The last two-and-a-half years have been incredibly stressful for everybody. People lost sleep because of the pandemic—and because of so many other worries: inflation, racial tensions, the border crisis, the war in Ukraine and threats from China.
The anxiety level escalated as conspiracy theories spread faster than the COVID virus. Since March 2020 we’ve been told that 1) Bill Gates, George Soros and other billionaires are plotting to lower the world’s population; 2) the COVID vaccine was designed to kill us; 3) globalists are engineering an economic crash so they can control the world; 4) Russia is planning a nuclear war; and 5) China is plotting to take control of Taiwan—and then the world.
I’ve heard all these conspiracy theories, and plenty more. Yet I slept well during the pandemic, and I’m not losing sleep now. The reason is that when the pandemic began the Lord took me to Psalm 2, and I’ve been parked in that passage of Scripture ever since. It is the best medicine for anxiety—better than Xanax, Zoloft, Prozac or any sedative. God’s Word gives us a peace that surpasses all understanding.
The psalmist begins by describing the agenda of wicked people. He says: “The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord, and against His Anointed, saying, ‘Let us tear their fetters apart and cast their cords from us!’” (Psalm 2:3).
The author of the psalm doesn’t deny that evil men are scheming against the righteous. Psalm 2 says leaders who hate God will seek to bring harm. It also reveals that their efforts are ultimately aimed against “the Lord, and against His Anointed.” Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is “the Anointed,” or the “Messiah.” All these conspiracies are against Jesus—and this is why we describe the entire world system as “anti-Christ.”
But notice that God isn’t worried about these conspirators. There is no anxiety in heaven about viruses, nuclear wars or genocide plots. Psalm 2:4 simply states: “He who sits in the heavens laughs, the Lord scoffs at them.” There are three things we can learn from this verse:
1. The Lord is seated. God is not pacing to and fro, wringing His hands or fretting about evildoers. He is comfortably seated on His throne, and His authority is not up for grabs. He’s relaxed. Even though God’s throne is invisible, it is the most permanent thing in the universe. Lamentations 5:19 says: “You, O Lord, rule forever; Your throne is from generation to generation.” Even though we see a spiritual war raging around us, there is no chance that God’s authority will be overthrown.
2. The Lord is laughing. My fears and worries are calmed when I realize how God views His enemies. He actually finds it humorous that puny humans think they have enough money, fame, technology or political power to challenge the Creator of the world.
From the earliest days of Genesis, when tyrants built the Tower of Babel, God crushed their silly conspiracy and scattered the people. When Pharaoh tried to arrogantly enslave the Hebrews, God decimated Egypt with plagues and drowned a hostile army in the sea. When Goliath mocked the people of Israel, God brought the giant down with a rock thrown by a shepherd boy. The Lord always gets the last laugh!
3. He will scoff at them. The NKJV translates this as, “the Lord will hold them in derision.” The Amplified Bible says, “the [Sovereign] Lord scoffs at them [and in supreme contempt He mocks them.” It is interesting that before judging His enemies, God actually taunts the devil and those who are in league with him. The Lord gives the wicked some warning of the wrath that is coming as a consequence of their rebellion.
It brings me great comfort to know that my all-powerful God will one day put His enemies in their place. I’ve read the last chapters of Revelation. I know the devil will be thrown into the abyss of hell, and those who serve Satan will end up in “the lake that burns with fire and brimstone” (Rev. 21:8).
And yet—in this age of divine grace—God has chosen to give even the wickedest of men a chance to find mercy. At the close of Psalm 2 God says: “Take warning, O judges of the earth. Worship the Lord with reverence, and … Do homage to the Son … for His wrath may soon be kindled. How blessed are all who take refuge in Him” (v. 10-12).
I can sleep at night because my refuge is in the Lord. I don’t fret because of what I hear on the news. Instead, I stay close to His throne, listen to His laughter and find shelter in His presence. I pray you will find that same peace in these troubling times.