Psalms 2 · ESV Study Bible

The Reign of the LORD’s Anointed

PSALM 2 [†] r Why do s the nations rage [1]

and the peoples plot in vain?

2[†] The kings of the earth set themselves,

and the rulers take counsel together,

against the LORD and against his t Anointed, saying,

3 “Let us u burst their bonds apart

and cast away their cords from us.”

4[†] He who v sits in the heavens w laughs;

the Lord holds them in derision.

5 Then he will speak to them in his x wrath,

and terrify them in his fury, saying,

6[^] “As for me, I have y set my King

on z Zion, my a holy hill.”

7[†] I will tell of the decree:

The LORD said to me, b “You are my Son;

today I have begotten you.

8[^][†] Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,

and c the ends of the earth your possession.

9[†] You shall d break [2] them with e a rod of iron

and dash them in pieces like f a potter’s vessel.”

10[†] Now therefore, O kings, be wise;

be warned, O rulers of the earth.

11 g Serve the LORD with h fear,

and i rejoice with h trembling.

12[^][†] j Kiss k the Son,

lest he be angry, and you perish in the way,

for his l wrath is quickly kindled.

m Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

A Psalm of David, n when he fled from Absalom his son.

PSALM—NOTE ON 2:1–3 The Gentile Kings in Revolt. In vv. 1–2 several kings of Gentile peoples who are vassals of the Davidic king propose a revolt to throw off Israelite rule; in v. 3 they speak their goal.

PSALM—NOTE ON 2:9 break (Hb. tero‘em). As the esv footnote says, the Septuagint (used in Rev. 2:27; 12:5; 19:15) renders this as “rule”; this comes from using the same Hebrew consonants with different vowels (tir‘em).

PSALM—NOTE ON 2:8 nations. That is, the Gentiles, including those in revolt (v. 1). The primary messianic picture of the OT is of the heir of David who will lead his people in bringing the light to the nations, by making them his subjects; this is how the nations of the earth will find blessing for themselves in him (see Gen. 22:18; see also Ps. 72:8–11, 17); thus Paul looks forward to the obedience of faith among all the nations (Rom. 1:5).

PSALM—NOTE ON Psalm 2. When the people of God sing Psalm 2, they remind themselves of how God made David and his descendants to be kings in order to enable them to fulfill the very purpose for which Abraham was called (to bring blessing to all nations, Gen. 12:1–3). Thus it can be called a royal psalm. The pious Israelite realizes that his hope of blessing is now irrevocably tied to the house of David (cf. 2 Sam. 7:12–16), and so he prays that God will keep the king pure. At a time when the Gentile kingdoms that are part of the Davidic empire seek to throw off Israelite rule, this psalm recalls the promises made to the Davidic king at his coronation and notes that the Gentiles will find lasting joy only as subjects of this king. With its prospect of a worldwide rule for the house of David, the psalm also looks to the future, when the Davidic Messiah will indeed accomplish this; in fact, the scope of such an accomplishment calls for a ruler who is more than a mere man.

PSALM—NOTE ON 2:12 Kiss the Son. “Son” (bar) is Aramaic in form, leading some to offer other translations (such as “purely”), or even to suggest large-scale repairs to the Hebrew text (e.g., to make it say “his feet”). But the Aramaic-sounding term is well-suited to a Gentile audience (the kings in revolt). The Son is the heir of David (v. 7). The kiss denotes religious homage, and the Davidic king deserves it (v. 2). It is possible that the he and him of this verse refer to the Lord (from v. 11), though it is more natural to find a reference to the Son, who acts in God’s name. He is therefore the one in whom the faithful take refuge.

PSALM—NOTE ON 2:2 Anointed. Samuel anointed both Saul (1 Sam. 10:1) and David (1 Sam. 16:13), setting them apart as king, whose task was to rule Israel and to embody covenant faithfulness. The word Messiah comes from transliterating the Hebrew word for “Anointed,” and the word Christ comes from translating “Anointed” into Greek. For the Gentiles to rebel against the heir of David is to rebel against the Lord who installed him; it is also to cut themselves off from their only hope of knowing the one true God. In Acts 4:25–26, the early Christians saw the persecution they faced as the same kind of foolish rebellion.