But to the Son: Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of justice is the sceptre of thy kingdom.

“This is the way, dear friends, in which we found our salvation, Jesus Christ, the high priest of our offerings, the protector and helper of our weakness. Through him we fix our gaze on the heights of heaven. In him we see mirrored God's pure and transcendent face. Through him the eyes of our hearts have been opened. Through him our foolish and darkened understanding springs up to the light. Through him the Master has willed that we should taste immortal knowledge. For, since "he reflects the glory of God," "he is as much superior to the angels as the name he has obtained is more excellent than theirs." For thus it is written: "He makes his angels winds, and his servants flames of fire." But of his Son this is what the Master said: "You are my son, today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession." And again he says to him, "Sit at my right hand till I make your enemies your footstool." Who are meant by "enemies"? Those who are wicked and resist his will.”

“It was not only those that were honored with the high priesthood and anointed for the sake of the symbol with prepared oil who were given tribute among the Hebrews with the name Christ. The kings too, at the bidding of God, were made Christs in a certain symbolism by the prophets who anointed them, inasmuch as they also bore in themselves the types of the royal and sovereign power of the only true Christ, the divine Logos who reigns over all. We have also received the tradition that some of the prophets themselves had by anointing already become Christs in type, seeing that they all refer to the true Christ—the divine and heavenly Logos, of the world the only high priest, of all creation the only king, of the prophets the only archprophet of the Father. The proof of this is that no one of those symbolically anointed of old, whether priests or kings or prophets, obtained such power of the divine virtue as our Savior and Lord, Jesus, the only real Christ, has exhibited. None indeed of them, though renowned in rank and honor for so many generations among their own people, ever gave the name of Christian to their subjects from the symbolic application to themselves of the name of Christ. The honor of worship was not paid to any of them by their subjects, nor did they hold them in such affection after their death as to be ready to die for him whom they honored.For none of the men of those days was there such disturbance of all the nations throughout all the world, since the power of the symbol was incapable of producing such an effect among them as the presence of the reality manifested by our Savior; for he received from none the symbol and types of the high priesthood. Nor did he trace his physical descent from the race of priests; nor was he promoted to a kingdom by the armed force of men; nor did he become a prophet in the same way as those of old; nor did he hold any rank at all or precedence among the Jews. Yet with all these he had been adorned, not in symbols, but in actual reality by the Father. Though he did not obtain the honors of which we have spoken before, he is called Christ more than any of them, and inasmuch as he is himself the only true Christ of God, he filled the whole world with Christians—his truly revered and sacred name. He no longer gave to his initiates types or images but the uncovered virtues themselves and the heavenly life in the actual doctrines of truth, and he has received the chrism—not that which is prepared materially, but the divine anointing itself with the spirit of God, by sharing in the unbegotten divinity of the Father. Again, Isaiah teaches this very point, for in one place he exclaims as if from Christ himself, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor, to proclaim release to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind." And not only Isaiah but also David speaks with reference to him and says, "Your divine throne endures for ever and ever. Your royal scepter is a scepter of equity; you love righteousness and hate wickedness. Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your fellows." In this the text calls him God in the first verse, and in the second honors him with the royal scepter, and then goes on, after royal and divine power, to present him in the third place as having become Christ, anointed not with oil made of material substances but with the divine "oil of gladness." And in addition to this he indicates his peculiar distinction and superiority to those who in the past had been more materially anointed as types. And in another place too the same David explains his position as follows: "The Lord says to my Lord, 'Sit at my right hand, till I make your enemies your footstool.' " And "before the day-star I begot you from the womb. The Lord swore and will not repent, You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek." Now this Melchizedek is introduced in the sacred books as priest of the most high God, without having been so marked out by any material unction, or even as belonging by racial descent to the priesthood of the Hebrews. For this reason our Savior has been called Christ and priest, on the authority of an oath, according to this order and not according to that of the others who received symbols and types. For this reason too the narrative does not relate that he was anointed physically by the Jews or even that he was of the tribe of those who hold the priesthood, but that he received his being from God himself before the day-star, that is to say, before the construction of the world, and holds his priesthood to boundless eternity, ageless and immortal. A weighty and clear proof of the immaterial and divine anointing effected on him is that he alone, out of all who have ever yet been until now, is called Christ among all men throughout the whole world. Under this title he is confessed and borne witness to by all and is mentioned thus by Jews, Greeks, and barbarians. Until this present day he is honored by his worshipers throughout the world as king, wondered at more than a prophet, and glorified as the true and only high priest of God, and above all, as the Logos of God, preexistent, having his being before all ages and having received the right of reverence from the Father, and he is worshiped as God. Strangest of all, we, who have been consecrated to him, honor him not only with our voices and with the sound of words but with the whole disposition of our soul, so as to value testimony to him more than our very life itself.”

“"But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever." Behold a symbol of Kingly Office. "A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Thy kingdom." Behold again another symbol of Royalty. Didst thou see how what is created and what is begotten are not the same? For otherwise he would not have made the distinction, nor in contrast to the word, "He made" [etc.], have added, "But unto the Son He said, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever." Nor would he have called the name, "Son, a more excellent Name," if it is a sign of the same thing. For what is the excellence? For if that which is created, and that which is begotten be the same, and they [the Angels] were made, what is there [in Him] "more excellent"? Lo! again "God," with the Article.”

“Above the Apostle proved by authority that the Angels are ministers; here he proves this by an argument taken from the side of Christ himself. Hence he intends here to prove the kingly dignity of Christ; and here he does two things. First he commends the kingly dignity of Christ himself; second he shows his fitness for that dignity, at the place: therefore God has anointed you. Concerning the first he does three things: first he commends the kingly authority of Christ; second, the equity of his rule, at: a rod of equity; third, the goodness of his rule, at: you have loved justice. He says therefore: but to the Son he says, your throne, etc. And these are the words of God the Father speaking through the tongue of the prophet, as through the pen of a scribe. He says therefore: O God, O son, your throne, etc. In this royal majesty is denoted. For a throne is the seat of a king, but a chair is that of a teacher, and a tribunal is the seat of a judge. All of which befit Christ, because he himself is our king: Luke 1:32: he will reign in the house of Jacob; and therefore a throne befits him. Ps. 88:30: his throne is like the sun. He himself is teacher, John 3:2: we know that you have come from God as teacher; therefore a chair befits him. He himself is our judge, Is. 33:22: the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver; and therefore a tribunal is fitting for him. 2 Cor. 5:10: we must all be made manifest before the tribunal of Christ, etc. Now a throne belongs to Christ according to the divine nature, inasmuch as he is God, Ps. 46:8: God is king of all the earth; but according as he is man, it belongs to him from the merit of his passion, victory, and resurrection. Apoc. 3:21: to him who conquers I will grant to sit with me on my throne, as I have conquered and sat down on my Father's throne with him. This throne is everlasting. Luke 1:33: and of his kingdom there will be no end. Dan. 7:14: his power is an everlasting power, which will not be taken away. Now it is clear that that kingdom is eternal, both inasmuch as it belongs to him from nature, because he is God. Ps. 144:13: your kingdom is a kingdom of all ages. Likewise, inasmuch as it belongs to him as man, and this for a twofold reason. One, because that kingdom is not ordered to temporal things, but to eternal ones. John 18:36: my kingdom is not of this world. For he reigns to this end, that he may direct men to eternal life. But it is not so with the kingdom of men; hence their kingdom ends with the present life. The other reason is that the Church, which is his kingdom, endures until the end of the world, and then Christ will hand over the kingdom to God and the Father, to be consummated and perfected. Next he commends his kingdom from equity, when he says: a rod of equity, etc. Now the kingdom is fittingly described by a rod. For tyrannical rule differs from the rule of a king, because tyrannical rule is for its own advantage with the oppression of subjects; but the rule of a king is principally ordered to the advantage of subjects. And therefore a king is a father and a shepherd. For a shepherd does not correct with a sword, but with a rod. Ps. 88:33: I will visit their iniquities with a rod. Likewise a shepherd uses a rod in directing the flock. Micah 7:14: feed your people with your rod. A rod also sustains the weak. Ps. 22:4: your rod and your staff, they have comforted me. Likewise a rod troubles enemies. Num. 24:17: a rod will arise out of Israel, and will strike the leaders of Moab. But this is a rod of equity. Is. 11:4: he will reprove in equity for the meek of the earth. But it must be known that sometimes someone rules by the rigor of law, as when he keeps those things which are just in themselves. But it happens that something is just in itself, which nevertheless, when compared to something, brings about detriment if it is kept; and therefore it is necessary that the common law be applied to this, and if this is done, then it is a rule of equity. The kingdom of the Old Testament was according to the rigor of justice. Acts 15:10: a burden which neither we nor our fathers were able to bear. But the kingdom of Christ is a kingdom of equity and justice, because in it nothing is imposed except a gentle observance. Matt. 11:30: for my yoke is sweet and my burden is light. And Ps. 95:13: he will judge the world in equity. Next, when he says you have loved, etc., he commends the goodness of the ruler. For some keep equity, yet not on account of love of justice, but rather on account of fear, or glory, or dread, and such rule does not last. But this one keeps equity on account of love of justice. He says therefore, you have loved justice, as if to say: that the rod is equitable and straight, this is because you have loved justice. Wisdom 1:1: love justice, you who judge the earth. But he is not just who does not love justice. Matt. 5:6: blessed are they who hunger and thirst for justice. But some indeed love justice, but are remiss in the correction of iniquity; but Christ hates, that is, reproves iniquity. Ps. 118:113: I have hated the iniquitous. Wisdom 14:9: likewise the impious man and his impiety are hateful to God. Ecclus. 12:3: the Most High hates sinners, and has had mercy on those who repent. And therefore he says: and you have hated iniquity. Then, when he says therefore God has anointed you, he shows Christ's fitness for carrying out and governing, where there is a difficulty concerning what he says, "therefore," etc. In these words there is treated the spiritual anointing, because Christ is filled with the Holy Spirit. For was he filled for this reason, because he loved justice? Then he merited grace, which is against that saying of Rom. 11:6: if by works, then it is no longer of grace; and this is the common difficulty. But specifically to the point, because Christ in his very conception was full of the Holy Spirit, John 1:14: full of grace and truth; therefore he did not merit it. I respond. Here the error of Origen must be guarded against. For he held that all spiritual creatures, even the soul of Christ, were created from the beginning, and according as they adhered more or less to God, or turned away from him through the freedom of their will, a distinction was made between angels and even souls. Hence in the Periarchon he says that the soul of Christ, because it adhered more vehemently to God, by loving justice and hating iniquity, merited a greater fullness of grace before all spiritual substances. But this is heretical to say, namely that any soul whatsoever, or even the soul of Christ, was created before the body — which also has a special reason in the case of Christ, because in the first instant the soul was created together with the forming of the body, and the whole was assumed by the Son of God. What then does he mean by "therefore"? One Gloss seems to hold with Origen. But if we wish to save it, we shall say that in Scripture something is said to happen when it becomes known; as when it is said, Phil. 2:8: he became obedient, etc., for which reason God also exalted him, and gave him a name, etc. Did Christ, by the merit of his passion, merit to be God? By no means: for this is the error of Photinus. It must be said therefore that Christ's being God exceeds all merit, but through his passion he merited that it be made manifest everywhere that he is God, and that God had given him such a name, etc. Thus that which he says here, therefore God has anointed you, etc. — so that the sense is: from the fact that you loved justice, you merited that this become known. Or otherwise, and better, in such a way that the word "therefore" denotes not a meritorious cause, but a final one; as if he were to say: in order that you might have those things — namely the perpetual throne, the rod of equity, etc., which have been mentioned — therefore God has anointed you with oil, namely of sanctification, which the Lord commanded to be done, Ex. 30:24ff: with which the vessels and the priests were anointed, Lev. 8:2 and 9:1f, and the kings, as is clear of David, 1 Kings 16:13, and of Solomon, 3 Kings 1:39; likewise the prophets, as is clear of Elisha, 3 Kings 19:16. But why was this sanctification done by anointing? The reason is literal. For men of the East were anointed for festivity, so that they might not waste away, because they are in a region very hot. The poor also were anointed for festivity. 4 Kings 4:2: your handmaid has nothing except a little oil with which to anoint myself. But in the divine Scripture things are handed down to us according to the manner in which men are accustomed to make use of. Because therefore men were then anointed, either on account of the celebration of a feast, or on account of the eminence of the person, therefore to show the excellence of Christ, he says he was anointed with the oil of exultation. For he himself is king. Is. 32:1: behold, a king will reign in justice. And 35: for the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he himself will come and save us. He is also a priest. Ps. 109:4: you are a priest forever according to the order of Melchisedech. He was also a prophet. Deut. 18:15: the Lord will raise up for you a prophet of your own nation and of your brothers, like me. And it befits him to be anointed with the oil of sanctification and exultation. From him, moreover, are the sacraments, which are the vessels of grace. Is. 22:24: I will hang upon him all the glory of his father's house, the diverse kinds of vessels, etc. This anointing also befits Christians. For they are kings and priests. 1 Peter 2:9: you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood. Apoc. 5:10: you have made us a kingdom and priests to our God. Likewise he has the Holy Spirit, who is the spirit of prophecy. Joel 2:28: I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh, etc. And therefore all are anointed, with an invisible anointing. 2 Cor. 1:21: now he who confirms us with you in Christ, and who has anointed us, is God, and who has sealed us, and has given, etc. 1 John 2:20: you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things. But what comparison is there between Christ anointed and Christians anointed? This, namely that he has it principally and first, but we and others have it poured out from him. Ps. 127: like the ointment upon the head, etc. And he says: above your fellows. John 1:16: of his fullness we have all received. Hence the others are called saints, but he himself is the saint of saints. For he himself is the root of all holiness. But he says with the oil of gladness, or exultation, because from this anointing spiritual gladness proceeds. Rom. 14:17: the kingdom of God is not food and drink, but justice and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Gal. 5:22: but the fruit of the spirit is charity, peace, joy. Ps. 103:15: that he might gladden the face with oil. Is. 61:3: the oil of joy for mourning, etc. Now that he says "God" twice — God, God — is explained in two ways. In one way, that the nominative case is repeated, so that the sense is: God has anointed you, through himself as God, but us through you, the mediator of God and men, the man Christ. 2 Pet. 1:4: through whom he has granted to us great and precious promises. In another way, because, according to Augustine in the Gloss, one is of the nominative case, the other of the vocative, so that the sense is: O Christ, who are God the Son, God the Father has anointed you, etc. And that it ought to be explained in this way is more evident in the Greek. But since Christ is not anointed according as he is God, because thus it does not befit him to receive the Holy Spirit, but rather to give it to others, the second exposition does not seem to be true. I respond. It must be said that he is the same in person, both God and man, yet he is anointed inasmuch as he is man. And when it is said: O God, etc., both the one anointing is God and man, and the one anointed likewise is God and man, and one with him in person.”

“But unto the Son, he saith,.... What he does not to angels, and which sets him infinitely above them; which shows him to be a Prince and King, and not a servant, or minister; and which even ascribes deity to him: thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: this, with what follows in this verse, and the next, is taken out of Psa 45:6 which psalm is not spoken of Solomon, to whom many things in it will not agree; he was not fairer than other men; nor was he a warrior; nor was his throne for ever and ever; and much less a divine person, and the object of worship; but the Messiah, and so the ancient Jews understand it: the Targum applies it to him, and mentions him by name in Heb 1:2 and some of their modern writers (z) affirm it is said of the Messiah; though Aben Ezra seems doubtful about it, saying, it is spoken concerning David, or Messiah his Son, whose name is so, Eze 37:25. Deity is here ascribed to the Son of God; he is expressly called God; for the words will not bear to be rendered, "thy throne is the throne of God, or thy throne is God"; or be supplied thus, "God shall establish thy throne": nor are the words an apostrophe to the father, but are spoken to the king, the subject of the psalm, who is distinguished from God the Father, being blessed and anointed by him; and this is put out of all doubt by the apostle, who says they are addressed "to the Son", who is not a created God, nor God by office, but by nature; for though the word "Elohim" is sometimes used of those who are not gods by nature; yet being here used absolutely, and the attributes of eternity, and most perfect righteousness, being ascribed to the person so called, prove him to be the true God; and this is the reason why his throne is everlasting, and his sceptre righteous, and why he should be worshipped, served, and obeyed. Dominion and duration of it are given to him; his throne denotes his kingly power, and government; which is general, over angels, good and bad; over men, righteous and wicked, even the greatest among them, the kings and princes of the earth: and special, over his church and people; and which is administered by his Spirit and grace in the hearts of his saints; and by his word and ordinances in his churches; and by his powerful protection of them from their enemies; and will be in a glorious manner in the latter day, and in heaven to all eternity; for his throne is for ever, and on it he will sit for ever: his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom; he will have no successor in it, nor can his government be subverted; and though he will deliver up the kingdom to the Father, it will not cease. A sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom; the sceptre is an ensign of royalty; and a sceptre of righteousness, or rightness, is expressive of the justice of government; the Syriac version renders it, "a sceptre stretched out"; which is a sceptre of mercy, as the instance of Ahasuerus stretching out his sceptre to Esther shows; and such is the Gospel of Christ, which holds forth and declares the mercy, grace, and love of God to men through Christ; and which may be called a sceptre of righteousness, since it reveals and directs to the righteousness of Christ, and encourages to works of righteousness; but here it designs the righteous administration of Christ's kingly office; for just and true are, have been, and ever will be his ways, as King of saints. (z) Kimchi & R. Sol. ben Melech in loc. & R. Abraham Seba, Tzeror Hammor, fol. 49. 2.”

“Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever - If this be said of the Son of God, i.e. Jesus Christ, then Jesus Christ must be God; and indeed the design of the apostle is to prove this. The words here quoted are taken from Psa 45:6, Psa 45:7, which the ancient Chaldee paraphrast, and the most intelligent rabbins, refer to the Messiah. On the third verse of this Psalm, Thou art fairer than the children of men, the Targum says: "Thy beauty, מלכא משיחא malca Meshicha, O King Messiah, is greater than the children of men." Aben Ezra says: "This Psalm speaks of David, or rather of his son, the Messiah, for this is his name," Eze 34:24 : And David my servant shall be a Prince over them for ever. Other rabbins confirm this opinion. This verse is very properly considered a proof, and indeed a strong one, of the Divinity of Christ; but some late versions of the New Testament have endeavored to avoid the evidence of this proof by translating the words thus: God is thy throne for ever and ever; and if this version be correct, it is certain the text can be no proof of the doctrine. Mr. Wakefield vindicates this translation at large in his History of Opinions; and ὁ Θεος, being the nominative case, is supposed to be a sufficient justification of this version. In answer to this it may be stated that the nominative case is often used for the vocative, particularly by the Attics; and the whole scope of the place requires it should be so used here; and, with due deference to all of a contrary opinion, the original Hebrew cannot be consistently translated any other way, כסאך אלהים עולם ועד kisaca Elohim olam vaed, Thy throne, O God, is for ever, and to eternity. It is in both worlds; and extends over all time; and will exist through all endless duration. To this our Lord seems to refer, Mat 28:18 : All power is given unto me, both in Heaven and Earth. My throne, i.e. my dominion, extends from the creation to the consummation of all things. These I have made, and these I uphold; and from the end of the world, throughout eternity, I shall have the same glory - sovereign, unlimited power and authority, which I had with the Father before the world began; Joh 17:5. I may add that none of the ancient versions has understood it in the way contended for by those who deny the Godhead of Christ, either in the Psalm from which it is taken, or in this place where it is quoted. Aquila translates אלהים Elohim, by Θεε, O God, in the vocative case; and the Arabic adds the sign of the vocative ya, reading the place thus: korsee yallaho ila abadilabada, the same as in our version. And even allowing that ὁ Θεος here is to be used as the nominative case, it will not make the sense contended for, without adding εστι to it, a reading which is not countenanced by any version, nor by any MS. yet discovered. Wiclif, Coverdale, and others, understood it as the nominative, and translated it so; and yet it is evident that this nominative has the power of the vocative: forsothe to the sone God thi troone into the world of world: a gerde of equite the gerde of thi reume. I give this, pointing and all, as it stands in my old MS. Bible. Wiclif is nearly the same, but is evidently of a more modern cast: but to the sone he seith, God thy trone is into the world of world, a gherd of equyte is the gherd of thi rewme. Coverdale translates it thus: But unto the sonne he sayeth, God, thi seate endureth for ever and ever: the cepter of thi kyngdome is a right cepter. Tindal and others follow in the same way, all reading it in the nominative case, with the force of the vocative; for none of them has inserted the word εστι, is, because not authorized by the original: a word which the opposers of the Divinity of our Lord are obliged to beg, in order to support their interpretation. See some farther criticisms on this at the end of this chapter. A scepter of righteousness - The scepter, which was a sort of staff or instrument of various forms, was the ensign of government, and is here used for government itself. This the ancient Jewish writers understand also of the Messiah.”

“But to the Son. That is, to his Son Jesus Christ, he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever, and lasts for eternity. — A sceptre, or rod of equity, is the sceptre of thy kingdom. That is, O Christ, God and man, head of thy Church, judge of all mankind, thou shalt reward and punish all under thee with justice and equity, as thou hast loved justice, and hated iniquity: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee. Many here understand God first named, to be in the vocative case, and that the sense is: therefore thee, O God, thy God, hath anointed: thus Christ is called God. Others take God in both places to be in the nominative case, and to be only a repetition of God the Father; and the sense to be, thee Christ, God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above them that are partakers with thee: by which spiritual unction, some understand graces infused into Christ’s soul at his incarnation, by a greater plenitude of graces than was ever given to any saints whom he made partakers of his glory in heaven; others expound it of an unction of greater glory given to Christ in heaven as man, because by his sufferings and merits he had destroyed and triumphed over sin. See Estius, Cornelius a Lapide, &c. (Witham)”