Psalm 2:5-7

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Psalm 2:5 sn And terrifies them in his rage. This line focuses on the effect that God’s angry response (see previous line) has on the rebellious kings.
2. Psalm 2:5 tn The word “saying” is supplied in the translation for clarification to indicate that the speaker is the Lord (cf. RSV, NIV).
3. Psalm 2:6 tn The first person pronoun appears before the first person verbal form for emphasis, reflected in the translation by “myself.”
4. Psalm 2:6 tn Or perhaps “consecrated.”
5. Psalm 2:7 tn The words “the king says” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The speaker is the Lord’s chosen king.
6. Psalm 2:7 tn Or “I will relate the decree. The Lord said to me” (in accordance with the Masoretic accentuation).
7. Psalm 2:7 sn ‘You are my son.’ The Davidic king was viewed as God’s “son” (see 2 Sam 7:14; Ps 89:26-27). The idiom reflects ancient Near Eastern adoption language associated with covenants of grant, by which a lord would reward a faithful subject by elevating him to special status, referred to as “sonship.” Like a son, the faithful subject received an “inheritance,” viewed as an unconditional, eternal gift. Such gifts usually took the form of land and/or an enduring dynasty. See M. Weinfeld, “The Covenant of Grant in the Old Testament and in the Ancient Near East,” JAOS 90 (1970): 184-203, for general discussion and some striking extra-biblical parallels.