Psalm 2

When I first read these words, I found them in the book of Acts and had no idea that they were actually quoted from a Psalm - and I found it under the heading of the "Believers' Prayer." Reading Psalm 2 from the mindset of the apostle's in Acts chapter 4, then reading it in the original context of the Psalms helps me to see how this Psalm impacts the life of God's people today.

Psalm 2 shakes with the mighty power of God, the power to lift up and to tear down. It speaks of the kings of the earth denying the source of their power and attempting to become gods unto themselves, and apparently God finds this power grab to be laughable, even ridiculous.

In Acts 4, we see the apostles making this prayer their own, surrounded by people who are also actively persecuting the faithful (the same people who put Jesus to the cross). Yet hear the language of how they view God's use of power in their world: "Stretch out your hand..." this is usually followed up by some demonstration of destruction (in Biblical language), "to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus" (Acts 4:30). Stretch out your hand to heal! The way the apostles see God using His power in their context was through healing and miracles. That helps me read Psalm 2 a little easier. I read "Ask of me and I will make the nations your inheritance," and I think of Jesus' inheritance being the world. There is a worship song we sang at Cornerstone that quoted this passage and made the claim that the inheritance belongs to Jesus, and the nations belong to Him. I would ask that all nations would be drawn into true life in and with God. Amen.