A Priest Forever
Psalm 110 as the Psalm of Christ
Trinitarian Interpretation
The opening line, “The LORD says to my Lord,” introduces a dialogue that immediately distinguishes the persons while maintaining Trinitarian unity. It is important to note that this is a distinction, not a division. The Son is enthroned at the right hand of the Father, sharing in divine rule, not as a rival but as one who participates in the same dominion.
The Son exercises the authority of God because He is of the same divine nature. Grasping this allows the reader to see, as Jamieson and Wittman articulate, that there are “not three Lords, but one Lord in three persons,” without collapsing the persons into one or dividing God into three.[1]
The Father is presented as the one who sends (Ps. 110:2), establishing the mission that the enthroned Lord will perform. The Son accomplishes this mission with the authority and under the decree of the Father. Further, the Spirit, while not explicitly named, is active in inspiring the text as it is revealed to the people of God, and, as Thomas Aquinas notes, in giving life to the people of God. In this way, Psalm 110 presents not isolated divine actions, but the coordinated and undivided work of the triune God, revealing one Lord who acts through the distinct persons according to their eternal relations.[2]
In short, the text exposes The Father as the one who speaks, appoints, and sends, The Son who rules and conquers, and the Spirit as the life-giving power producing a willing, holy people.
Christological Interpretation
It should be clear from the words of Jesus (Matt 22:42-45) that this Psalm is fundamentally Christological. In addition to the rule of the Son, the two natures of Christ are also revealed in the text and as expounded by the Messiah Himself.
Following Calvin’s logic, from the incarnation forward, the humiliation of Christ (Ps 110:7), which culminates in His passion, shows His participation with humanity as the sent servant.
As Jamieson and Wittman explain, Scripture speaks of Christ according to both His divine and human natures, requiring the interpreter to discern whether a given action is attributed to Him according to the form of God or the form of a servant.[3] Psalm 110 reflects both, presenting the exalted Lord who reigns and the humbled servant who drinks from the brook.
The offices of both the Messiah as Priest and King are also seen clearly in the Psalm. The Psalm exposes that He will rule in the midst of His enemies as King, but that He will do so as a Priest according to the order of Melchizedek.
In short, the Psalm presents, as the creed states, Christ as the Reigning Priest-King who is truly God and truly man.[4]
Ecclesiological Interpretation
Verse 3 describes a people who “offer themselves freely,” which describes the nature of the Church as a people gathered under the reign of Christ. This group of people who make up the Church is a holy people, a royal priesthood (1 Pet. 2:9), dressing in “holy garments”.
These people of Christ share in His priestly identity, not as mediators of atonement, but as those set apart to God. Additionally, the Church exists under the scepter going forth from Zion, which points to the Christ who governs His people through His Word, and sends them to do His work in the midst of His enemies.
This reading also reflects the church’s historic understanding of its identity, not as a self-defined community, but as one shaped by the Word and confessed across generations.
As Trueman argues, the church’s doctrinal clarity depends upon receiving and articulating what has been handed down, rather than reinventing it in each age.[5]
Eschatological Interpretation
Taken together, Psalm 110 presents a fully developed framework that includes inauguration, continuation, and consummation.
The witness of Acts 2:34 explains that the Lord is currently reigning as the ascended Messiah, who has completed all that the Father sent Him to do (John 17:4). The continuation of this reign is seen as He “rules in the midst” of His enemies in this present age.
He willing servants do His will as the defeat of His enemies progresses towards its final climax, where all enemies, including death, are placed under His feet. Although His people live, experiencing the rage of His enemies, they are actually participating in the same trajectory of their Master.
They suffer, however, they are promised that just as the Lord reigns, so all His enemies will one day be subdued, and they will reign with Him.
Conclusion
What starts as a royal psalm in light of the New Covenant is actually understood as a revelation of the triune God’s plan, centered in the person and work of Christ.
The Father appoints and sends, the Son reigns and intercedes, and the Spirit gives life to a willing people. Christ, as the divine-human King-Priest, secures and governs His Church, which lives under His Word in the midst of opposition.
His reign, already established, moves inexorably toward its final consummation, when all enemies will be subdued, and His people will share in His victory.
Reading it through the rule of faith, the Psalm grounds the believer’s security in the decree of God. For the believer, the enthronement of the Son is not something that we are waiting to see, but a present reality inaugurated in the resurrection and ascension of Christ (Acts 13:33).
The nations may rage, but their rebellion does not threaten the reign of the Son.
Reading it through the rule of hope, Psalm 2 directs our longing toward the consummation of the kingdom. While Christ is already enthroned, the full subjugation of His enemies awaits its completion.
The psalm holds together inauguration and consummation, reminding us that we live in the “already and not yet.” The nations still rage, but their end is certain.
As Calvin writes in his commentary on the verse, the world, the flesh, and the devil, while active today, have a sure end. While we experience their rage, we can place hope in the future.
Finally, the rule of love removes fear and replaces it with trust.
Although the warning of wrath is real, it is paired with an open invitation. The same King who judges also blesses all who take refuge in Him.
Thus, Psalm 2 presents both the urgency of repentance and the comfort of refuge, framing the last things in God’s love for His people, and producing a love in us that pulls His enemies from the fires of His wrath.
[1] Tyler R. Wittman and R. B. Jamieson, Biblical Reasoning: Christological and Trinitarian Rules for Exegesis (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2022), 108.
[2] Aquinas, Commentary on the Psalms.
[3] Ibid., 134.
[4] The Definition of Chalcedon, in Creeds of Christendom, ed. Philip Schaff, vol. 2 (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1983), 62–66.
[5] Trueman, Crisis of Confidence, 189.