7 I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.

8 Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.

9 Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.

10 ¶ Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth.

11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.

12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him. (Psalm 2)

Men, creatures of the earth, plan, hope, scheme, devise. They have ambitions, goals, objectives. God, the Creator, decrees. Some of men’s plans are worthy, some unworthy, some successful, some failures; yet men do their utmost to make them succeed. God does not simply plan . . . He decrees. He does not simply attempt to implement His decree. It is sovereign, and He has the power to bring it to pass. His decree is not merely good: It is perfect. Let us consider it.

He first declares the deity, the divinity of Christ. Jesus is the begotten Son of God. This must be the moral foundation of God’s decree concerning Jesus Christ, for if Christ be not truly God, then He has no right to the honors about to be bestowed upon Him. If we deny the Godhood of the Saviour, we destroy the foundation and reason of Christian hope. But if we establish it, then it is incumbent upon all men to receive Him as Lord.

God then declares the Lordship of Christ. He is His Son, and His inheritance is the nations of the earth. He owns not only those who love Him, but those who hate Him. All the earth is His possession, and it is within the scope of His right and power to do as He pleases. None but the Father can limit the Hand of the Son in judgment, and the Father has committed it all to Christ.

In our popular preoccupation with the goodness, the love of God, His willingness to save all who come to Him, we must not forget that there is something to be saved from. God’s goodness and love is always set against the background of His justice and wrath. Men in their natural state are in rebellion against God, and so the first word of which they are conscious if God’s decree is this: “They shall be broken with a rod of iron; they shall be dashed in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”This is the prospect facing all men when they receive God’s command to repent.

In view of such a decree by such a God, men are urged to wisdom. “Abandon your foolish destructive course, you kings and judges of the earth. You may have done what you pleased among men, but now you face a thrice-holy God, and He will have nothing but unquestioned submission and obedience.” “You may have never feared men or beast, but please know that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” All who do not fear Him live a fool’s life and die a fool’s death.

The blessed person is the wise one who puts his trust in the Lord. “Kiss the Son.” Receive Him as your King. Love Him with all your heart. He is your Owner. He must be your Judge. He will be your Saviour if you will be His willing servant.

-C.M.