Psalm 45:15 is rich in Imagery, painting a vivid mental picture of a grand, celebratory procession culminating in a magnificent and triumphant entry. The description of "gladness and rejoicing" combined with the majestic destination of the "king's palace" evokes a powerful sense of splendor, joyous celebration, and ultimate triumph. Symbolism is also profoundly at play; the royal palace symbolizes the ultimate dwelling place of God, His eternal kingdom, or His immediate, glorious presence, while the act of being "brought" symbolizes divine grace, sovereign leading, and the unmerited nature of salvation. The entire procession, with the queen and her companions, functions as a powerful Metaphor for the Church, the radiant Bride of Christ, being presented to her King in glory. Furthermore, the deliberate use of the Passive Voice ("shall they be brought") is a significant rhetorical choice, subtly but powerfully emphasizing the agency of the King (or God, in the Messianic interpretation) rather than the efforts or merits of those entering, thereby underscoring divine initiative and unmerited grace.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Psalm 45:15, with its vibrant depiction of joyful entry into the king's palace, resonates deeply with fundamental biblical themes of God's gracious invitation, the profound joy of salvation, and the ultimate destiny of believers. It speaks to the unparalleled privilege of being brought into God's very presence, not through human merit or strenuous striving, but solely by divine initiative and unmerited grace. This entry is characterized by exuberant, overflowing joy, reflecting the deep spiritual delight found in communion with God and the celebratory nature of His eternal kingdom. The verse powerfully foreshadows the eschatological hope of believers being eternally united with Christ in His glorious dwelling, a promise of ultimate belonging, complete acceptance, and unfading happiness in His glorious presence.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Psalm 45:15 offers profound encouragement and a deeply joyful perspective for believers today. It serves as a powerful reminder that our ultimate destination, secured through the finished work of Christ, is to be in the glorious, intimate presence of our King. This journey of faith is not one of somber obligation, fearful apprehension, or arduous striving, but one marked by profound gladness and rejoicing, precisely because it is God Himself who graciously and sovereignly brings us. We are invited, not based on our own inherent worthiness or accomplishments, but solely by His magnificent grace, into His eternal dwelling and intimate presence. This verse calls us to live with a vibrant, joyful anticipation of that promised day, allowing this glorious hope to infuse and uplift us amidst our present struggles and triumphs. It encourages us to embrace the profound privilege of our current access to God through prayer, worship, and the Holy Spirit, understanding that these are precious foretastes of the complete and unhindered access we will one day experience in the King's eternal palace.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Is Psalm 45 only about an earthly king's wedding, or does it have deeper meaning?
Answer: While Psalm 45 certainly describes an earthly royal wedding with rich detail, its elevated language, divine attributes ascribed to the king, and prophetic undertones elevate it far beyond a mere historical account. Christian tradition, deeply rooted in the New Testament, widely interprets it as a profoundly prophetic Messianic psalm. For instance, Hebrews 1:8 directly quotes Psalm 45:6 and explicitly applies it to Christ, thereby establishing the psalm's divine, eschatological significance. Thus, it functions on two complementary levels: as a celebration of an earthly king's marriage in its immediate historical context and, more profoundly, as a prophetic portrayal of Christ, the divine King, and His eternal relationship with His radiant Bride, the Church.
Who are the "virgin companions" mentioned in the preceding verses, and what do they represent?
Answer: In the context of an ancient Near Eastern royal wedding, the "virgin companions" (or "maidens") were honored members of the queen's entourage, often her closest friends or attendants, who accompanied her to the king's palace. They symbolized the honor, purity, and esteemed nature of the queen and the entire royal court. In the Messianic interpretation of Psalm 45, these companions are widely understood to represent individual believers or the collective body of the Church, who, having been made pure and holy through Christ's redemptive work, accompany the Bride (the Church as a whole) into the King's glorious presence. They signify all those who share in the profound joy and unparalleled privilege of the King's eternal kingdom.
How does this verse relate to the Christian concept of salvation and eternal life?
Answer: This verse powerfully illustrates several key aspects of Christian salvation and the hope of eternal life. The phrase "shall they be brought" profoundly underscores the divine initiative in salvation; it is God who, by His sovereign grace and love, draws, calls, and brings His people to Himself, not through their own merit, effort, or striving. The "gladness and rejoicing" reflect the profound, overflowing joy that accompanies salvation, the experience of communion with God, and the joyful anticipation of eternal life in His presence. Finally, "entering into the king's palace" symbolizes the ultimate destiny of all believers: to dwell in the immediate, glorious presence of God in His eternal kingdom, experiencing full communion, complete acceptance, and unending joy and blessing forevermore. It points to the glorious fulfillment of God's promise to be with His people eternally.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Psalm 45:15 finds its most profound and glorious fulfillment in the person and work of Jesus Christ. He is the magnificent King, described throughout Psalm 45, whose beauty, righteousness, and eternal reign are celebrated. The "gladness and rejoicing" with which the companions are brought into the palace vividly foreshadows the spiritual reality of the Church, the radiant Bride of Christ, being presented to Him in glory. It is Christ Himself who, through His perfect atoning sacrifice on the cross and His triumphant resurrection, makes possible this joyful and privileged entry. He is the one who "brings" His people, having cleansed them by His word and Spirit, as beautifully articulated in Ephesians 5:25-27. The "king's palace" becomes a powerful and enduring symbol of God's eternal kingdom and the intimate, unveiled presence of Christ, where believers will dwell in perfect communion forever. This verse anticipates the ultimate marriage supper of the Lamb, where the Church, prepared and adorned, will enter into eternal, joyous communion with her King, as triumphantly depicted in Revelation 19:7-9. Just as Jesus promised to go and prepare a place for His disciples so that where He is, they may be also (John 14:2-3), Psalm 45:15 beautifully paints the picture of that glorious, joyful culmination when all who are in Christ will enter into the King's eternal, majestic palace.