Psalm 2- The Nations Rage

 Psalm 2- The Nations Rage

Psalm 2

1 Why do the nations rebel?

Why are the countries devising plots that will fail?

2 The kings of the earth form a united front;

the rulers collaborate

against the LORD and his anointed king.

3 They say, “Letʼs tear off the shackles theyʼve put on us!

Letʼs free ourselves from their ropes!”

4 The one enthroned in heaven laughs in disgust;

the Lord taunts them.

5 Then he angrily speaks to them

and terrifies them in his rage, saying,

6 “I myself have installed my king

on Zion, my holy hill.”

7 The king says, “I will announce the LORDʼS decree. He said to me:

ʻYou are my son! This very day I have become your father!

8 Ask me,

and I will give you the nations as your inheritance,

the ends of the earth as your personal property.

9 You will break them with an iron scepter;

you will smash them like a potterʼs jar!ʼ”

10 So now, you kings, do what is wise;

you rulers of the earth, submit to correction!

11 Serve the LORD in fear!

Repent in terror!

12 Give sincere homage!

Otherwise he will be angry,

and you will die because of your behavior,

when his anger quickly ignites.

How blessed are all who take shelter in him!

I have read Psalm 2 many times and have written about it before. However, as I was reading it this week, I discovered a curious footnote that I had not ever noticed before. It seems that Peter and John quoted this Psalm in Acts 4:25-26. The human mind is a curious creature that is capable of great insight, but can also be limited by preconceived notions. For example I, and I suspect most modern Christians, read the Old Testament thinking only about the old, and we read the New Testament, thinking only about the new. We forget that there are intertwining threads linking the two. In this case, Peter and John were thrown into prison by the authorities in Jerusalem. Upon their release, their message to their followers included a quote from Psalm 2. The connection is quite interesting if you look closely.

Immediately after Jesus’ crucifixion, both the civil and religious authorities in Jerusalem were convinced that their plan to eliminate this troublesome prophet from Nazareth had succeeded, and that they were rid of this annoying sect that was disturbing the peace in the Roman controlled  province. There was one problem though. Just as was prophesied in Psalm 2, the Lord who sits on his throne in heaven was laughing at their plans! He had installed his king on Zion in the person of Jesus the Messiah and his rag tag group of followers; uneducated fishermen, tax collectors, disreputable women and other obscure people, were proceeding to continue to heal people and perform miracles. This was most inconvenient to both Roman and Jewish ruling authorities. They hauled Peter and John in and threw them into prison, but really couldn’t charge them with any real crime, so they let them go with a stern warning to cease preaching about this Jesus.

Of course, we know the rest of the story about how this only strengthened the new movement of believers in Jesus, and how the church was empowered by the Holy Spirit to go on to affect all the nations of the world. The rulers were warned in Psalm 2, but they did not listen which led to their eventual downfall. First Jerusalem where the temple were destroyed  in 70 AD and later the Roman Empire itself fell, but the Church remained and continues to this day.

We need to be encouraged in our own time by this Psalm. The rulers of this world still conspire and rage against the Lord and His Church, but we still have a King seated on His throne in heaven that is laughing at them. We need to keep out eyes on the true king of the universe and not be overly worried about the plans of the wicked rulers of this present age. Remember, that when all looks lost in the world, the Lord is laughing and appointing some of the most unlikely people to serve Him and deliver His message of hope and love. The death and destruction dealt by the war mongering rulers of the nations can be quite worrisome, but remember, that their plans are vain and empty and are destined to fail. We have read the back of the book, and in the end, we win!