What Does God Want? Psalm 2

A text – Psalm 2

¹ Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain?
² The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and his anointed, saying,
³ “Let us burst their bonds apart and cast their cords from us.”

⁴ He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord has them in derision.
⁵ Then he will speak to them in his wrath and terrify them in his fury, saying,
⁶ “I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill.”

⁷ I will tell of the decree of the Lord: He 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; with trembling ¹² kiss his feet, or he will be angry, and you will perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Happy are all who take refuge in him.

A reflection:

Here is a psalm that gives people reason to think that God the Father is wrathful and quite willing to strike terror in the hearts of human beings. But why is God angry with human kings, or at least “derisive” of the powerful? Because the human kings choose themselves as kings and sever their bonds with the King of the Universe, not taking seriously that there is someone greater than they are whose laws they are ignoring. As an alternative, God chooses the King of Zion – it is David. God holds David as a Son and has told him so. And David obeys God, so God gives him power over his enemies, power to make believers out of all the nations.

But the wrath of God is not permanent. “Happy are all who take refuge in him,” says the psalmist. This path is open to anyone who will humble himself before God. We need only watch the news to see how unlikely it is that earthly rulers will humble themselves before God. They and their counselors believe they know what is best. And since God favors the poor, the meek, the forgotten of the earth, and very few rulers are looking out for God’s beloved lowly ones, their rule is always temporary and the judgment against them is harsh.

The answer lies in a passage from last week’s readings; Micah 6. The human being is seeking in verses 1-7 the way to appease God and live in harmony under God’s rule. Then we come to verse 8: “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” This week, as we might fall prey to endless footage of people lording it over the most vulnerable of their brothers and sisters, let’s work out some ways to act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with our God.

A prayer:

Lord God, thank you for loving us. Thank you for the psalmists and the prophets who tell us even today what you value. Help us this week discover ways to live under your rule and watch for your kingdom to come among us. Amen.