Q. Please comment on Psalm 2:12, which mentions “kissing the Son.”

A. The phrase “kiss the Son” is figurative language, referring to the actual practice in the time of the psalmist of showing homage to a new king by kissing his hand or foot. First Samuel 10:1 states, “Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on his [Saul’s] head, and kissed him and said: Is it not because the Lord has anointed you commander over His inheritance?” We think of King David’s coronation too, but on a much grander scale is Jesus Christ as King of Kings. Psalm 2:12 recognizes Who and what Christ is—the only Savior. Kissing involves expression of relationship—in this case love and union with Christ. It expresses desire and surrender. It involves two—Christ and the believer. Anyone who has truly come to Christ as Savior—acknowledging Who He is and what He has accomplished in salvation—has “kissed the Son.” Taking Christ as Savior contrasts with the earlier part of the psalm, where instead of yielding to the God of the universe, the nations of the world rebel against Him.

John 5:23 states, “All should honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.” The latter part of Psalm 2:12 expresses the truth that today is the day when a person must trust Jesus as Savior. Tomorrow may be too late, as one of these days the Lamb of God will be the Lion, pouring out His divine wrath on all the rebels of the earth, all those who reject Him (see Revelation 5:5 and 6). He is the Savior, but someday He will be the Judge.

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