King James Version
Psalms 110
7 verses with commentary
The Lord Says to My Lord
A Psalm of David. The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool .
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KJV Study Commentary
This opening verse contains one of the most profound Christological declarations in the Old Testament. 'The LORD said unto my Lord' presents a dialogue within the Godhead - the first 'LORD' (YHWH in Hebrew) addresses the second 'my Lord' (Hebrew 'adonai'), establishing a relationship between the eternal God and the Messianic figure. The command 'Sit thou at my right hand' signifies supreme authori...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(1) **The Lord said . . .**—The usual prophetic phrase, generally translated, “Thus saith,” &c. (See Note, Psalm 36:1.)
The psalmist may possibly be quoting an old prophetic saying, but, according to the usual way in which the expression is used, it marks an immediate inspiration.
**My Lord.**—Heb., *adonî, *an address of honour to those more noble than the speaker, or superior in rank: to a fathe...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8-11. brought--**or, "plucked up," as by roots, to be replanted.
**a vine--**(Psa 78:47). The figure (Is 16:8) represents the flourishing state of Israel, as predicted (Ge 28:14), and verified (1Ki 4:20-25).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 110
Christ's kingdom.
--Glorious things are here spoken of Christ. Not only he should be superior to all the kings of the earth, but he then existed in glory as the eternal Son of God. Sitting is a resting posture: after services and sufferings, to give law, to give judgment. It is a remaining posture: he sits like a king for ever. All his enemies are now in a chain, but not yet made...
Read full commentary →The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.
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KJV Study Commentary
This verse shifts from the Messiah's cosmic position to His dynamic rule and victory. 'The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion' depicts God extending His power through the Messiah from the holy city. The 'rod of strength' (Hebrew 'mateh oz') is a metaphorical scepter representing royal authority and power; rods were instruments of both leadership and judgment. 'Zion,' the symbolic ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(2) **Send**.—The verb should be here rendered *stretch, *as in Genesis 22:10; Genesis 48:14, and frequently of stretching out the hand, often with hostile intent. The poet here speaks in his own person, addressing the King, to whom the oracle has just been announced.
**Rod of thy strength**—*i.e., *the sceptre, which is the emblem of royal power and sway. (See Jeremiah 48:17.) The word “staff” is...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8-11. brought--**or, "plucked up," as by roots, to be replanted.
**a vine--**(Psa 78:47). The figure (Is 16:8) represents the flourishing state of Israel, as predicted (Ge 28:14), and verified (1Ki 4:20-25).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 110
Christ's kingdom.
--Glorious things are here spoken of Christ. Not only he should be superior to all the kings of the earth, but he then existed in glory as the eternal Son of God. Sitting is a resting posture: after services and sufferings, to give law, to give judgment. It is a remaining posture: he sits like a king for ever. All his enemies are now in a chain, but not yet made...
Read full commentary →Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth. from: or, more than the womb of the morning: thou shalt have, etc
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KJV Study Commentary
This verse introduces the second major theme of the psalm: the Messiah's priesthood. 'Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power' presents a voluntary covenant community responding to the Messiah's authority. The word 'willing' (Hebrew 'nedavim') emphasizes free-will offering and eager participation, not coerced obedience. 'In the day of thy power' refers to the day when the Messiah's aut...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(3) This difficult verse runs, literally, *Thy people willingnesses *(or*, willing offerings*)* in the day of thy force in holy attire, from the womb of morning dew of thy youth.*
The first clause is tolerably clear. The word rendered *force *means either “strength” or “an army;” and the noun *willingnesses *appears as a verb in Judges 5:9, to express the alacrity with which the northern clans mus...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**12. hedges--**(Is 5:5).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 110
Christ's kingdom.
--Glorious things are here spoken of Christ. Not only he should be superior to all the kings of the earth, but he then existed in glory as the eternal Son of God. Sitting is a resting posture: after services and sufferings, to give law, to give judgment. It is a remaining posture: he sits like a king for ever. All his enemies are now in a chain, but not yet made...
Read full commentary →The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.
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KJV Study Commentary
This verse is the explicit foundation for Christian understanding of Christ's priesthood. 'The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever' presents God's irrevocable oath concerning the Messiah's eternal priesthood. The swearing of an oath emphasizes the solemnity and certainty of this declaration - God binds Himself with an oath, the strongest possible commitment. 'Will not ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(4) **After the order of Melchizedek.**—This follows the LXX. and Vulg. Better, *after the manner of *since there could have been with the psalmist no intention of contrasting this priesthood with that of Aaron, as there naturally was when the Aaronic order had come to an end or was visibly doomed to extinction.
The previous history of Israel itself offered no example of the formal union of kingly...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**13. The boar--**may represent the ravaging Assyrian and
**the wild beast--**other heathen.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 110
Christ's kingdom.
--Glorious things are here spoken of Christ. Not only he should be superior to all the kings of the earth, but he then existed in glory as the eternal Son of God. Sitting is a resting posture: after services and sufferings, to give law, to give judgment. It is a remaining posture: he sits like a king for ever. All his enemies are now in a chain, but not yet made...
Read full commentary →The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath.
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KJV Study Commentary
This verse returns to the theme of judgment and vindication. 'The Lord at thy right hand' reinforces the close association established in verse 1, where the Messiah sits at God's right hand. The repetition emphasizes ongoing divine support and partnership. 'Shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath' presents the Messiah as an instrument of divine judgment against hostile rulers. The word ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(5) **The Lord at thy right hand.**—We are naturally tempted to understand this as still of the king whom the first verse placed at Jehovah’s right hand. But the word for Lord here is *Adonai, *which is nowhere else used except of God. Moreover, God throughout has as yet appeared as the active agent. It is He who stretched out the sceptre and conferred the office of priest; and hitherto the king h...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**14-15. visit this vine--**favorably (Psa 8:4).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 110
Christ's kingdom.
--Glorious things are here spoken of Christ. Not only he should be superior to all the kings of the earth, but he then existed in glory as the eternal Son of God. Sitting is a resting posture: after services and sufferings, to give law, to give judgment. It is a remaining posture: he sits like a king for ever. All his enemies are now in a chain, but not yet made...
Read full commentary →He shall judge among the heathen, he shall fill the places with the dead bodies; he shall wound the heads over many countries. many: or, great
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
This verse expands the imagery of judgment to include complete conquest and filling the earth. 'He shall judge among the heathen' presents the Messiah exercising judgment on a cosmic scale - not just against individual enemies but among all peoples and nations. 'Heathen' (Hebrew 'goyim') refers to non-Israelite peoples, indicating universal scope. 'He shall fill the places with the dead bodies' em...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(6) **He shall judge.**—Comp. Psalm 9:8, &c.
**He shall fill.**—The construction is peculiar, and in the Hebrew for *heathen *and *corpses *there is a play on words. A slight change in the vowel pointing gives a better construction than is obtained by understanding any word as the Authorised Version does, and critics generally: *He judges among the heathen fulness of corpses. *At first the poet me...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**14-15. visit this vine--**favorably (Psa 8:4).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 110
Christ's kingdom.
--Glorious things are here spoken of Christ. Not only he should be superior to all the kings of the earth, but he then existed in glory as the eternal Son of God. Sitting is a resting posture: after services and sufferings, to give law, to give judgment. It is a remaining posture: he sits like a king for ever. All his enemies are now in a chain, but not yet made...
Read full commentary →He shall drink of the brook in the way: therefore shall he lift up the head.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
This concluding verse presents the Messiah's final vindication and exaltation. 'He shall drink of the brook in the way' employs humble imagery - refreshing Himself from a small brook during a journey. This picture of humiliation and human need contrasts with the cosmic judgment just described. The metaphor suggests the Messiah experiences real weakness, thirst, and vulnerability in His earthly jou...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(7) **Drink . . . lift up.**—The victorious leader, “faint yet pursuing” (Judges 8:4), pauses at the stream that crosses his path, and then refreshed, with head once more erect, continues his pursuit of the foe. Such is undoubtedly the meaning of this verse, and we need not suppose a sudden change of subject, as some critics do, as if the picture representing a thirsty warrior were unworthy of Jeh...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**16. it--**the "vine" or
**they--**the "people" are suffering from Thy displeasure.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 110
Christ's kingdom.
--Glorious things are here spoken of Christ. Not only he should be superior to all the kings of the earth, but he then existed in glory as the eternal Son of God. Sitting is a resting posture: after services and sufferings, to give law, to give judgment. It is a remaining posture: he sits like a king for ever. All his enemies are now in a chain, but not yet made...
Read full commentary →