“Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against his Anointed, saying, ‘Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.’” -Psalm 2:1–3
In Acts 4:25-28, the Apostle’s interpret this passage for us, confirming it is a Messianic prophecy. The “nations and the peoples” are Pilate, Herod, and the unbelieving Jews who plotted (murmured) against Jesus and ultimately crucified him.
But the question that strikes at the root this passage is a rhetorical one—“Why…plot in vain?”
Why would earthy kings rebel against the King of Kings, the creator and redeemer of the universe, knowing they do so in vain?
And even more profoundly, why do we do so who are not even kings?