“A Revolt Against the
Redeemer & His Reign”
By Ben Bailey
Introduction:
1.
While the
author of Psalm 2 is not explicitly stated in the Psalm introduction, we can
know from Acts 4:25 that David is the author.
2.
The date
of Psalm 2 is not exact, but it is somewhere around 1,000 years before Christ.
Two evidences that support this date are:
a.
David,
the author, lived between 1040-970 A.D.
b.
Possibly,
due to its order, Psalm 2 may be older than some of the other Psalms by David
(c.f. Acts 13:33).
3.
Psalm 2
is highly Messianic. It speaks both
of the Christ and His kingdom.
4.
One of
the key messages in Psalm 2 is to trust in God and His son and do not rebel (Vs.
12).
I.
A
Majority Rebellion (Vs. 1-3).
A.
In vs. 1
the majority of the people is in a fury and is scheming a plot against God.
The word “nations” represents the Gentiles, while the “people”
probably refers to the Jews.
B.
In Vs. 2
the Government is against God and His Anointed (Christ, c.f. Acts 4:25f).
C.
Verse
three describes the government and nations plot to destroy and thwart God’s
plans.
D.
Why is
everyone in such an uproar? The
Divine commentary in Acts helps us to understand why.
1.
Due to a
sermon in chapter 3 of Acts, around 5,000 people obeyed the word and rejected
any other rule of authority, king, or kingdom besides Christ and the church
(Acts 4:5).
2.
The
governmental and religious elite of that day (Acts 4:5-6) did not accept Christ
as the authoritative cornerstone for salvation, instead they set out to thwart
the plans of God by hushing the Apostles (Acts 4:7, 10-12, 17-18).
3.
Both
Herod and Pilate gathered against Christ to destroy Him.
But, in so doing, they fulfilled God’s purpose (Acts 4:27,28; I Pet
1:19-20).
4.
After the
Apostles return to their own, and evaluate the situation, they quote Ps 2:1-3 as
a relative fulfillment to the situation which happened, and pray for more
boldness.
II.
The
Major’s Response (Vs. 4-5).
A.
In
response to a national outrage God does 2 things:
1.
God
laughs and derides the futile plans of men (Vs. 4; Ps 37:17, 59:8).
God laughs when men try to stop His plans because it is impossible (Eccl
1:15, 7:13).
2.
God
speaks to them in His anger (Ps 7:11).
3.
It humors
God when man thinks he can change God’s way, & it infuriates
Him when they try!
III.
The
Messiah & His Monarchy (Vs. 6-9).
A.
The
Established King (Vs. 6).
1.
The word
for set in vs. 6 literally means to establish, to place in an unmovable
position.
2.
This king
is one chosen and established by God, not men.
3.
The King
is established in Zion. Zion could
refer to two possible places:
a.
Zion is a
figure of speech referring to Jerusalem (Isa 2:3, I Kings 8:1).
b.
Zion is a
figure of speech referring to the Church of Christ (Heb 12:22).
This is the most probable explanation.
B.
The King
will be the Son of God. (Vs. 7)
1.
This
passage is a direct prophecy of Christ, the Son of God.
(Acts 13:33, Heb 1:5, 5:5).
C.
The
extent and power of the Messiah’s Monarchy (Vs. 8-9).
1.
Christ is
Lord over all nations and all peoples (Acts 2:36, Rev 19:16).
2.
Christ’
Kingdom (the church) is over all kingdoms (Rev 11:15).
3.
Vs. 9 is
a dual prophecy to the New Testament.
a.
It
relates to the words of Christ that will crush the unfaithful (Jer 23:29, Heb
4:12, Jer 18:1-11, Rom 9:20-23).
b.
It refers
to the unharmed glorified state of Christians who overcame the world and will
reign with Christ (Rev 2:27).
IV.
Our Response (Vs. 10-12).
A.
In light
of the indestructible kingdom of God’s Son, Kings and Judges are to be
instructed by Him.
B.
We are to
serve Him with fear (awe) and rejoice with trembling.
(Rom 7:4, Phil 4:4).
Conclusion: