Meditations on the Psalms

If the Foundations are Destroyed

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. 1 In the Lord I put my trust; how can you say to my soul, "Flee as a bird to your mountain"? 2 For look! The wicked bend their bow, they make ready their arrow on the string, that they may shoot secretly at the upright in heart. 3 If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do? 4 The Lord is in His holy temple, the Lord's throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men. 5 The Lord tests the righteous, but the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates. 6 Upon the wicked He will rain coals; fire and brimstone and a burning wind shall be the portion of their cup. 7 For the Lord is righteous, He loves righteousness; His countenance beholds the upright.

This psalm was most probably written by David during his flight from King Saul, who attempted to kill him several times; once with a spear, and another with a javelin, then by scheming to trap him many times. David's friends advised him to flee to the mountainous areas of Judah to escape from the danger that would threaten him if he were to remain where he was. But David did not take their advice, as logical and sincere as it was, and said, "In the Lord I put my trust." He saw that his ministry as God's anointed was among his people, and did not want to save himself at the expense of His cause. Committed to his calling, he didn't want to defend himself and neglect his calling, so he rejected his friends' idea and said, "How can you say to my soul, 'Flee as a bird to your mountain'?" (verse 1). He concluded the psalm with the statement: "The upright beholds His countenance" (verse 7), both on earth and in heaven, in this life and the one to come.

Nehemiah took a similar attitude to David's after returning from captivity. As he started to build the walls of Jerusalem, the enemies rose against him and began to mock him. But he prayed, "Now therefore, My Lord, strengthen my hands" (Nehemiah 6:9). Shemaiah advised Nehemiah to go into the temple and close its doors, because the enemies were coming to kill him, but Nehemiah refused and said, "Should such a man as I flee? And who is there such as I who would go into the temple to save his life? I will not go in!" (Nehemiah 6:11). He knew that his enemies would even go into the temple to kill him, had the Lord given him into their hands. How dare he keep himself safe at the expense of his calling? If he acted on Shemaiah's advice he would destroy himself and hinder the fulfilment of his calling.

Christ took the same attitude. His friends advised Him to leave the dangerous place where He was for a safer one, and said, "Get out and depart from here, for Herod wants to kill You." But He replied, "Go, tell that fox, 'Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected'... for it cannot be that a prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem" (Luke 13:31-33).

David's friends' advice was logical in the natural realm, but David discerned another dimension to the situation that was deeper than the dimension his friends could discern: He saw Him who cannot be seen. He saw God beyond all these difficult situations, and drew their attention to the reality of God's presence and protection of His children. David was sure that the little bird is not alone and helpless, for he could hear God say to him, "Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge, even the Most High, your habitation, no evil shall befall you" (Psalm 91:9,10).

This psalm reveals to us heroism of faith in the midst of an atmosphere of moral confusion and human advice. It shows us the believer who continues to fulfil the duties of his divine calling, who is not disobedient to the heavenly vision. The Arab poet correctly said, "When souls are lofty the bodies toil to fulfil their desires."

The psalm includes the following:

• First: Warnings to the hero (verses 1-3)

• Second: The steadfastness of the hero (verses 4-6)

• Third: The hero beholds the countenance of the Lord (verse 7)

	First: Warnings to the Hero

(verses 1-3)

In verse one David's friends advised him to take his hands off his cause because it would be impossible for him to win. They suggested to him to hide away from the battleground and to consider his own safety above the interest of his cause. They said to him, "Flee as a bird to your mountain." A little bird can neither face the falcons, nor the darts of the hunter, and has no refuge other than to flee. They rationalised this advice in two ways:

1. The wicked are about to kill him: "For look! The wicked bend their bow, they make ready their arrow on the string, that they may shoot secretly at the upright in heart" (verse 2). They bend the bow, and in secret they direct the arrow to shoot David, who is upright in heart. Their offensive weapons are ready, and each one of them took his position to kill him. They know that his heart is upright, therefore they want to shoot him with an arrow secretly because they have no courage to confront him. The Hebrew word translated "secretly" could mean "at heart". They also might want to shoot him with arrows in his heart to make sure he is done away with. For this reason his friends advised him to escape to the mountains of the Land of Judah. David, however, was carrying the shield of faith with which he was able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one (Ephesians 6:16).

2. Justice is absent from the land: "If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?" (verse 3). Similarly, David's friends warned him that the wiles of the wicked may come through, because the foundations of justice in the kingdom of Saul were destroyed, so that he sought to kill David. There was no more justice or uprightness, and the senior men (the foundations), on whom David could have depended in the face of impending evil and destruction, were no longer there to protect him. The righteous was left with no safe harbour to turn to. Even the righteous people were no longer upholding their cause; they advised him, "You have no hope. Stop dealing righteously and run for your life!" Yet David had found the answer to his question: "What can the righteous do?" He placed his trust in the invincible heavenly justice, and made up his mind to brave danger. Earlier he had faced Goliath with a stick, a sling and five smooth stones (1 Samuel 17:40) and won. There is no reason he could not win again, so long as the Lord was with him. This is what the righteous should do.

   Many times friends give us pieces of advice out of a sincere heart, but with the wrong attitude. They advise us to abandon the way of obedience because it is narrow and rugged, and to take the wide and easy way that seems to go upward. When Christ announced that the Son of man must suffer much and be rejected by the elders, the high priests and the scribes, be killed and rise up from the dead after three days, Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, "We don't want You to die. Why do You want to go to Jerusalem? They are going to kill You there. Why risk Your life?" There is some sense in what Peter said to the Lord, but it was totally contrary to what He came to do. Jesus rebuked Peter and said to him, "Get behind Me, Satan! For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men" (Mark 8:33). According to human reason, it was right for Peter to love and have zeal, but his zeal was carnal, and it did not let him see the spiritual dimension for Christ's coming to the earth.

   We often hear people advise us the same way Peter advised Jesus and the same way David's friends advised him: "Run away like a bird!" This advice focuses on the danger involved, the uselessness of resistance, the foolishness of sacrificing for the sake of hopeless cause. Yet one thing is missing: the divine will and organisational responsibility. May God protect us from such an advice and keep us on the alert for it.

	Second: The Steadfastness of the Hero

(verses 4-6)

David heard his friends' advice, but he stood on the rock, and said, "In the Lord I put my trust." Then he began to draw his friends' attention to the fact that those who were with him were more than those who were against him (2 Kings 6:16), that He who is within them is greater than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4). These facts were bound to change their judgement.

1. He laid open to them the omnipresence of the Lord: "The Lord is in His holy temple" (verse 4a). He is alive and present in the midst of the believers, His holy temple, to hear their prayers, receive their adoration and lift them high above their hard circumstances. He sends you help from the sanctuary (Psalm 20:2).

   God commanded Moses to set up the tabernacle of meeting (the place of worship) in the midst of the camp of the tribes of Israel, telling him, "...that I may dwell among them" (Exodus 25:8,9). John saw seven gold lamp-stands, representing the seven churches, and Christ among them (Revelations 1:13). Christ said, "For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them" (Matthew 18:20). How then could they say to David, "Flee as a bird to your mountain," while the Lord is in His holy temple?

   The New Testament teaches us that the temple of the Lord is made up of all believers, that the Lord is the centre of the believer's life, and that it is around Him that all believers gather. The Lord never leaves His community, or His holy temple.

2. He laid open to them the greatness of the Lord: "The Lord's throne is in heaven" (verse 4b). God is here with me and there in heaven. He has full authority both in heaven and on earth. He is far above all earthly and satanic power. He is the One seated upon the throne.

3. He laid open to them the omniscience of the Lord: "His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men" (verse 4c). He sees us and knows all about us. "For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him" (2 Chronicles 16:9). He neither slumbers nor sleeps (Psalm 121:4). But why does he refer to "His eyelids"? Wasn't it enough to say, "His eyes behold"? The answer is: When someone wants to look at a certain scene, he gazes at it, narrowing his eyelids, to see the picture clearly and thoroughly. So the eyes of the Lord behold, but also His eyelids make sure that He sees the whole situation. His eyes are like flames of fire that penetrate the covers of darkness, watching the righteous and the unrighteous, to establish those who stick to their right cause and to bring forth the truth.

4. He laid open to them the righteousness of the Lord: "The Lord tests the righteous, but the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates. Upon the wicked He will rain coals, fire and brimstone and a burning wind; this will be the portion of their cup" (verses 5,6). The Lord tests the just and the righteous, demonstrates their success and accepts him. As for the wicked, He tests him and proves him unacceptable. God tested the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah, and did not find even ten righteous people, so he rained brimstone and fire on them (Genesis 19:24). He tested His friend Abraham, requiring from him to offer his only son Isaac as a sacrifice, and he obeyed. God approved of His friend and bestowed upon him success summa cum laude as He said to him, "In blessing I will bless you... In your seed shall the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice" (Genesis 22:15-19). The Lord tests the righteous through difficulties to see how deep his spiritual life is, and to bring forth his righteousness as the light, and his justice as the noonday (Psalm 37:6). Job said as he was tested, "When He has tested I shall come forth like gold" (Job 23:10). On the other hand, Satan tempts the believer to destroy his faith and make him lose hope. God allows the righteous to be tested until his spiritual arms are well-trained and strong. The wicked cannot harm him except as much as the Lord permits them. "But the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates," and He puts him in his place so that he won't keep on harming the believer. A good example of this is what the Lord did to Haman, who was hanged on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai (Esther 7:10). The "burning wind", i.e. the simoom, became the portion of Haman, a destructive, hot, dry, dust-laden wind from Asian deserts.

   The clergy may stop being good and the ruler may abandon justice, but God remains just and dependable. This is why the writer said of Him, "In the Lord I put my trust."

	Third: The Hero Beholds the Countenance of the Lord

(verse 7)

"The Lord is righteous, He loves righteousness; His countenance beholds the upright" (verse 7). The last part of the verse could be read, "The upright beholds His countenance." David trusted in the justice of the Lord, who would defend him and not leave him as a prey to his enemies. He would surely come against them and attack their evils, destroying the oppressors and leaving only the upright and the righteous in the presence of God.

Jesus said, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God" (Matthew 5:8). Those who shake off the darkness of sin and disobedience will see God spiritually, namely enjoy Him and have the light of His countenance shine on them (Psalm 4:6). The psalmist says, "As for me I will see Your face in righteousness, I shall be satisfied when I will awake in Your likeness" (Psalm 17:15). The psalmist wondered, "Lord, who may abide in Your tabernacle? Who may dwell in Your holy mountain?" and answered himself, "He who walks uprightly, and works righteousness, and speaks the truth in his heart" (Psalm 15:1,2). Such righteous people will say as Jesus comes again, "We know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall Him as He is" (1 John 3:2). And in the afterlife they will receive the fulfilment of the prophecy: "They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads" (Revelations 22:4). God is well-pleased with them as Christ has been formed in them (Galatians 4:19).

Now we round off the meditations on this psalm with two ideas:

1. Believers are to expect opposition: Their thoughts, quality of life and actions are different from those of the wicked who live around them. Therefore they are met with opposition. Yet, opposition should not discourage or scare them off, but rather encourage them to resist evil with good.

2. The upright must be eagles, not little birds: David's friends advised him to flee like a bird, but he decided he to be an eagle, soaring and rising high above the clouds, to see the bright sun of righteousness, behold the face of His God, enjoy His presence and thus put an end to the temporary opposition by means of the everlasting, shining victory.

   Come, let us place ourselves in love at the Lord's feet, to do His will and let Him work out His divine purposes though us, that we may see His countenance. Keep up the good fight for His kingdom's cause, regardless of the difficulties, and resist the devil, steadfast in the faith (1 Peter 5:9).

	Questions

1. David refused his friends' advice. Why? How was Nehemiah affected by David's decision?

2. Psalm 11:7 says, "The upright will see his face." Comment.

Has the Godly Man Ceased?

To the Chief Musician. On an eight-stringed harp. A Psalm of David. 1 Help, Lord, for the godly man ceases! For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men. 2 They speak idly everyone with his neighbor; with flattering lips and a double heart they speak. 3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaks proud things, 4 Who have said, "With our tongue we will prevail; our lips are our own; who is lord over us?" 5 "For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now I will arise," says the Lord; "I will set him in the safety for which he yearns." 6 The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. 7 You shall keep them, O Lord, You shall preserve them from this generation forever. 8 The wicked prowl on every side, when vileness is exalted among the sons of men.

David wrote this psalm at a time of loneliness. As he worshipped God all alone, he said, "The godly man ceases! For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men." The prophet Elijah shared the same feelings when he said, "I have been very zealous for the Lord God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left; and they seek to take my life" (1 Kings 19:10).

The land was full of moral corruption at that time, and David was opposing the dishonesty of his contemporaries. He was the king of the land. He could glory in the cultural progress in his kingdom, for his time was the golden era in literature and arts. The country had developed in the areas of poetry and music. The psalms, which were mostly composed under him, are enough evidence of this fact. The highly organised temple choir, headed by "the chief musician", used all kinds of instruments that inspired the worshippers and filled them with delight. The country underwent an architectural revival, since David built his palace of cedar and had many building materials prepared to help his son Solomon build the temple of Jerusalem. Trade between the kingdom of David and the other kingdoms picked up and thrived. Military armament was increasing after a period of military weakness and stagnation during the reign of the judges and King Saul.

David saw a kingdom in which palaces were being erected, carts trundled up and down the roads, and gold increased in the hands of the citizens. Yet, all this could not make him forget the dangerous point of weakness: the serious moral imperfection that prevailed over the land, for the godly men ceased and the faithful disappeared from among the sons of men.

As Paul went to Athens, we would expect him to be intrigued by the philosophical debates, the poetry, the arts, the museums and the palaces. Nevertheless, the historian who recorded the Book of Acts wrote down the most interesting thing for Paul, as he said, "Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him when he saw that the city was given over to idols. Therefore he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and with the gentile worshipers, and in the marketplace daily with those who happened to be there" (Acts 17:16,17).

It is true that "Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people" (Proverbs 14:34).

It has been mentioned earlier that David's time was one of progress. Now every economical progress has three successive phases:

1. In the first phase a country flourishes economically and citizens get their material needs with ease. Sciences and technology become widespread because of much travelling and trade, and people communicate and exchange benefits.

2. In the second phase the country prospers, new arts and sciences are developed, making people's lives more comfortable. It seems then that they are happier.

3. In the third phase a little group of people becomes extravagantly rich, while the majority remains in severe poverty. The number of oppressors increases and the number of the oppressed multiplies. People belonging the lower classes start to complain and principles start to be neglected. At this point a country starts to suffer from economic failure due to moral failure, and the society goes back again to look for material prosperity.

It seems that David saw his people reach the third phase, so he wrote this psalm to rebuke the evils of his time.

The psalm includes the following:

• First: A prayer (verses 1-4)

• Second: An answer (verses 5-8)

	First: A Prayer

(verses 1-4)

In his prayer that takes up half of the psalm David asks God for help (verses 1,2), then asks for the judgement of the wicked (verses 3,4).

1. He asks God for help: "Help, Lord." He mentions two points where he needs God's help:

   1. The lack of faithfulness: "The godly man ceases! ...the faithful disappear from among the sons of men" (verse 1). This matter is worthy of prayer, because the absence of godliness and the lack of faithfulness damages the common welfare and the wicked equally. "Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions ...be made ...for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence" (1 Timothy 2:1,2).

   2. The spread of lying: "They speak idly everyone with his neighbour; with flattering lips and a double heart they speak [i.e. they are dishonest]" (verse 2). "Double heart" is a Hebrew expression (lev va lev) which repeats the word "heart" twice, as if everyone has two hearts with which he faces another person and as soon as he leaves he switches on to the other heart. They are double-crossers; they have a double standard and double way of speaking! They pretend they are something they are not. There are harsh people who are described as "heartless", but he who has a double heart is more dangerous. He speaks sweetly to you and then stabs you in the back. He is like Judas Iscariot who betrayed his Lord!

2. He asks for the judgement of the wicked:"May the Lord cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaks proud things, who have said, 'With our tongue we will prevail; our lips are our own; who is lord over us?'" (verses 3,4). He asks the Lord to cut off their speech members. Asking for the judgement of the wicked may be a prophetic revelation of the end of those dissimulating liars. It could also be a request for God to destroy them in keeping with the principle the psalmist believes in: "Eye for eye" (Exodus 21:24). These wicked people thought their prosperity was the result of their smartness, craftiness, effort and power, so they said, "With our tongue we will prevail; our lips are our own; who is lord over us?" They speak as though the destinies of others hang on one word from their lips. "Our lips are our own" with which we could justify our doings and prove them to be right, win our causes by cheating, twist and manipulate the law and interpret it for our good; there is no lord over us but ourselves!

   They forgot that God is the Creator of their mortal bodies, the real Owner of them. We may also forget today that we do not belong to ourselves, because Christ bought us. "For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's" (1 Corinthians 6:20).

	Second: An Answer

(verses 5-8)

Every prayer has an answer. The writer asked God for help and requested that the wicked be judged, so the Lord, who hears prayer, answered. He must bring about justice to His chosen ones who cry out to Him day and night (Luke 18:7) because He is a just Judge. On the one hand His justice has mercy for the oppressed, but on the other punishment for the oppressor.

There are two points in the answer: A promise of help (verses 5,6) and the fulfilment of the promise (verses 7,8).

1. A promise of help: The psalmist receives two promises from God; a direct instant one from God (verse 5), and a written one that has been recorded by inspiration (verse 6).

   1. An instant promise: "'For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now I will arise,' says the Lord; 'I will set him in the safety for which he yearns.'" (verse 5).

      Oppression is so rampant in the earth. Man is so cruel to his fellow man! Pharaoh treated the children of Israel so cruelly that they cried out for deliverance. God heard their cry, called Moses, and told him, "I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians... Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt" (Exodus 3:6-10). The Lord made good His promise to them, and delivered them.

      During the time of the prophet Amos social injustice reached its climax. God, therefore, sent the prophet Amos calling for social justice, and describing as follows: "They sell the righteous for silver, and the poor for a pair of sandals... pervert the way of the humble... They lie down by every altar on clothes taken in pledge, and drink the wine of the condemned in the house of their god" (Amos 2:6-8). The rich became richer and the poor became poorer because of greed and avarice. Those who were suffering in the earth cried out to Him who lives on high, and God heard their cry and sent the prophet Amos to encourage them and promise them salvation. Sure enough, all the things God promised came to pass.

      The unjust imagines that God has forgotten him, but the Lord says to him, "Now I will arise... I will set him in the safety for which he yearns." The New International Version of the Bible says, "I will protect them from those who malign them." Those who malign [literally, breathe out] are the oppressors, who do as Saul of Tarsus did with the Christians. The Bible says that he was breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord (Acts 9:1). The Lord will set the oppressed, who cry out to Him, in safety and spaciousness, and they will no longer stay in distress. "The gloom will not be upon her who is distressed" (Isaiah 9:1).

      The darkest part of the night is that which comes directly before dawn. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning. Resurrection must follow crucifixion, and after the dark of Friday the bright morning of Sunday must break.

   2. A written promise: The oppressed always depends on God's reliable promise, for "The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times" (verse 6). Gold and silver are purified to be free from dross and other impurities. God's words are highly purified and are dross-free. God's words are as good as silver that has been purified seven times (which is the number of perfection). What a difference there is between man's promises, which may or may not be fulfilled according to whether they can do so or not, and God's true and reliable promises! Joshua said to the children of Israel, "You know in all your hearts and in all your souls that not one thing has failed of all the good things of which the Lord your God spoke concerning you. All have come to pass for you, and not one word of them has failed" (Joshua 23:14). Also Solomon said, "Blessed be the Lord who has given rest to His people Israel, according to all that he promised. There has not failed one word of all His good promise, which He promised through His servant Moses" (1 Kings 8:56). How reliable are the words of the Bible! It is the infallible, trustworthy word of God, which is free from error, confusion, distortion or alteration. If the law of the Medes and the Persians cannot be abrogated, will the word of God be (Daniel 6:8)? The words of the God are tried and proven. Penitent sinners have tried them and received forgiveness, justification and peace through them. The oppressed who were crying out tried them and received deliverance and rest. In all our affliction he is afflicted, and the Angel of His Presence saves us (Isaiah 63:9). You can depend on God and say, "In the Lord I put my trust," and you will be reassured.

2. The fulfilment of the promise of help: "You shall keep them, O Lord, You shall preserve them from this generation forever. The wicked prowl on every side, when vileness is exalted among the sons of men" (verse 7,8). God promised that He would arise and set in safety the oppressed who are in distress. The psalmist said to Him, "You, Lord, shall keep the oppressed, who are in distress, who call upon You." Daniel was in the den of lions when the king asked him, "Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?" Daniel replied, "O king, live forever! My God sent His angel and shut the lions' mouths, so that they have not hurt me, because I was found innocent before Him; and also, O king, I have done no wrong before you" (Daniel 6:20-22).

   Every generation has its own advantages and characteristics. The Lord will keep His people from "this" corrupt and oppressive generation. Irrespective of the characteristics of the people among whom you live, God promises you protection and preservation. David described a time when vice and vileness prevailed, when the wicked walked here and there self-importantly, as if they owned everything; the earth and those who were on it. But the Lord promised all the godly and the faithful that He will watch over them. No matter the character of the time in which you live, the eternal God confirms His help and salvation to you. He has established His church and promised that the gates of hell would not prevail against it (Matthew 16:18). He says to the members of the church, "...you who are kept by the power of God..." (1 Peter 1:5).

   Final triumph is the portion of those who love the Lord, therefore love the Lord with all your heart, so that peace and assurance should reign over your life.

	Questions

1. In Psalm 12:1-2 David complains of two things. What are they? Do you have the same complaint today?

2. Psalm 12:5 gives two promises from the Lord. What are they?

How Long will You Forget Me?

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. 1 How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? 2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? How long will my enemy be exalted over me? 3 Consider and hear me, O Lord my God; enlighten my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death; 4 Lest my enemy say, "I have prevailed against him"; lest those who trouble me rejoice when I am moved. 5 But I have trusted in Your mercy; my heart shall rejoice in Your salvation. 6 I will sing to the Lord, because He has dealt bountifully with me.

It is not known for sure when David wrote this psalm. Most probably he wrote it when Saul was pursuing him to kill him. Yet, there are many occasions in David's life that this psalm could reflect. As he was playing on the harp for Saul, Saul twice threw a spear to pin him to the wall (1 Samuel 18:11). David must have wondered, "I did good, so why do I get evil for recompense? Why does he want to kill me, although I am trying to cure him with my music?"

When violence did not work, Saul used stratagem and gimmickry, and offered David his daughter in marriage, provided that the wedding-gift should be to slaughter a hundred Philistines. Saul wished that the enemies would finish him off before he could reach number one hundred. David, however, killed two hundred and was not hurt at all (1 Samuel 18:27).

Saul even went to the extreme of attempting to kill him in his new home with his wife, but Michal's love for her husband was stronger than her obedience to her father's orders. So she let him escape (1 Samuel 19:16).

Saul kept on pursuing David from place to place, until he fell into David's hands. But David pardoned him and rebuked him, saying, "After whom has the king of Israel come out? Whom do you pursue? A dead dog? A flea?" (1 Samuel 24:14).

David must have got weary of all these pursuits, so he wrote down this psalm, complaining about God to God. He also complained to God about himself and his enemies!

This psalm includes the following:

• First: A complaint (verses 1,2)

• Second: A prayer (verses 3,4)

• Third: Jubilation (verses 5,6)

	First: A Complaint

(verses 1,2)

In David's distress and bitterness of heart he complained to God, repeating the phrase "How long..." four times. "How long, O Lord, will you forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? How long will my enemy be exalted over me?" (verses 1,2).

The first thing that occurs to the believer in distress is to turn to God.

1. He complains to God about God: "How long, O Lord, will you forget me forever?" (verse 1a). When David thinks rationally he knows that God has not forgotten him. It seems that he was saying, "I know that You have not forgotten me, but it seems that You forgot!" He had said earlier, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am weak; O Lord, heal me, for my bones are troubled. My soul also is greatly troubled; but You, O Lord- how long?" (Psalm 6:2,3). He also said, "I will say to God my Rock, 'Why have You forgotten me? Why do I go morning because of the oppression of the enemy?'" (Psalm 42:9). The prophet Jeremiah lodged the same complaint: "Why do You forget us forever, and forsake us for so long a time?" (Lamentations 5:20). Habakkuk asked, "O Lord, how long shall I cry, and will You not hear? Even cry out to You, 'Violence!' and You will not save?" (Habakkuk 1:2). This is a cry of someone suffering and reproaching the Lord because he loves Him. God listens to such a complaint with understanding and sympathy. He addresses the suffer, saying, "But Zion said, 'The Lord has forsaken me, and my Lord has forgotten me.' Can a woman forget her nursing child, and not have compassion on the son of her womb? Surely they may forget, yet I will not forget you. See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; you walls are continually before Me" (Isaiah 49:14-16).

   By way of complaining to God David asks, "How long will You hide Your face from me?" (verse 1b). When God's face shines upon us with a loving smile, the whole world shines for us, but when life seems to frown to us we imagine that God has hidden His face from us, therefore we say, "You hid Your face and I was troubled" (Psalm 30:7). A hidden face does not equal a rejecting or a heedless one; it only means that the believer feels anxious and frightened. Therefore many people ask, "'Who will show us any good?' Lord, lift up the right of Your countenance upon us" (Psalm 4:6). "God be merciful to us and bless us, and cause His face to shine upon us" (Psalm 67:1).

2. Then he complains to God about himself: "How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily?" (verse 2a). He feels sorry for his own weakness, anxiety and worries, as if he is saying, "How long will I bear these cares? How long will anxiety debilitate and frighten me? My soul is too weak to have victory over the circumstances that oppress me. All my plans went awry, so how long will you keep on rearranging all my plans? How will I try with no success?"

   When the believer loses his trust in God's love and loses his self-confidence, he loses "the joy of salvation" (Psalm 51:12), but he does not lose his salvation. Because of sin he will live in spiritual darkness, and fail to see God's loving and reassuring face. He cannot possibly be restored to fellowship with the Father unless he repents and gains back his lost relationship with the Lord.

3. Then he complains to God about the enemy: "How long will my enemy be exalted over me?" (verse 2b). The prophet Samuel paid a visit to his father's house, called him in from following the sheep and anointed him as king. A king, yes, but on the run! When then will God's promises to him be fulfilled?

   David's situation looks like the scene that the revelation of John describes: "When He [the Lamb] opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. And they cried with a loud voice, saying, 'How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?' And a white robe was given to each of them, and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, and both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed" (Revelations 6:9-11).

	Second: A Prayer

(verses 3,4)

David asked "How long?" four times, then he gave God four requests concerning the four complaints. He addresses God in these requests as "Lord, my God". There is a sense of belonging to God and an adherence to the God of the promise, whose good words never fail.

1. A request of consideration: "Consider" (verse 3a). This request addresses His complaint, "How long, O Lord, will you forget me forever?" The truth is that God never forgot him; it was the hard circumstances that made him have this wrong thought. When God approves of a believer He will surely release him from the emotional problems he faces.

2. A request of a hearing: "Hear me, O Lord my God" (verse 3b). This request addresses His complaint, "How long will You hide Your face from me?" God never hides His face from the believer nor turns His back on him. It is the tears in his eyes that obscure the beauty of the face that never fades away. "When You said, 'Seek My face,' my heart said to You, 'Your face, Lord, I will seek'" (Psalm 27:8). The psalmist does not request a hearing because he is inquisitive, but because God said, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you" (Matthew 7:7). Christ said to His disciples, "Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask and you will receive, that your joy maybe full" (John 16:24).

3. A request of enlightenment: "Enlighten my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death" (verse 3c). This request addresses His complaint, "How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily?" The psalmist asks the Lord to remove the darkness of discouragement from his sick eyes, which cannot see God's mercy clearly. This was the experience of Ezra the scribe, who described this enlightenment as "for a little while grace has been shown from the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a peg in His holy place, that our God may enlighten our eyes and give us a measure of revival in our bondage. For we were slaves. Yet our God did not forsake us in our bondage; but He extended mercy to us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to revive us" (Ezra 9:8,9). The Lord will raise us up. The Lord will enlighten our eyes and revive us in the light of His face.

4. A request that his enemy may not rejoice over him: "Lest my enemy say, 'I have prevailed against him'; lest those who trouble me rejoice when I am moved" (verse 4). This request addresses His complaint, "How long will my enemy be exalted over me?" There is an enemy who is trying to exalt himself over the believer and prevail against him, but the Lord will not let this happen. If the believer fails he brings shame on the Lord's name and gives the enemy an opportunity to say, "There is no help for him in God" (Psalm 3:2). Moreover, there is unity between the Lord and the believer, which Christ compares to the relationship between the branch and the vine (John 15:5). Whatever harms the branch harms the vine, and whoever persecutes the believers withstands the will of God who loves the believers. The believer gets the glory, though, when God glorifies him and is glorified through him.

	Third: Jubilation

(verses 5,6)

No one knows exactly how much time has elapsed between the time of the complaint and the prayer at the beginning of the psalm, and the time of the joy that he expresses at the end of it. We know, however, that God has appointed a time for everything under the heavens (Ecclesiastes 3:1). Sometimes He appears to put us off, from our point of view, but His answer is speedy, from His point of view. Christ elucidated this concept as He said, "Shall not God avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them [in our viewpoint]? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily [from His vantage point]. Nevertheless, when the Son of man comes, will He really find faith on earth [i.e.: will He really find people anticipating His divine timing]?" (Luke 18:7,8). Faith always anticipates an answer to prayer. When prayer is answered faith gains more strength. We ask, receive an answer, our faith gains more strength, so we ask again more confidently than before, with hearts leaping with joy. Thus we proceed from glory to glory, experiencing God's goodness every day. When this becomes the norm, we say, "But I have trusted in Your mercy; my heart shall rejoice in Your salvation. I will sing to the Lord because He has dealt bountifully with me" (verses 5,6).

People rear their children up to be independent from them, and to stand on their feet. God, however, raises His children up to be even more dependent on Him, never to be independent from Him. Therefore the psalmist says, "But I have trusted in Your mercy." He renews his trust in the Lord, who, in turn, enlightens the way before him. His reaction, in effect, seems to say, "For I know whom I believed, and I am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that day" (2 Timothy 1:12).

When you grow weary of yourself and assume that God has forgotten you, when you see yourself surrounded and overwhelmed by the enemies, do not give up. The loving Father will hear your voice, see your tears and help up out your troubles. It was for this reason that Christ came to the world; it was the main purpose of Christ's ministry: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn, to console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness" (Isaiah 61:1-3).

The psalmist received the fulfilment of all these:

1. God is the source of the believer's happiness: He turned to Him, lifted up his complaint to get relief, saying, "How long, O Lord?" (verse 1). The Lord never forsakes those who believe in Him.

2. God is the source of the believer's wisdom: He complained to Him of his inadequate thoughts and unsuccessful plans, saying, "How long shall I take counsel in my soul?" (verse 2). The Lord raised the believers above their own counsel and cares, because they are "casting all your care upon Him, for He takes care for you" (1 Peter 5:7).

3. God is the source of the believer's strength: He rushed to Him when he was overcome by the enemy, saying, "How long will my enemy be exalted over me?" (verse 2). The enemy will not be exalted over the believer because final triumph belongs to the Lion of the tribe of Judah, who went conquering and to conquer (Revelations 5:5; 6:2).

4. God is the source of the believer's life: For this reason he said, "my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death" (verse 3). Christ is the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Him, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Him shall never die (John 11:25).

God gave the believer happiness, wisdom, strength and a joyous life, therefore he shouts out loud, "My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation." He rounded the psalm off by saying, "I will sing to the Lord because He has dealt bountifully with me." He no longer thinks that the Lord forgot him, and all his cares and sorrows vanished in thin air; his enemy no longer overcomes him. He experienced the Lord's statement: "For a mere moment I have forsaken you, but with great mercies I will gather you. With a little wrath I hid my face from you for a moment; but with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you" (Isaiah 54:7,8).

	Questions

1. In Psalm 13 David has three complaints. Mention them.

2. What made the difference between verses 1 and 5 in Psalm 13?

They have all Turned Aside

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. 1 The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God.'' They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none who does good. 2 The Lord looks down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there are any who understand, who seek God. 3 They have all turned aside, they have together become corrupt; there is none who does good, no, not one. 4 Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge, who eat up my people as they eat bread, and do not call on the Lord? 5 There they are in great fear, for God is with the generation of the righteous. 6 You shame the counsel of the poor, but the Lord is his refuge. 7 Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion! When the Lord brings back the captivity of His people, let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad.

Psalms 14 and 53 are almost identical, except for a small difference in 14:5,6, where it says, "There they are in great fear, for God is with the generation of the righteous. You shame the counsel of the poor, but the Lord is his refuge", whereas it says in 53:5, "There they are in great fear, where no fear was, for God has scattered the bones of him who encamps against you; You have put them to shame, because God has despised them." Perhaps the reason for the change was the desire of the writer to refer to the fear that fell upon the king of Aram (Syria) where there was no reason for fear (2 Kings 7:6,7) or the unexpected defeat of Sennacharib, king of Assyria, and the death of 185,000 of his soldiers in one night (2 Kings 19:35,36). There is still another difference; Psalm 14 uses God's name YHWH (translated the Lord), while Psalm 53 uses Elohim (translated God).

Both psalms are evangelistic: they speak first of the folly of the sinner who strays away from God. They unmask the danger involved in ignoring the Lord. The sinner is a fool who does not behave properly. His is headed for doom. The psalmist moves on to speak of the conscience of the foolish sinner which he made numb, although the Lord is trying to arouse it. The two psalms are rounded off with a word on the salvation, joy and gladness of the believer.

The psalms offers us a call to repentance, deliverance and salvation, saying to those who have gone away from God, "You don't know how much you are losing, or how much danger threatens you. Sin is useless. It is devastating." He concludes his calls by saying that the sinner is saved when the Lord lives in his heart, setting him free from sin and bringing back his captivity, so he will rejoice and be glad in His salvation and liberty. This clear call makes the soul that is far away from God yearn to return to him in repentance. Why, then, do we continue living in sin when living with God is joy itself?

	Psalm 14	Psalm 53
First: The folly of the sinner	(verses 1-3)	(verses 1-3)
Second: The conscience of the sinner	(verses 4-6)	(verses 4, 5)
Third: The joy of the believer	(verse 6)	(verse 7)

	First: The Folly of the Sinner

(verses 14:1-3; 53:1-3)

1. The folly of the sinner starts with a wrong thought: "The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God.'" (verse 1a). He says this through his behaviour "in his heart", living contrary to God's law; or he says it through his behaviour and declares his godlessness by his mouth. Some philosophers deny that God exists and try to convince others of this fallacy, although the word "philosophy" means "love of wisdom" in Greek. The psalmist regards them as mere fools, for the sinner who denies the existence of God, by word or action, is just a fool. He claims that he loves wisdom, but he is, in fact, as far as can be from it because "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Psalm 111:10). Denying the existence of fire does not keep him who enters it from burning. Similarly, doubting the existence of God does not keep God from administering His just judgement on those who reject His salvation. We thank God for many philosophers who believe in Him and prove their faith in Him in logical ways. Only the fool will deny the existence of God, because the existence of the invisible all around us is manifest both in His visible creation and His daily dealings with us. Above all, we see Him in the mystery of godliness, "God was manifested in flesh" (1 Timothy 3:16). Christ's coming into our world was the most convincing proof of God's existence.

   The Hebrew word for "fool" is nabal, which was also the name of a foolish man who wasted his life, so that it was said of him, "As his name is, so is he: Nabal is his name". Nabal denied that David even existed, denied he had any knowledge of him and asked, "Who is David, and who is the son of Jesse?" Nevertheless, David was famous, for he was the one who saved his people from the threats of Goliath the heathen! Moreover, Nabal knew David quite well, because David and his men used to keep watch of Nabal's flocks. But the fool said, "Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat... and give it to men when I do not know where they are from?" (1 Samuel 25:10,11). Doesn't the fool who denies the existence of God do the same thing, although it is God who gives him life and takes care of him? It is He also who will eventually take back his life from him!

2. The sinner's folly increases with his wrong actions: "They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none who does good" (verse 1b). God created man innocent by nature but man's disobedience to God corrupted his original nature and his daily works, and spoiled his social relationships. Yes, men became corrupt, committing sins of commission and omission. Man's state before the Flood was described as follows: "Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually... The earth also was corrupt before God [meaning its inhabitants], and the earth was filled with violence. So God looked upon the earth, and indeed it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth" (Genesis 6:5,11,12).

   Abomination means an ugly deed, horridness and uncleanness. In the Bible it refers to idols and idolatry. God created man in His image to worship Him, but man strayed to idol-worship and all the abomination linked with it.

   The fool sometimes denies God's existence because of a sin he committed that weighs on his conscience, and he does not want to be reconciled to God in the proper way. Instead, he dodges God by claiming that He does not exist. He forgets, or rather pretends to forget, that God has prepared for him the way to redemption and salvation through Christ's atonement on the cross.

3. The seriousness of the sinner's folly: "The Lord looks down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there are any who understand, who seek God" (verse 2). God bears long with the sinner to lead him to repentance, but in his folly he thinks that God will not do good, nor will He do evil (Zephaniah 1:12), or that he does not exist at all. Nonetheless "The Lord looks from heaven; He sees all the sons of men. From the place of His habitation He looks on all the inhabitants of the earth; He fashions their hearts individually; He considers all their works" (Psalm 33:13-15). In "human" terms the Old Testament pictures God as though He "came down to see" the situation of Babel, and Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 11:5; 18:21).

   God looks down on "the children of men" of all nationalities, because He is the Creator of them all. He endowed every nation with moral light in nature and in conscience. "Nevertheless He did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good, gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness" (Acts 14:17). "Because what could be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse" (Romans 1:19,20).

   "The Lord looks down from heaven to see." He loves man and says, "My delight was with the sons of men" (Proverbs 8:31). He is the Good Shepherd who searches for the lost one till He finds him, no matter the cost of searching. He does not desire the damnation of the sinner, but his repentance. He expects men to act according to the light they have. God searches in every nation to see if there is anyone who "understands" himself, his weakness, his sin, his duty and his destiny; and if there is anyone who "understands" God's love and searching for the sinner to redeem him.

   All who deny God's existence deny Elohim, who reigns over the whole world, and deny the truth of God, because sin is a revolt against God and His laws. Therefore David admits, "You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight" (Psalm 51:4).

4. The totality of men's folly: "They all turned aside, they have together become corrupt" (verse 3). Man is corrupt by nature and action. Since the fall of our first parents in the garden of Eden we started to see man killing his brother, not due to starvation or want, nor due to housing crises, but because he is evil by nature. Corruption of mankind is an absolute fact, for man cannot please God by his natural birth, actions or intents. The root of the tree is rotten, therefore it gives forth a rotten fruit. The spring is bitter, and yields bitter water. Even though God takes care of men so that they say, "I shall not want", they still go astray. They need someone to restore their souls to the paths of righteousness, not due to their own goodness, but "for His name's sake" (Psalm 23:1,3).

   Paul quoted these verses in Romans chapter 3 to confirm the corruption of all men, their liability to eternal damnation, and also to reveal that God provided deliverance through Christ for the fools who harmed themselves. "For all have sinned... being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth to be a propitiation by His blood" (Romans 3:23,24). "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all" (Isaiah 53:6).

	Second: The Conscience of the Sinner

(verses 14:4-6; 53:4,5)

1. A dormant conscience: "Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge, who eat up My people as they eat bread?" (verse 4). This is the sin of the dormant conscience of those who know that God is the just Judge, who must punish the violent man. Yet they work iniquity and eat up the God-fearing believers like they eat bread, without remorse or compunction (Micah 3:3). They are ignorant, or perhaps they just ignore and pretend not to know! They do not match their knowledge to their deeds! Have they no knowledge? They work iniquity in ignorance, and in ignorance they eat up God's people as though it were natural and necessary. They neither communicate with God nor call on Him to come into their lives! They are odd, and we marvel at them as Christ did at the people of Nazareth who did not believe in Him, and as a result left them and went about the surrounding villages, teaching (Mark 6:6).

   "And do not call on the Lord." They act without asking for God's help and blessing on what they do, or consulting Him on what they will embark on. Were they to call on Him, He would guide them in the paths of righteousness. Thus they were driven by their actions in the wrong direction.

   The works of the godless are contrary to reason and good sense, which tells one that the wages of sin is death. They are against history and experience, which affirm that whatever man sows, he will also reap. Working iniquity is not a childlike mistake, but a wilful crime of an adult who says to God, "Depart from us, for we do not desire the knowledge of Your ways" (Job 21:14; 22:17).

2. A conscience that could be aroused: "There they are in great fear, for God is with the generation of the righteous" (verse 5). The workers of iniquity always see the punishment they would get and the protection offered by God to the believers, because God always sets apart His holy men for Himself (Psalm 4:3). "There where they ate up His people; "there" where they thought they were eating bread; "there" where they ignored the Lord, terrible fear came upon them and horrified them, as they witnessed God rushing to protect the "generation of the righteous". The more the sinner compares his terror and anxiety with the peace the believer enjoys, the more his fear increases, because he sees the effect but not the cause; he sees the help but not the Helper; he sees a hand writing on the wall but not the Writer! When Sarah, Abraham's wife, died, Abraham went to the Hittites and said, "I am a foreigner and a sojourner among you. Give me property for a burial place among you, that I may bury my dead." "You are a mighty prince among us", they answered him, because they saw and felt that God was with him (Genesis 23:6). Also Abimelech, the king of Gerar, together with Phicol, the commander of his army, came to Isaac to arrange a reconciliation with him, despite the fact that they had opposed and chased him out of Gerar. They said to him, "We have certainly seen that the Lord is with you. So we said, 'Let there now be an oath between us'" (Genesis 26:28).

   God always arouses the conscience of the sinner by showing him how very favourably heaven deals with the godly. This has two reasons: First, to encourage the godly; and, second, to bring the sinners to repentance. He is a God of love. Psalm 14:6 says, "You shame the counsel of the poor, but the Lord is his refuge." These words arouse the conscience of the unrighteous, who shames the counsel of those who are poor in spirit. The Lord proves the counsel of the godly to be correct, because it is based on what He has revealed in His law. This divine proof makes the unrighteous reconsider himself, his thoughts and counsels, and turn back from the path of unrighteousness, and live.

   Psalm 53:5 says, "There they are in great fear, where no fear was, for God has scattered the bones of him who encamps against you." The enemy is strong and sure of his victory, and the godly are only a handful. But the Lord turns the tide against them, pronounces His divine justice, thus destroying those who encamp against them and releasing those who are hemmed in!

	Third: The Joy of the Believer

(verses 14:7; 53:6)

"Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion! When the Lord brings back the captivity of His people, let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad." Zion is the hill upon which the temple was erected, for salvation comes from worshipping and following God. He says, "Oh, that..." because many people are not saved, because they do not worship! Christ's salvation came from Zion, fulfilling the prophecy: "The Redeemer will come to Zion, and to those who turn from transgression" (Isaiah 59:20).

In the last verse of the psalm the writer mentions two things that God does to His people: He saves them, and brings back their captivity.

1. God saves His people: "Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion!" (verse 7a). Zion was the place where the ark of the covenant was located, which symbolised at least two things:

   1. God is in the midst of His people: The tabernacle of meeting, which contained the ark of the covenant, stood in the midst of the camp of the Israelites. All the tribes could see the ark of the covenant in their midst. If you want salvation for your home, place the Lord in the midst of it. If you want salvation from a problem, make the Lord master of your life and in full control of it.

   2. God is faithful in His covenant with His people: God entered a covenant with us before we ever entered a covenant with Him. It is a covenant that is sealed with blood. Christ brought us into a new covenant which He calls "the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you" (Luke 22:20). Let us enter into this covenant with God. When the people around us see that we faithfully entered into this covenant with the Lord, that God is in our hearts and in our midst, they will repent; because they will realise the loss they are suffering as result of being alienated from God. The following statement will apply to us: "That they may see your good works and glorify Your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:16). The word "good" in the Greek means aesthetically beautiful or attractive.

2. God brings back the captivity of His people: "When the Lord brings back the captivity of His people, let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad" (verse 7b). To bring back the captivity of someone means idiomatically to restore his losses and bring his prosperity back to him, as it was used in Job 42:10: "And the Lord turned the captivity of Job" (KJV). So let us ask God to bring back to us what we have forfeited by our weakness. If you have lived a life of joy and peace with the Lord, but lost it for anxiety, lack of prayer or lack of faithfulness to God, then pray: "Restore to me the joy of Your salvation" (Psalm 51:12). In response, God will fulfil His promise: "I will bring back the captives of My people Israel; they will build the waste cities and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and drink wine from them. I will plant them in their land, and no longer shall they be pulled up from the land I have given them" (Amos 9:14,15).

Oh, that the Lord would restore our spiritual strength and our first love, so we would stand on our feet close to Him and love Him with all our heart, soul and mind. When it is made known that God is in the generation of righteousness, we will rejoice and be glad because our salvation comes from our God.

	Questions

1. Who is the fool?

2. Describe the conscience of the sinner.

Who may Abide in Your Tabernacle?

A Psalm of David. 1 Lord, who may abide in Your tabernacle? Who may dwell in Your holy hill? 2 He who walks uprightly, and works righteousness, and speaks the truth in his heart; 3 He who does not backbite with his tongue, nor does evil to his neighbor, nor does he take up a reproach against his friend; 4 In whose eyes a vile person is despised, but he honors those who fear the Lord; he who swears to his own hurt and does not change; 5 He who does not put out his money at usury, nor does he take a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things shall never be moved.

David wrote this psalm on the same occasion as Psalm 24, namely the transfer of the ark of the covenant to the tabernacle, which David prepared for it in the Mount of Zion (2 Samuel 6:17). The mount was duly sanctified and dubbed "the holy mountain of God". You must be wondering: "What are the qualifications of the people among whom God would dwell?" God said, "For I am the Lord you God. You shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and you shall be holy; for I am holy" (Leviticus 11:44). Sanctity of life, then, which is seen in one's behaviour and practical life, is the prerequisite for abiding on God's holy mountain. "He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God" (Micah 6:8).

This is one of the psalms that foretell Christ's ascension. For He said, upon entering God's presence after His ascension, and after having completed the work for which He had been incarnated, "I have finished the work which You have given Me to do" (John 17:4).

The psalm includes the following:

• First: A question (verse 1)

• Second: An answer to the question (verses 2-5 a,b)

• Third: The conclusion of the psalm (verse 5c)

	First: A Question

(verse 1)

"Lord, who may abide in Your tabernacle? Who may dwell in Your holy hill?" "Abiding" means being a guest for some time. "Dwelling", on the other hand, conveys a sense of continuity, it describes the state of a landlord. One begins his spiritual life by being a guest in the Lord's house. He falls in love with the Lord with all his heart, and asks to stay with Him forever. But is it possible for sinful man to abide in God's tabernacle? Didn't Isaiah cry out when he saw the Lord in His temple, "Woe is me, for I am undone!" (Isaiah 6:5)? Didn't Peter ask Jesus to get out of his boat after witnessing His magnificent miracle, since he was a sinful man (Luke 5:8)? The answer: It is possible, provided that God adopt him out of grace, thus he becomes a member of the household of God and a habitation of God (John 1:12; Ephesians 2:19,22). This is exactly what Isaiah said, "The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness has seized the hypocrites: 'Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? Who among us shall dwell with everlasting burning? He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly, he who despises the gain of oppressions, who gestures with his hands refusing bribes, who stops his ear from hearing of bloodshed, and shuts his eyes from seeing evil: he will dwell on high, his place of defence will be the fortress of rocks; bread will be given him, his water will be sure. Your eyes will see the King in His beauty..." (Isaiah 33:14-17).

All who received Jesus as Saviour, who tasted and saw that the Lord was good (Psalm 34:8) and experienced the sweetness of abiding in His tabernacle, will ask to stay on His holy mountain, to go deeper in their knowledge of Him. With every day that passes the Lord becomes dearer and dearer to us, so we go into depth to enjoy living with Him, till we say, "And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever" (Psalm 23:6).

The person who starts off as a guest in God's place and progresses spiritually will dwell in God's presence and be able to say like Elijah, "As the Lord God of Israel lives, before whom I stood," [literally, from Hebrew] and then say afterward, "As the Lord of hosts lives, before whom I stand" continually (1 Kings 17:1; 18:15). Continuing to stand before the Lord reminds us of Anna the prophetess, who continued to worship day and night in the temple for 88 years with fasting and prayers (Luke 2:37).

The person who abides and dwells in the holy mountain of God enjoys the Christ's promise: "-He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love Him and manifest Myself to him... If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him" (John 14:21,23).

He who abides and dwells with the Lord receives care because the Lord of the house is loving, rich and generous, whose guests always say, "The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want... You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies" (Psalm 23:1,5). With the Lord he enjoys protection because "He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty" (Psalm 91:1). With Him he enjoys the robe of righteousness and the garment of salvation as he attends the banquet of the heavenly King (Isaiah 61:10; Matthew 22:11).

The question "Who dwells?" makes us eager to dwell with the Lord, and love to be found in His presence continually.

	Second: An Answer to the Question

(verses 2-5b)

The psalmist lists eight qualifications for the inhabitant of the mountain of God, which should be practised consistently till they work themselves into the heart of his daily life. The psalmist records them as actions, which are in fact the fruit of the operation of the Holy Spirit in the dweller of the Lord's house:

1. Behaves well: "He who walks uprightly" (verse 2a). Conduct is more important than words, because it is a revelation of one's faith through good deeds. This active faith is unlike the inactive faith that is devoid of deeds. "Upright" in the Hebrew (tamim) describes the flawless sacrifice. When applied to man in a general sense it means: faithful and blameless. It also describes acceptable adoration to God, and upright and honest dealings with people. The upright is perfect, accomplished, not dented or tainted. This is what God required of Abraham: "Walk before Me and be blameless" (Genesis 17:1), and His people: "You shall be blameless before the Lord your God" (Deuteronomy 18:13). Christ also repeated the same requirement: "Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect" (Matthew 5:48).

   These scriptures do not refer to absolute perfection, for this is an exclusively divine attribute. It is rather the blamelessness of intent and purpose, when a believer purposes with his whole heart to live for the Lord and walk uprightly.

2. Behaves righteously: "And works righteousness" (verse 2b). Righteousness is honesty, probity and justice. The one who works righteousness is the one who is honest with himself, who is conscious of his own weakness and sins, and hurries away crying out to God, "God be merciful to me a sinner!" (Luke 18:13). This way he takes his thirsty soul to the Lord in order to be quenched, and leads his broken heart to where it could find divine healing, praying, "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit with me" (Psalm 51:10). When we love ourselves we get saved, because we go to the blood of Jesus that cleanses us from all sin. As a result we become able to love others, because the commandment says, "You shall love your neighbour as yourself" (Mark 12:31). The one who works righteousness is the one who lives out his Christian faith on the street, and deals honestly inside and outside the house of the Lord, because "He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous" (1 John 3:7).

3. Tells the truth: "And speaks truth in his heart" (verse 2c). Of course, "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks" (Matthew 12:34). When one is truthful at heart his mouth automatically speaks the truth. A famous expression of the Lord was "Truly, truly I say to you..." (John 3:3 NASB). He also said, "I am... the truth" (John 14:6). For this reason He commands us to be truthful and honest at heart. He said, "And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:32). When Christ sets us free from our old life He transforms it and turns it into a new one, establishing the truth in our hearts and releasing our tongues to tell it.

   There are so many lies around us: ambiguous words, harmless lies, half truths and hypocrisy. The devil is the liar and the father of lies (John 8:44).

   A believer said, "Before you speak, ask yourself three questions: Is it true what I will say? If so, must I say it? And if I must, how can I bring it through in a tender way that benefits the others?"

4. Controls his tongue (verse 3): This can be seen in three things:

   1. "He who does not backbite with his tongue": To backbite is to tell something negative about others in order to do them harm, trap them and kindle the fire of enmity between them. Therefore God said, "You shall not go about as a talebearer among your people" (Leviticus 19:16). Asaph says, describing a talebearer, "You give your mouth to evil, and your tongue frames deceit. You sit and speak against your brother; you slander your own mother's son" (Psalm 50:19,20). He who dwells in the mountain of the God controls his tongue, does not harm people by telling false news about them, or news that is not necessary to be told, because "love covers all sins" (Proverbs 10:12).

   2. "Nor does evil to his neighbour": Many evils stem from misuse of the tongue: "Even so the tongue is a little member and boasts great things. See how great a forest a little fire kindles! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell... Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing" (James 3:5,6,10).

   3. "Nor does he take up a reproach against his friend": To take up a reproach is to taunt someone for a personal weakness. It is so painful a thing that a friend cannot bear it. The psalmist said concerning the same thing, "Reproach has broken my heart, and I am full of heaviness; I looked for someone to take pity, but there was none" (Psalm 69:20). It was well said that whoever reproaches his friend carries a devil in his tongue, and whoever laughs in ridicule carries a devil in his ears!

5. Does not associate with the vile: "In whose eyes a vile person is despised" (verse 4a). The person who dwells in the mountain of God does not associate with those who love and practice vileness, no matter what social status they may have, nor follows their example, nor condones the mistakes they make. He who dwells in the mountain of God does not, in fact, despise the vile person himself, rather the vileness that is within him. God loves the sinner, although He hates sin. When a godly person despises the vileness of the vile person he fulfils the prophetic statement: "The foolish person will no longer be called generous, nor the miser said to be bountiful" (Isaiah 32:5). Each one will get his due title.

6. Respects the godly: "But he honours those who fear the Lord" (verse 4b). "But a generous man devises generous things, and by generosity he shall stand" (Isaiah 32:8). The inhabitant of the holy mountain, who despises the vile person, honours those who fear the Lord, because the Lord has made them vessels for honour (Romans 9:21,23). He said, "Those who honour Me I will honour, and those who despise Me shall be lightly esteemed" (1 Samuel 2:30). He honours them because they belong to the same spiritual family as he, and because they are like him "the household of God" (Ephesians 2:19). He obeys the command that exhorts him to "be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honour giving preference to one another" (Romans 12:10). He fulfils the statement of Christ: "If anyone serves me, him My Father will honour" (John 12:26). Let every believer maintain his brother's honour, and let our motto be "The saints who are on the earth... in whom is all my delight" (Psalm 16:3).

7. True to his promises: "He who swears to his own hurt and does not change" (verse 4c). He carries out his promises and vows even to his own detriment, because he is true to his word and promises. He has uttered them before the Lord, and committed himself to see them done. The Lord commanded His people not to break their promises (Leviticus 5:4; 27:10). The psalmist simply obeys this command.

   The inhabitant of the holy mountain follows the example of God as His beloved son (Ephesians 5:1). Since God always makes good His promises to us, we ought to stick to what we promised. Many times we make promises and vows at the beginning of a new year, when we celebrate our birthday, when we go through a crisis, or after we attend a spiritual conference or a revival. Let us be true to our promises even though they cost us much, in order to be worthy of dwelling on His holy mountain. Our example in this business is Christ, who said as He came into the world, "Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for Me. In burnt offerings and sacrifice for sin You had no pleasure. Then I said, 'Behold, I have come -- In the volume of the Book it is written of Me -- to do Your will, O God'" (Hebrews 10:5-7). He promised and kept His promise in spite of the enormous sacrifice He had to make for our sake.

8. He uses money sensibly (verse 5): This could be seen in two things:

   1. "He who does not put out his money at usury" (verse 5a): God forbids usury that causes harm, which Nehemiah and the people agreed on (Nehemiah 5:1-13). The Mosaic law permitted lending money to foreigners at interest, but the Jew was supposed to lend to his Jewish brother without interest. This is how the Torah states it: "You shall not charge interest to your brother- interest on money or food or anything that is lent out at interest. To a foreigner you may charge interest, but to your brother you shall not charge interest, that the Lord your God may bless you..." (Deuteronomy 23:19). Evidently, the Jewish law encourages mercy among the Jews only, which is not extended to the Gentiles. Christianity, on the other hand, teaches that all human beings are brothers and sisters, for God has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth (Acts 17:26). Christ taught us to pray, "Our Father in heaven" (Matthew 6:9).

      The reason for forbidding usury is the fact that the creditor is in a stronger position than the debtor. A debtor takes a loan to fulfil a need, therefore we ought to help him. Nowadays the weak person deposits his "silver" at the bank so that the bank may invest it for him, because he is unable to invest it himself. The debtor (the bank in this case) has the upper hand, while the creditor is in a weaker position. In this case there is no injustice or harm done when the stronger bank pays interests to the weaker creditor!

      The New Testament pictures investment in a way different from the Mosaic law. Christ narrated a parable of a financier who gave his servants some "talents" to invest. Since one of them did not use what he received, the financier told him, "You ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest" (Matthew 25:27). Bankers invest the money and share the profits with the depositor, and there is nothing wrong with such mutual benefit. Christ's words teach us that investment is a duty, but outrageous interest and exploitation are unacceptable.

   2. "Nor does he take a bribe against the innocent" (verse 5b): Bribery perverts judgement. When a man gives bribes to get something that does not belong to him by right, he commits a crime and is as good as a thief who steals something that is not his. As to the receiver of bribes, he is a thief on all sides: he helps another thief to take something that does not belong to him, and gives something that does not belong to him either.

      In some societies, where corruption has gone rampant, the lawful citizen cannot get what he is entitled to unless he bribes, and he does not regard it as bribery any more than a "service charge". Yet, Christians should regard it as weakness of faith. Such a man should have patience and wait for the Lord to give him what rightfully belongs to him. The receiver of bribes in this case is also a thief, because he received bribes for giving someone something that is legally his to start off with.

      Some people refuse to give bribes, believing that God will give them their rights in His time, so they wait on the Lord. They are strong in the faith, and God will definitely honour their faith and say to them, "According to your faith let it be to you" (Matthew 9:29).

These eight qualifications depict a perfect character, with faith working through love, which carries out all its responsibilities to the smallest and biggest details alike. A person with this character carries out his responsibility faithfully, because the love of God has been poured out in his heart by the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5).

	Third: The Conclusion of the Psalm

(verse 5c)

The psalm concludes with this statement: "He who does these things shall never be moved." A person with these qualities will not only stand in God's presence, but also will be under His protection, which ensures his continual success. Therefore he says, "I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved" (Psalm 16:8).

At this point we are faced with a question: How can we practice these qualities in our lives? The answer: We can practice them when we obtain the righteousness of Christ and be sure that we are abiding in the Lord, being controlled by the Holy Spirit. This happens, of course, when we commit our lives to the Lord Jesus and receive from Him the fruit of the Holy Spirit, which is: "love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control" (Galatians 5:22,23).

Some people try to reform and decorate their lives, but self-reformation does not help at all. What is needed is a change, a transformation, because patching up an old shirt with a new piece of cloth won't hold together (Mark 2:21). What is needed is a new shirt. The renewal takes place in our lives through the power of the Holy Spirit, because "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away behold, all things have become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17). Ask God for a change.

We are faced with yet another question: Doesn't this psalm imply that deeds are the means to salvation? The answer: The writer of the psalm speaks of the inhabitant of God's holy mountain, who has completed all the sacrifices required by the Mosaic law. He knows that without the shedding of blood no remission of sins can happen, and that through atonement only can a man enter God's tabernacle. Faith is the initial prerequisite, then good deeds come as a result of redemption through the blood. The person who receives justification through redemption must manifest the fruit of this through a godly life. We are justified before God by faith in what Christ did on our behalf on the cross, just as Abraham was justified (Genesis 15:6). We are justified before men by our good deeds, as Abraham also was justified (Genesis 22; James 2:21-23). If good deeds follow faith, then our faith will work through love.

On the other hand, those who reject redemption through the blood, and glory in their good deeds as a personal means of salvation cannot please God, because they exclude the way that God ordained for our salvation. "By the deeds of the law no flesh shall be justified in His sight... being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus" (Romans 3:20,24).

	Questions

1. The one who dwells in God's sanctuary uses his tongue wisely. Comment on this.

2. The one who dwells in God's sanctuary uses his money wisely. Comment on this.

In your Presence is Fullness of Joy

A Michtam of David. 1 Preserve me, O God, for in You I put my trust. 2 O my soul, you have said to the Lord, "You are my Lord, my goodness is nothing apart from You." 3 As for the saints who are on the earth, "They are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight." 4 Their sorrows shall be multiplied who hasten after another god; their drink offerings of blood I will not offer, nor take up their names on my lips. 5 O Lord, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You maintain my lot. 6 The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; yes, I have a good inheritance. 7 I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel; my heart also instructs me in the night seasons. 8 I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved. 9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; my flesh also will rest in hope. 10 For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption. 11 You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

This psalm is a michtam of forgiveness, meaning that it is a golden psalm of precious import. Five other psalms have the same heading (56-60).

Psalm 16 expresses overwhelming joy filled with faith, hope and love. In Psalm 16 there is a happy anticipation of God, resulting from fellowship with Him. Most likely David wrote this psalm when he forgave Saul, who was chasing him, and as he fell into his hands. Saul promised to stop chasing David, but broke his promise and chased him again. Saul fell into David's hands a second time, and said as he recognised his voice, "Is that your voice, my son David?" David said, "It is my voice, my lord, O king. Why does my lord thus pursue his servant? For what have I done, or what evil is in my hand? ...If the Lord has stirred you against me, let Him accept an offering. But if it is the children of men, may they be cursed before the Lord." Why? "...for they have driven me out this day from abiding in the inheritance of the Lord, saying, 'Go, serve other gods.'" (1 Samuel 26:17-20). Because of being pursued David was deprived of worshipping God, but as God recompensed him he said, "You, O Lord, are the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You maintain my lot. The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; yes, I have a good inheritance" (Psalm 16:5,6).

This psalm is a prophecy of the risen Christ, from which Peter quoted verse 8 in Acts 2:25, saying, "For David says concerning Him, 'I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken.'" Paul, as well, quoted verse 10 in Acts 13:35-39: "'You will not allow Your Holy One to see corruption.' For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers, and saw corruption. Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man [the risen Christ] is preached to you the forgiveness of sins; and by Him everyone who believes is justified..."

The psalm includes the following:

• First: The psalmist's relationship with God (verses 1,2)

• Second: The psalmist's relationship with people; both righteous and unrighteous (verses 3,4)

• Third: The psalmist and his earthly life (verses 5-8)

• Fourth: The psalmist and his eternal life (verses 9,10)

• Fifth: The triple blessing of the psalmist (verse 11)

	First: The Psalmist's Relationship with God

(verses 1,2)

The psalmist begins the psalm by speaking of his relationship with the Lord, calling Him to preserve him, not from a specific danger, but from any danger that could beset him, whether he could feel it coming upon him or not. He realises his own weakness and the magnitude of the danger that King Saul poses to him. For this reason he puts his trust in the Lord and explains his special relationship to Him.

1. God is trustworthy: "Preserve me, O God, for in You I put my trust" (verse 1). To trust means to depend on, with confidence in whom you trust. An example of this trust is shown in the way a patient surrenders to the surgeon's scalpel, or a man gives a lawyer a full power of attorney, both out of confidence. Christ prayed for the believers, "Keep through Your name those whom You have given Me" (John 17:11). The believer realises that the name of the Lord is "a strong tower [bulwark]; the righteous run to it and are safe" (Proverbs 18:10). Only God is the tower of salvation and deliverance, upon whom the believer calls: "Show Your marvellous loving-kindness by Your right hand, O You who save those who trust in You from those who rise up against them" (Psalm 17:7).

2. God is the Lord: "My soul, you have said to the Lord, 'You are my Lord'" (verse 2a). He said, "Give Your strength to Your servant, and save the son of Your maidservant" (Psalm 86:16). He also said, "O Lord, I am Your servant; I am Your servant, the son of Your maidservant" (Psalm 116:16). David belongs to the Lord and has been called by His name. He is a self-appointed servant who says, "I love my master... I will not go out free" (Exodus 21:5). When he makes himself a servant to God he becomes free, safe and secure. God is our Master because He is our Creator, and our rightful Owner because He bought us by the blood of Jesus. Our knowledge of these two blessed truths makes us admit He is Lord over our lives because we are the creation of His hands, and because we are redeemed by His blood.

3. God is the source of goodness: "My goodness is nothing apart from You" (verse 2b). God Himself is the goodness of the psalmist, and it is He who gives the psalmist every good thing. Every goodness he desires is in and with God. He says, to Him, therefore, "Whom have I in heaven but You? And there is none upon earth that I desire besides You" (Psalm 73:25). David's confidence in the Lord shaped his thought and life pattern. His heart turns to God continually, in times of danger as well in times of safety, just as the compass turns to the north pole or iron to a magnet. He turns to God in times of temptation as well as in times of invulnerability, in times of fear as well in times of peace. God has become His point of reference all the time, therefore he says to Him, "I delight to do Your will, O my God" (Psalm 40:8).

	Second: The Psalmist's Relationship with People, Both Righteous and Unrighteous

(verses 3,4)

1. The psalmist's relationship with the righteous: "And to the saints who are on the earth, they are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight" (verse 3). The psalmist turns from God in His heaven to the believers on His earth, expressing that they are "my delight". He has a delightful and delighted relationship with those who love the Lord the same way he does. It is based on unity of the Spirit (Ephesians 4:3). "Everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments" (1 John 5:1,2).

   The writer gives the righteous two titles: the saints, and the excellent ones.

   1. "The saints": They are saints because God called them to be His kingdom of priests and a holy nation (Exodus 19:6). "Saints" means the pure who live a holy life, as He who called them is holy, who have become saints in all their conduct (1 Peter 1:15). He calls them "saints" in the sense of being set apart for God, dedicated to Him, who have given themselves unreservedly to loving Him. He calls them "saints" because he saw them different from the others, because the Holy Spirit within them gives them a quality of living that is different from that which is in the world. "In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest" (1 John 3:10). He who is in them is greater than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4). He calls them "saints" because he saw them high and lifted up, just as Isaiah saw the divine throne (Isaiah 6:1-3). Their spiritual level is higher than that of the people around them. Sanctity originates from Christ's cleansing work on the cross, "We have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all" (Hebrews 10:10), and it results from their acceptance of this redemptive work, for "He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love" (Ephesians 1:4).

      Yet, he saw them "on the earth". Yes, they have to be on earth, therefore Christ prayed for them, saying, "I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one" (John 17:15). They have to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world (Matthew 5:13,14), that they may become blameless and harmless in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, shining as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life (Philippians 2:15). In spite of being engulfed by the mire of the world, they were able to keep a heart of "saints". This applies to us today: we can live in holiness in a world full of evil only if the Holy Spirit is in control of our actions, and if we say to the Lord, "You are my Lord. My goodness is nothing apart from You."

   2. "The excellent ones": They are noble, of good reputation, to whom this statement of Christ applies, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:16).

      The psalmist does not say that his delight is in the rich or the powerful, but in those who joined the Lord, opened their hearts for Him, and whom He gave a good name. There is a special attraction that the Holy Spirit puts in the believers' hearts toward each other because Christ dwells in them and is the Lord of their lives, who draws them to each other with cords of love. Yet, many believers still don't appreciate each other as they ought to, and some denominations belittle others. All believers are saints and excellent owing to their place in Christ. This is how we should look at them, because this is how God looks at them.

2. - The psalmist's relationship with the unrighteous: "Their sorrows shall be multiplied who hasten after another god; their drink offering of blood I will not offer, nor take up their names on my lips" (verse 4). He speaks of the error of the unrighteous and God's punishment of them, then declares that he will keep away from their mode of worship.

   1. "Their sorrows shall be multiplied who hasten after another god": In other words: "My people have changed their Glory for what does not profit... For My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living water, and hewn themselves cisterns -- broken cisterns that can hold no water" (Jeremiah 2:11,13). They have been attracted by the pleasures of the world and snatched away by its idols, so they hasten after error, in a dangerous descent that banishes their spiritual peace and eternal destiny. By following such a spiritual error they have wronged themselves and multiplied their own sorrows. The prodigal son in the far country gives us a good example of these multiple sorrows (Luke 15:11-32). The first of these is banishment from the fatherly presence; the second is deprivation of divine blessing; the third is floundering in illusions, evils and the deception of exploiting friends. The sad end is eternal death.

   2. The psalmist's withdrawal from thei