There are still greater beauties in this eternal King (Hebrews 1:8) that should be the heart-desire of every child of God. We have already said that He loves righteousness and hates wickedness. It is because He loves righteousness and hates wickedness that God has set Him above His companions by anointing Him with the oil of joy. Psalm 16 speaks about the full, everlasting experience of joy in the presence of God. The part of the joy of the saints is to live in such intimate communion with their great King, who is completely filled with joy Himself! The question is, why, specifically in Psalm 45:7 is He filled with joy? Obviously, because He loves righteousness and hates wickedness.

Lest you think we are going around in circles, may I point out something easily missed? Although it is difficult to determine the intensity with which the King loves righteousness based on the definition of the Hebrew word,^[1] we can surely see it from the way it is contrasted with the thought of hating wickedness. Hate is an extremely intense word meaning; abhor, detest, loathe, be hostile, have a feeling of open hostility and intense dislike.^[2] So what we are likely to miss in this verse, that stands before our eyes is the intensity, the severity, the passion, the overwhelming drive in the heart of the King as He carries out His mission.

He is not an ordinary man with whom you can share an off-colour joke because His hatred for wickedness is consuming and passionate. He may turn on you and count you among His enemies whose hearts pierced by His arrows (verse 5). You know where you stand with Him and you are constantly driven to confess the sinfulness of your heart in His fervent presence. To desire to be close to the King is to desire to cultivate an intense hatred for wickedness such as you see in Him. It is admirable and desirable.

At the same time that His violent rage is aroused by even the faintest aroma of wickedness, His heart is enraptured with love for righteousness. Justice is that which thrills His heart. Personal character in standing against the sickening perversion of sin is what He finds beautiful beyond description. As His mind dwells on just retribution for the wicked and lavish, gracious blessing for those He has made clean and righteous, the objects of His redeeming love forever, His heart runs rich and deep with love, affection, desire, attraction and enjoyment of deep personal relationship.

What is more delightful in redeemed sinners that anything else in the universe is this intensity of being madly in love with what is right and pursuing it, and of being furiously opposed to wickedness and fighting against it. It is this intensity that makes God so delightful, desirable and beautiful. And to the degree that you and I, like the earthly king in Psalm 45, reflect that intensity in the face of righteousness and wickedness, we reflect the beauty of Christ.