Heb 1:8-9 is a text that is very problematic for many traditional theologies. Here, Psa 45, originally addressed to a Davidic King, is called “God” but, at the same time, he has a God above him, i.e, the Father, even after the ascension and his exaltation. Numerically, there are not just two divine persons, but two Gods, one greater than the other.
To see an example of how desperate some
Trinitarians are to get around and explain Psa 45 and its use in Heb 1:8-9, consider
the following (which does not address the “marriage” theme in Psa 45 and its
implications, and God having a God, and other considerations):
Hebrews 1:8-9 / Psalm
45:6-7
Hebrews 1 extols the
superiority of Jesus in several ways. Particularly striking is verses 8-9 where
God the Father refers to Jesus as God:
But of the Son He
says,
“YOUR THRONE, O GOD,
IS FOREVER AND EVER,
AND THE RIGHTEOUS SCEPTER IF THE SCEPTER OF HIS KINGDOM.
“YOU HAVE LOVED RIGHTEOUSNESS AND HATED LAWLESSNESS;
THEREFORE GOD, YOUR
GOD, HAS ANOINTED YOU
WITH THE OIL OF
GLADNESS ABOVE YOUR COMPANIONS.”
The writer is
quoting, Psalm 45:6-7. But does Psalm 45, in its context, support the claim of
Hebrews 1:8-9 that Jesus is God?
Psalm 45, a maskil of
the sons of Korah, celebrates the marriage of a King: “I address my verses to
the King” (v. 2). Some believe the psalm was directed to Solomon or another
king in the Davidic line. The psalm does speak of marriage (vv. 10-15) and the
King having sons (v. 16).
Yet the language of
this psalm is very exalted, so much so that it seems to go beyond a mere human
king. This King is “fairer than the sons of men” (v. 2a). He is one who
possesses “splendor” and “majesty” (vv. 3-4a). His “name” will “be remembered
in all generations,” and “the peoples will give You thanks forever and ever”
(v. 17). Most striking is 6a which declares, “Your throne O God, is forever and
ever.” The Septuagint and most English translations understand this in the
vocative sense of the King being called or named, “God.” Guthrie observes that
“the punctuation and syntax of the MT [Masoretic Text] support the reading
‘Your throne O God’” (18). The term for “God” is elohim, which is used
over 2,300 times for the God of the Bible. Simon Chi-Chung Cheung notes that
“Ps 45 takes pains to show that the Israelite king shares many of the
attributes, even the title, of the Israelite God” (19). So the psalm’s exalted language and use
of elohim point to this King being divine.
The best candidate
for Psalm 45 is the divine Messiah. The Targum of Psalm 45:2 says, “Your
beauty, O King Messiah.” A divine understanding of the ultimate Davidic King
seems to be the case in Psalm 2 where the nations are called to worship God’s
King and Son—“Do homage to the Son” (v. 12a; v. 6). With Psalm 110:1, David’s
“Lord, “ the Messiah, shares the throne of deity with God the Father. For the
King of Psalm 45 to be a divine being is possible. The writer of Hebrews
certainly connected Psalm 45:6-7 with Jesus’ deity.
So does the writer of
Hebrews quote Psalm 45:6-7 contextually? The answer is likely, Yes. A divine
Messiah is in view in Psalm 45, and the writer of Hebrews drew upon this truth.
This appears to be a case where a NT writer draws upon an OT and that the
coming Messiah is divine. (Michael Vlach, The Old in the New: Understanding
How the New Testament Authors Quoted the Old Testament [The Woodlands,
Tex.: Kress Biblical Resources/Sun Valley, Calif.: The Master’s Seminary Press,
2021], 119-20)