Your Throne, O God, is Forever and Ever

I love God’s Word and how it confirms itself. Here is a great example…

"And we preach to you the good news of the promise made to the fathers, that God has fulfilled this promise to our children in that He raised up Jesus, as it is also written in the second Psalm, ‘You are My Son; Today I have begotten You"" (Acts 13:32-33). I have often heard Psalm 2:7 being used to support the doctrine of eternal generation, i.e., that the Father brought forth (begot) the Son of God in eternity past. This doctrine, while not saying the Son of God actually had a beginning (a time when he did not exist), in my opinion, it comes awfully close. Whether or not this doctrine is correct, however, Psalm 2:7 cannot refer to eternal generation in its original context. In Psalm 2, the Psalmist speaks about a rebellion against the LORD and his Messiah (Ps 2:1-3), and implies a period of suffering on the Messiah's part until the rebellion is finally squelched (see, for example, Ps 3; 13; 22; 69; 110). In Psalm 2:4-9, the LORD and his Son (the Messiah) respond to the rebellion by discussing among themselves Messiah's future reign and the overthrow of all his enemies. "Today" in Psalm 2:7 ("today I have begotten you") refers to that day when God establishes Messiah's rule (coronation) over the rebels. The context is clear: "Today" does not and cannot refer to the literal day of Messiah's birth, but rather, marks the beginning of Messiah's reign. Paul's use of this verse in Acts 13:32-33 is incredibly sensitive to the original context. Paul identifies "today" as the day when God raised Yeshua from the dead, marking the beginning of his rule and a token of Yeshua's ultimate victory over all spiritual and earthly opposition. Jesus' resurrection ("today") offers complete certainty that "tomorrow" (one day in the near future) Jesus will reign upon David's throne from Zion (see Ps 110; 132). "But of the Son he says, 'Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions.' And, 'You, Lord, laid the foundation of the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands; they will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment, like a robe you will roll them up, like a garment they will be changed. But you are the same, and your years will have no end'" (Heb 1:8-12; ESV).

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