THE MESSIAH THE LORD, THE KING, THE PRIEST, AND THE JUDGE This psalm is the most quoted by the New Testament, being the psalm concerning the Lord Christ. When the Pharisees and the Sadducees intended to test our Lord Jesus Christ, He responded by an answer that muted them. “He asked them: What do you think about the Christ? Whose Son is He? When they said to Him: ‘The Son of David’, He said to them: ‘How then does David in the Spirit call Him Lord?’, saying: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool’” (Matthew 22: 42-44). Here we find 4 facts: 1- This psalm is written by the prophet David 2- It is proclaimed to him by the Holy Spirit 3- It is a Messianic psalm. 4- The Christ is the Son of David and his Lord; He is the incarnate Son of God. Commenting on this situation, the Evangelist says: “No one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone question Him anymore” (Matthew 22: 46). , the apostle Peter referred to it in his sermon on the day of the Pentecost(Acts 2: 34-35); And the apostle Paul referred to it in his epistle to the Hebrews (Hebrews 1: 13). According to some scholars, this psalm is sung in the enthronement of any king of the descendants of David, with the following program1: a- The enthroned ruler, setting forth in a procession to the royal throne in the temple (2) b- “The rod of strength” presented to him is a sign of his royal authority (2) c- The centerpiece of his enthronement is anointing him with the holy oil together with prayers for sanctification (3) d- Shouting loud for the new king, and proclaiming him a king (4). e- The new king appearing before the whole people, as being chosen and supported by God (5-6). 1 Stuhlmueller, p. 129. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 179 f- The new king drinking the water of life from a holy place , like the fountain of Gihon in the valley of Kedron, east of Jerusalem, where Solomon was enthroned a king (1 Kings 1: 39-40), Or in the temple of Jerusalem, being the fountain that gives life to the whole city, and even to the whole kingdom. 1- The Messiah, the Lord 1 2- The Messiah, the King 2 - 3 3- The Messiah, the Priest 4 4- The Messiah, the Judge 5 - 7 1- THE MESSIAH, THE LORD: “The Lord said to my Lord, ‘Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool” (1) I wish we are not among His enemies, not only among His nonbelieving enemies, but also among those with a defiled life. “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the law of God” (Romans 8; 7). The Savior proclaims the meaning of those words in the gospel, when He asked the Pharisees and the Sadducees: “If the Christ is the Son of David, How then does David in the Spirit call Him Lord?” (Matthew 22: 43) … As far as we are concerned, He is not two persons: One as God, and another as Man; But He who is the Son of God, is Himself the Son of David. God does not sit; but It is Him who took a body who sits; … the incarnate Word1. (St. Jerome) Let us then believe that He is the Son of David, and the Lord of David as well. Let us not be ashamed that He is the Son of David, lest we would offend the Lord of David2. (St. Augustine) How could He who reigns over all together with the Father, ascend to Him to get the Kingdom? To this I answer that God the Father gives the Kingdom to the Son who became Man; For when He ascended to heaven, He sat at the right hand of Majesty in the highest, until His enemies are made His footstool; as He is told by the Father3. 1 Homily 36 on Ps. 109 (110). 2 On Ps. 110 (109. 3 Commentary on Luke, homily 128. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 180 (St. Cyril the Great) “Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool” (1). When the Christ through His Manhood taken from us, sat at the right hand of the Father, we became worthy of having the Holy Spirit, by whom we destroy our enemies the demons, the sins, and the iniquities, We overcome the death and the Hades, and we ascend to heaven, where the Christ our head is, He who made us His body1. (St. (Mar) Ephraim the Syrian) “The Lord said to my lord, ‘Sit at My right hand’” (1). The Lord said this, not to a servant, but to the Lord of all, to His Son to whom He submitted everything. “But when he says that ‘all things are put under Him’, it is evident that He who put everything under Him is excepted; … that God may be all in all” (1 Corinthians 15: 27). The only begotten Son is the Lord of all; Yet the obedient Son of the Father did not get his Godhead (as something new to Him), but he is a Son by nature according to the will of the Father. … For the Son says: “All things have been delivered to me by My Father” (Matthew 11: 27; Luke 10: 22). He says: “have been delivered to Me”, not as though it was not Mine before2!. I have to remind you of a few of what is said concerning the sitting of the Son at the right hand of the Father. The psalm says: “The Lord said to my Lord, ‘Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool’” (1). And the Savior confirms this in the gospels, saying that David has not uttered that on his own, but through an inspiration of the Holy Spirit, saying: “How then can David (in the Spirit) call Him Lord, saying, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool’” (Matthew 22: 43). Peter and the eleven apostles used this evidence with the same words of the psalm, in the book of Acts, on the day of the Pentecost (the dwelling of the Holy Spirit), in his sermon to the Israelites3. He who was crucified on the Golgotha, after descending down to Hades, ascended to heaven from the Mount of Olives on the East, where His Father said to Him: “Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool4” (1). (St. Cyril of Jerusalem) 1 .18- تفسیر خر 12 :24 مقال 2.9 :10 مقال 3 .28 :14 مقال 4.14 :3 https://coptic-treasures.com/ 181 Being himself a king, Who is He whom he calls his Lord, who is to sit at the right hand of the Father, but the Christ the Son of God, the King of kings, and the Lord of lords1. (Lectantius) In order to take away their faulty thoughts, And to make His Person and His Godhead known to them in a more clear way, the Lord brought David into the debate (Matthew 22: 41-4). Although they assumed that He is only a man, they said that the Christ is “the Son of David”. That is why He presented to them a prophetic testimony about His Sonhood, and His equality to His Father in honor2. If all the creation worship the Christ, By saying “Let the angels worship Him” (Hebrew 1: 6), the apostle Paul means the highest of rational beings; according to the verse, saying: “To which of the angels He ever said: Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool’?”, which means that he is more exalted than the angels.. The Holy Book forbids us to worship the creation, saying: “Make heed, lest you lift your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun, the moon, and the stars, all the hosts of heaven, you feel driven to worship them, and serve them” (Deuteronomy 4: 19). As it is forbidden for man to worship the heavenly beings, he is likewise forbidden to worship the other created beings, even if one of them is superior to all. By that, man is committed to perceive that the Christ is the Creator, and not created; And although, for our sake He got united to a created body with a rational soul; yet he is worshipped by all creation for being God3. About what “throne of grace” (Hebrew 4: 16) is he speaking?... That royal throne, about which it is written: “The Lord said to my Lord, ‘Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool” (1). What does the apostle Paul mean by saying: “Let us therefore come boldly” (Hebrew 4: 16)? We come boldly because we have a High Priest without sin, challenging the world, saying: “I have overcome the world” (John 16: 33); By which the apostle means that, although He, being a Man, suffers everything, yet He is pure of sins. Although we are all under sin, yet our High Priest is without sin4. 1 Lactantius: The Divine Inatitules 4: 12. 2 Homilies on Matt 71: 2. 3 On the Epistle to the Hebrews. 1: 6. 4 On the Epistle to the Hebrews. 7: 6. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 182 The psalmist prophesied beforehand what the Lord Christ will say on the cross, “My God, My God, Why have You forsaken Me?” (Psalm 22: 1) … He described His burial, saying: “I am counted with those who go down to the pit … adrift among the dead” (Psalm 88: 4-5)…. About His resurrection he said: “For You will not leave My soul in Sheol, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption” (Psalm 16: 10)…. About His ascension he said: “God has gone up with a shout, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet” (Psalm 47: 5)…. And about the sitting on the right hand of God (the Father), he said: “The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool” (Psalm 110: 1). (St. John Chrysostom) “Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool” (1), For His sitting at the right hand does not cancel making His enemies His footstool. Or as the apostle says: “For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet” (1 Corinthians 15: 25)..As, even when they are put under His feet, He will not stop reigning. But it is understood that he will reign eternally, and they will perpetually remain under His feet1. (St. Augustine) It would be impossible for the human mind to perceive the fellowship and the equality between God the Father and His only begotten Son, But this was uttered by the prophet David by an inspiration of the Holy Spirit, as said by our Lord in the holy gospel. Saying: “The Lord said to my Lord”, refers to the equality of the Father and the son in the Godhead; while the sitting at the right hand refers to that His reign is well-established, and perpetual; And the right hand refers to honor and reverence. Saying “The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at My right hand”, refers to the fact that the Son did not take that honor and sitting by force, but, according to the apostle: “Being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a servant and coming in the likeness of men; And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2: 6-8). 1 Sermon on the Maunt 1: 11: 30. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 183 The Son was not downward then was arose up, nor has taken an honor which was not His in the first place; But while still in the bosoms of His Father, He humbled Himself; And after His passion, death, and resurrection, He took glory and honor, that were perpetually in Him as God; according to His own words: “Now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was” (John 17: 5). “Sit at My right hand” was said to Him by the Father after His incarnation. Saying: The Son sat at the right hand of the Father, means that He, in His incarnation, was worshipped by the creation in an integral way; For we do not worship the Godhead of the Son, separately from our worship of His Manhood; But we worship the incarnate Son in His wholeness. (Father Onesimus of Jerusalem) 2- THE, MESSIAH, THE KING: Jesus Christ is the Messiah, the King, and the Priest, at the same time; something that would never be realized if the king is from the tribe of Judah, and the priest is from the tribe of Levi; as none could have the two roles, or the two titles together. Our Christ reigns as the King of kings, through His exalted priestly love. “The Lord shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies” (2) The psalmist did not say: {Kill Your enemies}, but “Rule in the midst of Your enemies”; Namely, Let Your enemies, who were strangers, become Your friends … Be their Lord, and rule in their midst1. (St. Jerome) His rod of strength out of Zion, is the preaching of the holy gospel that started from Zion, then spread all over the world. … As the ‘rod’ is the sign of reign, The preaching of the gospel became the sign of the reign of Christ. And because the apostles, preaching the gospel, as though with an iron rod, have destroyed the idols, and their temples, like earthen vessels. And the honorable cross is also called ‘A rod of strength’; For, as the rod of Moses performed signs, saved the Israelites, and destroyed their enemies, So is the cross of our Lord, through performing great 1 Homily 36 on Ps. 109 (110). https://coptic-treasures.com/ 184 wonders, saves the people of God, and destroys His enemies. That honorable cross, together with the preaching of the gospel, are sent by the Lord – the Holy Spirit. By “His enemies” he refers to the idol worshippers, as well as to those who believed among the circumcised. Behold, the prophet openly refers to the Holy Trinity, equal in essence and Godhead. For by saying: “The Lord said to my Lord”, he refers to the Father and the Son; and by saying: “The Lord shall send the rod of Your strength”, He refers to the Holy Spirit, the wonder-Maker, and the Giver of the rod of strength to the apostles, by which they could strike the heads of the adversaries, and instruct the believers. (Father Onesimus of Jerusalem) “Rule in the midst of Your enemies”. “Rule”; in the midst of the heathens, the Jews, the heretics, and the false brethren; We would not understand this verse in a perfect way, if we do not see that it was actually realized1. (St. Augustine) The Father says to His Son: “Rule in the midst of Your enemies” (2). It was their own evil, and not the will of Christ, that made them enemies. Here, we find a great gift from the Lord. Previously, the spiritual evil (Ephesians 6: 12), has been generally used to make our necks bow under the yoke of captivity; that even David wrote, in a certain way about the hands of those who conquered him., saying: “The plowers plowed on my back” (Psalm 129: 3). Now, the spiritual evil submitted to the conquest of Christ, and to His hands; that the evil that causes the bitterness of captivity, became subject forever in the behavior and works2. (St. Ambrose) “Your people will offer themselves willingly in the day of Your power; In the beauties of holiness, from the womb of the morning, you have the dew of your youth” (3) According to the Septuagint and the Coptic versions, it came as: “You shall have the authority (the initiation) in the day of your power, in the splendor of saints, from the womb before the star of the morning” 1 On Ps. 110 (109). 2 The Patriarchs, 4: 17. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 185 According to St. Jerome, the day of His power is the day of His crucifixion, when He poured His splendor on His saints. … When He said: “Father, into Your hands, I commend My Spirit” (Luke 23: 46), He uttered those words as a Man; Yet, He did not say them out of weakness, For He is One with the Father; He is the beginning, the same as the Father. He opens the door for His saints, that when they seek from Him, they will get, and be in splendor. St. Jerome says: [The view that ‘He gets, in order to give’ should not offend anyone; for it is just an expression that suits the Manhood of the Son; Having taken the body of man, he had to talk the language of man; The incarnate Christ, is Man, a true Man … Anyway, if the weakness of the body offends you; If the cross, the wounds, the scourges, and all the troubles of the cross, offend you, You should go back to the beginning, to His divine eternal birth, then you will not be offended. For the father, who did not take a human body, says about the Son: “From the womb, before the star of the morning, I gave birth to You” …He says that in a human way; … Though He has no womb, but He cannot refer to His Fatherhood in any other way, without the use of a human language. … “From the womb”, namely, from My Being, My Nature, My Essence; from the Essence of My Godhead. Everything concerning the Godhead of the Father is for the Son whom He has begat1] Saying: “Before the star of the morning”, the psalmist means to say, ’before the creation of the sun, the moon, and the stars’, the true Light was born’. In another psalm he says: “By Your light, we see light” (Psalm 36: 9). This oracle is addressed to the Father: [Oh Father, in the light of the Son, we see the light – the Holy Spirit2]. According to St. Augustine: To those who asked Him: ‘Who are You?’. Jesus answered: ‘I am from the beginning’” (See John 8: 25). And as the Father is also ‘from the beginning’, from whom the only begotten Son is born, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1: 1). … What then. If both the Father and the Son are from the beginning, Are there two beginnings? Far from it! … As the Father is God, and the Son, as well, is God, both the Father and the Son are from one beginning. 1 Homily 36 on Ps. 109 (110). 2 Homily 36 on Ps. 109 (110). https://coptic-treasures.com/ 186 What does he mean by saying: “In the splendor of the saints”?. …not the splendor while the saints are still carrying their earthly bodies, and groaning in a mortal corruptible bodies. “From the womb, before the star of the morning, I have begotten You”. The ‘womb’ and the ‘bosom’ refer to a secret place. “From the womb”, from what is secret, from what is hidden, from My being, My Essence, That is what the ‘womb’ means; for “Who will declare His generation?” (See Isaiah 53: 8). That is what we should understand from the saying of the father to the Son: “From the womb before the star of the morning, I have begotten You” … What then is the meaning of “Before the star of the morning?” … This expression could be taken according to the literal and the symbolic meaning. According to the literal meaning, it was actually realized, for the Lord was born by the virgin St. Mary at night, according to the testimony of the shepherds who saw His star while in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night” (Luke 2: 7-8) 1. (St. Augustine) Christ, the Sun of the resurrection, was born before the morning star; and with Him, the ray of life was granted. I wish therefore, no one despise the word, lest he would unintentionally despise himself2. (St. Clement of Alexandria) See that unique birth which took place “Before the morning star”; before the creation of anything, even before the angels. For, “All things were made through Him” (John 1: 3) 3. (Father Caesarius of Arle) It is obvious that the Holy Book that knows more than anyone, concerning the nature of everything, says through Moses: “In the beginning, God created the heaven and earth” (Genesis 1: 1). But, as far as the Son is concerned, the prophet David says on the tongue of the Father: “From the womb, before the morning star I gave birth to You”; And, “You are My Son; Today I have begotten You” (Psalm 2: 7) 4. (St. Athanasius the apostolic) “the day of His power”, is said about the day of His crucifixion, when He quaked the earth, darkened the sun, opened the graves, split 1 On Ps. 110 (109). 2 Exhort . To Heathen, 9. 3 Sermon 142: 6. 4 Defence of the Nicene Definition, 3: 13. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 187 the rocks, broke down the everlasting gates of Hades, and set the captives free. “The day of His power”, is also said about the day of judgment, when He comes in the glory of His Father, and proclaim His might to all. On that day, the authority will be His, namely, the cross He carried on His shoulders, as said by the prophet Isaiah, and as also said by Him: “Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven” (Matthew 24: 30); and then the saints will be in honor and splendor, shining like the sun. (Father Onesimus of Jerusalem) 3- THE MESSIAH, THE PRIEST: “The Lord has sworn, and will not relent, ‘You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek” (4) “The Lord has sworn”; He presented a holy promise, not to Him who was born before the morning star, but to Him who was born from a virgin after the morning star: You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek”. This verse was interpreted by the apostle Paul in his epistle to the Hebrews; about Melchizedek who has neither a father nor a mother (See Hebrew 7); According to all the church scholars, He has no father, concerning the flesh; and has no mother, being God1. (St. Jerome) How would God swear, He who forbids men to swear (Mathew 5: 34)? … Because through the common habit of swearing, man is prone to break his vow, and his vow may be truth or vanity, he was forbidden by God to swear…Whereas God, when He swears, He would never break His vow2. The sacrifice, offered nowadays by the Christians all over the world, which appeared a long time after that event (The offering of the sacrifice of Melchizedek), is said by the prophet to be realized in Christ, who comes in the flesh: “You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek” (4); in other words, not according to the order of Aaron; which had to come to an end, once the things referred to through the shadows, shine. (St. Augustine) 1 Homily 36 on Ps. 109 (110). 2 On Ps. 110 (109). https://coptic-treasures.com/ 188 Oh Pharisee … If you are indeed a scholar in the holy Scriptures inspired by God, and has knowledge of the oracles and the prophecies of the saintly prophets, you would remember how the blessed David said by the Spirit about the Christ, Savior of the world: “The Lord has sworn, and will not relent: ‘You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek’” (4). … Now, tell me: Was there any Pharisee, or a scribe, who ministered to the Lord according to the order of Melchizedek; He who blessed Abraham, and received tithes from him? … and about whom the wise and blessed apostle Paul also wrote, saying: “Beyond all contradiction, the lesser is blessed by the better” (Hebrew 7: 7)…. Therefore, Abraham, the father of fathers, the origin and the beginning of Israel, was blessed by the Priesthood of Melchizedek, whose Person and Priesthood refer to Christ our Savior, who became our High Priest, and the Apostle of our confession, who presents to God the Father, those who believe in Him, not through bloody sacrifices, and offerings of incense, but by consummating them to holiness through a ministry higher than the law; … For “We have such a High Priest who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens” (Hebrew 8: 1) 1. (St. Cyril the Great) Concerning Him, the Lord swears, saying: “You are a priest forever”; He truly said “forever”, for all the other priests are temporary, and all of them are subject to sin; Whereas He has an eternal Priesthood;, and without sin;… All are subject to death; Whereas He is living forever. For, how could He perish He who is able to save the others2? (St. Ambrose) How could Melchizedek be called “The High Priest of God”?; If, before the Levite priesthood, there had been no Levites to offer sacrifices3? (The scholar Tertullian) This Priesthood will endure forever, and will never go away like the priesthood of Aaron, whose altar, was designated by God in one place in the world; And once that place was no more, and the altar was no more, their priesthood came to an end; and the people lost the offering and the forgiveness. … The Priesthood of Christ, on the 1 Comm.. on Luke, homily ترجمة د. نصحي عبد الشھید. . 132 2 Flight from the world, 3: 16. 3 An Answer to the Jews, 2. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 189 other hand, with bread and wine, according to the order of Melchizedek, and with an altar spread all over the world, will endure forever; And Christ the High Priest, is truly the King of Righteousness, and the King of Peace1. (St. (Mar) Ephraim the Syrian) “After the return of Abraham from the defeat of his enemies (Genesis 14: 17), he was received by Melchizedek, the Priest of God Most High, with bread and wine; a banquet that portrayed beforehand, the secret banquet we enjoy nowadays. That Priest has been a symbol and an image of the Christ the true Priest of God Most High; About whom the prophet David says: “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek” (4); And the bread and wine of that offering, were an image of the pure bloodless sacrifice, about which the Lord spoke on the tongue of the prophet, saying that it will be offered to Him “from the rising of the sun, even to its going down” (Malachi 1: 11) 2. (Father john of Damascus) Again, it is written in the Book of Genesis 14: 18: “And king Melchizedek of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was priest of God Most High; He blessed Abraham” …As to Melchizedek, being a symbol of Christ, the Holy Spirit proclaims in the book of psalms, a vow by God the Father to His divine Son, saying: “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek” (4). This rite referred to, is certainly drawn from that old sacrifice … For who was Melchizedek, priest of God Most High, who offered bread and wine, and blessed Abraham, but a true symbol of our Lord Jesus Christ; who delivered Himself a sacrifice to God the Father; … He offered what Melchizedek has offered; namely bread and wine; His body and precious blood. The blessing that was given to Abraham, continued in the Christians. For, if “Abraham believed the Lord, and the Lord reckoned it to him as righteousness” (Genesis 5: 6), Everyone who believes in God, and lives by faith, God will reckon it to him as righteousness…. ; and will be justified and blessed in the faith of Abraham; according to the words of the apostle Paul: “Abraham believed the Lord, and the Lord reckoned it to him as righteousness” (Galatians 3: 6). … Now, you who believe, will be reckoned as children of Abraham; As the Holy Book has 1 .24- تفسیر تك 1 :14 الأرشمندریت أدریانوس شكور: المائة مقالة في الإیمان الأرثوذكسي للقدیس یوحنا الدمشقي، مقال 2.86 https://coptic-treasures.com/ 190 previously proclaimed that the Gentiles will be justified by faith (Galatians 3); and God has promised Abraham that “in him, all the families of the earth will be blessed” (Genesis 11: 3). Therefore, the blessing given to Abraham by the priest Melchizedek, mentioned in the Book of Genesis, has been proclaimed as a portrait of the offering of Christ, of bread and wine, practiced, and consummated by the Lord Himself at the last supper, when He offered His disciples bread, and mixed wine and water. Who is the Priest of God Most High, more than our Lord Jesus Christ, who delivered Himself to God the Father a sacrifice, the same as that offered by Melchizedek, of bread and wine; namely, His body and blood1? (Cyprian, the martyr) They rejected2 the trumpet of Isaiah that declared the pure conception (Isaiah 7: 14). They muted the harp of the psalms that sang about His priesthood (Psalm 110: 4) They silenced the guitar of the spirit that sang about His kingdom (Psalm 110: 4) And under huge silence, they shut up the news of the great birth that led the heavenly and the earthly creatures to cry out: [Blessed be Him who shined out of the utter silence3]. (St. (Mar) Ephraim the Syrian) St. John the beloved saw Him clothed with the garment of priesthood, down to the feet, and girded about the chest (breasts) with a golden band (Revelation 1: 13)…. According to St. Victorianus: [What is this garment of eternal priesthood but His body risen, uncorrupted, from the dead? And what are His (breasts) but the knowledge, and of the pure spiritual knowledge, thumbing with life, granted to the churches4?] … 4- THE MESSIAH, THE JUDGE: “The Lord is at Your right hand; He shall execute kings in the day of His wrath” (5) 1 Letters 63: 4. أي ، الشعب الیھودي. 2 3 Ephraim the Syrian: HYMNS, The Classice of Western Spirituality, translated by Kathleen E. McVey, 24: 14. 4Victorianus of Petovium (d. c. 4304) Comm. On Revelation, 1: 4. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 191 Commenting on this verse, St. Jerome says: “The devil showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, and said to Him: ‘All this authority I will give You, and their glory, for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish;” (Luke 4: 5, 6); …. “He shall execute kings in the day of His wrath” The psalm starts by saying: “The Lord said to my Lord: ‘Sit at My right hand”; and now he says: “The Lord is at Your right hand’”. If the Son is sitting at the right hand of the Father, How does the psalmist say now that the Father sits at the right hand of the Son? … This I say to confirm clearly that the Son is equal to the Father1. (St. Jerome) Those “kings”, He wounded by His glory; by the weight of His name, He made them weak, with no strength to realize what they desired. They strived with their whole strength to wipe out the Christianity from the earth; but in vain, because: “Whoever falls on this stone will be broken, but on whoever it falls, it will grind him to powder2”. (St. Augustine) By saying “The Lord is at Your right hand”, this shows that the “right hand” mentioned in verse (1) was not a location; For, if the Son is at the right hand of the Father, how could the Father now, be at the right hand of the Son? … The former “right hand” therefore refers to the fatherly honor; whereas the later “right hand” means company. (Father Onesimus of Jerusalem) “He shall judge among the nations. He shall fill the places with dead bodies. He shall execute the heads of many countries” (6) Commenting on executing kings, judging nations, and the multitudes of bodies filling the place, St. Jerome says that in the cross, those who did not believe the apostles were offended; and as Simon the elder said: “This child (Jesus) is destined for the for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which will be opposed” (Luke 2: 34). He shall crush the heads of the nonbelievers, and the falterers, whose faith is not perfect; He shall execute heads in (many); For if he said ‘in all countries’, we would have no hope3. (St. Jerome) 1 Homily 36 on Ps. 109 (110) 2 On Ps. 110 (109). 3 https://coptic-treasures.com/ 192 Wherever you are, O who oppose Christ, you are rising up like a tower that is definitely destined to fall. It would be better for you to be humble; to cast yourself at the feet of Him who sits at the right hand of the Father, to build the ruins in you. … For if you persist on your evil rising up, you will be cast down, and will never be built up; as it is written: “He shall destroy them and not build them up” (Psalm 28: 5). .. I dare say, O brethren, that it is better for you, to walk here with wounded heads, than to be with heads destined to fall under a verdict of eternal death1. (St. Augustine) “He shall drink of the brook by the wayside. Therefore He shall lift up the head” (7) According to the Septuagint and the Coptic version, it came as: “By the wayside, He drinks the water of the valley; Hence He shall lift up the head” According to Josabius of Caesaria2: [The brook or the river of which the Lord Christ drinks is the temptation of passion through which He passed; As He said to the Father: “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will” (Matthew 26: 39); And, having drank that cup in obedience even to death, He lifted His head up; And as said by the apostle Paul: “Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name” (Philippians 2: 9). “He shall drink of a brook by the wayside” (7). Let us see what is “the way”, then see what is the “brook” (or the flood drain by the way side). “The way” is the way of this world, the way through which He walked … He came to this world, walked along our way, and drank of the (flood drain) in this world. Those flood drains collecting water from rain, storms, and tempests, and not water of the springs, are not found on the tops of the mountains, but down in the valleys, and low places; and their water is not pure, but muddy and loaded with mire; So are the water of this world, always turbid and filled with temptations. Do you wish to know how it is said that He drinks of such disturbed water? 1 On Ps. 110 (109). 2 Proof of the Gospel, 5: 3. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 193 The Lord Himself said: “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful” (Matthew 26: 38); And the Evangelist says: “He began to be sorrowful and deeply depressed” (Matthew 26: 37). Our Lord, therefore drank of the water of the flood drains of this world, the water of sorrow, in which there is no joy. He filled His cup of this muddy water; That is why He prayed, saying: “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me” (Matthew 26: 39). He drank of this muddy water, not in his house, but “by the wayside”, on His way to some other place… Now, if the Lord drinks of the water of this world, how it would be for His faithful ministers? He who is the Head of all, lifted up His head, and not His soul, for He is always upright. He lifted up our heads, we who were bowed down and unable to look up to heaven, but only down to earth. Do you want a proof that He lifts up the head of man? Remember when he loosed a woman whom Satan has bound for eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way rise herself up (Luke 13: 10-17). He lifted the head of that woman who lived her whole life bowed to the ground, and she worshipped Him1. (St. Jerome) It is said “flood drain” about the brook filled with temptations and tribulations’ And “the way” about the present age through which we pass. Saying that the Christ had to drink from the “flood drain”, the psalmist means that He had to go through tribulations; As the apostle also says: “For that He Himself has suffered being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted” (Hebrew 2: 18). Yet, after passing through the test, He lifts up the head; namely, that men would know that He is the King over all. Our Lord drank of the “flood drain”, of the cup of death, when He was passing through the way of this world; Then He lifted up the head, namely, His glory and majesty. (Father Onesimus of Jerusalem) 1 Homily 36 on Ps. 109 (110). https://coptic-treasures.com/ 194 AN INSPIRATION FROM PSALM 110 LET ME ACQUIRE YOU O MY LORD, MY KING, MY INTERCESSOR, AND MY CROWN By the spirit of prophecy, the prophet David’s soul exulted when he saw Your secrets; He desired to acquire You; For with You, he seeks nothing on earth. Seeing You, his Lord, sitting at the right hand of the Father; The gate of hope in heaven opened up before him. You alone, can reconcile the Father with humanity; Not by mere talk, but by the giving love; Your sitting at the right hand of the Father, and the sitting of the Father at Your right hand, Draw my insight, and even my whole being; You are the head of the church, O Power of the Mighty Father; What else would we need, when You sit in the midst of Your church? And, at the same time, You sit at the right hand of the Father? My father Abraham bowed before Melchizedek, Your symbol; He presented tithes to Him, when he felt Your greatness in Him; You are the heavenly High Priest; You alone, are without sin; Acquiring You, and being clothed by You, we carry your righteousness; Intercede by Your precious blood, to forgive all our sins; And to grant us the fellowship of Your glories. The rod of Your kingdom, O King of kings, destroys the power of the enemy; The devil has no more place in our hearts; Having fallen down from heaven like lightening; We came to have the authority to trample over all his tricks, deceptions, and lies The enemy is exposed by the power of Your cross; And has no reputation, being weak and helpless; You have set us kings, O King of kings; Grant us to live by the heavenly royal spirit. You are the judge of the whole earth; https://coptic-treasures.com/ 195 Before You, the devil paraded all the kingdoms of the world in one moment; With the false assumption that he will rein on them forever; He claimed that he can grant them to whom he chooses; In his ignorance, he counted You as seeking the world; When You are the Rich who chose to be poor; To make His believers rich by the heavenly glory; You came down to our earth; And walked along the way of thorns and temptations; You drank the water of our sorrow; To present Yourself to us, the true Way; To carry us in You, and to bring us forth into the bosom of Your Father; To gush in us the water of the living Spirit; To water us from the fountains of Your love; To satisfy us with the bread that comes down from heaven; What else would we seek, O our Lord, our King, our heavenly Priest, the Judge of the whole earth?! https://coptic-treasures.com/ 196 RABLE OF CONTENTS PSALM 101: THE VOWS OF THE KING. An Introduction to the psalm; The befitting royal behavior: (a- Behaving wisely through the dwelling of the wisdom of God in his depths b- Setting nothing wicked before his eyes); “A perverse heart shall depart from me”; Getting attached to the saints; His household to be as a holy church; A conclusion. -- An inspiration from psalm 101: Reign, O Lord, in my depths. PSALM 102: A PRAYER OF SOMEONE POOR, SUFFERING FROM ISOLATION: A personal wail; A collective wail; A more personal wail; A conclusive praise. -- An inspiration from psalm 102: I am poor, I have no support but from You. PSALM 103: BLESSED ARE YOU, O MERCIFUL LORD: Bless the Lord, O my soul; An exalted salvation; God, the wholly Merciful; The divine throne. -- An inspiration from psalm 103: Let me join the choir who praise You. PSALM 104: GLORY BE TO THE GREAT CREATOR Between psalm 104 and the Book of Genesis. The divine Creator; The divine care; “The earth s full of His possessions”; A praise by the psalmist to the Creator. -- An inspiration from psalm 104: How amazing You are in Your care, O my Creator/ PSALM 105: THE PERPETUAL FAITHFULNESS OF GOD TO HIS PEOPLE A call to praise and to remember God’s mercies; God’s covenant and the promised land; Joseph in Egypt; The Israeli people in Egypt; The enjoyment of the promised inheritance -- An inspiration from psalm 105: Let me reveal myself to You, who knows my depths, so that You would reveal Your secrets to me; for I still do not know You as I should. PSALM 106: REJOICING IN THE FORGIVENESS OF SINS https://coptic-treasures.com/ 197 A call to praise the Lord; A prayer for the sake of the congregation; A confession and seeking salvation from the Lord; A rebellion in the days of the prophet Moses; A rebellion in the promised land; God’s chastisement and mercy; A supplication and a praise. -- An inspiration from psalm 106: I praise You, O Forgiver of sins https://coptic-treasures.com/ 198 THE FIFTH BOOK OF PSALMS THE LIVING WORD OF GOD (Psalms 107 to 150) PSALM 107: THE WORD OF GOD, THE HEALER A call to confession and thanksgiving; Salvation from getting lost in the midst of the wilderness; Salvation from bondage; Salvation from sickness; Salvation from the dangers of sailing in the great waters of the world; The divine care. -- An inspiration from psalm 107: Glory be to You, O Mighty Savior. PSALM 108: GOD IS OUR REFUGE God, a refuge in affliction; God, the hope of His people. -- An inspiration from psalm 108: Through praising You, my whole being will be filled with Your glory. PSALM 109: OUR CRUCIFIED CHRIST A lamentation or a praise? A cheating tongue and an evil behavior; The destiny of the wicked; “I have become a reproach to them”; Rejoicing in the cross. -- An inspiration from psalm 109: My heart is wounded inside me. PSALM 110: THE MESSIAH: THE MESSIAH, THE LORD, THE KING, THE PRIEST, AND THE JUDGE The Messiah, the Lord; The Messiah, the King; The messiah, the Priest; The Messiah, the Judge. -- An inspiration from psalm 110” Let me acquire You, O my Lord, my King, my Intercessor, and my Crown.
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