“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever. The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of uprightness; you have loved righteousness and hated wickedness. Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness” (Psalm 45:6–7 ESV).
The sons of Korah wrote Psalm 45 as a royal wedding song, celebrating a Davidic king whose reign was meant to reflect God’s righteous rule. Yet their words rose far beyond what could be said of a merely human king. They addressed the king as God and declared that his throne would endure forever. Then, in the very next verse, they spoke of “God, your God” anointing him.
That word “anointed” is especially significant. The Hebrew title Messiah and the Greek title Christ both mean “Anointed One.” What might have seemed mysterious in the psalm became clear in Hebrews 1:8–9, where these verses were applied directly to Jesus Christ. The Father addressed the Son as God while anointing and exalting Him as the Messianic King.
Christ’s eternal kingdom is also characterized by perfect righteousness. His scepter is upright because He “loved righteousness and hated wickedness.” Yet His holiness was not cold or joyless. God anointed Him with “the oil of gladness.” In Christ, righteousness and joy belong together.
We live under the reign of the Anointed King. Therefore, we must not measure right and wrong by what our culture approves, but by what God approves. Our King loves righteousness and hates wickedness, so we are called to love what He loves and hate what He hates.
We also reject the lie that holiness robs us of joy. Sin may promise momentary happiness, but lasting gladness is found under Christ’s righteous rule. True joy is found not in accommodating sin, but in the grace of the Anointed King, whose righteousness is credited to us and whose joy becomes our strength.
PRAYER: Dear Father, thank You for giving us Jesus, the eternal and righteous King. Empower us to love what He loves and hate what He hates. Shape our hearts to delight in holiness and find our deepest joy under His gracious reign. May our lives honor the Anointed King in all things. In Jesus’ name, amen.