Human love is a mystery that touches the mystery of God himself. God wishes to be united with humanity as a husband to his wife: he has already done so in the person of Christ.
① 1* 2My heart is moved by an exalted theme
as I deliver my ode to the king,
my tongue as nimble as a writer’s pen.
3You are the finest among all others,
your lips are anointed with graciousness,
for God has blessed you forever.
4Gird your sword upon your thigh, O mighty one,
array yourself with splendor and majesty.
5Glorious and triumphant, ride on
for the sake of truth, for a just cause.
You will see marvelous deeds of your right hand.
6Your arrows are sharp, O king,
they pierce the hearts of your enemies;
nations fall beneath your feet.
7Your throne, O God, will last forever;
a scepter of justice is your scepter.
8You love righteousness and hate wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has anointed you
with the oil of gladness, above your fellow kings.
9Your robes are fragrant
with myrrh, aloes and cassia.
The music of strings gladdens your palace
adorned and glowing with ivory.
10Among your ladies of honor
are daughters of kings;
at your right hand, in gold of Ophir,
stands the queen.
11Listen, O daughter, pay attention;
forget your father’s house and your nation,
12and your beauty will charm the King,
for he is your lord.
13The people of Tyre will bow before him.
The wealthiest nations will seek your favor.
14All glorious as she enters
is the princess in her gold-woven robes.
15She is led in royal attire to the king,
following behind is her train of virgins.
16Amid cheers and general rejoicing,
they enter the palace of the king.
17Forget your fathers and think of your sons,
you will make them princes throughout the land.
18I will make your name famous through all generations;
may all nations praise you forever!
- This psalm could have been written on the occasion of the marriage of a king of Israel with a foreign princess, but perhaps it was a poetic call to the chosen people to fully enter into a covenant with its God, its spouse. God made himself present through his King-Messiah, anointed by him (v. 9). Israel is party to the divine marriage, followed by all the nations who accept the revelation of God and salvation. Verses 13-16 take up the same expressions that we find in Isaiah 60–62.
All this can apply to the Church and to each of us also. Baptism was nothing less than a total gift to Christ. For our part the gift remained with words and gestures, but we already belonged to him and a whole life is not too long for that to become a reality.
Listen, O daughter, pay attention; forget your father’s house and your nation. When marriage takes place, much has to be abandoned. Here, it is the same: one day God will be all for all, but to reach that, one has to forget country and family, one must change one’s way of thinking and one’s habits for those of God.
Forget your fathers, and think of your sons. We can see here Jesus’ promises to those who leave all to serve him.
