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1. Psalms 2:1-3
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Psalms 2:1-3
Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?
The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take
counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed,
saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their
cords from us.
Psalms 2:1-3
We have, in these first three verses, a description of the hatred
of human nature against the Christ of God. No better comment
is needed upon it than the apostolic song in Act 4:27, Act 4:28 :
―For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast
anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and
the people of Israel, were gathered together, for to do
whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be
done.‖ The Psalm begins abruptly with an angry interrogation;
and well it may: it is surely but little to be wondered at, that the
sight of creatures in arms against their God should amaze the
psalmist's mind. We see the heathen raging, roaring like the
sea, tossed to and fro with restless waves, as the ocean in a
storm; and then we mark the people in their hearts imagining a
vain thing against God. Where there is much rage there is
generally some folly, and in this case there is an excess of it.
Note, that the commotion is not caused by the people only, but
their leaders foment the rebellion. ―The kings of the earth set
themselves.‖ In determined malice they arrayed themselves in
opposition against God. It was not temporary rage, but deep-
seated hate, for they set themselves resolutely to withstand the
Prince of Peace. ―And the rulers take counsel together.‖ They go
about their warfare craftily, not with foolish haste, but
deliberately. They use all the skill which art can give. Like
Pharaoh, they cry, ―Let us deal wisely with them.‖ O that men
were half as careful in God's service to serve him wisely, as his
enemies are to attack his kingdom craftily. Sinners have their
wits about them, and yet saints are dull. But what say they?
what is the meaning of this commotion? ―Let us break their
bands asunder.‖ ―Let us be free to commit all manner of
abominations. Let us be our own gods. Let us rid ourselves of all

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restraint.‖ Gathering impudence by the traitorous proposition of
rebellion, they add - ―let us cast away;‖ as if it were an easy
matter, - ―let us fling off 'their cords from us.'‖ What! O ye
kings, do ye think yourselves Samsons? and are the bands of
Omnipotence but as green withs before you? Do you dream that
you shall snap to pieces and destroy the mandates of God - the
decrees of the Most High - as if they were but tow? And do ye
say, ―Let us cast away their cords from us?‖ Yes! There are
monarchs who have spoken thus, and there are still rebels upon
thrones. However mad the resolution to revolt from God, it is
one in which man has persevered ever since his creation, and
he continues in it to this very day. The glorious reign of Jesus in
the latter day will not be consummated, until a terrible struggle
has convulsed the nations. His coming will be as a refiner's fire,
and like fuller's soap, and the day thereof shall burn as an oven.
Earth loves not her rightful monarch, but clings to the usurper's
sway: the terrible conflicts of the last days will illustrate both
the world's love of sin and Jehovah's power to give the kingdom
to his only Begotten. To a graceless neck the yoke of Christ is
intolerable, but to the saved sinner it is easy and light. We may
judge ourselves by this, do we love that yoke, or do we wish to
cast it from us?
Psalms 2:1-3
Introduction
Psalm 1 and Psalm 2 belong together. Psalm 1 begins with
―blessed‖ (Psa 1:1) and Psalm 2 ends with ―blessed‖ (Psa 2:12).
Psalm 1 is about the Word of God and Psalm 2 is about the
incarnate Word of God (Joh 1:14), Christ, the Son of God, the
King of Israel (Joh 1:49).
Psalm 1 is about the teaching of God on the Scriptures that is
meditated in by the believing remnant and especially by the
Lord Jesus. Psalm 2 is about the Messiah, the King of God, the
Person Whom the Scriptures are all about (Joh 5:39) and on
Whom the hope of the believing remnant is based. The law of
God and the King of God belong together. Man must submit to
both in faith. He finds his joy in the Word (Psa 1:2) and sets his

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hope in Christ, the Son of God, the King (Psa 2:12).
As in Psalm 1, Psalm 2 the name of the poet is lacking. From
Acts 4 we know that this psalm is of David, and that in
connection with God‘s promise (2Sa 7:13-14). Psalm 2 is quoted
by the early Christians in their prayer, prayed in response to the
arrest of Peter and John who, after their release, shared their
experiences with their fellow believers. In their prayer following
the report of Peter and John, they quote Psa 2:1-2 of this psalm
(Act 4:25-26).
Immediately following the quote, they say to God: ―For truly in
this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant
Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along
with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel‖ (Act 4:27). Believers
may be the target of the world‘s enmity, but the enmity is
fundamentally directed at God and His Christ.
God rules the nations and especially Israel by the law and He
exercises His government through His King, the Messiah of
Israel. In Psalm 2, the nations are the main subject in that
government exercised by God‘s King from Zion. The rights of
the Anointed do not concern only Israel, but go to the ends of
the earth (Psa 2:8). In Psalm 8 we see that the entire habitable
earth is subject to the Son of Man. From the New Testament we
know that His government also includes heaven (Eph 1:10).
Prophetically, the psalm points to both the first and second
coming of Christ. We may well say that we live just before the
second coming of Christ. However, it is primarily about the time
of the great tribulation that is yet to come. The rebellion of the
nations, of which David speaks in Psa 2:1-3 , will then reach its
climax (Rev 19:19). That is the time when the Lord Jesus will
come back to earth. Then He will judge the rebellious and reign
from Zion. We see this in Psa 2:6-9 .
This psalm is also the first example of what are called the
Messianic psalms (Psalms 2; 8; 16; 22; 24; 40; 41; 45; 68; 69;

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91; 97; 102; 110; 118). Messianic psalms are psalms that are
not applied to Christ, but in which we hear Him speak
personally. We find the evidence for this in the New Testament,
where it is said of these psalms that the Lord Jesus speaks in
them.
The poet of such a psalm is a prophet who by the Spirit speaks
words that only the Lord Jesus has spoken. They come from the
mouth of the perfect King, Christ, Messiah, God‘s Anointed (Psa
2:2). He is the King, Who is given the title Son of God in Psalm
2 (Psa 2:2 ; cf. Joh 1:49). Then we can also apply parts of those
psalms to the faithful remnant and to us.
We can divide Psalm 2 into four sections of three verses:
1. Psa 2:1-3 the worldwide rebellion against the LORD and the
anointed King.
2. Psa 2:4-6 God‘s response to it.
3. Psa 2:7-9 God announces the coming of the Son.
4. Psa 2:10-12 God‘s advice to the nations of the world.
Apart From God
The why-question in Psa 2:1 with which the psalm begins is not
a question to which an answer is expected. It is a question of
amazement in the sense of ‗who in a right mind would dare to
do that?‘ The rebellion of the nations is foolish, unfounded,
senseless. After all, it is clear in advance that all their fussing
will come to nothing, or worse, will end in their ruin (cf. Job
9:4). Their uproar is all wasted effort. And what they devise –
this is the same word as ―meditate‖ in Psalm 1 (Psa 1:2) – is ―a
vain thing‖.
With one single sentence, God refutes all the conspiracies of the
nations and their rebellion against Him. They come up with
proposals that are meaningless because in reality they turn
―against the LORD and against His Anointed‖ (Psa 2:2). In the
discussion of the issues by the nations and their proposed
solutions, God and His Anointed have no place, because the
kings will not submit to Them.

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What the ‗great minds‘ hatch are weapons they set up against
heaven. It is all well-wrapped and presented in pleasant words,
so that their subjects go along easily. But those who have eyes
to see will see that they take counsel together, that they are
joining forces, to banish from society and people‘s thinking
anything that reminds them of God and His Christ.
Everything God says feels to them like ―fetters‖ and ―cords‖ (Psa
2:3). They do not want restrictions imposed on them. They
know well that God and Christ have given rules of life. That they
are aware of this is evident from what they say, because they
speak of ―their‖ fetters and cords. Man feels autonomous and
wants to be free from God. Therefore: Away with the squeezing
yoke of marriage as only valid between one man and one
woman. Away with the squeezing yoke of the family where a
child is raised only by the father and mother by whom it was
conceived and given birth in love.
Nor is their rebellion merely against the LORD by resisting His
law – which is mentioned in Psalm 1 (Psa 1:2). Their rebellion is
profoundly expressed by resisting His Anointed. This is true both
for His first coming (Joh 1:10-11) and for His coming back in
glory (Rev 17:14). The kings and lords of this world refuse to
recognize the authority of the King of kings and Lord of lords.
At His first coming we see a Herod and a Pontius Pilate putting
aside their differences and conspiring to resist the Lord Jesus.
They are a type of the two beasts described in Revelation 13.
Herod is a type of the second beast, the antichrist, the future
false king of Israel (Rev 13:11-18). Pontius Pilate is a type of
the first beast, the future leader of the restored Roman Empire,
the united states of Europe (Rev 13:1-10). They will both fight
against the Lord Jesus at His return, a fight that will take place
in the plain of Megiddo, which is in Har-Magedon (Rev 16:16).
The mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God (Rom 8:7). We
see the enmity at the coming of the Lord, both at His first and

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at His second coming. However, this enmity is not only the
result of man‘s depraved heart, but also and especially the
result of the power of satan, whom the Bible calls ―the ruler of
this world‖ (Joh 12:31).
Psalms 2:1-3
The Psalm begins with a seven line strophe, ruled by an
interrogative Wherefore. The mischievous undertaking
condemns itself, It is groundless and fruitless. This certainty is
expressed, with a tinge of involuntary astonishment, in the
question. ָָ‫ל‬
‫ה‬ ָ
‫מ‬ followed by a praet. enquires the ground of such
lawlessness: wherefore have the peoples banded together so
tumultuously (Aquila: ε ησαν)? and followed by a fut.,
the aim of this ineffectual action: wherefore do they imagine
emptiness? ָ
‫ר‬
‫יק‬ might be adverbial and equivalent to ָָ‫ל‬
‫יק‬‫ר‬ , but it
is here, as in Psa 4:3, a governed accusative; for ָָ‫ה‬
‫ָה‬‫ג‬ which
signifies in itself only quiet inward musing and yearning,
expressing itself by a dull muttering (here: something deceitful,
as in Psa 38:13), requires an object. By this ‫ריק‬ the involuntary
astonishment of the question justifies itself: to what purpose is
this empty affair, i.e., devoid of reason and continuance? For
the psalmist, himself a subject and member of the divine
kingdom, is too well acquainted with Jahve and His Anointed not
to recognise beforehand the unwarrantableness and impotency
of such rebellion. That these two things are kept in view, is
implied by Psa 2:2, which further depicts the position of affairs
without being subordinated to the ‫למה‬. The fut. describes what
is going on at the present time: they set themselves in position,
they take up a defiant position ( ָ
‫ה‬
‫ב‬ֵּ‫ַצ‬‫י‬ ְ
‫ת‬ as in 1Sa 17:16), after
which we again (comp. the reverse order in Psa 83:6) have a
transition to the perf. which is the more uncoloured expression
of the actual: ָֹ‫נ‬
‫ד‬ ַ‫וס‬ (with ָ
ַ‫י‬
‫ד‬ ַ‫ח‬ as the exponent of reciprocity) prop.
to press close and firm upon one another, then (like Arab.
wada, which, according to the correct observation of the
Turkish Kamus, in its signification clam cum aliquo locutus est,
starts from the very same primary meaning of pressing close to
any object): to deliberate confidentially together (as Psa 31:14
and ָֹ‫נ‬
‫ץ‬ַ‫וע‬ Psa 71:10). The subjects ַָ
‫מ‬
‫ץ‬ ֶ
‫ר‬ ֶ‫ֵּי־א‬‫כ‬ ְ
‫ל‬ and ָ
ֹ‫ר‬
‫ים‬‫נ‬ְ‫וז‬ (according to

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the Arabic razuna, to be weighty: the grave, dignitaries, σε ν ,
augusti) are only in accordance with the poetic style without the
article. It is a general rising of the people of the earth against
Jahve and His ָָ
‫מ‬
ַָ‫יח‬‫ש‬ , σ ς, the king anointed by Him by means
of the holy oil and most intimately allied to Him. The psalmist
hears (Psa 2:3) the decision of the deliberating princes. The
pathetic suff. mo instead of refers back to Jahve and His
Anointed. The cohortatives express the mutual kindling of
feeling; the sound and rhythm of the exclamation correspond to
the dull murmur of hatred and threatening defiance: the rhythm
is iambic, and then anapaestic. First they determine to break
asunder the fetters ( ָֹ‫מ‬
‫ֹות‬‫ר‬ ֵּ‫וס‬ = ָ
ֹ‫מ‬
‫ֹות‬‫ר‬ ֵּ‫אס‬ ) to which the ֶָ‫א‬
‫ת‬ , which is
significant in the poetical style, points, then to cast away the
cords from them ( ָ
‫מ‬
‫ּו‬‫נ‬ ֶ
‫מ‬ a nobis, this is the Palestinian mode of
writing, whereas the Babylonians said and wrote mimeenuw a
nobis in distinction from ָ
‫מ‬
‫ּו‬‫נ‬ ֶ
‫מ‬ ab eo, B. Sota 35a) partly with the
vexation of captives, partly with the triumph of freedmen. They
are, therefore, at present subjects of Jahve and His Anointed,
and not merely because the whole world is Jahve's, but because
He has helped His Anointed to obtain dominion over them. It is
a battle for freedom, upon which they are entering, but a
freedom that is opposed to God.
Psalms 2:1-3
The first three verses express the psalmist‘s amazement at
the plans of the nations to overthrow the Lord and His
Anointed One (māšîaḥ, ―Messiah,‖ which in Gr. is christos, the
Christ). Every king anointed by a prophet was a ―messiah,‖ an
anointed one. If he obeyed God his rule had the authenticity of
God‘s election and the support of God‘s power. This often made
the plans of other nations futile.
Verse 1 expresses the psalmist‘s amazement in the form of a
rhetorical question. He cannot believe ―the nations‖ would plot
something destined to fail. These earthly kings actually were
Gr. Greek

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taking a stand . . . against the LORD (v. 2) when they stood
against His Anointed One.
Verse 3 records the nations‘ resolution: they wished to be free
of the political control of this king. Their expression describes
their bondage to this king as if they were tied down. This they
could not tolerate.1
Psalms 2:1-3
The Psalm begins with a seven line strophe, ruled by an
interrogative Wherefore. The mischievous undertaking
condemns itself, It is groundless and fruitless. This certainty is
expressed, with a tinge of involuntary astonishment, in the
question. ‫ה‬ ָ
‫מ‬ ָ
‫ל‬ followed by a praet. enquires the ground of such
lawlessness: wherefore have the peoples banded together so
tumultuously (Aquila: ἐ ησαν)? and followed by a fut.,
the aim of this ineffectual action: wherefore do they imagine
emptiness? ‫יק‬ ִ
‫ר‬ might be adverbial and equivalent to ‫יק‬ ִ
‫ר‬ ָ
‫ל‬, but it
is here, as in 4:3, a governed accusative; for ‫ה‬ ָ‫ג‬ ָ
‫ה‬ which signifies
in itself only quiet inward musing and yearning, expressing itself
by a dull muttering (here: something deceitful, as in 38:13),
requires an object. By this ‫ריק‬ the involuntary astonishment of
the question justifies itself: to what purpose is this empty affair,
i.e., devoid of reason and continuance? For the psalmist, himself
a subject and member of the divine kingdom, is too well
acquainted with Jahve and His Anointed not to recognise
beforehand the unwarrantableness and impotency of such
rebellion. That these two things are kept in view, is implied by
v. 2, which further depicts the position of affairs without being
subordinated to the ‫למה‬. The fut. describes what is going on at
the present time: they set themselves in position, they take up
a defiant position (‫ב‬ ֵּ
‫צ‬ַ‫י‬ ְ
‫ת‬ ִ
‫ה‬ as in 1 Sam. 17:16), after which we
again (comp. the reverse order in 83:6) have a transition to the
perf. which is the more uncoloured expression of the actual: ‫ד‬ ַ
‫ֹנוס‬
v. verse
1
John F. Walvoord, Roy B. Zuck and Dallas Theological Seminary, The Bible Knowledge Commentary : An Exposition of
the Scriptures (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1983-c1985), 1:791.

9. Psalms 2:1-3
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(with ‫ד‬ ַ
‫ח‬ַ‫י‬ as the exponent of reciprocity) prop. to press close and
firm upon one another, then (like Arab. sâwada, which,
according to the correct observation of the Turkish Kamus, in its
signification clam cum aliquo locutus est, starts from the very
same primary meaning of pressing close to any object): to
deliberate confidentially together (as 31:14 and ‫ץ‬ ַ
‫ֹנוע‬ 71:10). The
subjects ‫ץ‬ ֶ
‫ר‬ ֶ
‫י־א‬ ֵּ
‫כ‬ ְ
‫ל‬ ַ
‫מ‬ and ‫ים‬ ִ
‫ֹנ‬ ְ‫רוז‬ (according to the Arabic razuna, to be
weighty: the grave, dignitaries, σε ν , augusti) are only in
accordance with the poetic style without the article. It is a
general rising of the people of the earth against Jahve and His
ַ ַ
‫יח‬ ִ
‫ש‬ ָ
‫מ‬, σ ός, the king anointed by Him by means of the holy oil
and most intimately allied to Him. The psalmist hears (v. 3) the
decision of the deliberating princes. The pathetic suff. ō
instead of êhém refers back to Jahve and His Anointed. The
cohortatives express the mutual kindling of feeling; the sound
and rhythm of the exclamation correspond to the dull murmur of
hatred and threatening defiance: the rhythm is iambic, and then
anapaestic. First they determine to break asunder the fetters
(‫רות‬ ֵּ
‫מוס‬ = ‫רות‬ ֵּ
‫אס‬
ֹ ‫)מ‬ to which the ‫ת‬ ֶ
‫א‬, which is significant in the
poetical style, points, then to cast away the cords from them
(‫ּנּו‬ ֶ
‫מ‬ ִ
‫מ‬ a nobis, this is the Palestinian mode of writing, whereas
the Babylonians said and wrote ‫ֹנּו‬ ֵּ
‫מ‬ ִ
‫מ‬ a nobis in distinction from
‫ּנּו‬ ֶ
‫מ‬ ִ
‫מ‬ ab eo, B. Sota 35a) partly with the vexation of captives,
partly with the triumph of freedmen. They are, therefore, at
present subjects of Jahve and His Anointed, and not merely
because the whole world is Jahve‘s, but because He has helped
His Anointed to obtain dominion over them. It is a battle for
freedom, upon which they are entering, but a freedom that is
opposed to God.2
Psalms 2:1-3
2
Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch, Commentary on the Old Testament. (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2002), 5:54-
55.

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We have in these verses a description of the hatred of human
nature against the Christ of God. No better comment is needed
upon it than the apostolic song in Acts 4:27–28.3
Psalms 2:1-3
Plot in vain (lit.) ‗murmur‘. The picture here may not be so
much of rebellion as of restlessness. What deprives the world of
peace? V 2 replies: there can be no peace while the Lord and his
anointed are rejected. Enmity against God is at the heart of the
fallen nature (Col. 1:21). Anointed (cf. 1 Sa. 16:13; 24:6; Is.
11:1–9). Chains … fetters. It is Satan‘s delusion (Gn. 3:1–5) to
represent divine conditions of blessing as hostile restrictions
holding mankind back from proper freedom. 4–6 The Lord
neither negotiates with rebels, nor adjusts himself to suit their
demands, but simply reaffirms his royal plan: His king is
installed and that is the end of the matter—just as in Genesis 3
the great rebellion did not alter divine sovereignty one iota!
Anger … wrath, respectively the snort of anger (anger felt) and
burning force of wrath (anger expressed). Zion, literally the site
of the Davidic monarchy; prophetically the centre of God‘s new
creation in Christ (Heb. 12:22–24). 7–9 A relationship of
sonship, a promise of inheritance and an enduement with
power. My Son. God figuratively adopted the kings of David‘s
line. Today, their accession day, the beginning of the
relationship. When used of Jesus at his resurrection (Acts
13:32–37) the meaning rather is that God has made publicly
plain what had always been the case. Ask of me. In distinction
from the rebellious king, the Son lives by submissive reliance on
the Father. At this point he was tempted (Mt. 4:8–10) and
prevailed (Mt. 26:39). Iron sceptre … like pottery, the contrast
of absolute power with total helplessness. 10–12 Serve … kiss.
There can be no service to the Lord without submission to the
Son! Fear … rejoice … trembling. There is a distinction between
3
C. H. Spurgeon, Psalms, Crossway classic commentaries (Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway Books, 1993), 8.
lit. literally
cf. compare

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confidence and presumptuousness. Those who kiss the Son
remain ever aware of the fear rightly due to him and the wrath
that is inseparable from his holiness. Blessed (see 1:1). Take
refuge. ‗There is no refuge from him: only in him‘ (Kidner). 4
Psalms 2:1-3
I. The Voice of the Nations (2:1–3)
This is a voice of rebellion—the word ―rage‖ means ―to assemble
tumultuously.‖ It is the Gentiles that are in view (―heathen‖ and
―people‖ in v. 1), and they are rebelling against God and His
rule. The nations are led in rebellion by their kings, and all are
resisting God and Christ. Of course, this voice has been heard
down through the centuries, but it is being heard in a greater
way in these last days. As never before, there is a united voice
of rebellion against the rule of God and Christ. What do the
nations want? Freedom from God‘s rule! ―Let us break their
bands asunder!‖ According to Gen. 10:5, God divided the
Gentile peoples into their lands and nations; see also Acts 17:26
and Deut. 32:8. History shows that the Gentile nations have
rejected God‘s people (Israel), God‘s Word, and God‘s Christ.
The nations do not want to submit to God‘s rule. Like proud
Nebuchadnezzar, they want their own way, and they refuse to
admit that God rules in the affairs of men. See Dan. 4:28–37.
This Gentile rebellion grew more fierce with the establishing of
the church (Acts 4:23–30). But in the last days, it will have its
complete fulfillment as the ―kings of the earth‖ unite to fight
against God (see Rev. 1:5; 6:15; 16:12–16; 17:2, 18; 19:11–
21). 5
Psalms 2:1-3
Foreign nations and rulers (2:1–3). The coronation of a king
marks the accession of a person to a position of power and
authority; for the Davidic kings, that power and authority were
4
D. A. Carson, New Bible Commentary : 21st Century Edition, Rev. Ed. of: The New Bible Commentary. 3rd Ed. /
Edited by D. Guthrie, J.A. Motyer. 1970., 4th ed. (Leicester, England; Downers Grove, Ill., USA: Inter-Varsity Press,
1994), Ps 2:1.
5
Warren W. Wiersbe, Wiersbe's Expository Outlines on the Old Testament (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1993), Ps 2:1.

12. Psalms 2:1-3
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received from God and exercised under his dominion. It is
against this background of divine and regal authority that the
opening words of the psalm must be read. The nations of the
world, their warriors and rulers, are gathering together in an act
of rebellion against God and the king. Although it is possible to
seek an historical background to the rebellious nations (e.g. in
the reign of King Solomon), the psalmist is not necessarily
referring to any particular event in history. The language
reflects primarily all—or any—nations that do not acknowledge
the primacy of Israel‘s God, and therefore of Israel‘s king. Thus,
the verses contain a reflection of the opposite to a theological
ideal. The ideal was that of a world in which all nations and
kings recognized the kingship of God and his appointed
sovereign; the reality was seen anew in each coronation, that
such was not the case. Foreign nations would act violently
against Israel‘s king and in so doing would be rebelling against
divine rule. Hence the opening verses of the psalm introduce a
note of immediacy and drama which permeates the entire
psalm. A new king was coming to the throne, but he would rule
in a world characterized by the violence and danger of foreign
powers. In such a world, human strength would be insufficient;
divine aid would be needed.
The human king is here identified as God‘s anointed. The
royal title is derived from the fact that the king on his
coronation is anointed (1 Kgs 1:45), an act symbolizing that he
was set aside from other persons to perform a particular
service. Although the word rendered ―anointed‖ is the form from
which comes the English title Messiah (derived from the
Hebrew), the presence of the word in 2:2 does not necessarily
mean that the psalm was initially messianic. Here, the reference
of the term in the context of the psalm‘s initial use is simply to
the human king, for whom the coronation was conducted
(cf. Filipiak, Collectanea Theologica 43 [1973] 49–65). It was
only from a more distant perspective in history that the
cf. confer, compare

13. Psalms 2:1-3
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messianic implications of the psalm could be discerned
(see Explanation, below).6
Psalms 2:1-3
The Rebellion of the Nations. Why? In prophetic style, the
psalmist begins with two rhetorical questions. The point of the
questions is to demonstrate the absurdity of those who would
rebel against the decree of the Almighty. Their rebellion against
God‘s people and king is regarded as an attack against God
himself. Basically, this antagonism is aimed at Jehovah‘s
rulership through his anointed (one).7
6
Peter C. Craigie, vol. 19, Word Biblical Commentary : Psalms 1-50, electronic ed., Logos Library System; Word Biblical
Commentary (Dallas: Word, Incorporated, 1998), 65.
7
Charles F. Pfeiffer, The Wycliffe Bible Commentary : Old Testament (Chicago: Moody Press, 1962), Ps 2:1.

14. Psalms 2:1-3
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References: