Psalm 2

God's Righteous King

1 Why do the nations conspire

and the peoples plot in vain?

2 The kings of the earth rise up

and the rulers band together

against the LORD and against his anointed, saying,

3 ‘Let us break their chains

and throw off their shackles.’

4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs;

the Lord scoffs at them.

5 He rebukes them in his anger

and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,

6 ‘I have installed my king

on Zion, my holy mountain.’

7 I will proclaim the LORD’s decree:

He said to me, ‘You are my son;

today I have become your father.

8 Ask me,

and I will make the nations your inheritance,

the ends of the earth your possession.

9 You will break them with a rod of iron;

you will dash them to pieces like pottery.’

10 Therefore, you kings, be wise;

be warned, you rulers of the earth.

11 Serve the LORD with fear

and celebrate his rule with trembling.

12 Kiss his son, or he will be angry

and your way will lead to your destruction,

for his wrath can flare up in a moment.

Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

In 1949, Chairman Mao proclaimed the beginning of the People’s Republic of China, which meant the end of foreign Christian activity in the country, as all missionaries were expelled. In 1967, Enver Hoxha declared Albania to be the world’s first atheist state, in the process outlawing the public practice of religion. Narendra Modi, the current Indian Prime Minister, is seeking to establish a ‘Hindu India’, which has led to increased persecution against the Church.

What does God do in the face of all this? He laughs.

Not at the plight of his people but at the plots of the nations. In vv1-3, we join with the Psalmist as we groan about the defiance of the world as it is. Whereas the blessed man in Psalm 1 meditated on God’s Law, the nations meditate on how to sever their ties to God and his true King. v3 captures their desire, which is to shake off the claims of God and Christ, asserting their own self-rule. In the world as it is, the rallying cry is, “there is no King but me!”

Everyday in the media and seats of government, we see schemes and manoeuvres to unravel God’s good word and will for his world. Whether that is diluting the necessity of integrity in our leaders, or questioning the existence of male and female as biological categories, or neglecting the call to serve and welcome in the outcast and downtrodden. They spurn God’s wisdom and grace. This is what we see from our ground level view. But the Psalmist invites us to observe from the heavenly throne room.

vv4-9 act as a hinge in this Psalm. As Christopher Ash points out, we see the desire of the nations (1-3), over which the decree of God’s promises and purposes is made (4-9) and so a decision is then demanded (10-12).

God laughs at the nations and their rulers. Not like you would watching Dad’s Army, chortling at their numptiness. He “scoffs” at them. Jeers. Derides. What they are doing is foolishness of the lowest calibre. It’s like a flea trying to throw a blue whale like a javelin across the Pacific ocean.

God proclaims that he has crowned his own King. Earlier, the King was described as God’s ‘Anointed’. From this Hebrew word, we get Messiah. Or Christ. Here God is speaking about installing Jesus as King (Luke 3.21-22). He sits on God’s holy and heavenly mountain, ruling with all power and all authority over all the cosmos. As Abraham Kuyper, a 20th century Prime Minister in the Netherlands said, “There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry: 'Mine!’”

The language in v9 might seem quite jarring if we read it out of context. It doesn’t sound like Jesus. In Revelation 12.5, this language is used of Jesus, where it says he rules (literally shepherds) the nations with a rod of iron. The imagery then is of the King carrying out justice, protecting God’s people and world, purging evil from it.

In light of this heavenly coronation of Jesus, the whole world is called to a decision. In vv10-11, there are four summons: ‘be wise’, ‘be warned’, ‘serve the LORD’ & ‘rejoice’. These are great things not just to pray for ourselves but also those who govern us at all levels, from the Queen to our local Councillor (1 Timothy 2.1-4).

But let’s just consider the final command, “Kiss his son”. What does that mean? It is paying due respect and honour to the true King. Or as Philippians 2.10 puts it, bowing the knee to him. For those who do will find refuge in him.

And Psalm 2 closes where Psalm 1 opened (these two are the doors to the whole Psalter). The one who finds sheltering grace in Christ is the truly blessed one. And as Psalm 1 encouraged us to do, we find shelter as we dwell on and delight in God’s word, the one who became flesh and dwelt among us.

Glory be to the Father, who reigns from heaven’s throne.

Glory be to the Son, who rules the world in justice.

Glory be to the Spirit, who leads us into all the heavenly blessings in Christ.