Psalm 2

 

Why do the heathens rage and the people imagine a vain thing?  The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against his anointed saying Let us break their bands asunder and cast away their cords from us.  He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall have them in derision.  Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath and vex them in his sore displeasure. Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.  I will declare the decree: the Lord hath said unto me, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee.  Ask of me and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.  Be wise now, therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth.  Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling.  Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and ye perish from the way when his wrath is kindled but a little.  Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.

When I Bible Journal I like to look for repeated words.  In verse 1 we see the word “heathen” is used and again in verse 8.  Also in verse 2 we see the word “kings” used and then in verse 6 “my king” and again in verse 10 “kings”.

As I read 30 Days of Praying the Psalms by Julie Meyer she pointed out that this Psalm is like a 4 Act drama unfolding:

Act 1 – the nations raging in defiance against God

Act 2 – God’s response to their rage

Act 3 – Jesus steps in and begins to cry aloud the promises His Father gave him

Act 4 – the voice of the Holy Spirit brings a change to kings, judges and all the people of the earth.

Another outline could put it like this

Verses 1 to 3 defiance

Verses 4 – 6 derision

Verses 7 – 9 declaration

Verses 10 – 12 decision

David Guzik of Enduring Word Commentary has a very good sermon recorded on You Tube based on this Psalm titled “When God laughs.”  Here are some notes from this sermon:

King David seems mystified at the idea and asks the question – why do the nations rage?  What reason do they have to rage against God?  There is no reason in it, there is no benefit in it.  We don’t get any benefit from setting ourselves against the Lord. This idea is predominant in western culture – the less of God the better it would be for everyone.  Things are more and more anti-God today.  This is how it seems.  There are many people conspiring together, united together to fight against God.  It is not only against God but his “anointed” ie the Messiah.  They are not only fighting against God but his Son.  “Let us break their bonds” in pieces.  The ones who oppose God think of him as a bondage bringer that takes away their freedom. That is how most of the world thinks of God today.  They believe God is putting his handcuffs on them.  In fact God is a bondage broker not a bondage bringer.  His “yoke is easy and his burden is light.”  The world fights against God.  What is God’s response? 

Verses 4 – 6 He laughs.  He is not afraid or confused or depressed.  It is not a mocking laugh, he is saying in effect “are you really going to oppose me and think you will get away with it?” 

“This derisive laughter of God is the comfort of all those who love righteousness.  It is the laughter of the might of holiness, it is the laughter of the strength of love.  God does not exult over the sufferings of sinning men.  He does not hold in derision all the proud boastings and violence of such as seek to prevent his will for the blessing of humanity through the establishment of righteousness.” G Campbell Morgan

Notice also God’s posture – he “sitteth in the heavens”.  His location is not earthly.  He occupies his throne over heaven and earth.  “The Lord shall have them in derision.”  He does not say “what am I going to do now?”  He doesn’t only laugh but he acts.  He speaks to rebellious humanity.  He sits in perfect peace and assurance “in the heavens”.  Mankind has tried to oppose God down through the years and yet God holds his will and man loses every time. 

Verse 6 “I have set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.”  God has established his kingdom through his Son Jesus.  The defiant men are mostly seen as kings and rulers in this psalm.  God wants them to see there is a king greater than them.  This kingship is a present reality.  It was established (set) in Jerusalem (Zion).  It was ultimately realised when his Son came to earth.

Verse 7 God’s decree to the nations “I will declare the decree Thou art my Son this day have I begotten thee.”  This is Jesus recalling the very word of his Father to himself.  He was identifying his relationship (begotten) with the Father – Hebrews 1 verse 5.

In verse 8 we see that Jesus will one day rule over the nations.  He is the perfect representation of the Father – Revelation 11 verse 15 shows the consummation of this inheritance.  He will rule over the nations and all judgment is committed to him.

The strength of his reign is seen in verse 9 – like “a rod of iron thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”  The nations are like clay pots that God can shatter with a blow from a rod of iron.

In verse 10 we see how we should react “Be wise now therefore O ye kings be instructed ye judges of the earth.”  First there is a word of counsel to kings and judges of this earth.  There is a word of warning from God – give up this foolish defiance on this earth.  What do you need to do?  Surrender to God.  Give to him the proper reverence he deserves.  When they do give God reverence then they can rejoice but you need to do it “with trembling.”

There is the recognition that God is sitting in heaven and we must honour him – verse 12.  “Kiss the Son lest he be angry and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little.”  This is primarily the kiss of submission where a dignitary receives the humble kiss of an inferior.  He shows reverence.  It hints at the affection God wants.  Be affectionate knowing who God is and how God moves.  Say “I will honour you, I will bow down and kiss your feet and your hand if you were here right now.”  If the judges and kings are commanded to do this so should we also.  We should recognise the total superiority of Jesus as king.  

When the iron bar breaks the pot in pieces – that is when the nations who defy God are broken.  On the other hand there are those who depend on God and as a result are blessed.  That is what God invites us to do – the choice is ours – are we blessed or broken as a result? 

Are you worried, stressed about what is going on around you?  Be actively working for God and stop worrying and fretting.  He who sits in the heavens laughs and we are promised that one day we will be seated with him in the heavenly places. 

Julie Meyer in her book 30 Days of Praying the Psalms by Julie Meyer shows that David not only hears a conversation but is shown the future – he was waiting for the Messiah to come for the first time.  There is the promise of a Saviour and David hears this intimate conversation of God telling Jesus “Just ask me and I will give you the nations.”

If Psalm 2 is calling the leaders of nations, the kings, the judges to walk out in wisdom instruction, humility, servanthood and surrender all while being in complete awe of God then he is also calling us individually to the very same walk.

Francis Chan says of service: “If you show up to serve you will never be disappointed.”  This is serving as Jesus taught throughout the Gospels.  It means to bow down, to be a slave to, embrace humility, be the lowest, be as a waiter doing the menial jobs.  This is how we look and act like Jesus – do the jobs that you don’t need any training to do.  Our place is to completely surrender and allow the Holy Spirit to have his perfect work in our lives.

I found this psalm challenging.  Many today ask the question “why does God not intervene?” when looking at the world around them.  This Psalm shows that nothing goes unnoticed by God.  But God is not worried or anxious.  He actually laughs at how we try our best to exclude God in our lives.  God has already a plan in mind and one day he will reign.  It is amazing to realise that God gave David a glimpse of the future – that his son Jesus would be sent to establish his earthly kingdom through his death on Calvary’s cross.  There is instruction in this psalm – to have wisdom, to take instruction, to surrender and have reverence and honour.  The promise is given at the very end of the psalm but it is our choice – will we put our trust in him today?

Notes from Online Study on Psalm 2 by Courtney Reissig "Teach Me to Feel"

Psalm 2 begins with the nations rebelling against God - note the word "rage".  This pictures strife, people caught up in wars such as we see in our world today.  How do you feel about these wars? How do you feel about the laws that speak of life in the womb and abortion or legal suicide?  Or people persecuted because they are caught with God's word on their phone?  Remember the story in Acts 4 of Peter and John when the spoke God's word and the priests and Sadducees commanded them "not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus".  In response they used this Psalm.  They didn't see it as God's plan spinning out of control but rather God's plan falling into place.  What lesson can we learn from this?  That we need to be fearful? To shrink back in fright? No, we should ask the Holy Spirit to give us boldness.

Psalm 2 is a Psalm of orientation.  Psalms 1 and 2 help us to know the end from the beginning now. They help us to deal with the messy middle of life.

Verses 1 to 3 - a problem is set out.  Back and forth we can see different speakers and responders. In verse 1 the psalmist is asking the questions - there are 4 in total.  Who is the rage against? "Why do the nations plot their hopeless plans?" The question becomes who is it against? It is the Lord and his anointed, not against the king but Yahweh.  He is on his throne.

In verse 3 there is bondage implied. They didn't like the rule of the king and his anointed one.  their rage is against the restraint.  Why does the world not want God?  The world doesn't want God as their king  They are raging against the one true sovereignty of God and the king as he has been set up.  They will stop at nothing to keep God from invading their lives.  If we want to know the end from the beginning the world hates God as king.  The world hates being ruled by God, they always have and always will. If the world hates the king they will also hate the one who follows the king.  Why are people against me? Why does no-one speak to me at work? The key word is found in verses 2 and 3. Unrestrained, fighting against authority. The world doesn't want God as king. In our day people reject Jesus because they don't want him to rule and reign over their lives.

There is not a problem without a solution.  The psalmist tells us what life is supposed to be like - verses 4 to 9 show the solution.  There is a change in who is speaking.  First it was the psalmist asking God what is happening.  Verses 4 to 9 help us see what God sees.  

In verse 4 he has the right perspective. The nations might be plotting against God but their control is all smoke and mirrors.  The king of heaven is enthroned above and what does he do as he watches what is going on?  He laughs.  God holds them in his hand.  They think they can destroy him but he knows their next move.  He is actually mocking them, making fun of them.  They think they can overthrow God but God is in control.  Notice the word "derision".  It means to scoff at and this is what God is doing. He is ridiculing them.  God is laughing but he is also in full control.

There is an important move that happens in this section.  It is not enough to know he controls the nations, we want to know they will not continue to terrorise us.  We want freedom from them. Verse 5.  Up to this point God has been mocking but now the tone shifts.  The one enthroned in heaven laughs at their feeble attempts to overthrow him. Now he speaks to them in his wrath.

Verses 6 to 9 The one spoken of here is not just referring to David but God himself. It was not fulfilled in David.  God told David "I am completely in control, I laugh at the nations but now my wrath is being poured out on them."  David's story ends and every king after him as well.  It was not fulfilled in David's day.  He never completely destroyed his enemies.  It was a mere shadow of what Christ accomplished on the cross and will do one day when he comes again.

There is an ache in Psalm 2 but there is also a promise. We are still waiting for the solution to come, the solution God provides.  We know the end from the beginning.  He prepares us before we get into the rest of the psalms. When we feel the world is hating God we know this is not all there is. He will make everything right eventually. Our natural reaction is to fight back but God does not say his people will dash them to pieces.  His anointed one will do it. God will bring to pass what he says he will do.

There is a call to action in verses 10 to 12. Even though we don't execute judgment on God's part we have an expectation on our lives.  Notice the mention of kings and judges. Psalm 1 showed us 2 ways to live, one the path of righteousness or the other the way of the wicked. Both Psalm 1 and 2 go together.  They talk about what life is supposed to be like, what we can expect.

Psalm 2 is all about the kings and nations refusing the path of God. He establishes who is the anointed one. He comes back to the people who asked in the beginning. He is talking to the kings and nations from verses 1 and 2. He speaks to those raging against God. Your rage will not last. God has told us the end from the beginning. He will bring them to a swift end. Here we see his mercy. It will not last but he tells us how in verse 12 - by paying homage to the Son. Instead of raging against the king remember who is king of all. Bow down to him in worship, submit to the Son, to the Anointed One, to the one you love. If not you will perish. The only way of escaping God's wrath is to cast yourself on God's mercy and kiss the anointed one. The only way to escape is to show respect. He tells them what the end will be like and then gives a way of escape.

The word "blessed" is the same as verse 1 of Psalm 1. Putting both together in the canon of scripture shows us how important they are.  There is so much confusion and loss in the rest of the psalms but in order to make sense you have to know the end from the beginning, how the story ends first before you can make sense of what you are walking through.  You have to know the right path to walk through. The path of the righteous - this is the path that we must take.