Continuing our short series on the “Royal Psalms,” this week we come to Psalm 2, the great warning to the nations of men that they must yield to Christ’s kingship: “Kiss the Son lest he be angry” and “break them with a rod of iron” (Psalm 2:9, 12). The service begins with the hymn Crown Him With Many Crowns, acknowledging Jesus as the “Lamb upon the throne” whose “reign will know no end.” Psalm 2 contains the striking image of God laughing at the schemes of the heathen rulers, knowing that it is He who “gives the victory to Kings” (Blessed Be The Lord, My Rock, My Might—Psalm 144). This Psalm is often paired with Psalm 1, as it is this morning, contrasting the futile rage of the nations with the blessing of the righteous who is “firmly planted on the banks of God’s great stream of grace.” After hearing from God’s Word, confessing our sins, and professing our fealty to Him, the two hymns we sing during communion present us with a Son who is not angry, but instead lays down His life and sheds His blood for us (There Is No Greater Portrait; Alas! And Did My Savior Bleed). We conclude the service by singing the very words of Psalm 2 back to the Lord: “Reverent worship give the Lord: with your joy mix trembling fear … blessed are all who in Him hide.” —Henry C. Haffner
Key Words: King, Lord, Son, Rulers, Wrath, Kiss
Keystone Verse: The Lord said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you.” (Psalm 2:7)
Psalm 2:1-12
Why do the nations rage 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 Anointed, saying, 3 “Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.” 4 He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. 5 Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying, 6 “As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill.” 7 I will tell of the decree: The Lord said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you. 8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. 9 You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.” 10 Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth. 11 Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. 12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.