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You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed you with the oil of joy above your companions. Ps 45:7

A recent answer suggested God is talking to God here. It would seem there are only two entities in this verse - one is 'you' the other is 'God'.

Regardless of the upgrade this passage received in Hebrews 1:9 which was brought to point to Christ, what is happening here in the Psalm - who is talking to whom?

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    It is a grammatically possible interpretation of both the Greek and Hebrew, inasmuch as, on one hand, Hebrew nouns do not vary with regard to grammatical case, and, on the other, the Septuagintal version of the Psalms consistently renders the vocative of God through the nominative; similarly for Jerome's Latin Vulgate, since ancient Greeks and Romans were notoriously polytheistic, and, whenever invoking a god, they would use its given name, rather than the generic noun for deity.
    – Lucian
    Jun 1, 2021 at 11:59
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    @user48152 - Your question appears to reference the NASB version of Psalm 45. * If you continue to read the NASB version of Psalm 45:16 "In place of your fathers will be your sons; You shall make them princes in all the earth" - Why would this Psalm be addressing God? - Elohim does not have multiple Fathers/Ancestors. Jun 1, 2021 at 13:20

4 Answers 4

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I'd interpret the psalm Messianically.

Psalm 45

For the director of music. To the tune of “Lilies.” Of the Sons of Korah. A maskil. A wedding song.

1 My heart is stirred by a noble theme
as I recite my verses for the king;

The psalm is a Jewish royal wedding song.

2 You are the most excellent of men
and your lips have been anointed with grace,
since God has blessed you forever.

Jesus claimed to be greater than King Solomon in Matthew 12:42

The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon's wisdom, and now something greater than Solomon is here.

John 1:17

For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

Luke 4:22

All spoke well of Him and marveled at the gracious words that came from His lips. "Isn't this the son of Joseph?" they asked.

There is strong evidence that the "You" in verse 2 refers to the Messiah.

Verse 7:

You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed you With the oil of joy above your companions.

Hebrews 1 makes it clear that Psalm 45:7 is messianic.

8 But about the Son he says,
“Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever;
a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom.
9 You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions
by anointing you with the oil of joy.”

Is God talking with God in Psalm 45:7?

Not exactly. The psalmist addresses the Son:

You [the Son] have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; Therefore God, Your God [the Father], has anointed you With the oil of joy above your companions.

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  • Where does ‘son’ come from the text? It is reapplied in Hebrews, but not here
    – Steve
    Jun 1, 2021 at 21:17
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    Do you believe that the epistle of Hebrews was inspired?
    – user35953
    Jun 1, 2021 at 21:47
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    I believe this is called: pick and choose and exclude.
    – user35953
    Jun 1, 2021 at 22:17
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    It was not my theory. It was the theory of whoever wrote Hebrews.
    – user35953
    Jun 2, 2021 at 14:46
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    Believe it or not. I upvoted your question when I saw the -2.
    – user35953
    Jun 2, 2021 at 14:47
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The short answer to the question is "Yes". However, this question has arisen many time before here such as:

Trying to understand the meaning/purpose when it comes to Psalm 45 use of the word "daughter"

Did the writer of Psalm 45:6 think that the human king to which this verse was addressed was Almighty God?

Who is the God of God in Psalm 45:8?

In Ps 45 we can be either understood as a bridal hymn (as was common by some interpreters) or better, as a Messianic Anthem of praise as does its citing in Hebrews 1:7, 8 where Jesus and the Father are talking with each other. Both are called "God" in Ps 45:7 as per the LXX, ὁ θεός, ὁ θεός σου = "God, Your God".

The phenomenon of God speaking to God, or more specifically, the LORD speaking to the LORD is seen in other places:

  • Zech 2:6-12 – the LORD (= YHWH) claims three times that He has been sent by the LORD.
  • Isa 48:11-16 – again, the LORD has been sent by the LORD.
  • Isa 63:7-16 – the LORD (described as a Father) sends His divine servant (the angel of His presence) and His Holy Spirit who is grieved (compare Ps 78:40).
  • Ex 23:20 – the angel of the LORD’s presence has the power to forgive sin (but will not). This and the previous reference clearly make the angel of the presence the pre-incarnate Jesus.
  • Hos 1:7 – the LORD saves by the LORD their God.
  • Prov 30:1-4 – the Son of God is as unfathomable as God Himself.
  • Ps 45 (quoted by Heb 1) talks about the “Son” being God in addition to God the Father.

[See also Psalm 110 – “The LORD says to my Lord” – Jesus asked about this Psalm on how someone could be both Son and Lord of David – see Matt 22:44, Mark 12:36, Luke 20:42, Acts 2:34.]

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Here are the Hebrew text (HEB), the Greek LXX and the respective literal English translations of the relevant part of the verse (Psalm 45:7 NET)

[HEB] עַל־כֵּ֤ן מְשָׁחֲךָ֡ אֱלֹהִ֣ים אֱ֭לֹהֶיךָ (Therefore anointed you God your God)
[LXX] δια τουτο εχρισεν σε ο θεος ο θεος σου (Therefore anointed you God your God)

The "you" in the Psalm is the Davidic king, celebrating his marriage to a lovely princess.

The reason why the noun God appears twice is that the first time it simply points to God (Heb: אֱלֹהִ֣ים; Grk: ο θεος - the determinative article in Greek makes it clear that it is YHWH God and no other); the second time it is specified that it is "your God" (Heb: אֱ֭לֹהֶיךָ; ο θεος σου), that is the King's God.

While certainly this Psalm, and in particular this verse, is undestood by Christians as a reference to the Messiah-King, the God of which verse 7 speaks (even twice) is only the One and Only God, YHWH.

P.S. The case is probably different different with verse 6.

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I would add there are other plurals as well that point to a complex unity of God. Arnold Fructhenbaum is a good source for the grammar. I have paraphrased how he explained the plurals below.

Genesis 20:13 Elohim they caused me to wander
Genesis 35:7 Elohim revealed themselves
2 Samuel 7:23 whom Elohim they went to redeem for themselves
Psalm 58:11 Elohim they judge on earth
Joshua 24:19 holy gods
Psalm 149:2 let Israel be glad in his makers
Ecc. 12:1 remember your creators
Isaiah 54:5 your makers is your husbands
Deut. 4:7 Gods so near

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