Psalm 2:1-3

Untitled Document

To log onto UNITYINCHRIST.COM’S BLOG, Click Here

Share on Facebook

Psalm 2:1-3

Man verses God

Initial Focus of Psalm 2, Mankind On Earth

“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 [Hebrew Messiah, Greek, Christos, Christ] (verses 1-2) David may have been talking about the kings and the religious leaders surrounding Israel of his day when he wrote this. But the LORD inspired David to write this Psalm detailing a major prophetic theme, trend, that will carry right down to the end-time events and themes spelled out in the Book of Revelation (to say nothing of the times we live in just before those events). We see these themes developing in our society today, right under our noses, and they are dangerous.

“the kings of the earth set themselves,” are the political rulers of the world in general. “and the rulers take counsel together,” are the religious rulers. This second verse shows both the political and religious leaders joining forces. Verse 1 shows they are joining together in rage, protesting something, and plotting together about what they’re protesting. Does the Bible mention Psalm 2 anywhere else in a relevant manner? Psalm 2:1-2 details a worldwide movement against something. In David’s time it was the surrounding kings and empires along with their pagan religious rulers trying to rise up and destroy Israel. But the apostle Peter in Acts 4 points to a far bigger event, a bigger worldwide political and religious conspiracy against God and his anointed, Jesus Christ, the Messiah. That takes us to verse 2c, “against the LORD, and against his anointed,” The word “anointed is the Hebrew word “Meshiach,” Messiah in English. In Greek it’s “Christos,” Christ in English. So this worldwide political and religious raging, “imagining a vain thing,” this plotting, conspiracy, is “against the LORD, and against his Messiah, Christ.” So where does the Bible mention a worldwide political and religious raging and conspiracy against God and his Messiah, Christ? Turn to Acts 4, where the first persecution against the early Church is recorded and occurred, against Peter and John. Peter and John return to the Church to give this report as recorded in Acts 4, and in it Peter mentions Psalm 2, quotes right from it. Acts 4:24-27, “And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, Lord, thou art God, which hast made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is: who by the mouth of David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the LORD, and against his Christ. For of a truth against the holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together.”

Psalm 2 is a prophecy about an ongoing and ever-increasing conflict between God and Christ on one side, and the political and religious rulers of the world on the opposing side. Peter in Acts 4 gave a description of it being brought to a new level of intensity where the government and religious leaders of both the Roman Empire and Judea get together, conspire, and put Christ, the Messiah to death. This movement against God and Christ is continuing even now, and will come to a grand-slam climax as shown in the Book of Revelation. But this conflict isn’t one-sided by any means, either. In place of Jesus Christ being bodily on earth right now, his Bride, the Body of Christ is on earth, and the conflict (as Peter showed in Acts 4) continues, and is starting to escalate to a new level again as we approach the times described in the Book of Revelation. The Word of God is now going out into the whole world in all kinds of ways not even imagined in times past. With the advent of the harnessing of electricity in the early 1900s, radio and television were invented, and in the 1960s computers, and then in the 1980s home-computers and the Internet, so that the Word of God is now not only going out in printed form, but by radio, television, and now throughout the world on the Internet. But as the collective Work of the Body of Christ is growing stronger, promoting and teaching the Word of God, the opposition to that collective Work grows stronger as well. The opposition to God and Christ in today’s society (western especially) is growing in leaps and bounds. 50 years ago atheism was a minority movement. Today atheists are growing in numbers so fast that they’re becoming a majority movement---in direct opposition to the things of God and Christ. Notice, today, when the real Jesus of the Bible is preached there is tremendous opposition, both against God and Christ in the day we live in, and it’s getting worse.

A New Level Of Opposition Is Being Reached In Our ‘Modern’ Society

This brings us to our next verse, verse 3, “saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.” What are some of the major “bands” God has given mankind in general, bands, laws which have even been incorporated into the national constitutions of nations, laws of the land and social institutions for thousands of years? The Ten Commandments must stand out above all others as the central structure going into the backbone of all national law and jurisprudence. And the institution of marriage, also protected within the Ten Commandments, goes back to the creation of man in Genesis 2. The recent and ongoing attacks on marriage and the Ten Commandments started with Charles Darwin and his “theory” of evolution in the 1800s, but has really gained a full head of steam in our ‘modern’ society due to the atheists. Atheists and Gay Rights activities are virtually destroying the institution of marriage within our society. And the evil fruits from taking the Bible, any kind of public prayer, and the Ten Commandments out of the structure of our society is reaping very evil fruits. Our modern society is becoming quite lawless, in leaps and bounds. One only has to consistently for a month or two read the newspapers or log onto http://www.foxnews.com or http://www.news.yahoo.com and look at the headlines. There is an evil fruit being borne from casting off these long-cherished cords that bound our societies together in common decency.

It’s interesting, in the Ten Commandments God gave two commandments against paganism, but nothing against atheism. But by the time of David, four generations from Moses and Joshua, David labels atheists in the Psalms. He says, “the fool hath said in his heart, There is no God…” (Psalm 14:1). That is an atheist, folks. As Israel, God’s nation on earth, started to grow, Satan was right there, starting his movement right within them.

related links:

Are the atheists right, or does God really exist and is his Word, the Bible true? See,

http://www.unityinchrist.com/ProofOfTheBible-FulfilledProphecy.htm and,

http://www.ucg.org/booklet/creation-or-evolution-does-it-really-matter-what-you-believe/

What major “chords” has our ‘modern’ society cast away? See,

http://www.ucg.org/booklet/ten-commandments/

Psalm 2:4-6

Focus Of Psalm 2 Shifts To God’s Throne

Now the focus of Psalm 2 shifts radically, from mankind on earth, right up to God’s throne, which is pictured in Revelation 4:1-5, “After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking to me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter. And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone [Jasper: it’s color is clear, probably a diamond, a clear crystal, a reflector of light and color. Sardine stone: Sardius, it’s color is fiery red. So imagine a combination of these two stones.]: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in the sight like unto an emerald [emerald green]. And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold. And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.” This will help put this verse in proper context. Psalm 2:4, “He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the LORD shall have them in derision.” Satan, influencing puny man, inspiring the political and religious leaders of the world to increasingly oppose God’s Plan, and ultimately get puny man to try to oppose Jesus Christ at his 2^nd coming is totally laughable in God’s eyes. God could dissolve all physical matter in the universe, in a second, and everything including puny mankind would disappear in one blinding atomic detonation 20 billion light-years across. All physicists know that there is some very powerful and yet unexplained force which holds all the protons in every single nucleus of every single atom making up physical matter together. All protons are positively charged particles, and all things of like charge repel each other. When a small quantity of uranium or plutonium has its nucleus of protons unleashed, “unloosed,” a huge atomic detonation, explosion takes place. At the very end of God’s Plan of Salvation for mankind, described in Revelation 21:1 such an atomic detonation takes place, when God dissolves this present earth and universe and re-creates another one, the new heavens and new earth. Focus on the word “dissolve” in 2^nd Peter 3:10-13, it is translated from a Greek word which means “unloosed.” Physical matter is “unloosed” in a nuclear detonation, like what happened in Hiroshima. Imagine the whole universe being “unloosed.” It would amount to a nuclear detonation 20 billion light-years across, the Big Bang in reverse. 2^nd Peter 3:10-13, “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved [Greek, unloosed], what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation [conduct] and godliness, looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for a new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.” Now compare to Revelation 21:1, this is the same event. It isn’t the “Day of the Lord” that occurs during the Tribulation, but the end of the whole Plan of God. Revelation 21:1, “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.” So Satan getting the political and religious leaders together to oppose Jesus Christ, and ultimately oppose his 2^nd coming is utterly laughable in God’s eyes, and this is exactly what David says in Psalm 2:4, “He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the LORD shall have them in derision.”

God’s Response

Psalm 2:5, “Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure.” Nothing is going to stop God’s Plan, nor his Son’s second coming. This short verse is shown in its full dimension in Revelation chapters 16 through 19 (see http://www.unityinchrist.com/revelation/Revelation%2014-16.htm and http://www.unityinchrist.com/revelation/Revelation%2018-20.htm). Just prior to Jesus Christ’s 2^nd coming God will “vex them [mankind] in his sore displeasure.”

Psalm 2:6, “I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.” This has nothing to do with Jesus’ divine birth in Bethlehem, but as Paul shows in Acts 13:33, this is talking abut his resurrection, Jesus being begotten out of Joseph’s tomb. Jesus is the Eternal Son of God, and God is the Eternal Father. Acts 13:33, “God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee.” So the apostle Paul defines this verse for us properly.

Psalm 2:8-9

Jesus To Crush The Kings And Religious Rulers At His 2^nd Coming

Psalm 2:8-9, “Ask me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them to pieces like a potter’s vessel.” Verse 8 has to be taken in context with verse 9. Who receives the heathen as his inheritance? Verse 9 answers, the one who “shall break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them to pieces like a potter’s vessel.” We see in the Book of Revelation that is Jesus Christ, and his Bride, the Church who will return with him. Why will Jesus have to do that in order to take over the rulership of the world, as King of kings and Lord of lords? Go back to verses 1-2, “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 Christ.” The ultimate fulfillment of verses 1-2 and the ultimate confrontation between mankind and Christ which verses 1-2 point to is described in Revelation chapters 6-19. The Church, the Bride of Christ is also described as playing a similar role as Christ in Revelation 2:24-27, “But unto you I say, and unto the rest of Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak, I will put upon you none other burden. But that which ye have already hold fast till I come. And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I have received of my Father.”