Psalms 2:4-6

2:4 The one enthroned ¹  in heaven laughs in disgust; ² 

the Lord taunts ³  them.

2:5 Then he angrily speaks to them

and terrifies them in his rage, ⁴  saying, ⁵ 

2:6 “I myself ⁶  have installed ⁷  my king

on Zion, my holy hill.”

[2:4]  ¹ tn Heb “sitting.” The Hebrew verb יָשַׁב (yashav) is here used metonymically of “sitting enthroned” (see Pss 9:7; 29:10; 55:19; 102:12; 123:1).

[2:4]  ² tn As the next line indicates, this refers to derisive laughter. The Hebrew imperfect verbal forms in vv. 4-5 describe the action from the perspective of an eyewitness who is watching the divine response as it unfolds before his eyes.

[2:4]  ³ tn Or “scoffs at”; “derides”; “mocks.”

[2:5]  ⁴ 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.

[2:5]  ⁵ tn The word “saying” is supplied in the translation for clarification to indicate that the speaker is the Lord (cf. RSV, NIV).

[2:6]  ⁶ tn The first person pronoun appears before the first person verbal form for emphasis, reflected in the translation by “myself.”

[2:6]  ⁷ tn Or perhaps “consecrated.”