A SIGNIFICANT PSALM
Poul Madsen
PSALM TWO is much quoted in the New Testament, which is reason enough for us to examine it carefully. We shall find that it is extremely relevant for our own days. It consists of four stanzas, each of three verses, as follows:
Stanza 1
"Why do the nations 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." Psalm 2:1-3.
In this way the psalmist describes the basic attitude of the earth's rulers. They regard God's law as an insufferable yoke; His will as constricting bonds. So it has been ever since the fall of man. This is the spirit of Babel. Since the fall, man has wanted to be 'free' in his own, that is to say, rebellious way. What mankind really wants is to be free from God. He finds the will of God obnoxious, since he regards it as a limitation of his own capacity for development. So the highest good (the good, acceptable and perfect will of God) is made an object of scorn and hatred.
This will culminate in the end-time, which is presumably our time. Under the leadership of [64/65] Antichrist and governed by an antichristian spirit, the world's leaders will decide to dethrone God. This is already clearly to be seen. The spirit of antichrist permeates society. The generation which has grown up since the war is more antichristian in spirit than probably any previous generation in human history. Such an atmosphere will inevitably produce the personal Antichrist, and will hail him as its saviour. The characteristic of our day is opposition to authority. People will not be submissive to anyone or anything, but always demand to be 'free'. They do not understand that this freedom amounts to nothing less than slavery to Satan, for man is only free when he accepts God as his Lord and subjects himself to God's order and the authorities which are a part of His order. That is why God's Word says: "Fear the Lord and the king, my son; join not with people who are rebellious" (Proverbs 24:21).
When the rulers and kings of the earth join together in plans to do away with God it can look very threatening, but we shall see in the next verses that God is far from being disturbed about it all.
Stanza 2
"He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure: Yet I have set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. " Psalm 2:4-6.
When the mighty ones of the earth gather together in rebellion against God, they do not embarrass Him in the least. He is not disturbed, let alone anxious. Their actions do not force Him to any kind of action, which is proof that He does not feel Himself to be in a threatening situation. For Him the great ones of the earth are like a drop in a bucket or a speck on the scales, they are so tiny. One might truly say that the mighty ones of the earth are really without might. They do not know this themselves and it does not always look like it to others here on earth, but this is the divine fact. Before God they are nothing, and so they can never put God into a quandary or force Him to take emergency action. He knows their thoughts afar off. Before words come to their lips He knows what they are going to say; He besets them before and behind; they are dependent upon Him for every moment they breathe and every step they take, even though they do not know or recognise this fact.
That is why God laughs at them. This laughter does not involve anything unholy, for God is not malicious or spiteful. No, He laughs with a holy laughter. The meaning of this is revealed in Acts 4, where this psalm is quoted as the basis for, and indeed the content of, the prayer which the church prayed with Peter and John after they had been released from prison under threats for the future. After having quoted the psalm in a united appeal to God, they went on to say: "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 to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done." The italicised words explain God's laughter in its holy humour -- a laughter which the praying church shared with Him. When all the enemies of Jesus joined together to cast off the Lord's yoke and to bring God's Christ to the cross, what did they actually accomplish? Neither more nor less than the purpose already formed by God. Having done their worst they were seen only to have performed the will of God. No wonder God had a good laugh, and no wonder that those early disciples shared His liberating humour.
