Psalm 110:1 and 4 announce the future reunion of the priestly and royal offices for the people of God. From Moses’s days, the priesthood was the province of the tribe of Levi and the clan of Aaron (Ex. 28–29; Lev. 8–9; Num. 16–17). Even earlier in redemptive history, Jacob’s blessing on his son Judah had foreseen kingship in Judah’s future (Gen. 49:8–12)—eventually in David’s dynasty…Psalm 110, however, announces a priest who will also be a king—like ancient Melchizedek, who was both “king of Salem” and “priest of God Most High” (Gen. 14:18).

Hebrews is my number one book if I were to pick one book of the Bible to keep always with me, because it is—I can say—the whole Bible in ‘one book.’” So my friend Gadissa wrote to me recently. Gadissa, a high school student in Ethiopia, has made an excellent choice for an excellent reason.

Hebrews brings into clear focus the Old Testament’s vast array of theological motifs, events, institutions, and individuals, demonstrating how God’s previous speech through prophets has reached fulfillment in the Son “in these last days” (1:2).

The author establishes his thesis—the superiority of Christ’s person, priesthood, and ministry to all God’s good provisions in past ages (8:1)—from many Old Testament passages. Psalm 110, though, unifies the whole discourse.

Hebrews teaches us to read Psalm 110 as God’s own testimony that Christ is the divine Son who is better than angels, and the eternal high priest who is better than Aaron.

Sermon on Psalm 110

The author describes Hebrews as a “word of exhortation” (13:22). In Antioch of Pisidia, a synagogue leader used the same expression to invite Paul to expound and apply portions of the Law and the Prophets just read (Acts 13:15). In ancient Jewish synagogues and early Christian congregations, the reading of Scripture was followed by explanation and exhortation (1 Tim. 4:13). So there’s good reason to approach Hebrews as a written sermon.

Psalm 110 is the sermon’s unifying source. Four quotations of and five allusions to this psalm are woven throughout the sermon (Heb. 1; 5; 6; 7; 8; 10; 12). Even in chapters lacking verbal echoes of the psalm, mentions of Jesus’s priestly ministry and its heavenly venue reflect the psalm’s influence (Heb. 2; 3; 4; 9; 13). George Wesley Buchanan rightly characterizes Hebrews as “a homiletical midrash on Psalm 110”—a sermonic (“homiletical”) exposition (“midrash”) of the psalm’s significance.

Christ’s Preeminence

In Hebrews, Psalm 110 first appears in the prologue, which celebrates the Son’s superiority both to the ancient prophets and to God’s angels. After the Son “[made] purification for sins” (a hint of his priestly ministry), “he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high” (1:3)—fulfilling Psalm 110:1: “The LORD says to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.”

This allusion foreshadows the quotation of Psalm 110 as the climax of a series of seven Scriptures that establish the Son’s superiority as “God” and “Lord” to the angels (Heb. 1:13). Since Christ is so superior to the angels, heeding his word of salvation is even more crucial than observing the law that God gave through angels at Sinai (2:1–4).

Christ’s Heavenly Priestly Ministry

The Son’s enthronement “at the right hand” of God (1:3) reveals the heavenly venue of Christ’s present priestly ministry.

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