Like Psalm 1, but unlike almost every other psalm of Book I (Pss. 1–41), this one has no superscription. Psalm 1 opens with a blessing and Psalm 2 closes with a blessing, which may indicate that this pair is meant to be read together as an introduction to the final collection of the Psalter. If so, they appear to establish twin guides for reading it: we are to meditate on this “torah” (“instruction”) of the Psalms collection and so discover the enduring “blessing” of “the righteous,” and we are to take refuge under Yahweh’s rule and in his Anointed One (Hb. “messiah” or Gk. “Christ”) in particular.

The importance of Psalm 2 for the Christian is underscored by its frequent citation in the NT as a prooftext of Jesus’ claim to being Israel’s messiah (v. 7 is echoed some ten times and the rest…