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Psalm 45:11
So the king will desire your beauty, honor him, for he is your lord.
9Kings’ daughters are among your honorable women. At your right hand the queen stands in gold of Ophir.
10Listen, daughter, consider, and turn your ear. Forget your own people, and also your father’s house.
11So the king will desire your beauty, honor him, for he is your lord.
12The daughter of Tyre comes with a gift. The rich among the people entreat your favor.
13The princess inside is all glorious. Her clothing is interwoven with gold.
Notice
The king desires the bride’s beauty, while the command to honor him makes this wedding song speak of affection and rank at once.
Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.
What response do you have to the king’s desire for the bride’s beauty?
Write on thisHow do you understand “honor him” within this royal wedding scene?
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Where else Scripture says this
12 passages readers most often link with this verse, and the thread each one shares with it.
This verse's connections, by chapterThe Bible's strongest chapter linksHover or tap a book to trace it
Psalm 95:6Oh come, let’s worship and bow down. Let’s kneel before the LORD, our Maker,Psalm 45 asks the bride to honor her king; Psalm 95 summons worshipers to bow before the LORD, their Maker.
Isaiah 54:5For your Maker is your husband; the LORD of Armies is his name. The Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer. He will be called the God of the whole earth.Marriage and lordship meet in both texts: the king is the bride’s lord, and Isaiah names the LORD as husband.
Song of Songs 4:1–5Behold, you are beautiful, my love. Behold, you are beautiful. Your eyes are like doves behind your veil. Your hair is as a flock of goats, that descend from …Both passages celebrate a woman’s beauty within the language of love, with Psalm 45 setting that celebration at a royal wedding.
Zephaniah 3:17The LORD, your God, is among you, a mighty one who will save. He will rejoice over you with joy. He will calm you in his love. He will rejoice over you with …The shared thread is delight in another: the king desires the bride’s beauty, while the LORD rejoices over his people.
Philippians 2:10–11that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth,Both concern honor: the bride is told to honor the king, and Philippians describes every knee bowing at Jesus’ name.
Song of Songs 7:10I am my beloved’s. His desire is toward me.Desire joins these passages: the king desires the bride’s beauty, and the Song’s speaker declares that her beloved desires her.
Song of Songs 1:8If you don’t know, most beautiful among women, follow the tracks of the sheep. Graze your young goats beside the shepherds’ tents.Both address a woman through her beauty, though Psalm 45 concerns a king and the Song passage gives directions among shepherds.
Luke 24:52They worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy,Honor is the limited shared thread: the bride is told to honor the king, while Luke records worship offered to Jesus.
Psalm 45:6Your throne, God, is forever and ever. A scepter of equity is the scepter of your kingdom.Kingship links these lines: verse 11 commands honor for the king, while verse 6 describes an enduring throne and a scepter of equity.
Philippians 3:8Yes most certainly, and I count all things to be a loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord, for whom I suffered the loss of all …Lordship links the passages: the bride is told to honor her lord, and Paul prizes knowing Christ Jesus as his Lord.
Song of Songs 7:6Both celebrate the beauty of a loved woman, linking her beauty with the delight or desire of the one who loves her.
Psalm 2:12Give sincere homage to the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish on the way, for his wrath will soon be kindled. Blessed are all those who take refuge in him.Both command honor: Psalm 45 tells the bride to honor the king, and Psalm 2 commands sincere homage to the Son.
One step
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Encouragement
The command to honor the king comes within a wedding song full of delight. The bride’s beauty matters to him, and his desire for her is celebrated.
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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).