“The LORD said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession” (Psalm 2:7-8 ESV).
The book of Acts attributes this psalm to David. Yet David did not, nor did any other Jewish king, ever see this prophecy fulfilled. The boundaries of Israel were never larger than the tiny sliver of land between the sea and just the other side of the Jordan river. Never mind the ends of the earth.
So to whom does this prophecy refer? Surely it refers to the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the only begotten Son of God. After His sacrificial death and resurrection, He ascended to the right hand of God as the Mediator between God and man. Even now, He prays and “asks” the Father for the nations as His “heritage.” And one day soon, “every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:10-11). The Father will give Him the nations.
Today we celebrate our nation’s independence. And rightly so. For God has blessed our nation with the freedom to worship and given us prosperity and peace beyond any other nation in human history. Yet as wonderful as God’s blessing has been, ultimately, every nation eventually declines as its citizens forget the Lord who blessed them.
Therefore, let us give God thanks for our nation, but let us also remember to look to the Son to whom every nation will one day belong.
PRAYER: Dear Father, thank You for Your many blessings on our nation. Forgive us for not always remembering that You are the source of all blessing. Even more, thank You that through Jesus our eternal citizenship is in heaven. In Jesus’ name, amen.