Why Psalm 2 Explains Current World Events
Climate change, BLM, anti-lockdown, anti-government, and numerous other often-violent, worldwide demonstrations have shocked many in the past year. Add to this heated debate over political, moral, and indigenous people’s issues, China’s sabre rattling and growing persecution of religious groups, Iran and its allies threatening to destroy Israel, the collapse of Afghanistan to the Taliban, and it seems much of the world is in a rage or being traumatized. What is happening? What is the true source of all this trouble? The Bible gives us a clue.
“Why are the nations so angry? Why do they waste their time with futile plans?” asks Psalm 2:1 (NLT).
Verses 2 & 3 give the answer: “The kings of the earth prepare for battle; the rulers plot together against the Lord and against his anointed one. ‘Let us break their chains,’ they cry,’ and free ourselves from slavery to God.’”
Political and media leaders across much of the earth are hell bent on severing ties to the Judeo-Christian foundation of the ten commandments that have undergirded civilized nations for millennia. Designed by God to be the means of great blessing to any person or society that lives by them, these principles are now considered to be slavery by a world that wants to rule itself. Today, good is called evil, and evil is called good.
Thus, the root cause of the world’s current problems is not actually pandemics, religious fanaticism, moral wars, territorial disputes, injustices of the past, or oppression. Rather, it is about a world systematically rejecting God’s ways and his truth, whether it is in the guise of secular humanism, socialism, and liberalism as in the West, or communism and false religion elsewhere.
The truth is that people love the darkness and so God gives them over to all kinds of deception until they learn the truth the hard way. (See Romans 1:18-31.) This may alarm believers when they see this. However, God is not deterred. “The one who rules in heaven laughs. The Lord scoffs at them,” says Psalm 2:4-5. “Then in anger he rebukes them, terrifying them with his fierce fury. For the Lord declares, ‘I have placed my chosen king on the throne.’”
All resistance to God will be ultimately futile. The nations will reap a terrible harvest if they continue to sow seeds of rebellion against God. To this King (Jesus) the Father says in verse 8-9, “Only ask, and I will give you the nations as your inheritance, the ends of the earth as your possession. You will rule them with an iron rod and smash them like clay pots.” We can be sure that Jesus is asking, and the Father will answer. As the global Church adds its intercession for the same thing, this prophecy will be fulfilled.
Verses 10-12 give some wise advice:
“Now then, you kings, act wisely! Be warned, you rulers of the earth! Serve the Lord with reverent fear, and rejoice with trembling. Submit to God’s royal son, or he will become angry, and you will be destroyed in the midst of all your activities— for his anger flares up in an instant. But what joy for all who take refuge in him!” Here God gives leaders a plain choice: submit to God’s rule and be blessed, or rebel and be ultimately destroyed.
Sometimes, it takes a long time to see this happen, and people can mistake God’s patience for tolerance of sin. The fact that he holds back judgment in order to show mercy to those needing salvation, should not lull us into carelessness. Though evil often appears to succeed for a time, it will not ultimately triumph.
Some years ago, US minister Rick Joyner, described a vision God gave him of two great waves of harvest. The first wave has come (more people were saved in the 20th century than in all of history put together) and, after a period of relative quiet, the second and bigger wave will come:
“I saw this second wave coming like a tsunami. When a tsunami approaches land, the water first starts to recede… I interpreted this that it would appear that Christianity would seem to be in retreat around the world just before the greatest move of God of all time would break upon us. Don’t follow the water receding, but get to the high ground!
The high ground … is to trust in the Lord as your Provider, your Healer, your King, and your Judge, and not put increasing trust in human governments. The most powerful, stable governments in the world are very shaky, and they are crumbling. All who put their trust in them will be shaken, terrified, and desperate. All that has not been built upon the Lord’s ways will soon crumble. Even so, at this time, the kingdom of God is growing. Build your life on His kingdom and His ways. Trust in Him, not man, and you will never be shaken.”
Psalm 2 finishes with a great promise to people, leaders, and nations and exclaims, “What joy for all who take refuge in him!”