Psalm 2

I’m in a small group right now that is going through the Psalms. I’m also obsessed with the concept of Mind Mapping. (If an obsession lasts for more than 6 months, does it become a fixation?)

Regardless, something interesting happens when your pursuits intersect.

Last Thursday night, I mapped out my thoughts around Psalm 2. One of the things that I love about this process is that it captures the state of your mind as you moved towards understanding. So, as I read this Psalm, I asked questions. My map started in the lower right hand corner.

I asked myself who the term “Anointed” refers to. My initial assumption was that it refers to Christ, but I’m trying to ruthlessly eliminate assumptions from my life. So I dug.

Work counterclockwise from the bottom right. The word for anointed is here mâshîyach, ‘messiah’. It was a revelation to me that this same word is used liberally in the Old Testament, referring variously to priests, prophets, and King Saul.

More digging revealed references in Hebrews and Acts that shed light on this Psalm, and that explicitly name Christ as the fulfillment of the prophecies in it.

More reading in verse twelve showed elements of Christ’s character that are not our typical view of him, but which shown up in Matthew 21:12.

I enjoy looking back and seeing the path I took to a better picture of the Word and I’d recommend the process. Grab a sheet of paper and map whatever passage you happen to be reading right now. Write down questions as they come to you, and when you find answers or references link them back. If a certain theme keeps popping up, highlight that, and tie those themes together...