Psalms 2:7

We have heard what the kings of the earth have to say against Christ's kingdom, and have heard it gainsaid by him that sits in heaven; let us now hear what the Messiah himself has to say for his kingdom, to make good his claims, and it is what all the powers on earth cannot gainsay.

I. The kingdom of the Messiah is founded upon a decree, an eternal decree, of God the Father. It was not a sudden resolve, it was not the trial of an experiment, but the result of the counsels of the divine wisdom and the determinations of the divine will, before all worlds, neither of which can be altered - the precept or statute (so some read it), the covenant or compact (so others), the federal transactions between the Father and the Son concerning man's redemption, represented by the covenant of royalty made with David and his seed, Psa 89:3. This our Lord Jesus often referred to as that which, all along in his undertaking, he governed himself by; This is the will of him that sent me, Joh 6:40. This commandment have I received of my Father, Joh 10:18; Joh 14:31.

II. There is a declaration of that decree as far as is necessary for the satisfaction of all those who are called and commanded to yield themselves subjects to this king, and to leave those inexcusable who will not have him to reign over them. The decree was secret; it was what the Father said to the Son, when he possessed him in the beginning of his way, before his works of old; but it is declared by a faithful witness, who had lain in the bosom of the Father from eternity, and came into the world as the prophet of the church, to declare him, Joh 1:18. The fountain of all being is, without doubt, the fountain of all power; and it is by, from, and under him, that the Messiah claims. He has his right to rule from what Jehovah said to him, by whose word all things were made and are governed. Christ here makes a tow-fold title to his kingdom: - 1. A title by inheritance (Psa 2:7): Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. This scripture the apostle quotes (Heb 1:5) to prove that Christ has a more excellent name than the angels, but that he obtained it by inheritance, Psa 2:4. He is the Son of God, not by adoption, but his begotten Son, the only begotten of the Father, Joh 1:14. And the Father owns him, and will have this declared to the world as the reason why he is constituted King upon the holy hill of Zion; he is therefore unquestionably entitled to, and perfectly qualified for, that great trust. He is the Son of God, and therefore of the same nature with the Father, has in him all the fulness of the godhead, infinite wisdom, power, and holiness. The supreme government of the church is too high an honour and too hard an undertaking for any mere creature; none can be fit for it but he who is one with the Father and was from eternity by him as one brought up with him, thoroughly apprized of all his counsels, Pro 8:30. He is the Son of God, and therefore dear to him, his beloved Son, in whom he is well pleased; and upon this account we are to receive him as a King; for because the Father loveth the Son he hath given all things into his hand, Joh 3:35; Joh 5:20. Being a Son, he is heir of all things, and, the Father having made the worlds by him, it is easy to infer thence that by him also he governs them; for he is the eternal Wisdom and the eternal Word. If God hath said unto him, "Thou art my Son," it becomes each of us to say to him, "Thou art my Lord, my sovereign." Further, to satisfy us that his kingdom is well-grounded upon his sonship, we are here told what his sonship is grounded on: This day have I begotten thee, which refers both to his eternal generation itself, for it is quoted (Heb 1:5) to prove that he is the brightness of his Father's glory and the express image of his person (Psa 2:3), and to the evidence and demonstration given of it by his resurrection from the dead, for to that also it is expressly applied by the apostle, Act 13:33. He hath raised up Jesus again, as it is written, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. It was by the resurrection from the dead, that sign of the prophet Jonas, which was to be the most convincing of all, that he was declared to be the Son of God with power, Rom 1:4. Christ is said to be the first-begotten and first-born from the dead, Rev 1:5; Col 1:18. Immediately after his resurrection he entered upon the administration of his mediatorial kingdom; it was then that he said, All power is given unto me, and to that especially he had an eye when he taught his disciples to pray, Thy kingdom come. 2. A title by agreement, Psa 2:8, Psa 2:9. The agreement is, in short, this: the Son must undertake the office of an intercessor, and, upon that condition, he shall have the honour and power of a universal monarch; see Isa 53:12, Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, because he made intercession for the transgressors. He shall be a priest upon his throne, and the counsel of peace shall be between them both, Zac 6:13. (1.) The Son must ask. This supposes his putting himself voluntarily into a state of inferiority to the Father, by taking upon him the human nature; for, as God, he was equal in power and glory with the Father and had nothing to ask. It supposes the making of a satisfaction by the virtue of which the intercession must be made, and the paying of a price, on which this large demand was to be grounded; see Joh 17:4, Joh 17:5. The Son, in asking the heathen for his inheritance, aims, not only at his own honour, but at their happiness in him; so that he intercedes for them, ever lives to do so, and is therefore able to save to the uttermost. (2.) The Father will grant more than to the half of the kingdom, even to the kingdom itself. It is here promised him, [1.] That his government shall be universal: he shall have the heathen for his inheritance, not the Jews only, to whose nation the church had been long confined, but the Gentiles also. Those in the uttermost parts of the earth (as this nation of ours) shall be his possession, and he shall have multitudes of willing loyal subjects among them. Baptized 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 grave he works upon them to submit their necks to the yoke of the Lord Jesus. This is in part fulfilled; a great part of the Gentile world received the gospel when it was first preached, and Christ's throne was set up there where Satan's seat had long been. But it is to be yet further accomplished when the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of the Lord and of his Christ, Rev 11:15. Who shall live when God doeth this? [2.] That it shall be victorious: Thou shalt break them (those of them that oppose thy kingdom) with a rod of iron, Psa 2:9. This was in part fulfilled when the nation of the Jews, those that persisted in unbelief and enmity to Christ's gospel, were destroyed by the Roman power, which was represented (Dan 2:40) by feet of iron, as here by a rod of iron. It had a further accomplishment in the destruction of the Pagan powers, when the Christian religion came to be established; but it will not be completely fulfilled till all opposing rule, principality, and power, shall be finally put down, Co1 15:24; Psa 110:5, Psa 110:6. Observe, How powerful Christ is and how weak the enemies of his kingdom are before him; he has a rod of iron wherewith to crush those that will not submit to his golden sceptre; they are but like a potter's vessel before him, suddenly, easily, and irreparably dashed in pieces by him; see Rev 2:27. "Thou shalt do it, that is, thou shalt have leave to do it." Nations shall be ruined, rather than the gospel church shall not be built and established. I have loved thee, therefore will I give men for thee, Isa 43:4. "Thou shalt have power to do it; none shall be able to stand before thee; and thou shalt do it effectually." Those that will not bow shall break.

In singing this, and praying it over, we must give glory to Christ as the eternal Son of God and our rightful Lord, and must take comfort from this promise, and plead it with God, that the kingdom of Christ shall be enlarged and established and shall triumph over all opposition.

Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Psa 2:7 I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou [art] my Son; this day have I begotten thee.

Ver. 7. I will declare the decree] That irrevocable decree of the Father, for the setting up of his Son’s sceptre contra gentes, point blank opposite to that decree of theirs, Psa 2:3. This ordinance or decree of his Christ is still declaring in his Church by the ministers of the gospel, whose office it is to set forth Christ to the world in all his offices and efficacies, and to bring as many as may be to the obedience of the faith.

Thou art my Son] David was so by adoption and acceptation, Psa 89:26-27; but Christ, 1. By eternal generation, Pro 8:22-23 Heb 1:5 2. By hypostatical union, and so God had one only Son (as Abraham had his Isaac), though otherwise he were the Father of many nations.

This day have I begotten thee] Understand it either in the day of eternity, or else of the fulness of time wherein God brought his first begotten Son into the world, and afterwards mightily declared him to be the Son of God by the resurrection from the dead, Rom 1:3 Act 13:33, whence he is called the first begotten of the dead, Col 1:18 Rev 1:5.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

I will declare the decree - We have here another change in the speaker. The Anointed One is himself introduced as declaring the great purpose which was formed in regard to him, and referring to the promise which was made to him, as the foundation of the purpose of Yahweh Psa 2:6 to set him on the hill of Zion. The first strophe or stanza Psa 2:1-3 is closed with a statement made by the rebels of their intention or design; the second Psa 2:4-6 with a statement of the purpose of Yahweh; the third is introduced by this declaration of the Messiah himself. The change of the persons speaking gives a dramatic interest to the whole psalm. There can be no doubt that the word “I” here refers to the Messiah. The word decree - חק chôq - means properly something decreed, prescribed, appointed. See Job 23:14. Compare Gen 47:26; Exo 12:24. Thus it is equivalent to law, statute, ordinance. Here it refers not to a law which he was to obey, but to an ordinance or statute respecting his reign: the solemn purpose of Yahweh in regard to the kingdom which the Messiah was to set up; the constitution of his kingdom. This, as the explanation shows, implied two things:

(a) that he was to be regarded and acknowledged as his Son, or to have that rank and dignity Psa 2:7; and

(b) that the pagan and the uttermost parts of the earth were to be given him for a possession, or that his reign was to extend over all the world Psa 2:8.

The word “declare” here means that he would give utterance to, or that he would now himself make a statement in explanation of the reason why Yahweh had determined to establish him as King on his holy hill of Zion. There is great beauty in thus introducing the Messiah himself as making this declaration, presenting it now in the form of a solemn covenant or pledge. The determination of Yahweh Psa 2:6 to establish him as King on his holy hill is thus seen not to be arbitrary, but to be in fulfillment of a solemn promise made long before, and is therefore an illustration of his covenant faithfulness and truth. “The Lord hath said unto me.” Yahweh hath said. See Psa 2:2, Psa 2:4. He does not intimate when it was that he had said this, but the fair interpretation is, that it was before the purpose was to be carried into execution to place him as King in Zion; that is, as applicable to the Messiah, before he became incarnate or was manifested to execute his purpose on earth. It is implied, therefore, that it was in some previous state, and that he had come forth in virtue of the pledge that he would be recognized as the Son of God. The passage cannot be understood as referring to Christ without admitting his existence previous to the incarnation, for all that follows is manifestly the result of the exalted rank which God purposed to give him as his Son, or as the result of the promise made to him then.

Thou art my Son - That is, Yahweh had declared him to be his Son; he had conferred on him the rank and dignity fairly involved in the title The Son of God. In regard to the general meaning of this, and what is implied in it, see Mat 1:1, note; Heb 1:2, note; Heb 1:5, note; Rom 1:4, note; and Joh 5:18, note. The phrase “sons of God” is elsewhere used frequently to denote the saints, the children of God, or men eminent for rank and power (compare Gen 6:2, Gen 6:4; Job 1:6; Hos 1:10; Joh 1:12; Rom 8:14, Rom 8:19; Phi 2:15; 1Jo 3:1); and once to denote angels Job 38:7; but the appellation “The Son of God” is not appropriated in the Scriptures to anyone but the Messiah. It does not occur before this in the Old Testament, and it occurs but once after this, Dan 3:25. See the notes at that passage. This makes its use in the case before us the more remarkable, and justifies the reasoning of the author of the epistle to the Hebrews Heb 1:5 as to its meaning. The true sense, therefore, according to the Hebrew usage, and according to the proper meaning of the term, is, that he sustained a relation to God which could be compared only with that which a son among men sustains to his father; and that the term, as thus used, fairly implies an equality in nature with God himself. It is such a term as would not be applied to a mere man; it is such as is not applied to the angels Heb 1:5; and therefore it must imply a nature superior to either.

This day - On the application of this in the New Testament, see the notes at Act 13:33 and the notes at Heb 1:5. The whole passage has been often appealed to in support of the doctrine of the “eternal generation” of Christ, meaning that he was “begotten” from eternity; that is, that his divine nature was in some sense an emanation from the Father, and that this is from eternity. Whatever may be thought of that doctrine, however, either as to its intelligibility or its truth, there is nothing in the use of the phrase “this day,” or in the application of the passage in the New Testament Act 13:33; Heb 1:5, to sustain it. The language, indeed, in the connection in which it is found, does, as remarked above, demonstrate that he had a pre-existence, since it is addressed to him as the result of a decree or covenant made with him by Yahweh, and as the foundation of the purpose to set him as King on the hill of Zion. The words “this day” would naturally refer to that time when this “decree” was made, or this covenant formed; and as that was before the creation of the world, it must imply that he had an existence then.

The time referred to by the meaning of the word is, that when it was determined to crown him as the Messiah. This is founded on the relation subsisting between him and Yahweh, and implied when in that relation he is called his “Son;” but it determines nothing as to the time when this relation commenced. Yahweh, in the passage, is regarded as declaring his purpose to make him King in Zion, and the language is that of a solemn consecration to the kingly office. He is speaking of this as a purpose before he came into the world; it was executed, or carried into effect, by his resurrection from the dead, and by the exaltation consequent on that. Compare Act 13:33 and Eph 1:20-22. Considered, then, as a promise or purpose, this refers to the period before the incarnation; considered as pertaining to the execution of that purpose, it refers to the time when he was raised from the dead and exalted over all things as King in Zion. In neither case can the words “this day” be construed as meaning the same as eternity, or from eternity; and therefore they can determine nothing respecting the doctrine of” eternal generation.”

Have I begotten thee - That is, in the matter referred to, so that it would be proper to apply to him the phrase “my Son,” and to constitute him “King” in Zion. The meaning is, that he had so constituted the relationship of Father and Son in the case, that it was proper that the appellation “Son” should be given him, and that he should be regarded and addressed as such. So Prof. Alexander: “The essential meaning of the phrase “I have begotten thee” is simply this, “I am thy Father.” This is, of course, to be understood in accordance with the nature of God, and we are not to bring to the interpretation the ideas which enter into that human relationship. It means that in some proper sense - some sense appropriate to the Deity - such a relation was constituted as would justify this reference to the most tender and important of all human relationships. In what sense that is, is a fair subject of inquiry, but it is not proper to assume that it is in anything like a literal sense, or that there can be no other sense of the passage than that which is implied in the above-named doctrine, for it cannot be literal, and there are other ideas that may be conveyed by the phrase than that of “eternal generation.” The word rendered “begotten” (ילד yâlad) determines nothing certainly as to the mode in which this relationship was formed. It means properly:

(1) to bear, to bring forth as a mother, Gen 4:1;

(2) to beget, as a father, Gen 4:18; and then

(3) as applied to God it is used in the sense of creating - or of so creating or forming as that the result would be that a relation would exist which might be compared with that of a father and a son.

Deu 32:18 : “of the Rock that begat thee thou art unmindful.” Compare Jer 2:27 : “Saying to a block (idol), Thou art my father, thou hast begotten me.” So Paul says, 1Co 4:15 : “In Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the Gospel.” The full meaning, therefore, of this word would be met if it be supposed that Yahweh had given the Messiah this place and rank in such a sense that it was proper to speak of himself as the Father and the Anointed One as the Son. And was there not enough in designating him to this high office; in sending him into the world; in raising him from the dead; in placing him at his own right hand - appointing him as King and Lord - to justify this language? Is not this the very thing under consideration? Is it proper, then, in connection with this passage, to start the question about his eternal generation? Compare the notes at Rom 1:4. On this passage Calvin says (in loc.), “I know that this passage is explained by many as referring to the eternal generation of Christ, who maintain that in the adverb today there is, as it were, a perpetual act beyond the limits of time, denoted. But the Apostle Paul is a more faithful and competent interpreter of this prophecy, who in Act 13:33 recalls us to that which I have called a glorious demonstration of Christ. He was said to be begotten, therefore, not that he might be the Son of God, by which he might begin to be such, but that he might be manifested to the world as such. Finally, this begetting ought to be understood not of the mutual relation of the Father and the Son, but it signifies merely that he who was from the beginning hidden in the bosom of the Father, and who was obscurely shadowed forth under the law, from the time when he was manifested with clear intimation of his rank, was acknowledged as the Son of God, as it is said in Joh 1:14.” So Prof. Alexander, though supposing that this is founded on an eternal relation between the Father and the Son, says, “This day have I begotten thee may be considered as referring only to the coronation of Messiah, which is an ideal one,” vol. i., p. 15. The result of the exposition of this passage may therefore be thus stated:

(a) The term “Son,” as used here, is a special appellation of the Messiah - a term applicable to him in a sense in which it can be given to no other being.

(b) As used here, and as elsewhere used, it supposes his existence before the incarnation.

(c) Its use here, and the purpose formed, imply that he had an existence before this purpose was formed, so that he could be personally addressed, and so that a promise could be made to him.

(d) The term “Son” is not used here in reference to that anterior relation, and determines nothing as to the mode of his previous being - whether from eternity essentially in the nature of God; or whether in some mysterious sense begotten; or whether as an emanation of the Deity; or whether created.

(e) The term, as Calvin suggests, and as maintained by Prof. Alexander, refers here only to his being constituted King - to the act of coronation - whenever that occurred.

(f) This, in fact, occurred when he was raised from the dead, and when he was exalted to the right hand of God in heaven Act 13:33, so that the application of the passage by Paul in the Acts accords with the result to which we are led by the fair interpretation of the passage.

(g) The passage, therefore, determines nothing, one way or the other, respecting the doctrine of eternal generation, and cannot, therefore, be used in proof of that doctrine.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Psa_2:7

I will declare the decree.

The Lords decree

There is nothing in the economy of life and civilisation that is haphazard. Before all things and round about them as a glory and defence is the Lords decree. Under all disorder is law. The law is first beneficent, and then retributive. It is beneficent because it contemplates the recovery and sanctification of the heathen and the uttermost parts of the earth. It is retributive because if this offer of enclosure and honour is rejected, those who despise it shall be broken with a rod of iron, and dashed to pieces like a potters vessel. In the study of the worlds constitution and movement, look first of all at the Lords decree, the Lords idea and purpose. Settle it that the decree is good, merciful, redemptive, and then judge everything in the light of that fact. If you were judging of a national constitution you would not pronounce it bad became of its prisons; you would, on the contrary, pronounce it good for that very reason. You would know that there was a strong authority in that land, and that the authority was good, because it imprisoned and rebuked the workers of evil. So the rod of iron attests the holiness of God, and hell itself shows that virtue is honoured of heaven. (Joseph Parker, D. D.)

The Lord hath said unto Me, Thou art My Son.--

Demonstration of sonship

At the beginning of the Book of Psalms God gave to the Church a vision of the triumphs of Messiah before that of His sufferings and death. The prospect cheers as we enter the gloom. My King was also My Son. This was determined by the resurrection, as the crowning act of redemption. It was the resurrection which made manifest to the world that Jesus of Nazareth was the Eternal Son of Jehovah.

I. The resurrection of the blessed Lord was the final attestation of His Divine mission and in one sense the strongest. Proof after proof was afforded that He was the Son of God; but without the resurrection the chain of evidence was not complete. The life was restored, not through the instrumentality of a prophet, but because He was the Son of God.

II. The resurrection is the life of the Church. The disciples were scattered by the storm of the crucifixion. The dispersion would have been final had it not been for the word He had said, The third day He shall rise again. A new departure was taken at the sight of the living Lord. The commission of the apostles was given in the light of the resurrection. They were to be accompanied by both His power and His presence. There must be the living Christ in the sermon, to make the truth effectual; in the ordinances, to render them spiritual; in the services, to inspire them into life; and in the conduct, to cause its light to shine on a dark world.

III. The resurrection of the blessed Lord is the Christians strength and hope. A very exalted conception of redemption should be entertained. It is the gift of God to the Eternal Son. When the living Saviour is at our side we have power to carry our burdens, and to resist the devil. (Weekly Pulpit.)

Preaching the law

I. The general matter of the sermon. It is a law. What manner of law? A law to be preached, as other laws used not to be. A law concerning what God said. Which is the reason why it is to be preached. Not a law at large, but a statute law (Elchok), which but by publishing none can take notice of.

II. The text itself. Or the body of the law. In these words, Thou art My Son, this day have I begotten Thee. The points in it are five. Of a son. Of My Son, (that is) the Son of God. Genui, the Son of God begotten. Hodie, the Son of God this day begotten. And dixit genui, (that is) dicendo genuit, begotten only by saying. Only said the word and it was done, and the word became flesh.

III. How can this (Thou art My Son) be called a law? It does not look like one. There be but two laws--

1. Lex fidei; a law limiting what to believe of Him: of His person, His nature, and His offices.

2. Lex factorum; setting out first, what He doth for us; and then, what we are to do for Him. What He doth for us is, convey all filial rights. What we are to do for Him is, return to Him all filial duties. (Bishop Andrewes.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Psa 2:7. I will declare — Or publish, that all people concerned may take notice of it and submit to it, if they would escape the divine judgments which will be executed on the refractory and disobedient; the decree — The will and appointment of God concerning my advancement to the throne of Judah and Israel, and that of the Messiah, my seed, to universal empire over all mankind, and concerning the submission and obedience which must be paid thereto. The Lord hath said unto me, Thou art my Son — These words, in some sort, might be said to, or of David, not only because kings in general, and magistrates, are, styled gods, and sons of the Most High; but because when God, who was properly king of Israel, fixed David on the throne of that kingdom, and made it hereditary in his family, he did, as it were, cede and transfer the government, and thereby the rights of primogeniture to him, hereby making him, as it were, his son and successor in the kingdom, according to Psa 89:27, I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth. But certainly the words much more properly belong to Christ, who is commonly known by this title, Son of God, both in the Old and New Testament, and to whom this title is expressly appropriated by the Holy Ghost, who is the best interpreter of his own words, Act 13:33; Heb 1:5; Heb 5:5. This day have I begotten thee — This also is applied by some to David, understanding, by this day, the day of his inauguration, when he might be said to be begotten by God, inasmuch as he was then raised and delivered from all his calamities and troubles, which were a kind of death, and brought forth and advanced to a new kind of life, of royal state and dignity: and so this was the birth-day, though not of his person, yet of his kingdom; as the Roman emperors celebrated a double birth-day, first the day on which they were born, and then the day when they were advanced to the empire. But this, it must be acknowledged, is a far-fetched and doubtful sense: and therefore not to be allowed by the rules of legitimate interpretation, since the words may, much more properly, be applied to Christ. And, so applied, may be understood, either, 1st, Of what has been termed his eternal generation, or sonship, this day, signifying from all eternity, which may be considered as well described by this day, there being no succession, no yesterday, no to-morrow, in eternity; but all being as one continued day, or moment without change or flux: or, 2d, Of the manifestation of Christ’s eternal sonship in time; which was done both in his birth and life, when his being the Son of God was demonstrated by the testimony of the angel, Luk 1:32, by that of God the Father, Mat 3:17; Mat 17:5; and by his own words and works; and in his resurrection, which seems to be here chiefly intended, of which day this very place is expounded, Act 13:33; when Christ was, in a most solemn manner, declared to be the Son of God with power, Rom 1:4. And at this day, or time, Christ might very well be said to be begotten by God the Father, 1st, Because the resurrection from the dead is in Scripture called a regeneration, or second birth, Mat 19:28, as well it may, being a restitution of the very being which man received by his first birth: 2d, Because in this respect Christ is called, The first-begotten and firstborn from the dead: and, 3d, Because of that common observation, that things are often said to be done in Scripture when they are only declared, or manifested, to be done: see Gen 41:13; Jer 1:10; Eze 43:3.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

7. We have here another of those changes which impart to this whole psalm a highly dramatic character. A third personage is introduced as speaking without any formal intimation in the text. As the first stanza (Psa 2:1-8) closes with the words of the insurgents, and the second (Psa 2:4-6) with the words of the Lord, so the third (Psa 2:7-9) contains the language of the king described in the preceding verse, announcing with his own lips the law or constitution of his kingdom. I will declare, or let me declare, the same form of the verb as in Psa 2:3, the decree, the statute, the organic law or constitution of my kingdom. The Hebrew verb is followed by a preposition, which may be expressed in English, without any change of sense, by rendering the clause, I will declare, or make a declaration, i.e. a public, formal announcement (as) to the law or constitution of my kingdom. This announcement is then made in a historical form, by reciting what had been said to the king at his inauguration or induction into office. Jehovah said to me, My son (art) thou, this day have I begotten thee. Whether this be regarded as a part of the decree or law itself, or as a mere preamble to it, the relation here described is evidently one which carried with it uni• versal dominion as a necessary consequence, as well as one which justifies the use of the expression my King in Psa 2:6. It must be something more, then, than a figure for intense love or peculiar favour, something more than the filial relation which the theocratic kings, and Israel as a nation, bore to God. (Exo 4:22; Deu 14:1-2; Deu 32:6; Isa 63:16; Hos 11:1; Mal 1:6; Rom 9:4.) Nor will any explanation of the terms fully meet the requisitions of the context except one which supposes the relation here described as manifest in time to rest on one essential and eternal. This alone accounts for the identification of the persons as possessing a common interest, and reigning with and in each other. This profound sense of the passage is no more excluded by the phrase this day, implying something recent, than the universality of Christ's dominion is excluded by the local reference to Zion. The point of time, like the point of space, is the finite centre of an infinite circle. Besides, the mere form of the declaration is a part of the dramatic scenery or costume with which the truth is here invested. The ideas of a king, a coronation, a hereditary succession, are all drawn from human and temporal associations. This day have I begotten thee may be considered, therefore, as referring only to the coronation of Messiah, which is an ideal one. The essential meaning of the phrase I have begotten thee is simply this, I am thy father. The antithesis is per• fectly identical with that in 2Sa 7:14, "I will be his father, and he shall be my son." Had the same form of expression been used here, this day am I thy father, no reader would have understood this day as limiting the mutual relation of the parties, however it might limit to a certain point of time the formal recognition of it. It must also be observed, that even if this day be referred to the inception of the filial relation, it is thrown indefinitely back by the form of reminiscence or narration in the first clause of the verse. Jehovah said to me, but when? If understood to mean from everlasting or eternity, the form of expression would be perfectly in keeping with the other figurative forms by which the Scriptures represent things really ineffable in human language. The opinion that this passage is applied by Paul, in Act 13:33, to Christ's resurrection, rests upon a misappre• hension of the verb raised up, which has this specific meaning only when determined by the context or the addition of the words from the dead, as in the next verse of the same chapter, which is so fa.r from requiring the more general expressions of the preceding verse to be taken in the same sense, that it rather forbids such a construction, and shews that the two verses speak of different stages in the same great process : first, the raising up of Jesus in the same sense in which God is said to have raised him up in Acts ii. 30, iii. 22, 26, vii. 36, i.e. bringing him into being as a man ;: and then the raising up from the dead, which the apostle himself introduces as another topic in Acts xiii. 34. There is nothing, therefore, inconsistent with the statement that the psalmist here speaks of eternal sonship, either in the passage just referred to, or in Heb. v. 5, where the words are only cited to prove the solemn recognition of Christ's sonship, and his conse• quent authority, by God himself. This recognition was repeated, and, as it were, realised at our Saviour's baptism and transfiguration (Mat. iii. 17, xvii. 5), when a voice from heaven said, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, hear ye him ! "

Joseph Addison Alexander, The Psalms Translated and Explained (1850) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

2:7-9 The Lord adopted the king of David’s dynasty to conquer rebellious nations by force (see 89:26-27).

2:7 Today I have become your Father: People in the ancient Near East commonly accepted a father-son relationship between gods and kings. In Israel, the Lord adopted kings as his sons. God set David apart as his most excellent and exalted son (89:27). All descendants of David were the Lord’s representatives or agents. As an eternal member of the Godhead (John 1:1) and a descendant of David (Acts 13:33; Heb 1:5; 5:5), Jesus is the true Son of God.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

To show that my vocation to the kingdom, is of God.

That is to say, as touching man’s knowledge, because it was the first time that David appeared to be elected of God. So is it applied to Christ in his first coming and manifestation to the world.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

The king thus constituted declares the fundamental law of His kingdom, in the avowal of His Sonship, a relation involving His universal dominion.

this day have I begotten thee--as Sa2 7:14, "he shall be My son," is a solemn recognition of this relation. The interpretation of this passage to describe the inauguration of Christ as Mediatorial King, by no means impugns the Eternal Sonship of His divine nature. In Act 13:33, Paul's quotation does not imply an application of this passage to the resurrection; for "raised up" in Act 13:32 is used as in Act 2:30; Act 3:22, &c., to denote bringing Him into being as a man; and not that of resurrection, which it has only when, as in Act 2:34, allusion is made to His death (Rom 1:4). That passage says He was declared as to His divine nature to be the Son of God, by the resurrection, and only teaches that that event manifested a truth already existing. A similar recognition of His Sonship is introduced in Heb 5:5, by these ends, and by others in Mat 3:17; Mat 17:5.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 7. I will declare the decree] These words are supposed to have been spoken by the Messiah. I will declare to the world the decree, the purpose of God to redeem them by my blood, and to sanctify them by my Spirit. My death shall prove that the required atonement has been made; my resurrection shall prove that this atonement has been accepted.

Thou art my Son] Made man, born of a woman by the creative energy of the Holy Ghost, that thou mightest feel and suffer for man, and be the first-born of many brethren.

This day have I begotten thee.] By thy resurrection thou art declared to be the Son of God, ενδυναμει, by miraculous power, being raised from the dead. Thus by thy wondrous and supernatural nativity, most extraordinary death, and miraculous resurrection, thou art declared to be the Son of God. And as in that Son dwelt all the fulness of the Godhead bodily, all the sufferings and the death of that human nature were stamped with an infinitely meritorious efficacy. We have St. Paul's authority for applying to the resurrection of our Lord these words, "Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee; " - see Ac 13:33; see also Heb 5:5; - and the man must indeed be a bold interpreter of the Scriptures who would give a different gloss to that of the apostle. It is well known that the words, "Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee," have been produced by many as a proof of the eternal generation of the Son of God. On the subject itself I have already given my opinion in my note, See Clarke on Lu 1:35, from which I recede not one hair's breadth. Still however it is necessary to spend a few moments on the clause before us. The word היום haiyom, TO-DAY, is in no part of the sacred writings used to express eternity, or any thing in reference to it; nor can it have any such signification. To-day is an absolute designation of the present, and equally excludes time past and time future; and never can, by any figure, or allowable latitude of construction, be applied to express eternity. But why then does the Divine Spirit use the word begotten in reference to the declaration of the inauguration of the Messiah to his kingdom, and his being seated at the right hand of God? Plainly to show both to Jews and Gentiles that this Man of sorrows, this Outcast from society, this Person who was prosecuted as a blasphemer of God, and crucified as an enemy to the public peace and a traitor to the government, is no less than that eternal Word, who was in the beginning with God, who was God, and in whom dwelt all the fulness of the Godhead bodily: that this rejected Person was he for whom in the fulness of time a body was prepared, begotten by the exclusive power of the Most High in the womb of an unspotted virgin, which body he gave unto death as a sin-offering for the redemption of the world; and having raised it from death, declared it to be that miraculously-begotten Son of God, and now gave farther proof of this by raising the God-man to his right hand.

The word ילדתי yalidti, "I have begotten," is here taken in the sense of manifesting, exhibiting, or declaring; and to this sense of it St. Paul (Ro 1:3-4) evidently alludes when speaking of "Jesus Christ, who was made of the seed of David according to the flesh, του ὁρισθεντος Υἱου Θεου εν δυναμει, κατα Πνευμα αγιωσυνης, εξ αναστασεως νεκρων; and declared (exhibited or determined) to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness." This very rejected Person, I this day, by raising him from the dead, and placing him at my right hand, giving to him all power in heaven and earth, declare to be my Son, the beloved one in whom I am well pleased. Therefore hear him, believe on him, and obey him; for there is no redemption but through his blood; no salvation but in his name; no resurrection unto eternal life but through his resurrection, ascension, and powerful intercession at my right hand. Thou art my Son; this day have I declared and manifested thee to be such. It was absolutely necessary to the salvation of men, and the credibility of the Gospel, that the supernatural origin of the humanity of Jesus Christ should be manifested and demonstrated. Hence we find the inspired writers taking pains to show that he was born of a woman, and of that woman by the sovereign power of the everlasting God. This vindicated the character of the blessed virgin, showed the human nature of Christ to be immaculate, and that, even in respect to this nature, he was every way qualified to be a proper atoning sacrifice and Mediator between God and man. I need not tell the learned reader that the Hebrew verb ילד yalad, to beget, is frequently used in reference to inanimate things, to signify their production, or the exhibition of the things produced. In Ge 2:4: These are the generations, תולדות toledoth, of the heavens and the earth; this is the order in which God produced and exhibited them. See Heb. and Eng. Concord., Venema, &c.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

7. I will declare, etc. David, to take away all pretense of ignorance from his enemies, assumes the office of a preacher in order to publish the decree of God; or at least he protests that he did not come to the throne without a sure and clear proof of his calling; as if he had said, I did not, without consideration, publicly go forward to usurp the kingdom, but I brought with me the command of God, without which, I would have acted presumptuously, in advancing myself to such an honorable station. But this was more truly fulfilled in Christ, and doubtless, David, under the influence of the spirit of prophecy, had a special reference to him. For in this way all the ungodly are rendered inexcusable, because Christ proved himself to have been endued with lawful power from God, not only by his miracles, but by the preaching of the gospel. In fact, the very same testimony resounds through the whole world. The apostles first, and after them pastors and teachers, bore testimony that Christ was made King by God the Father; but since they acted as ambassadors in Christ’s stead, He rightly and properly claims to himself alone whatever was done by them. Accordingly, Paul (Ephesians 2:17) ascribes to Christ what the ministers of the gospel did in his name. “He came,” says he, “and preached peace to them that were afar off, and to them that were nigh.” Hereby, also, the authority of the gospel is better established because, although it is published by others, it does not cease to be the gospel of Christ. As often therefore, as we hear the gospel preached by men, we ought to consider that it is not so much they who speak, as Christ who speaks by them. And this is a singular advantage, that Christ lovingly allures us to himself by his own voice, that we may not by any means doubt of the majesty of his kingdom.

On this account, we ought the more carefully to beware of wickedly refusing the edict which he publishes, Thou art my Son. David, indeed could with propriety be called the son of God on account of his royal dignity, just as we know that princes, because they are elevated above others, are called both gods and the sons of God. But here God, by the singularly high title with which he honors David, exalts him not only above all mortal men, but even above the angels. This the apostle (Hebrews 1:5) wisely and diligently considers when he tells us this language was never used with respect to any of the angels. David, individually considered, was inferior to the angels, but in so far as he represented the person of Christ, he is with very good reason preferred far above them. By the Son of God in this place we are therefore not to understand one son among many, but his only begotten Son, that he alone should have the pre-eminence both in heaven and on earth. When God says, I have begotten thee, it ought to be understood as referring to men’s understanding or knowledge of it; for David was begotten by God when the choice of him to be king was clearly manifested. The words this day, therefore, denote the time of this manifestation; for as soon as it became known that he was made king by divine appointment, he came forth as one who had been lately begotten of God, since so great an honor could not belong to a private person. The same explanation is to be given of the words as applied to Christ. He is not said to be begotten in any other sense than as the Father bore testimony to him as being his own Son. This passage, I am aware, has been explained by many as referring to the eternal generation of Christ; and from the words this day, they have reasoned ingeniously as if they denoted an eternal act without any relation to time. But Paul, who is a more faithful and a better qualified interpreter of this prophecy, in Acts 13:33, calls our attention to the manifestation of the heavenly glory of Christ of which I have spoken. This expression, to be begotten, does not therefore imply that he then began to be the Son of God, but that his being so was then made manifest to the world. Finally, this begetting ought not to be understood of the mutual love which exists between the Father and the Son; it only signifies that He who had been hidden from the beginning in the sacred bosom of the Father, and who afterwards had been obscurely shadowed forth under the law, was known to be the Son of God from the time when he came forth with authentic and evident marks of Sonship, according to what is said in John 1:14, “we have seen his glory, as of the only begotten of the Father.” We must, at the same time, however, bear in mind what Paul teaches, (Romans 1:4) that he was declared to be the Son of God with power when he rose again from the dead, and therefore what is here said has a principal allusion to the day of his resurrection. But to whatever particular time the allusion may be, the Holy Spirit here points out the solemn and proper time of his manifestation, just as he does afterwards in these words

“This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24)

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

(7) I will declare.—The anointed king now speaks himself, recalling the covenant made with him by Jehovah at his coronation.

I will tell.—Better, Let me speak concerning the appointment. The word rendered decree in our version is derived from a root meaning to engrave, and so stands for any formal agreement, but it is usually an ordinance clearly announced by a prophet or some other commissioned interpreter of the Divine will, and consecrated and legalised by mutual adoption by king and people.

The Lord hath.—Better, Jehovah said unto me: that is, at that particular time, the day which the great event made the new birthday, as it were, of the monarch, or perhaps of the monarchy. From the particular prince, of whose career, if we could identify him with certainty, this would be the noblest historical memorial, the Psalmist—if, indeed, any one historic personage was in his thought at all—let his thoughts and hopes range, as we certainly may, on to a larger and higher fulfilment. The figure of an ideal prince who was always about to appear, but was never realised in any actual successor on the throne, may possibly, by the time of this psalm, have assumed its great place in the nation’s prophetic hopes. Certainly the whole line of tradition claims the passage in a Messianic sense. (See Note, Psa_2:2; and in New Testament Commentary, Note to Act_13:33; Heb_1:5; Heb_5:5. For the king, spoken of as God’s son, see Psa_89:26-27, and comp. 2Sa_7:14.)

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

7. the decree] The solemn and authoritative edict, promulgated in the promise made to David and his house through Nathan (2Sa_7:12 ff).

hath said unto me] Better, said unto me (R.V.), or, said of me.

this day] The day when he was anointed king. If Nathan was (as is commonly supposed) Solomon’s tutor, he had no doubt trained him to a consciousness of his high calling; and when in concert with Zadok he anointed him (1Ki_1:34), he would not fail to impress upon him the significance of the rite. Comp. David’s charge to him in 1Ch_22:6 ff.

have I begotten thee] I is the emphatic word in the clause, contrasting the new sonship by adoption with the existing sonship by natural relation. The recognition of Christ’s eternal sonship in the Resurrection corresponds to the recognition of the king’s adoptive sonship in the rite of anointing (Act_13:33; Rom_1:4).

7–9. Jehovah has acknowledged the king as His own: and now the king takes up Jehovah’s declaration, and appeals to the Divine decree of sonship, and the promise of world-wide dominion.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

I will declare the decree,.... These are the words of Jehovah's Anointed and King, exercising his kingly office, according to the decree and commandment of the Father: for these words refer not to the following, concerning the generation of the Son, which does not depend on the decree and arbitrary will of God, but is from his nature; but these words relate to what go before. The Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, and Oriental versions, place this clause at the end of Psa 2:6; some render it, "declaring his commandment", or "the commandment of the Lord"; the laws that he would have observed, both by him and by the subjects of his kingdom. The Syriac and Arabic versions, "that he might declare the commandment of the Lord"; as if this was the end of his being appointed King. The word is differently rendered; by many, "the decree", the purpose of God concerning Christ as Mediator, and the salvation of his people by him; and who so fit to declare this as he who lay in the bosom of the Father, and was privy to all his secret thoughts and designs, and in when the eternal purpose was purposed. Joh 1:18. The Chaldee paraphrase renders it by "the covenant", the everlasting covenant of grace; and who so proper to declare this as he with whom the covenant was made, and who is the covenant itself, in whom all the blessings and promises of it are, and the messenger of it. Mal 3:1. It may not be unfitly applied to the Gospel, which is the sum and substance of both the decree and covenant of God; it is what was ordained before the world for our glory. This Christ was appointed to preach, and did declare it in the great congregation; the same with the counsel of God, Act 20:27. The words will bear to be rendered, "I will declare" "to the command" (h); or according to the order and rule prescribed by Jehovah, without adding to it or taking from it: agreeably to which he executed his office as King, and Prophet also. The doctrine was not his own, but his Father's he preached; he spake not of himself, but as he taught and enjoined him; the Father gave him commandment what he should say and speak, Joh 12:49; and he kept close to it, as he here says he would: and he ruled in his name, and by his authority, according to the law of his office; and which might be depended upon from the dignity of his person, which qualified him both for his kingly and prophetic offices, expressed in the following words:

the Lord hath said unto me, thou art my Son; not by creation, as angels and men; nor by adoption, as saints; nor by office, as civil magistrates; nor on account of his incarnation or resurrection; nor because of the great love of God unto him; but in such a way of filiation as cannot be said of any creature nor of any other, Heb 1:5; He is the true, proper, natural, and eternal Son of God, and as such declared, owned, and acknowledged by Jehovah the Father, as in these words; the foundation of which relation lies in what follows:

this day have I begotten thee; which act of begetting refers not to the nature, nor to the office, but the person of Christ; not to his nature, not to his divine nature, which is common with the Father and Spirit; wherefore if his was begotten, theirs must be also: much less to his human nature, in which he is never said to be begotten, but always to be made, and with respect to which he is without father: nor to his office as Mediator, in which he is not a Son, but a servant; besides, he was a Son previous to his being Prophet, Priest, and King; and his office is not the foundation of his sonship, but his sonship is the foundation of his office; or by which that is supported, and which fits him for the performance of it: but it has respect to his person; for, as in human generation, person begets person, and like begets like, so in divine generation; but care must be taken to remove all imperfection from it, such as divisibility and multiplication of essence, priority and posteriority, dependence, and the like: nor can the "modus" or manner of it be conceived or explained by us. The date of it, "today", designs eternity, as in Isa 43:13, which is one continued day, an everlasting now. And this may be applied to any time and case in which Christ is declared to be the Son of God; as at his incarnation, his baptism, and transfiguration upon the mount, and his resurrection from the dead, as it is in Act 13:33; because then he was declared to be the Son of God with power, Rom 1:4; and to his ascension into heaven, where he was made Lord and Christ, and his divine sonship more manifestly appeared; which seems to be the time and case more especially referred to here, if it be compared with Heb 1:3.

(h) Heb. "ad decretum", Michaelis, Piscator; "juxta vel secundum statutum", Musculus, Gejerus; "praescriptum et modum certum", Cocceius.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

I will declare, or publish, that all people concerned may take notice of it, and submit to it upon their peril. Publication or promulgation is essential to all laws or statutes.

The decree, or, concerning the decree, i.e. the will or pleasure and appointment of God concerning my advancement into the throne, and the submission and obedience which the people here following shall yield to me.

Thou art my Son; which though it may in some sort be said to or of David, who was in some respects the son of God, and begotten by him, as all believers are, Joh 1:12; 1Jo 3:9; Jam 1:18; yet much more truly and properly belongs to Christ, who is commonly known by this title both in the Old and New Testament, as Pro 30:4; Hos 11:1; Mat 2:15; Mat 3:17; 4:3,6, and oft elsewhere; and to whom this title is expressly appropriated by the Holy Ghost, who is the best interpreter of his own words, Act 13:33; Heb 1:5; 5:5, and to whom alone the following passages belong.

This day have I begotten thee: this is also applied by some to David, and so this day is the day of his inauguration, when he might be said to be begotten by God, inasmuch as he was then raised and delivered from all his troubles and calamities, which were a kind of death, and brought forth and advanced to a new kind of life, of royal state and dignity; and so this was the birthday, though not of his person, yet of his kingdom, as the Roman emperors celebrated a double birthday; first the emperor’s, when he was born, and then the empire’s, when he was advanced to the empire. But this is but a lean, and far-fetched, and doubtful sense; and therefore not to be allowed by the laws of interpretation, when the words may be properly understood concerning Christ. And so this may be understood either,

1. Of his eternal generation.

This day; from all eternity, which is well described by this day, because in eternity there is no succession, no yesterday, no to-morrow, but it is all as one continued day or moment, without change or flux; upon which account one day is said to be with the Lord as long as a thousand years, and a thousand years as short as one day, 2Pe 3:8. Or rather,

2. Of the manifestation of Christ’s eternal sonship in time; which was done partly in his birth and life, when his being the Son of God was demonstrated by the testimony of the angel, Luk 1:32, and of God the Father, Mat 3:17; 17:5, and by his own words and works; but principally in his resurrection, which seems to be here mainly intended, of which day this very place is expounded, Act 13:33; when Christ was in a most solemn manner declared to be the Son of God with power, Rom 1:4. And this day or time Christ might very well be said to be begotten by God the Father; partly, because the resurrection from the dead is in Scripture called a regeneration or second birth, Mat 19:28, as well it may, being a restitution of that very being which man received by his, first birth, and that by the peculiar and mighty power of God; partly, because in this respect Christ is called the first begotten of the dead, Rev 1:5; and partly, because of that common observation, that things are oft said to be done in Scripture when they are only declared or manifested to be done; of which see instances, Gen 41:13; Jer 1:10; Eze 43:3, and elsewhere.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Verse 7. This Psalm wears something of a dramatic form, for now another person is introduced as speaking. We have looked into the council-chamber of the wicked, and to the throne of God, and now we behold the Anointed declaring his rights of sovereignty, and warning the traitors of their doom. God has laughed at the counsel and ravings of the wicked, and now Christ the Anointed himself comes forward, as the Risen Redeemer, "declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead." Romans 1:4. Looking into the angry faces of the rebellious kings, the Anointed One seems to say, "If this sufficeth not to make you silent, `I will declare the decree'." Now this decree is directly in conflict with the device of man, for its tenour is the establishment of the very dominion against which the nations are raving. "Thou art my Son." Here is a noble proof of the glorious Divinity of our Immanuel. "For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee?" What a mercy to have a Divine Redeemer in whom to rest our confidence! "This day have I begotten thee." If this refers to the Godhead of our Lord, let us not attempt to fathom it, for it is a great truth, a truth reverently to be received, but not irreverently to be scanned. It may be added, that if this relates to the Begotten One in his human nature, we must here also rejoice in the mystery, but not attempt to violate its sanctity by intrusive prying into the secrets of the Eternal God. The things which are revealed are enough, without venturing into vain speculations. In attempting to define the Trinity, or unveil the essence of Divinity, many men have lost themselves: here great ships have foundered. What have we to do in such a sea with our frail skiffs?

Verse 7. The dispute concerning the eternal filiation of our Lord betrays more of presumptuous curiosity than of reverent faith. It is an attempt to explain where it is far better to adore. We could give rival expositions of this verse, but we forbear. The controversy is one of the most unprofitable which ever engaged the pens of theologians.

C. H. S.

Verse 7. The divine decree concerning Christ, in connection with the decrees of election and providence. The Sonship of Jesus.

This verse teaches us faithfully to declare, and humbly to claim, the gifts and calling that God hath bestowed upon us.

Thomas Wilcocks.

Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

7. I will declare the decree—David now prophetically speaks in the person of Christ, or in Christ’s stead, who is called, Psa_2:2, the “Anointed” of Jehovah, and, in Psa_2:6, Jehovah’s “King,” and in this verse, Jehovah’s “Son.” The language now passes to the highest reach of prophetico-typical description.

Thou art my Son—The “my” denotes the promulgator of the “decree;” the “Son” is he in whose favour the decree is proclaimed—David’s royal descendant and yet David’s Lord—the Christ. He is “Son,” not by adoption, as are all the true Israel of God, but by being the “only begotten of the Father.”

This day have I begotten thee—The expression, “this day,” does not mark the origin of Christ’s Sonship, but the period of the promulgation of this decree, be that when it might. The open manifestation of its fulfilment was, when “Christ was declared to be the Son of God with power by his resurrection from the dead.”

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

I will declare the decree. It is best to suppose that Messiah here takes the word, and maintains it to the end of ver. 9, when the psalmist resumes in his own person. Messiah "declares," or publishes, a "decree," made by God the Father in the beginning of all things, and communicated by him to the Son, whereby he made known the relationship between them, and invested the Son with sovereign power over the universe. The Lord hath said unto me; rather, said unto me (see the Revised Version). It was said, once for all, at a distant date. Thou art my Son. Not "one of my sons," but "my Son;" i.e. my one Son, my only one Son" kat exochn . (comp. Psa_89:27 Heb_1:5) This day have I begotten thee. If it be asked, "Which day?" the answer would seem to be, the day when Christ commenced his redemptive work: then the Father "committed all judgment dominion over creation" to the Son", (Joh_5:22) gave him, as it were, a new existence, a new sphere, the throne of the world, and of all that is or that ever will be, in it (see "Speaker"s Commentary," ad loc.).

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The decree - The will and appointment of God concerning this. My son - Which tho' it may in some sort be said to, or of David, yet much more properly belongs to Christ, who is commonly known by this title both in the Old and New Testament, and to whom this title is expressly appropriated by the holy ghost, who is the best interpreter of his own words, Acts xiii, 33 Heb. i, 5. This day - This may be understood either,

1. Of his eternal generation. This day, from all eternity, which is well described by this day, because in eternity there is no succession, no [yesterday,] no [tomorrow,] but it is all as one continued day or moment without change or flux; or,

2. Of the manifestation of Christ's eternal son-ship in time; which was done both in his birth and life, when his being the son of God was demonstrated by the testimony of the angel, Luke i, 32, and of God the Father, Matt. iii, 17; xvii, 5, and by his own words and works; and in his resurrection, which seems to be here mainly intended, of which day this very place is expounded, Acts xiii, 33. When Christ was in a most solemn manner declared to be the son of God with power, Rom. i, 4.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

The Anointed One himself now speaks and expresses what he is, and is able to do, by virtue of the divine decree. No transitional word or formula of introduction denotes this sudden transition from the speech of Jahve to that of His Christ. The psalmist is the seer: his Psalm is the mirrored picture of what he saw and the echo of what he heard. As Jahve in opposition to the rebels acknowledges the king upon Zion, so the king on Zion appeals to Him in opposition to the rebels. The name of God, יהוה, has Rebia magnum and, on account of the compass of the full intonation of this accent, a Gaja by the Sheb (comp. אלהי Psa 25:2, אלהים Psa 68:8, אדני Psa 90:1).

(Note: We may observe here, in general, that this Gaja (Metheg) which draws the Sheb into the intonation is placed even beside words with the lesser distinctives Zinnor and Rebia parvum only by the Masorete Ben-Naphtali, not by Ben-Asher (both about 950 a.d.). This is a point which has not been observed throughout even in Baer's edition of the Psalter so that consequently e.g., in Psa 5:11 it is to be written אלהים; in Psa 6:2 on the other hand (with Dech) יהוה, not יהוה.)

The construction of ספּר with אל (as Psa 69:27, comp. אמר Gen 20:2; Jer 27:19, דּבּר Ch2 32:19, הודיע Isa 38:19): to narrate or make an announcement with respect to... is minute, and therefore solemn. Self-confident and fearless, he can and will oppose to those, who now renounce their allegiance to him, a חק, i.e., an authentic, inviolable appointment, which can neither be changed nor shaken. All the ancient versions, with the exception of the Syriac, read חק־יהוה together. The line of the strophe becomes thereby more symmetrical, but the expression loses in force. אל־חק rightly has Olewejored. It is the amplificative use of the noun when it is not more precisely determined, known in Arabic grammar: such a decree! majestic as to its author and its matter. Jahve has declared to Him: בּני אתּה,

(Note: Even in pause here אתּה remains without a lengthened ā (Psalter ii. 468), but the word is become Milel, while out of pause, according to Ben-Asher, it is Milra; but even out of pause (as in Psa 89:10, Psa 89:12; Psa 90:2) it is accented on the penult. by Ben-Naphtali. The Athnach of the books תאם (Ps., Job, Prov.), corresponding to the Zakeph of the 21 other books, has only a half pausal power, and as a rule none at all where it follows Olewejored, cf. Psa 9:7; Psa 14:4; Psa 25:7; Psa 27:4; Psa 31:14; Psa 35:15, etc. (Baer, Thorath Emeth p. 37).)

and that on the definite day on which He has begotten or born him into this relationship of son. The verb ילד (with the changeable vowel i)

(Note: The changeable i goes back either to a primary form ילד, ירשׁ, שׁאל, or it originates directly from Pathach; forms like ירשׁוּה and שׁאלך favour the former, ē in a closed syllable generally going over into Segol favours the latter.))

unites in itself, like γεννᾶν, the ideas of begetting and bearing (lxx γεγέννηκα, Aq. ἔτεκον); what is intended is an operation of divine power exalted above both, and indeed, since it refers to a setting up (נסך) in the kingship, the begetting into a royal existence, which takes place in and by the act of anointing (משׁח). Whether it be David, or a son of David, or the other David, that is intended, in any case 2 Sam 7 is to be accounted as the first and oldest proclamation of this decree; for there David, with reference to his own anointing, and at the same time with the promise of everlasting dominion, receives the witness of the eternal sonship to which Jahve has appointed the seed of David in relation to Himself as Father, so that David and his seed can say to Jahve: אבי אתּה, Thou art my Father, Psa 89:27, as Jahve can to him: בּני אתּה, Thou art My son. From this sonship of the Anointed one to Jahve, the Creator and Possessor of the world, flows His claim to and expectation of the dominion of the world. The cohortative, natural after challenges, follows upon שׁאל, Ges. 128, 1. Jahve has appointed the dominion of the world to His Son: on His part therefore it needs only the desire for it, to appropriate to Himself that which is allotted to Him. He needs only to be willing, and that He is willing is shown by His appealing to the authority delegated to Him by Jahve against the rebels. This authority has a supplement in Psa 2:9, which is most terrible for the rebellious ones. The suff. refer to the גּוים, the ἔθνη, sunk in heathenism. For these his sceptre of dominion (Psa 90:2) becomes a rod of iron, which will shatter them into a thousand pieces like a brittle image of clay (Jer 19:11). With נפּץ alternates רעע (= רעץ frangere), fut. תּרע; whereas the lxx (Syr., Jer.), which renders ποιμανεῖς αὐτοὺς ἐν ῥάβδῳ (as Co1 4:21) σιδηρᾷ, points it תּרעם from רעה. The staff of iron, according to the Hebrew text the instrument of punitive power, becomes thus with reference to שׁבט as the shepherd's staff Psa 23:4; Mic 7:14, an instrument of despotism.

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

The Divine Announcement.

It is the Anointed of Jehovah, Jesus Christ Himself, who now speaks in person.

v. 7. I will declare the decree, make known, express for a statute, publish as a resolution: The Lord, the great Jehovah, the almighty God of the heavens, hath said unto Me, Thou art My Son, standing in the relation of essential Sonship to God; this day, in the great, eternal today, in the timeless period of eternity, have I begotten Thee, Christ being generated out of the essence of God. The Son of God was from eternity brought forth by the eternal Father as His essential image, by the transmission of the divine essence, in an incomprehensible, supernatural manner. Cf Mat 3:17; Mat 17:5. messiah now states what the Father, in His great commission, had spoken to Him.

v. 8. Ask of Me, the Son should freely demand of the Father, for the Fathers love would withhold nothing from the Son of His eternal begetting, and I shall give Thee the heathen for Thine inheritance and the uttermost parts of the earth for Thy possession. Nations, dominions, the very ends of the world are placed in the hands of Messiah; men from all nations, people from the very ends of the inhabited earth, would acknowledge Christ as their gracious Lord, their merciful Sovereign.

v. 9. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; Thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel. This is the judgment upon the rebels, upon the scoffers, the manifestation of Christ’s consuming anger on the great Day of Judgment. The breaking, the dashing to pieces, is a picture of eternal damnation, Rev 2:27; Rev 12:5; Rev 19:15. Since, however, the mercy of God turns to thoughts of peace rather than to anger, His warning, coaxing cry goes forth in the closing words of the psalmist.

v. 10. Be wise now therefore, O ye kings; be instructed, ye judges of the earth! The rulers of the earth should show sense, the men whose business it is to dispense judgment, all those occupying positions of honor and influence, should make use of the proper wisdom, learn the true understanding which leads to eternal peace and happiness.

v. 11. Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling; they should place themselves fully and unreservedly in His service, although this joyful service would be attended with sacred awe, fear, and trembling, Php 2:12, lest His mercy be abused and His love forgotten.

v. 12. Kiss the Son, hailing Him with the true kiss of homage, lest He be angry and ye perish from the way when His wrath is kindled but a little. The day of wrath is near; but a little while and the anger of the great Judge of the world will strike the proud scorners of His grace. It is time for all men seriously to think about the salvation of their souls. Blessed are all they, the thousandfold blessings are upon them, that put their trust in Him, taking refuge in His mercy; for eternal salvation is theirs. All those who put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ as their one Redeemer will not be put to shame, but will be safe in His love throughout eternity.

Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

I will tell of the decree Said David, “This is an established decree, and [one] that I have received to tell this and to make known.”

The Lord said to me through Nathan, Gad, and Samuel.

You are My son The head over Israel, who are called “My firstborn son.” And they will endure through you, as is stated concerning Abner (II Sam. 3:18): “for God said, etc., ‘By the hand of My bondsman David shall I deliver...Israel.’” And for their sake, you are before Me as a son because they are all dependent upon you.

this day have I for I have enthroned you over them.

begotten you to be called My son and to be beloved to Me as a son for their sake, as it is stated (I Chronicles 14:2): ‘And David knew that the Lord had established him as king over Israel, and that his kingdom was highly exalted for the sake of His people Israel.’ And we find that the kings of Israel who were beloved before Him were called sons, as it is stated (II Sam. 7:14) concerning Solomon: “I will be to him a father, and he shall be to Me a son.” We find further concerning David (Ps. 89:27) “He shall call Me, ‘You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.’”

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

Let me declare it for a decree: – This is the utterance of David, who says, I will make this declaration a decree and rule. And what is the declaration? That

The Lord said unto me, Thou art My son: – and the kingdom has come to me from Him, and therefore let no man stir up strife against it, for the Lord hath chosen me for a son, as He said to Samuel (1 Sam. 16:1): “For I have provided among his sons a king for Myself.” It is as though to say, “This king is Mine and he is My son and servant and obeys Me” – for everyone who is obedient in the service of God He calls His son, just as a son obeys his father and is ready for his service. And so (in the verse) “ye are sons of the Lord your God” (Deut. 14:1), and “I will be his Father and he shall be My son” (2 Sam. 7:14); and it says (Hos. 2:1), “the sons of the living God.”

This day have I begotten thee: – The day when he was anointed was the day God took him to Himself for a son, as it says (1 Sam. 16:1), “to Me a king.” And he says, This day have I begotten thee, for on that day there was born in him the spirit of God, as is written (1 Sam. 16:13), “And the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day and onward.” And from that day onward he gave expression to songs and psalms by the Holy Spirit, which was born in him and imparted to him by God. Moreover, the spirit of might was added to him from that day onward; and so it says (Deut. 32:18), “Of the rock that begat thee thou art unmindful” which made thee great and put wisdom in thine heart and intelligence, in the day of the station at Mount Sinai. And so it says (ibid. 6), “Is not He thy Father that hath bought thee?” For if he had said begotten thee, bought thee in reference to (the act of) creation, this would have been no more true of Israel than the rest of men. Do you not see what he says, “Do ye thus requite the Lord?” (ibid.), meaning, “This is the requital you make Him for all the good He has done to you! Surely He is thy Father who bought thee!” And he says, “Of the rock that begat thee thou art unmindful and hast forgotten the God that gave thee birth” (ibid. 18), just as he says thy Father, for He is to you as a father, and the one that gave thee birth – that is, the mother.

Radak on the Tanakh — English translations: “Sefaria Community Translation” (CC0 1.0 (public-domain dedication)); “Eliyahu Munk, HaChut Hameshulash” (CC BY 4.0); “Rabbi Mike Feuer, Jerusalem Anthology” (CC BY 4.0); and “R. David Kimhi on the first book of Psalms, Translated by R.G. Finch, London, 1919” (public domain). Text via Sefaria.

Let me tell (אֲסַפְּרָ֗ה - asapperah): These are the words of David along with his prophecy; or, the words of the poet [who composed the psalm] speaking on his [David's, or the Messiah's] behalf.

[Regarding] the decree (אֶֽ֫ל־חֹ֥ק - el chok): [The meaning is:] This which I will tell, I will establish it (asim oto) as a decree (le-chok) that should be related. And this [decree] is: He said to me, "You are My son" – [meaning] to serve HaShem, just as a son honors a father.

I have fathered you this day (אֲ֝נִ֗י הַיּ֥וֹם יְלִדְתִּֽיךָ - ani hayom yelidtíkha): This is similar to (Deuteronomy 32:18): "The Rock who fathered you (tzur yeladkha), you forgot."

Ibn Ezra on the Tanakh — English translations: “Sefaria Community Translation” (CC0 1.0 (public-domain dedication)); “Yalkut, Sifsei Chachomim Chumash, Metsudah Publications, 2009” (CC BY 4.0); and “Commentary of Ibn Ezra on Isaiah - trans. by M. Friedlander, 1873” (public domain). Text via Sefaria.