Psalm 2:10-12
10 Therefore, you kings, be wise;
be warned, you rulers of the earth.
11 Serve the LORD with fear
and celebrate his rule with trembling.
12 Kiss his son, or he will be angry
and your way will lead to your destruction,
for his wrath can flare up in a moment.
Blessed are all who take refuge in him.
In these verses it is still the king speaking, however, the mood changes from the indicative to the imperative. The king now declares, in light of the truths espoused in v. 4-9, what the kings and rulers of the earth should do instead of raging, plotting in vain, and rising up against the LORD and his messiah.
If they are wise they will follow the king's advice. They should serve the LORD with fear, celebrate his rule with trembling and kiss his son! The first 2 are more common OT prescriptions for worship of God. The last one is a little strange. It symbolizes an act of homage and submission to the king. It is a "Kiss the ring," sort of thing. He is calling the other kings of the world to not only fear and serve the LORD and celebrate his rule, but also to give honor to the king of Israel as the Lord's anointed.
As we have been seeing all week this Psalm also carries the theme of speech. The nations and rulers speak against God, God speaks in response, the king of Israel proclaims the LORD's decree, God invites the king to ask him. Speech can be thought of as coming through the lips. Here kiss may be used to provide an image for the proper use of one's lips. Instead of spouting off threats and raging against God the kings and rulers ought to humbly submit to his rule.
The idea of celebrating his rule with trembling is also a bit strange to a modern reader. It indicates that we can indeed do both: rejoice in God's sovereign rule over all creation while still giving him the reverence, fear and honor that he is due because of his great power and might.
The last phrase in this Psalm is a pronouncement of blessing which is a very similar construct to verse 1 of Psalm 1. This indicates that these 2 Psalms were meant to be thought of as one unit. As we saw on Monday the Psalms are meant to be Israel's prayer book while in exile, away from the temple. It is in these two Psalms that we see the tension that the people of Israel are living in. They are called to covenant faithfulness to the Law of Moses while awaiting the realization of their ultimate hope in the coming Messiah. One could not just abandon the Law and look forward in hope to the coming Messiah. One also could not solely follow the Law without the hope of the coming Messiah. In these two Psalms we see a microcosm of the tension between looking back with faithfulness and looking forward with hope.
Reflection:
In what ways do you feel this same tension in looking back in faithfulness and looking forward in hope?