Sunday, April 14, 2013 pm
STUDIES IN PSALMS
God – To Whom Vengeance Belongs
Psalm 94
There are many lessons in this psalm
about the vengeance of the Lord and man’s response to Him, both good and
bad. Because of its length,
we will not examine every phrase of this psalm, rather we will note its
various thoughts.
a.
Vengeance does belong to Him – let us remember Romans 12:17-19.
b.
Sometimes we are caught
up with the desire to get even and exact vengeance on others.
We certainly know as Christians that we must be careful with
such. God is the ultimate
judge and we need to let Him do His job.
When dealing with others we must remember passages like Matt.
5:43-44 & 1 Cor. 13:4-7 where the quality of love is described.
We also have the example of Michael the archangel in Jude 9 said to
Satan, “the Lord rebuke you!”
Thought: While there
might be times to exact vengeance, if an angel leaves it in the hands of
God, we ought to think long and hard before we react.
c.
He WILL judge the earth and render punishment to the proud.
The truth is that mankind doesn’t get away with anything before
Him. He may hide from man in
this world and even avoid consequences, but God knows all things – Rom.
14:10-12 – we will each give an accounting for ourselves, Eccl. 12:14 –
even the secret things, Matt. 12:36 – every idle word.
a.
It is a question the
righteous often ask. As we
strive to do right we sometimes become overwhelmed and frustrated at the
prosperity and success of the wicked. In
some cases, it seems the more wicked one is, the greater they seem to be
rewarded. This is found
throughout scripture such as Psalm 2:1 which asked, “Why do the nations
rage?”
b.
The conduct of the
wicked is described –
i.
They utter speech and speak insolent (arrogant) things.
They boast in themselves, with many words (the ASV uses the word
“prate” for “utter speech”, others say, “they pour out arrogant words”).
One of the fundamental attitudes of the ungodly is their pride.
And the more arrogant they are, the worse they are.
Prov. 16:18 says, “Pride goes
before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.”
ii.
They oppress the godly with crushing affliction
– they are set out to destroy those who seek to do right.
How much do we see this today with those whose ungodly agendas
seek to vilify those who seek to stand for what is right?
iii.
They slay the widow, orphan and stranger
– taking advantage of the defenseless.
God has ALWAYS viewed with disdain those who despise the poor and
needy.
We need to heed seriously this description – James 1:27, 2:14-17, Gal.
2:10, etc.
iv.
They say, “The Lord does not see,
nor does the God of Jacob understand” (pay attention to).
We have already mentioned how God is everywhere (cf. Heb. 4:13),
notice here how they say God’ doesn’t even pay attention to their
conduct. HOW WRONG they are
and will one day discover.
NOTE: IF this text is a reference to those of Israel who were ungodly
(as opposed to external enemies), notice that they ignore even their own
God, YHWH.
a.
The psalmist now turns
his warning to these ungodly souls.
b.
He begins with a
challenge: How long will you be senseless and fools (stupid ones
– NASU)? It is truly amazing
how the godless ignore the warnings of godliness.
Nevertheless, the psalmist reminds them of some things about God
it would do ALL of us to remember:
i.
He hears and sees
everything – He created the ear and the eye.
He knows how it works.
There is NO creature hidden from His sight (Heb.
4:13)
Jer. 23:23-24 says, “Am
I a God near at hand," says the Lord, "And not a God afar off?
Can anyone hide himself in secret places, So I shall not see
him?" says the Lord; "Do I not fill heaven and earth?" says the Lord.”
ii.
He instructs and teaches
the nations – He has given us knowledge – therefore we have no excuse!
The KJV and the NASU both refer to His chastening in this
description. Chastening is
clearly a part of God’s instruction, just as “discipline” is a part of
our instruction. There IS a
day of reckoning!
iii.
He also knows the
thoughts of man, they are futile – IF you play chess, you know that the
good chess player is not who is not just thinking about this move, but
his next one and several moves ahead.
If your opponent can’t figure out your strategy, you have the
advantage.
But with God, he KNOWS your next move, AND the next one.
He knows your scheming and where one is headed in his pursuits,
even if you have not uttered them.
That is why you cannot outwit God, nor can the enemy!
a.
Next the psalmist turns
to the wise man who heeds the counsel of the Lord
b.
He is “blessed”
– when we start thinking of “secret sins”, we find those described
above. Man, as long as he
“gets away with it” thinks things are fine.
But are they???
Sometimes, the greatest blessing is to get caught.
For it is then that one has chance to redeem himself.
Think of David as Nathan exposed him (2 Sam. 12), there was
finally relief.
When Heb. 12:6 tells us, “For whom
the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives”
(cf. Prov. 3:11-12), we ought to be fearful when we seem to be getting
away with whatever dark sins we are engaged in.
c.
He receives instruction. The NASU, KJV
uses the word chasten here as well, which seems to be the sense in this
text. He is taught with the
Law of the Lord – there is no better tool to discipline one with.
The one who strives to serve God WILL continually consult His
word!
d.
He has hope of rest from
his adversity, while the days of the task of the ungodly are numbered.
Even as one endures difficulties from the ungodly around him,
what sets the godly apart is hope!
Remember Heb. 4:9, “There
remains therefore a rest for the people of God.”
2 Thess. 1:7-8 also speaks of this rest.
2 Peter 2:9 says, “Then the Lord
knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the
unjust under punishment for the day of judgment.”
e.
God will NOT cast off
His people, nor forsake His inheritance (those who belong to Him).
Heb. 13:5-6 says, “For He himself
has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you’.
So we may boldly say, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not fear,
what can man do to me?’” (cf. Rom. 8:38-39, Jn. 10:27-31)
f.
Judgment will return to righteousness. How often
today do we see unrighteousness in judgment, both as a nation and among
individuals? It is the
reproach of a nation – but we can rest assured that a day is coming when
all unrighteousness will be “righted.”
And it may happen BEFORE the Lord’s return on a limited basis – usually,
given enough time unrighteousness catches up with itself and collapses.
a.
Who will rise up against the evildoers? Who will
stand up for the godly (and for the Lord)
OH how this call is
needed today. In this age of
ecumenicalism, we need men of
courage to stand up for
what is right and to say enough!
WE need men like Isaiah who when the Lord sought for one to go to the
rebellious nation said, “Here am I, send me.”
(Isa. 6:8) Remember Matt. 10:32-33.
b.
Who will stand up for me
against the workers of iniquity?
It seems the psalmist was crying out against the ungodliness
around him. He was probably
lonely in his efforts, if not all alone.
His call rings so true.
It is one thing for man to simply say nothing at the ungodliness around
us (I am not saying it is ok), but one of the greatest tragedies is when
one stands up for what is right and as he faces trouble, those who are
supposed to be his brethren will not stand with him.
I think of Peter as he denied the Lord 3 times and how egregious that
was! We are told ALL forsook
Him and fled (Matt. 26:56).
c.
God has helped in times past. The psalmist
acknowledges this, “Unless the
Lord had been my help, My soul would soon have settled in peace.”
An expression of defeat, perhaps even death.
How had the Lord sustained him?
i.
“Your mercy, O Lord,
will hold me up”
ii.
In anxiety, the Lord
gives us comfort
Let us be reminded in this that He will NEVER forsake us – (cf. 2
Tim. 4:16-17)
a.
Can the ungodly have fellowship with God?
NO!
When I see this question, I think
of the ongoing compromise around us.
The wicked seek to be allied with the godly (in our Gospel
Meeting, Brian explained this as he described Satan’s Battle Plan – they
call good evil, and evil good, rename sin to make it less offensive,
then they pass laws forcing their ungodliness on everyone, etc.).
The NASU describes this one as he who “devises mischief by
decree” (“Evil by law” – NKJV).
I ALSO think of passages like 2 Cor. 6:14-16 and 1 Cor. 10:21-22, “YOU
cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot
partake of the Lord’s table and of the table of demons.
Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy?
Are we stronger than He?”
b.
They gather together
against the life of the righteous and condemn innocent blood
– how many times through history have we seen plots to
destroy the righteous, (sadly, it is often done in the name of
religion)? How long will it
be before those who preach against homosexuality will be cast into
prison for their “hate speech”?
Are those murdered by abortion counted among the innocent?
NOTE: There are some who with this expression think of Manasseh, one of
Judah’s most wicked kings who even sacrificed his children to foreign
gods.
c.
BUT, the Lord has been my defense (stronghold- NASU) and the rock of my
refuge.
This is a frequently used description of God’s protection of his
people. What a fitting way
to conclude this psalm!
d.
They will be cut off in
their own wickedness.
And often by means of their own devices (i.e. it will backfire on
them).
Prov. 5:21-23 says, “For
the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, And He ponders all his
paths. His own
iniquities entrap the wicked man, And he is caught in the cords of his
sin. He shall die for lack
of instruction, And in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.”
This psalm is designed to encourage us to remain faithful,
even in an ungodly world.
While it seems as if the wicked proper (and they do to a degree), in the
end the righteous will prevail and God’s way will triumph.
Our goal is to ensure that we are not listed among the ungodly.
What about you?