Verse 12 ends the second Psalm with a plea for repentance. It begins, “Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. It doesn’t sound as emotional as Spurgeon made it in his sermon when he would plea for sinners to repents. He said, “I beseech you, think of your destiny—death, and after death the judgment. The wind, and after the wind the whirlwind, and after the whirlwind the fire, and after the fire nothing—for ever, for ever, for ever lost, cast away, where ray of hope can never come; where eye of mercy can never look upon you, and hand of grace can never reach you. I beseech you, oh, I beseech you by the living God before whom you stand this day, tremble and repent. “Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way when his wrath is kindled but a little.”[1]
Many modern preachers make similar pleas to unbelievers. Boice says, “What does this gentle, loving, and tender voice call on these rebellious human beings to do? A number of things: to ‘be wise,’ to ‘be warned,’ to ‘serve the Lord with fear,’ to ‘rejoice with trembling’ (vv. 10–11). But chiefly, they are to ‘kiss the Son’ in grateful, loving submission. That is what these rulers will not do, of course. It is why they are in danger of a final, fierce destruction. Make sure you are not among them. The rulers of the world rage against Christ. But why should you? The hands he holds forth for you to kiss are hands that were pierced by nails when he was crucified in your place. One day he is coming as the great judge of all. On that day the wicked will be punished, but today is the day of his grace. He invites you to come to him. The final verse says, “Blessed are all who take refuge in him.” It is a reminder that the only refuge from the wrath of God is God’s mercy unfolded at the cross of Jesus Christ.”[2]
This final beatitude that ends Psalm 2 serves as a bookend to the opening beatitude of Psalm 1, which says, “Blessed is the one who never walks in the counsel of the wicked.” That’s to say, “blessed is the one who never sins. He never stands with sinners or sits with scoffers.” He’s perfect in his ways. For all humanity, that’s like saying, “blessed is the one who can leap tall buildings in a single bound. Blessed is the one who is faster than a speeding bullet. Blessed is the one who is more powerful than a locomotive.” That man is fictional! But the “one-man” of Psalm one refers to the Messiah who will come into the world according to the prophecies of the Old Testament and fulfill the law on our behalf. The first Adam broke the law, and we all share in that sin. The second Adam obeyed the law on our behalf, and that’s why the second psalm ends with the beatitude, “Blessed are all who take refuge in him.”
[1] Spurgeon, C. H. 1859. “The Chaff Driven Away.” In The New Park Street Pulpit Sermons, 5:448. London: Passmore & Alabaster.
[2] Boice, James Montgomery. 2005. Psalms 1–41: An Expositional Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.