Wait
for the LORD and keep his way. He will exalt you to inherit the land
1 Help, LORD, for the godly are no
more;
the faithful have vanished from among men.
2 Everyone lies to his neighbor;
their flattering lips speak with
deception.
3 May the LORD cut off all flattering
lips
and every boastful tongue
4 that says, "We will triumph
with our tongues;
we own our lips—who is our master?"
5 "Because of the oppression of
the weak
and the groaning of the needy,
I will now arise," says the LORD.
"I will protect them from those who
malign them."
6 And the words of the LORD are
flawless,
like silver refined in a furnace of clay,
purified seven times.
7 O LORD, you will keep us safe
and protect us from such people forever.
8 The wicked freely strut about
when what is vile is honored among men.
Comments:
It is
supposed that David penned this psalm in Saul’s reign, when there was a general
decay of honesty and piety both in court and country, which he here complains
of to God, and very feelingly, for he himself suffered by the treachery of his
false friends and the insolence of his sworn enemies.
This
psalm furnishes us with good thoughts for bad times. Ask anyone what it is in
their account that makes the times bad, and they will tell you, Scarcity of
money, decay of trade, and the desolations of war, make the times bad. But the
scripture lays the badness of the times upon causes of another nature – a
general decay of piety and honesty among men. (See 1): When the godly man
ceases and the faithful fail.
They
are here said to cease and fail, either by death or by desertion, or by both.
Those that were godly and faithful were taken away, and those that were left
had sadly degenerated and were not what they had been; so that there were few
or no good people left.
This is
the devil’s image complete, a complication of malice and falsehood. The times
are bad indeed when there is no such thing as sincerity to be met with, when an
honest man knows not whom to believe nor whom to trust, nor dares put
confidence in a friend.
When
the poor and needy are oppressed, and abused, then the times are very bad. This
is implied in verse 5 where God himself takes notice of the oppression of the
poor and the sighing of the needy; they are oppressed because they are poor,
have all manner of wrong done them merely because they are not in a capacity to
right themselves. Being thus oppressed, they dare not speak for themselves,
lest their defense should be made their offence.
When
wickedness abounds, and is allows under the protection and countenance of those
in authority, then the times are very bad, v. 8. When
the vilest men are exalted to places of trust and power who, instead of putting
the laws in execution against vice and injustice and punishing the wicked
according to their merits, patronize and protect them, give them countenance,
and support their reputation by their own example, then the wicked walk on
every side.
When
godly faithful people cease and fail it is time to cry, Help, Lord! The
abounding of iniquity threatens a deluge. "Help, Lord, help the virtuous;
few seek to hold fast their integrity, and to stand in the gap; help to save
thy own interest in the world from sinking.
David
says "Help, Lord,’’ and God says "I will, here I am.
Although
this psalm was written 3000 years ago, you can’t help but notice how all of
this is true today. Has society returned to this state? Has history repeated
itself? Or has it been this way all along, but you’ve never had a biblical
answer to the situation until now?
In
praying over this psalm, we must thank God that things are not worse than they
are, but pray and hope that they will be better in God’s due time.
1 Do not fret because of evil men
or be envious of those who do wrong;
2 for like the grass they will soon wither,
like green plants they will soon die away.
3 Trust in the LORD and do good;
dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
4 Delight yourself in the LORD
and he will give you the desires of your
heart.
5 Commit your way to the LORD;
trust in him and he will do this:
6 He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn,
the justice of your cause like the noonday
sun.
7 Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when men succeed in their
ways,
when they carry out their wicked schemes.
8 Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;
do not fret—it leads only to evil.
9 For evil men will be cut off,
but those who hope in the LORD will
inherit the land.
10 A little while, and the wicked will be no more;
though you look for them, they will not be
found.
11 But the meek will inherit the land
and enjoy great peace.
12 The wicked plot against the righteous
and gnash their teeth at them;
13 but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
for he knows their day is coming.
14 The wicked draw the sword
and bend the bow
to bring down the poor and needy,
to slay those whose ways are upright.
15 But their swords will pierce their own hearts,
and their bows will be broken.
16 Better the little that the righteous have
than the wealth of many wicked;
17 for the power of the wicked will be broken,
but the LORD upholds the righteous.
18 The days of the blameless are known to the LORD,
and their inheritance will endure forever.
19 In times of disaster they will not wither;
in days of famine they will enjoy plenty.
20 But the wicked will perish:
The LORD's enemies will be like the beauty
of the fields,
they will vanish—vanish like smoke.
21 The wicked borrow and do not repay,
but the righteous give generously;
22 those the LORD blesses will inherit the land,
but those he curses will be cut off.
23 If the LORD delights in a man's way,
he makes his steps firm;
24 though he stumble, he will not
fall,
for the LORD upholds him with his hand.
25 I was young and now I am old,
yet I have never seen the righteous
forsaken
or their children begging bread.
26 They are always generous and lend freely;
their children will be blessed.
27 Turn from evil and do good;
then you will dwell in the land forever.
28 For the LORD loves the just
and will not forsake his faithful ones.
They will be protected forever,
but the offspring of the wicked will be
cut off;
29 the righteous will inherit the land
and dwell in it forever.
30 The mouth of the righteous man utters wisdom,
and his tongue speaks what is just.
31 The law of his God is in his heart;
his feet do not slip.
32 The wicked lie in wait for the righteous,
seeking their very lives;
33 but the LORD will not leave them in their power
or let them be condemned when brought to
trial.
34 Wait for the LORD
and keep his way.
He will exalt you to inherit the land;
when the wicked are cut off, you will see
it.
35 I have seen a wicked and ruthless man
flourishing like a green tree in its
native soil,
36 but he soon passed away and was no more;
though I looked for him, he could not be
found.
37 Consider the blameless, observe the upright;
there is a future for the man of peace.
38 But all sinners will be destroyed;
the future of the wicked will be cut off.
39 The salvation of the righteous comes from the LORD;
he is their stronghold in time of trouble.
40 The LORD helps them and delivers them;
he delivers them from the wicked and saves
them,
because they take refuge in him.
Comments:
This psalm is a "Maschil—a teaching psalm.
Do you see how the message here is
much the same as the previous psalm that we read, and also that it is just as
relevant today as it was in its own time?
God forbids us to fret at the
prosperity of the wicked in their wicked ways. He gives very good reasons why
we should not fret at it.
In reading this psalm we must
teach and admonish one another rightly to understand the providence of God and
to accommodate ourselves to it, at all times carefully to do our duty and then
patiently to leave the event with God and to believe that, how black things may
look for the present, it shall be "well with those that fear God, that
fear before him.’’
Verses 1-6:
The instructions here given are
very plain; much need not be said for the exposition of them, but there is a
great deal to be done for the reducing of them to practice, and there they will
look best.
When we look abroad we see the
world full of evil-doers and workers of iniquity, that flourish and prosper,
that have what they will and do what they will, that live in ease and pomp
themselves and have power in their hands to do mischief to those about them. So
it was in David’s time; and therefore, if it is so still, let us not marvel at the matter, as though it were some new or strange
thing. When we look within we find ourselves tempted to fret at this, and to be
envious against these scandals and burdens. We are apt to fret at God, as if he
were unkind to the world and unkind to his church in permitting such men to
live, and prosper, and prevail, as they do. We are tempted to think them the
only happy people, and to incline to imitate them, and to join ourselves with
them, that we may share in their gains, and this is that which we are warned
against: Fret not thyself, neither be thou envious.
Fretfulness and envy are sins that are their own punishments.
It is required that we trust in
the Lord and do good, that we confide in God and conform to him. The life of
religion lies much in a believing reliance on God, his favor, his providence,
his promise, his grace, and a diligent care to serve him and our generation,
according to his will.
We must make God our heart’s
delight and then we shall have our heart’s desire (v. 4). What is the desire of
the heart of a good man? It is this, to know, and love, and live to God, to
please him and to be pleased in him.
Good people have no reason to envy
the worldly prosperity of wicked people, nor to grieve or be uneasy at it,
because the prosperity of the wicked will soon be at an end. Their attempts
will be their destruction.
Because God orders his way
according to his own will, therefore he delights in it; for, as he loves his
own image upon us, so he is well pleased with what we do under his guidance.
The psalmist’s conclusion of this
sermon (Verses 34-40) is that the duty here pressed upon us is still the same
(v. 34): Wait on the Lord and keep his way.
Warren W. Wiersbe,
an American pastor and a prolific writer of Christian literature, had a nice
commentary on this psalm that I would like to share with you:
“This psalm shares the wisdom of
an old man who had walked with the Lord. He had battled with evil men and knew
the frustration of seeing the wicked prosper and the righteous suffer. As he
reviewed the past, he gave some wise counsel to keep us from fretting against
the Lord when things are not going the way we want them to go.”
“Trust in the Lord” (v. 3). If you
walk by sight and not by faith, you will find it easy to fret. (See Ps. 73.) The wicked seem to be prospering, but they
will not last (vv. 35–36). Believe what God says in His Word because that is where
you find reality.
“Delight in the
Lord” (4). Find all your joy and
pleasure in His will. Make Him your delight, and your desires will be in His
will. Living to please the Lord sets you free from fretting about what men are
doing.
“Commit your way
to the Lord” (5). When you trust Him
and delight in Him, how could you do anything other than commit your way to
Him? Let God guide your steps, choose your joys, protect your name, and bless
your work.
“Rest in the
Lord” (7). Restlessness is an evidence
of unbelief. Faith rests in the Lord and enjoys “the peace of God, which
surpasses all understanding.” God sometimes waits in answering prayer so that
He might strengthen our patience.
“Wait on the
Lord” (34). For what are you waiting?
The inheritance God has for you. The wicked have only temporary pleasure on
earth, but God’s people have eternal treasure in heaven. You will one day
receive your inheritance, so be patient.
“The Beatitudes”
1Now when he saw the crowds,
he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him,
2and he began to teach them
saying:
3"Blessed are the poor in
spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
6Blessed are those who hunger and
thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
7Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8Blessed are the pure in
heart,
for they will see God.
9Blessed are the
peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God.
10Blessed are those who are
persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11"Blessed are you when
people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you
because of me.
12Rejoice and be glad, because
great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the
prophets who were before you.
Comments:
Our Savior here gives eight
characters of blessed people, which represent to us the principal graces of a
Christian.
None will find happiness in this
world or the next, who do not seek it from Christ by the rule of his word. He
taught them what evil to avoid, and what the good they should seek and abound
in.
We enter the kingdom through the
new birth, but we enjoy the kingdom by living for those things that please God
the most.