"Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline thine ear; forget also thine own people, and thy father's house; So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty: for he is thy Lord; and worship thou him." — Psalm 45:10-11
That the King in this psalm refers ultimately to Christ is evident from revelation. Verses 6 and 7 are quoted as applying to Him in Hebrews 1:8-9. That the bride refers to the church is, of course, a matter of deduction. It is the church which constitutes the bride of Christ, and from that perspective one should study these references. And what may be appropriately said of the bride in general provides instruction for the individual believer.
"Hearken, O daughter… incline thine ear." That is, listen. The first calling of the bride is to listen to the bridegroom. The husband is the head of the wife. and it behooves the bride to give ear to her Head . The way this is done for the believer, of course, is through the word of God. You will recall that when the Lord Jesus was baptized "there came a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him. [Luke 9:35]." And again, on the occasion of His transfiguration: "And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him. Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him. And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid. And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid. And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only [Mat. 17:3-8]." It is the will of God that the believer should be attentive to the voice of the heavenly Bridegroom, and that no voice should have priority over His word. Those who fail to do so are guilty of disobedience.
There is suggested here in addition, it seems to me, another thought. "Consider." There is a difference between those who merely hear and those who listen and learn. It is this latter that the Spirit has in mind in this text. In college there are often those who attend classes as "auditors." They hear all that is said, but are not obligated to take the exams and are not taking the course for credit. Many a believer is that kind of hearer; every church has its quota of them on any given Sunday. But, that is not what the Lord has in mind. He chided those who "hearing… hear not, neither do they understand [Mat. 13:13]." And through James we are exhorted to take the course for credit when he says, "Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves [Jas 1:22]." The word of God is calculated to transform us, but it does so only when we "consider;" that is, when we learn and apply the truths therein.
Immediately there follow two primary principles that are pervasive in scripture. The first is that of separation from the world. "Forget also thine own people, and thy father's house." When God gave the original marriage command He said, "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh [Gen. 2:24]." Here, as we consider the marriage of the church to Christ, the parties are reversed, but the principle is the same. Our new union mandates separation from all that bound us before. The believer who does not separate from the world will soon be swallowed up again by it, and be guilty of spiritual adultery.
The second principle is the key to fulfilling the first: love the lord: "For He is thy Lord; and worship thou Him." He will have no trouble leaving his old loves who is consumed by a new one. And in the end, it is only love than can effectively motivate us to leave the world behind. The fear of the Lord may be the beginning of wisdom, but love is its consummation. The bride will have no difficulty submitting to One she adores. And that is precisely the basis upon which He calls us to separation from the world and unto Him: "If ye love me, keep my commandments [John 14:15]."
That the King in this psalm refers ultimately to Christ is evident from revelation. Verses 6 and 7 are quoted as applying to Him in Hebrews 1:8-9. That the bride refers to the church is, of course, a matter of deduction. It is the church which constitutes the bride of Christ, and from that perspective one should study these references. And what may be appropriately said of the bride in general provides instruction for the individual believer.
"Hearken, O daughter… incline thine ear." That is, listen. The first calling of the bride is to listen to the bridegroom. The husband is the head of the wife. and it behooves the bride to give ear to her Head . The way this is done for the believer, of course, is through the word of God. You will recall that when the Lord Jesus was baptized "there came a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him. [Luke 9:35]." And again, on the occasion of His transfiguration: "And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him. Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him. And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid. And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid. And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only [Mat. 17:3-8]." It is the will of God that the believer should be attentive to the voice of the heavenly Bridegroom, and that no voice should have priority over His word. Those who fail to do so are guilty of disobedience.
There is suggested here in addition, it seems to me, another thought. "Consider." There is a difference between those who merely hear and those who listen and learn. It is this latter that the Spirit has in mind in this text. In college there are often those who attend classes as "auditors." They hear all that is said, but are not obligated to take the exams and are not taking the course for credit. Many a believer is that kind of hearer; every church has its quota of them on any given Sunday. But, that is not what the Lord has in mind. He chided those who "hearing… hear not, neither do they understand [Mat. 13:13]." And through James we are exhorted to take the course for credit when he says, "Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves [Jas 1:22]." The word of God is calculated to transform us, but it does so only when we "consider;" that is, when we learn and apply the truths therein.
Immediately there follow two primary principles that are pervasive in scripture. The first is that of separation from the world. "Forget also thine own people, and thy father's house." When God gave the original marriage command He said, "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh [Gen. 2:24]." Here, as we consider the marriage of the church to Christ, the parties are reversed, but the principle is the same. Our new union mandates separation from all that bound us before. The believer who does not separate from the world will soon be swallowed up again by it, and be guilty of spiritual adultery.
The second principle is the key to fulfilling the first: love the lord: "For He is thy Lord; and worship thou Him." He will have no trouble leaving his old loves who is consumed by a new one. And in the end, it is only love than can effectively motivate us to leave the world behind. The fear of the Lord may be the beginning of wisdom, but love is its consummation. The bride will have no difficulty submitting to One she adores. And that is precisely the basis upon which He calls us to separation from the world and unto Him: "If ye love me, keep my commandments [John 14:15]."
O come, let us adore Him
For our eternal welfare,
"Pastor" Frasier
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