Psalms 2:8

2:7-9 The kingdom of the Messiah is founded upon an eternal decree of God the Father. This our Lord Jesus often referred to, as what he governed himself by. God hath said unto him, Thou art my Son, and it becomes each of us to say to him, Thou art my Lord, my Sovereign'. The Son, in asking the heathen for his inheritance, desires their happiness in him; so that he pleads for them, ever lives to do so, and is able to save to the uttermost, and he shall have multitudes of willing, loyal subjects, among them. Christians are the possession of the Lord Jesus; they are to him for a name and a praise. God the Father gives them to him, when, by his Spirit and grace, he works upon them to submit to the Lord Jesus.

Jehovah is either here again introduced speaking, or these words are a continuation of the Son's account of what his Father said unto him; which do not suppose any superiority in the one, or inferiority in the other; but are only expressive of the Father's great respect and affection for his Son, as such a way of speaking among men shows, Esther 5:3 ; and of the great interest the Son had in his Father, who could ask nothing but he had it; and shows the perfect harmony, agreement, and unity between them: see 1 Kings 3:5 ; Christ, in the council and covenant of grace and peace, asked many things of his Father, which were granted; he asked for the persons of all the elect to be his bride and spouse, and his heart's desire was given him, and the request of his lips was not withheld from him: he asked for all the blessings of grace for them; for spiritual life here, and eternal life hereafter; and all were given him, and put into his hands for them, Psalm 20:2 ; and here it is promised him, and I shall give thee the Heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession; by "the Heathen", and "the uttermost parts of the earth", are meant God's elect among the Gentiles, and who live in the distant parts of the world; which are Christ's other sheep, the Father has given to him as his portion, and whom he has made his care and charge: as if it was not enough that he should be King of Zion, or have the government over his chosen ones among the Jews, he

Psalm 2:8 . Ask of me — Claim or demand it of me as thy right by my promise, and thy birth and purchase; the heathen for thine inheritance — To be possessed and enjoyed by thee in the manner of an inheritance, namely, surely and perpetually. Thus “Christ was to enter upon the exercise of the intercessorial branch of his priestly office, with a request to the Father that the heathen world, &c., might be given for his inheritance, in return for the labours he had undergone, and the pains he had endured; as also to supply the place of the Jews, who were his original inheritance and possession, but were cast off because of unbelief.” — Horne.

Verse 8. - Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance. A very small part of the heathen were the inheritance of David, and therefore the Messiah only can be spoken of in this verse. Before Messiah "all kings" were to "fall down; all nations to do him service" ( Psalm 72:11 ; comp. Isaiah 49:22 ; Isaiah 60:3, 4 ; Matthew 28:19 , etc.). And the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession (comp. Isaiah 52:10 ; Jeremiah 16:19 ; Micah 5:4 ; Zechariah 9:10 ; Acts 13:47 ). Psalm 2:8

Ask of me; claim or demand it of me, as thy right by my promise, and thy birth and purchase. For thine inheritance; to be possessed and enjoyed by thee in a manner of an inheritance, to wit, constantly, surely, and perpetually. The uttermost parts of the earth; either, 1. The whole land of Canaan, from one end of it to the other, as this phrase is used, Psalm 61:2 72:8 ; which is but a very narrow sense, and that was but a very small kingdom, and no way agreeable to those magnificent expressions here used. Or rather, 2. The whole world, not only the Jewish nation, but the Gentiles also, as this phrase is almost universally used in the Old Testament, as Psalm 19:4 22:28 46:10 65:5 Isaiah 40:28 45:22 , &c. And so these words declare the great amplitude of the kingdom of the Messiah.

8 . Ask of me ] Inheritance is the natural right of sonship. Yet even the son must plead the promise and claim its fulfilment. Dominion over the nations is not expressly mentioned in 2 Samuel 7; but cp. Psalm 89:27 . inheritance … possession ] Words frequently applied to the gift of Canaan to Israel ( Genesis 17:8 ; Deuteronomy 4:21 ; Deuteronomy 32:49 ). Now the world shall be his with equal right. Jehovah is king of the world, and He offers His representative a world-wide dominion. Cp. Psalm 72:8 ; Zechariah 9:9-10 .

Ask of me - That is, of God. This is a part of the "decree" or purpose, as mentioned in Psalm 2:7 . That decree embraced not only the design to constitute him as his Son, in the sense that he was to be king in Zion, but also the purpose to give him a dominion embracing "the heathen" and "the uttermost parts of the earth." This wide dominion was to be given him on condition that he would "ask" for it, thus keeping up the idea that Yahweh, as such, is the great source of authority and empire, and that the Messiah, as such occupies a rank subordinate to him. This relation of the Father and Son is everywhere recognized in the New Testament. As we may be sure that the Messiah will ask for this, it follows that the world will yet be brought under his scepter. It may be added that as this wide dominion is promised to the Messiah only on condition that he "asks" for it or prays for it, much more is it true that we can hope for this and for no favor from God, unless we seek it by earnest prayer. And I shall give thee - I will give thee. That is, he would ultimately give him this possession. No time is specified when it would be done, and the prophecy will be fulfilled if it shall be accomplished in any period of the history of the world. The heathen - The nations (notes, Psalm 2:1); that is, the world. In the time of the writer of the psalm, the world would be spoken of as divided into Hebrews and other nations; the people of God and foreigners.

The same division is often referred to in the New Testament under the terms Jew and Gentile, as the Greeks divided all the world into Greeks and barbarians. The word would now embrace all the nations which are not under the influence of the true religion. For thine inheritance - Thy heritage; thy portion as my Son. There is an allusion here to the fact that he had constituted him as his Son, and hence, it was proper to speak of him as the heir of all things. See the notes at Hebrews 1:4. And the uttermost parts of the earth - The farthest regions of the world. This promise would properly embrace all the world as then known, as it is now known, as it shall be hereafter known. For thy possession - That is, as king. This, on the earth, was be to his possession as the Son of Yahweh, constituted as king. It may be remarked here, (a) that this can have its fulfillment only in the Lord Jesus Christ. It was not true of David nor of any other Hebrew monarch that he had conceded to him, in fact, any such possession. Their dominions extended, at any time, but little beyond the bounds of Palestine, and embraced a very limited part of the earth - but a small territory, even as compared with many then existing kingdoms. The phrase used here could never have been applied to the limited and narrow country of Palestine. (b) The promise is to be understood as still in full force.