Psalms of Wisdom 1-4; 37

The following material is adopted from James’s Montgomery Boice’s 3 volume commentary on Psalms. Additional material from MacArthur Bible Studies, Psalms: Hymns for God’s People. Introductory material from Psalms of Grace, Philip Webb, editor. Additional material taken from sources listed at the end.

Psalms 1-4; 37

Title

— The entire collection of Psalms is entitled “Praises” in the Hebrew text

— Later, rabbis often designated it “The Book of Praises”

— The Septuagint (LXX), the Greek translation of the OT, labeled it “Psalms”

— The Greek verb from which the noun “psalms” comes from means “plucking or twanging of strings,” so that an association with musical accompaniment is implied

Author and Date

— From the divine perspective, the Psalter points to God as its author

— When approaching authorship from the human side, one can identify a collection of more than seven composers

— King David wrote at least seventy-three of the 150 psalms

— The sons of Korah accounted for ten (Pss 42, 44-49; 84; 85;87)

— Asaph contributed twelve (Pss 50; 73-83)

— Solomon (Pss 72;127)

— Moses (Ps 90)

— Heman (Ps 88)

— Ethan (Ps 89)

— The remaining fifty remain anonymous in their authorship, though Ezra s though to be the author of some

— The time range extends from Moses, c. 1410 BC to the late sixth or early fifth century BC which spans 900 years of Jewish history

Background and Setting

— The backdrop for the psalms is twofold:

The acts of God in creation and history

The history of Israel

— The collected psalms comprise the largest book in the Bible, which is the most frequently quoted OT book in the NT

— Ps 117 represents the middle chapter (out of 1,189) in the Bible

— Ps 119 is the largest chapter in the entire Bible

Historical and Theological Themes

— The basic theme of the Psalms is living real life in the real world

— Two dimensions operate simultaneously

— a horizontal or temporal reality

— a vertical or transcendent reality

— Without denying the pain of the earthly dimension, the people of God are to live joyfully and dependently on the One who stands behind the heavenly/eternal dimension

— The people of God are called to live with joy and dependence on the One who governs the eternal dimension

— Every cycle of human troubles or triumphs is an opportunity to express complaints, confidence, prayers, or praise to Israel's sovereign Lord

— In view of this, the book of Psalms presents a broad array of theology, practically couched in day-to-day reality

— The sinfulness of man is documented concretely, not only through the behavioral patterns of the wicked but also by the periodic stumbling of believers

— The sovereignty of God is everywhere recognized

— Life often seems to be out of control, and yet all events and situations are understood in the light of divine providence as being right on course according to God’s timetable

Interpretive Challenges

— It is helpful to recognize certain recurring genres of literary types in the Psalter

Wisdom type, with instructions for right living

Lamentation patterns, with deal with the pangs of life (usually arising from enemies without)

Penitential psalms (mostly dealing with the “enemy” within, i.e. sin)

Kingship emphases (universal or mediatorial; theocratic and/or messianic rule)

Thanksgiving psalms

— The literary characteristic of the Psalms is that all of them are poetry par excellence`

— Unlike most English poetry, which is based on rhyme and meter, Hebrew poetry is essentially characterized by logical parallelisms

Synonymous — the thought of the first line is restated with similar concepts in the second line

Antithetic — the thought of the second line is contrasted with the first line

Climactic — the second and any subsequent lines pick up a crucial word, phrase, or concept and advance it in a stair-step fashion

Chiastic or introverted — the logical units are developed in an A…B/B…A pattern

— On a larger scale, some psalms employ acrostic or alphabetical arrangement

Outline

— The 150 canonical psalms were organized quite early into five “books”

— Each of these books ends with a doxology (see Pss 41:13; 72:18-20; 89:42; 106:48; 150:6)

— Jewish tradition appealed to the number five and alleged that these divisions echoed the Pentateuch, i.e., the five books of Moses

Psalm 1

This psalm exhorts us to remember that the blessed life is the one not influenced by the godless in any fashion but the one immersed in Yahweh’s law. Such a life is fruitful and resilient. Even more, such a life is eternal for unlike the wicked, who will not stand in judgment and will perish, the righteous are known to Yahweh. Israel’s kings were commanded to know God’s law (cf. Deut 17:18) and the ultimate king is the Word Himself (Rev 19:11-13). He embodies this truth of knowing Scripture, and we should follow Him.

— Psalm 1 is a practical psalm

— Introduces us to how we may find happiness and fulfillment in life

— The Psalm also warns us of sure, eventual and eternal ruin if we do not

Psalm 1 introduces us to the doctrine of the two ways, which is a very common concept. Most Americans are acquainted with Robert Frost’s use of the idea in the poem “The Road Not Taken.”

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I —

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference,

Those who know literature a bit more thoroughly are aware that the idea of paths diverging in a wood is also found in Dante Alighieri, the Florentine poet of the Middle Ages, whose Divine Comedy begins

Midway this way of life we’re bound upon,

I woke to find myself in a dark wood,

Where the right road was wholly lost and gone.

— Jesus used this same illustration toward the end of the Sermon on the mount

— The last section of the sermon lists a series of contrasts, between which choices must be made:

— Two gates

— Two roads

— Two trees and their two types of fruit

— Two houses and two foundations

Macarthur

( Ps 1:1 ) How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked,

Nor stand in the path of sinners,

Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!

— Blessed means supremely happy or fulfilled

— This word is plural in Hebrews could be translated “O the blessedness of the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked”

— Blessed men and wicked men are immediately contrasted

First, he begins where we are. None of us automatically starts out being righteous. We start out being sinners, and if we do eventually enter by the straight gate upon the narrow road that leads to life, it is by God’s grace. No one, either in the Old Testament or in the New Testament period, was saved in any other way. Second, the poet is able to introduce the doctrine of the two ways from the start . We do not have to wait until verse 4 to read that there is a way other than the way of the godly. Third and finally, the author says something important about godliness. He is going to present godliness positively as the way of the one who delights in the law of the Lord. But any positive affirmation, to have meaning, must have a negative to do with it. Thus, in order to say what the godly man is, we must be able to say what it is not, and that is what the first verse of the first psalm accomplishes.

MacArthur

the man

— By two cycles of contrast, Psalm 1 separates all people into their respective categories

— By observation, all people are separated ethically (verses 1-4); by outcome, all people are separated judicially (verses 5-6)

walk…stand…sit

— The “beatitude “ man ( Matt 5:3-11) is first described as one who avoids such associations as these which exemplify sin’s sequential downward drag

Spurgeon said, “When men are living in sin they go from bad to worse. At first they merely walk in the counsel of the careless and ungodly, who forget God — the evil is rather practical than habitual — but after that, they become habituated to evil, and they stand in the way of open sinners who willfully violate God’s commandments; and if let alone, they go one step further, and become themselves pestilent teachers and tempters of others, and thus they sit in the seat of the scornful. They have taken their degree in vice, and as true Doctors of Damnation they are installed.”

Macarthur

( Ps 1:2 ) But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night

— The godly delight in the law of the Lord because it conveys to them the will of their God

— The godly will meditate in it, or pore over it, constantly, day and night.

— This is the difference between those who love sin and those that love God

( Ps 1:3 ) He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water,

Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither;

And in whatever he does, he prospers.

— Because of the mostly arid terrain of Israel, a lush tree served as a fitting symbol of blessing in the OT.

— planted, lit. “transplanted”

— Trees do not plant themselves; neither do sinful people transport themselves into God’s kingdom

— Salvation is His marvelous work of grace ( cf. Is 61:3; Mt 15:13 )

( Ps 1:4 ) The wicked are not so, But they are like chaff which the wind drives away.

— The wicked are compared to chaff

— The picture here is the threshing floor, the chaff blows away, scattered and burned

— If only the wicked could see this!

In Eden, the devil told Eve, that if she disobeyed God by eating of the forbidden tree, her eyes would be “opened” and she would be “like God, knowing good and evil” (Gen 3:5). But she did not become like God; she became like Satan. And her eyes were not opened; they had been open. Now she (and her husband) became blind to spiritual realities.

( Ps 1:5 ) Therefore … stand

— Therefore introduces the strong conclusion that the ungodly will not be approved by God’s judgment

( Ps 1:6 ) The Lord Knows...

— This is far more than recognition; the Lord “knows” everything

— In this context, the reference is to personal intimacy and involvement with His righteous ones

Q: Who is this man?

— I do not want to read too much prophecy into this psalm and speculate who the writer had in mind

— Harry Ironside the bible teacher tells the story of a man named Joseph Flacks who visited Palestine and addressed a gathering of Jews and Arabs

— Flacks read Psalm 1 and then asked this question:

“Who is this blessed man of whom the psalmist speaks? This man never walked in the counsel of the wicked or stood in the way of sinners or sat in the seat of mockers. He was an absolutely sinless man.”

No body spoke. So Flacks asked: “Was he our great father Abraham?”

One old man said, “No, it cannot be Abraham. He denied his wife and told a lie about her.”

“Well, how about the lawgiver Moses?”

“No,” someone said, “It cannot be Moses. He killed a man, and he lost his temper by the waters of Meribah.”

Flacks suggested David. It was not David.

There was silence for a long while. Then an elderly Jew arose and said, “My brothers, I have a little book here; it is called the New Testament. I have been reading it; and if I could believe this book, if I could be sure that it is true, I would say that the man of the first Psalm was Jesus of Nazareth

— Jesus is that man, of course. He is the only perfect man who ever lived, and he is the sinner’s Savior

— It is He who stands at the portal of this book to show us the way to live and help us do it

Exploring the Meaning

We can choose blessing

One of the core themes repeated in the Bible is that God’s people have been offered a choice They choose to live in obedient submission to God and receive blessing, or they can choose to live in rebellion against God and receive curses. This choice was pictured as the very beginning of God’s Word when Adam and Eve were placed in the Garden of Eden and given that choice: Obey God and live; disobey and die. Psalm 1 introduces the entire collection of psalms by once again presenting the reader with that choice. In this case, the psalmist offers a stark comparison between those righteousness and those who choose wickedness. First and foremost, those who choose righteousness will “blessed” (Ps 1:1) — a word that is rich in depth and promise. Also, the righteous will be like trees “planted by the rivers of water” (1:3), which bear much fruit. The wicked, however, will be “like the chaff which the wind drives a away” (1:4).

Psalm 2

Psalm 2 declares the resilience of the sovereignty of God. Throughout history, nations and kings gather to oppose God and the Messiah. While their forcefulness always seems formidable, it is a laughable matter to God on high. They pose absolutely no threat to the Father and His purpose which is to set forth His Messiah as the king of the world. God has begotten Him in the sense that while they are distinct, they intimately share the same essence as are one. The Son thereby has the same status as His Father and is the inheritor of the world. The lesson for all in the light of this is to worship, obey, and honor the Son. No one is greater than Him.

— There is some debate among OT scholars if Psalm 2 is messianic

— Psalm 2 speaks of the rebellion of the world’s rulers against God’s anointed

— The actual word is Messiah

— And we have the Father’s decree that The Messiah will have dominion over them

— This obvious application to the hostile circumstances of the day made Psalm 2 one of the most quoted psalms in the NT

— Acts 4:25-26: The apostles quote it in a prayer after Peter and John are released from prison

— Acts 13:22: Paul is speaking in Pisidian Antioch

— Hebrews 1:5: The writer quotes to demonstrate Jesus’ superiority over angels

— Hebrews 5:5: The writer demonstrates that Jesus’ incarnation and His priesthood were both by divine appointment

— Rev 1:5: “He will rule them with an iron scepter; he will dash them to pieces like pottery”

— Revelation 2:27: “and He shall rule them with a rod of iron, as the vessels of the potter are broken to pieces, as I also have received authority from My Father;”

— Revelation 12:5 : “And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron; and her child was caught up to God and to His throne.”

— Augustine called Jesus iste cantator psalmorum (Himself, the singer o the psalms)

— This is certainly true of Psalm 2

— The psalm is not only about Jesus, but he himself speaks in it

This throws light on how Psalm 2 should be taken. For if the psalm is messianic, and if it was originally linked with Psalm 1, then the doctrine of the two ways introduced in Psalm 1 is here carried forward but at a higher pitch. On the other hand, the way of sinners in Psalm 1 now becomes a cosmic revolt of the nations against God and his Anointed. It becomes an unfolding of the wrong path and its consequences. On the other hand, the righteous man of the opening psalm is now explicitly seen to be God’s Son, the Lord Jesus Christ… It is by taking refuge in Jesus that the judgment awaiting the wicked can be avoided by them.

The outline is straight forward

— Four equal parts

— Each spoken by different speakers

— Verses 1-3: Speakers: The rebellious rulers of the earth

— Scene One: Human rebellion (2:1-3)

— The nations and peoples, led by their kings and rulers, direct their hostility toward the Lord and His anointed one.

— Spurgeon was right when he said, “We have, in these first three verses, a description of the hatred of human nature against the Christ of God.”

— Verses 4-6: Speaker: God the Father

— Scene Two: Divine Reaction (2:4-6)

— God does not tremble at the haughty words of these pygmy human rulers

— He does not even rise from where He is sitting

— He simply “laughs” at these great imbeciles

— This is the only place in the Bible where God is said to laugh, and it is not a pleasant laugh; a laugh of derision

— After laughing at such foolishness, God speaks to rebuke and terrify these rulers

— He tells of the appointment of his Son to be King in Zion and foretells his triumph

— Verses 7-9: Speaker: The Son speaks

— Scene Three: Divine Ruler (2:7-9)

— The words “You are my Son” or “This is my beloved Son” were spoken of Jesus by the Father twice during His earthly ministry

— Once at His baptism and once at the transfiguration

— The other part of the verse “Today I have become your Father — “ is used by Paul in a way consistent with the Gospels’ use of the first part

— In the first of Paul’s sermons, he refers it to Jesus’ resurrection (Acts 13:33)

— He refers “today” not to Jesus’ eternal begetting by the Father but with God raising Him from the dead by which He became what is elsewhere called “the firstborn from among the dead” (Col 1:18)

— Verses 8-9 show us our obligation to tell other about Jesus Christ today.

— Verses 10-12: Speaker: The Narrator Speaks Again

— Scene Four: Human Responsibility (2:10-12)

— It is the role of the Holy Spirit to draw us to Jesus, which is what the individual I have called the narrator is doing here

— Instead of immediate judgment, the Lord and His Anointed mercifully provide an opportunity for repentance

— The narrator calls on these rebellious humans to :

— be wise

— be warned

— to serve the Lord with fear

— rejoice with trembling

— But chiefly, they are to “kiss the Son” in grateful, loving submission

Exploring the Meaning

The righteous serve the true King

While Psalm 1 is a personal reflection about righteousness and rebellion, Psalm 2 carries those themes to a broader audience: the nations and civilizations. The choice presented is the same as in Psalm 1 — choose service to God and be blessed, or choose rebellion against God and face His wrath. The contrasts built into the psalm are as powerful as they are stark. On one hand, the “nations rage,” the “people plot,” and “the kings of the earth set themselves…against the LORD and against His Anointed” (Ps 2 vv 1-2). The picture being planted is of rulers and armies stirring themselves up in rebellion against God. In response, “He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The LORD shall hold them in derision. Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, And distress them in His deep displeasure” (vv 4-5). The psalm ends with a call for those who consider themselves powerful to submit to the only Being in creation who truly carries authority: “Be wise, O kings… Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are those who put their trust in Him” (vv 10-12)

Psalm 3

In this Psalm, David recounts one of the most foundational truths in trials: salvation belongs to Yahweh. David is fleeing from Absalom and the enemies are many. Despite their taunts, the psalmist knows the character of God and that he has a relationship with Him. Therefore, in spite of all intimidation, David has peace. He can sleep soundly at night because he knows God sustains him. Salvation belongs to Yahweh and those who know Him will have rest in Him.

— Psalm 1 stressed the Law

— Psalm 2 stressed the ultimate triumph of the Messiah

— Now in this Psalm we see the various trails that come into a man’s life and how we must trust the Lord

(3:5 ) “I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustains me.”

— Considered a morning prayer; Psalm 4 an evening prayer

A Series of Firsts

— Psalm 3 is introduced as “A psalm of David. When he fled from Absalom”

— First time that psalm is used

— Hebrew word mizmor, which means a poem to be sung to musical accompaniment

— First time David is said to be the author

— And first time that a historical setting is given - fleeing from Absalom (2 Sam 15, 16 )

— Absalom stole the hearts of the people and raised a rebellion in the nearby town of Hebron

— David flees Jerusalem with whatever leaders remained faithful

— Fled over the Mount of Olives to the temporary safety of the desert

— He was weeping and barefoot and his head covered in sorrow

— He was openly cursed by Shimei, a Benjamite who had remained loyal to Saul

— This is the situation that is described in this psalm

Military Images

— Foes (v. 1) and enemies (v. 7)

— Reference to victory (vv. 3,8)

— God is described as a shield ( v. 3)

— People (v. 8 ) may be employed with the same nuance “army”

— People are deployed ( v. 6)

— “Arise, O LORD” ( v. 7 ) is parallel to the words spoken on the departure of the Ark of the Covenant for war ( cf. Num 10:35 )

— “From the Lord comes deliverance” ( v. 8 ) sounds like a battle cry

Application

— Our battle might be at our job

— The weapons are rumors, lying, gossip, misrepresentation

— Everyone is trying to defeat everyone else

— Or it might be a family situation

— A spouse or children have turned against you

— A father or mother have disowned you

Though This World with Devils Filled

— vv. 5-6 is a beautiful picture of trusting God

Psalm 3:5–6 (NASB95)

I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustains me. I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people Who have set themselves against me round about.

— David went to sleep trusting God

A Confident Cry for Deliverance

— The last section is a confident cry for God’s deliverance

Psalm 3:7 “Arise, O Lord; save me, O my God! For You have smitten all my enemies on the cheek; You have shattered the teeth of the wicked.”

— A battle cry like Num 10:33-36 when the cloud of the Lord rose from the Ark and went before them

— David knew the Lord would give him victory

— And God did!

— David achieved great victory but Absalom was killed

Selah

There is no universal agreement about what selah means, though it occurs seventy-one times in the Psalter and three additional times in the psalm which ends Habakkuk. It usually occurs at the end of stanzas, but sometimes it occurs at the end of a psalm (as here in v. 8) and can even interrupt a stanza. One thing is certain: it is some kind of musical notation., probably indicating a pause of reflection. The great Hebrew grammarian Heinrich Gesenius believed it to have come from the Hebrew word salah (to be still) and thus took it to imply a pause in the singing, perhaps for an instrumental interlude. Franz Delitzsch believed it to have come from the verb sala (to raise up, lift up). He saw it as an indication to modulate to a higher key.

Psalm 4

Trusting in God leads to boldness. Because David knows that God listens to prayer and will relieve his distress, David is not intimated by his circumstances or enemies. Instead, he calls them out for their sin and empty ways. It is easy to capitulate to fear and foe around you. Many around David were in doubt, but he reminds them of the joy God gives. So David can remain loyal to God, not compromise, and even have rest because he has security in God.

— Some commentators want to make a historical connection with this psalm as was the case with Psalm 3, David’s fled before Absalom

— But that connection doesn’t really fit

— In this psalm the problem is one of malicious slanders and lies

— It is the psalmist’s reputation rather than his person that is being attacked, and what he needs is a sense of the presence and approval of God rather than physical deliverance

Seven types of psalms - where does this fit

— Earlier it was said that scholars speak of various genres of psalms

hymns

laments

psalms of thanksgiving

psalms of confidence

psalms of remembrance

wisdom psalms

and kingship (possibly messianic)

— Psalm 4 could be a combination of of two genres:

— Individual lament

— a psalm of confidence

— This psalm addresses injustice, suffering and oppression

— What is important to note is what happens to David as he prays

— What happens is HE CHANGES

— We would call this prayer therapy

— He moves from anxiety to quiet trust in God

An Appeal to God

— When we hear an unjust accusation against us we usually turn to our spouse or friends

— David turns to God

Psalm 4:8 “In peace I will both lie down and sleep, For You alone, O Lord, make me to dwell in safety.”

— David’s appeal is honest

— These men are ruining his reputation (turning this “glory into shame”)

— Why? Because they love lies (“delusions”)

— Oppose anything dealing with the true God (they “seek false gods”)

An Appeal to his Enemies (2-5)

— Trying to help them, he unintentionally but inevitably helps himself

— David reminds his enemies of a trust that is very important, namely, that “the Lord has set apart the godly for himself”

— This is something that the enemies of the righteous do not want to hear

— It refers to election, which they hate

— In David’s case, the statement is a reminder that he has become king by the sovereign choice of God, not by man’s authority

— Today this doctrine is also widely hated. But it is nevertheless true

— God who set us apart will also protect us and will complete His good work in us Phil 1:6 )

Tremble before God

Psalm 4:4 “Tremble, and do not sin; Meditate in your heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.”

— H.c. Leupold says that the verb be angry can also mean “tremble”

— It could mean be angry as most translations use it

— Or, “Stand in awe of God, and because you are in awe of him, cease sinning as you have been doing”

The Psalmist’s Trust in God

— Although the enemies did not come to trust God, David did

— God assured him of his favor (v. 6)

— God filled him with joy (v. 7)

— God gave him peace even in the turmoil (v. 8)

— If we leave our problems with God, he will shoulder them

— And he will enable us to sleep in peace

Psalm 37

This psalm is written by David late in life. It is his counsel to others after a life of God’s faithfulness. He urges the saints to glorify God in the ordinary, to dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. He reminds believers to have perspective. The wicked may prosper and plot against the righteous, but God will triumph against them in the end. So the godly are generous, meditate on God’s Word, and hope in Him. Ultimately, as our Lord echoes, the humble will inherit the earth

Not to Worry: Part 1

— Usually a NT passage expounds on an OT idea more fully

— What happens after death

— The doctrine of atonement

— And on rare occasions an OT passage clarifies a NT passage which is the case with this psalm

— Psalm 37:11 explains clarifies “meekness” as used by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount

Matthew 5:5 “Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.”

— So it it right to say that Psalm 37 is an exposition of the third beatitude, even though it was written a thousand years before Jesus began his public ministry

— It unfolds the character of the meek or trusting person in the face of the apparent prosperity of the wicked

This psalm is difficult to outline because it is an acrostic psalm

— The flow of thought follows an alphabetical structure

— These are the five sections

— The quite spirit (vv. 1-11)

— The way of the wicked (vv 12-200

— The ways of the righteous and the wicked contrasted (vv. 21-26)

— An old man’s counsel to the young (vv. 27-33)

— Taking the long view (vv. 34-40)

The Quiet Spirit

— vv 1-11 are the most direct exposition we have of the third beatitude

— They describe the quiet spirit of one who trusts God and does not fret evil men

Psalm 37:1–2 NASB95

Do not fret because of evildoers, Be not envious toward wrongdoers. For they will wither quickly like the grass And fade like the green herb.

— “do not fret” literally means “do not get heated” (v. 1, 7, 8)

— Or “Don’t get all worked up”

Q: How do we remain cool when we see the evil prospering?

— vv 3-11 give us answers to those questions

— There are five things we need to do

“Trust in the LORD” (v. 3)

— Trust is faith and it is active

— It is not merely God-related to directed towards others

— That is why the verse adds “and do good”

— Like a marriage, we must commit ourselves to him if we are to be Christians

“Delight…in the LORD” (v. 4)

— Before people are converted they think that God is not desirable

— A kill joy

— The one who trusts in God finds him to be a source of exquisite delight

— He is the perfection of grace, compassion, mercy, kindness, patience, and love

— He is, in other words, like Jesus Christ

— The better we know him the more we inevitably delight in him

— The reason so many apparent Christians do not delight in God is that they do not know him very well

— The reason they do not know him well is that they do not spend time with him

— The promise attached to this verse is that if we delight in God, he will give us the desires of our heart

— He will not give us foolish things we may long for

— God will give us himself

“Commit your way to the LORD” (v. 5)

— This literally means “to roll one’s way onto God”

— H. C. Leupold says, to “dislodge the burden from your shoulders and lay it on God”

— This is what the apostle Peter had in mind when he said

1 Peter 5:7 “casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.”

“Be still before the LORD” (v. 7)

— That is, wait patiently for him

— This is the ultimate answer to the problem of the prosperity of the wicked

— the wicked will be brought down

— the godly will be lifted up

— but only in God’s time

“Refrain from anger” (v. 8)

— P. C. Craigie says that “almost certainly” this is anger against God

— Whether against God or those who are doing wrong, the mark of a godly person is to maintain a settled frame of mind and trust God

Look Ahead

— We are also to look ahead at a time when the evil will be thrown down and the godly lifted up (vv. 9-11)

— The people of God will be preserved in the meantime

— They will be rewarded at last

— It is hard to take the long view, because we are consumed with the present

— But we need to do it if we are to grow in grace

The Meekest Man

— Moses is an example of what it means to be meek (Num 12)

— The NIV called him humble

— The KJV said he was the meekest man in all the earth ( Num 12:3)

— When Moses had to escape from Egypt he went to Midian, settled and married Zipporah

— She was the daughter of the priest of Midian

— She was also Jewish

— But by the time of Num 12 she had died and Moses married a Cushite women

— Cush was the ancient name for Ethiopia

— This was his second wife and was therefore black

— This was an offense to Moses’ brother Aaron and his sister Miriam

— Miriam launched a rebellion

Numbers 12:2 “and they said, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken through us as well?” And the Lord heard it.”

— God was displeased

— He called Miriam and Aaron to meet with him before the tent of the meeting

— God reiterated his choice of Moses to be the leader of the people, rebuked Moses’s offended siblings and then pronounced judgment on Miriam

— The text says, “The anger of the LORD burned against them, and … when the cloud lifted from above the Tent, there stood Miriam — leprous, like snow” ( vv. 9-10)

— In other words, God said to Miriam, “You’re offended because your brother married a black women. You’re brown, and you think light is better than dark. Why not be white, then? See how you like that”

— How was Moses’ conduct throughout this incident?

— His wife was insulted and despised

— His authority was challenged

— Did he try to vindicate himself?

— Not at all, he did exactly what we find in Psalm 37.

— He trusted in God

— He delighted himself in God

— He committed his way to God and refrained from anger

— He was strong and trusted in him who judges justly (1 Pet 2:23)

— Paul lists “meekness” as a fruit of the spirit (Gal 5:22-23, Col 3:12)

— Peter writes that Christians are to witness to others in a spirit of meekness (1 Pet 3:15)

— James says “Get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly [meekly] accept the word planted in you” (James 1:21)

The Way of the Wicked

— The second section of this psalm (vv. 12-20) describes the way of the wicked

— There are four contrasts between the wicked and the righteous

The wicked plot against the righteous, but the Lord laughs at them (vv. 12-13)

— The Lord “scoffs” at those who think they can overthrow him

— He laughs at the wicked scornfully, because he knows their appointed end

— If God can laugh at the wicked, shouldn’t we be able to at least refrain from being agitated by them?

The wicked draw weapons against the righteous, but they will fall by their own weapons (vv. 14-15)

— The idea is that an evil empire can endure for a time but the corruption will weaken it from within and it will eventually fall

— People may cheat us but eventually their characters will be known

— Others will refuse to work with them or destroy them with their own tactics

The wealth and power of the wicked will be taken away, but God will sustain the righteous (vv. 16-17)

— The fulfillment of this promise often takes considerable time

— Yet those who have trusted God over a lifetime will testify to its truth

— David expresses this as his own observation and testimony

Psalm 37:25 “I have been young and now I am old, Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken Or his descendants begging bread.”

The righteous will survive days of deprivation, but the wicked will perish (vv. 18-20)

— We think of the rich and famous of Hollywood

— They will vanish like the flowers of the field

— Those who do the will of God endure — and not just for this life

Psalm 1:3 “He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers.”

Two Ways and Two Destinies

— The third part of the psalm contrasts the ways of the righteous and the wicked (vv. 21-26)

— The last section introduced this contrast

— Here are three additional contrasts between the righteous and the wicked

“The wicked borrow and do not repay, but the righteous give generously” (v. 21)

— This is the difference between a generous and a selfish spirit

— The wicked want to get ahead quickly and see borrowing as a short road to success

— They are slow to repay because they want to keep the capital as long as possible

— Often they do not replay at all,

— either because they think they can get away with it

— or because they have overextended themselves and are unable

— With the righteous is it not an question of getting ahead or borrowing or repaying at all

— For them money is a gift of God to used to help others

— They are essentially generous

— We are not to be covetous

— Greed breaks the tenth commandment (Ex 20:17)

— The first and second economic commandment

— First, never charge more than you can pay off immediately when the bill comes due

— Avoid interest completely

— Second, never charge so much that you are unable to meet your Christian obligations first

— Always have some left over to help others

— Remember Paul praised the poor churches of Macedonia

2 Corinthians 8:2 “that in a great ordeal of affliction their abundance of joy and their deep poverty overflowed in the wealth of their liberality.”

“The righteous will inherit the land, but the wicked will be cut off” (v. 22)

— This is the land of Israel literally

— This is not a promise to us — there is no promise for NT believers to inherit portions of the promised land

— Yet, the third beatitude says, “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Matt 5:5)

Q: What does this mean?

— It can mean three things

— First, a future time when we will reign with Christ on earth (if your eschatology allows)

— Second, It can be speaking of prosperity in general

— Third, It can mean the entire earth is given to the righteous

— The meek can inherit all things in this way, because they do not have to possess them exclusively or selfishly

— Paul owned very little yet could describe himself as “possessing everything” (2 Cor 6:10)

— He also said, “All things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future — all are yours, and you are of Christ, and Christ is of God” (1 Cor 3:21-23)

“The wicked will be cut off, but although the righteous may stumble, they will not fall since the Lord upholds them” (vv. 23-24)

— The wicked will be cut off but the Lord will sustain the righteous

— They may stumble along the way or experience hardship from time to time

Verse 23 is better known (and may be better translated) in the King James Version of the Bible, which says, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD.” In his commentary on this psalm Harry Ironside tells a story about George Mueller, the founder of the great faith orphanages in England in the last century. Mueller was a man of great prayer and faith. He spent a lifetime placing the needs of his orphanages before God and saw many wonderful answers to his prayers. Ironside’s story is about someone who once picked up George Mueller’s Bible and was thumbing through it when he came to Psalm 37:23 and saw next to the words “the steps” Mueller had written in the margin “and the stops.” Apparently, Mueller had been meditating on this verse, and it had occurred to him that it is not only forward motion that is ordered by the Lord but also times of enforced inactivity. For the righteous, even these times have a gracious design

And Old Man’s Testimony

— Now David appends an old man’s testimony to the seven truths that he just explained

— He tells us that he has never seen these truths contradicted

Psalm 37:25 “I have been young and now I am old, Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken Or his descendants begging bread.”

Q: Is David’s observation accurate? Have you ever seen the righteous without life’s necessities?

— This question troubled Charles Haddon Spurgeon

— He did not fault David, but he acknowledged that v. 25 was not his personal observation

— He had seen the children of the righteous begging

“I have relieved the children of undoubtedly good men, who have appealed to me as common mendicants”

And Old Man’s Counsel

— The fourth part of Psalm 37 is “an old man’s counsel to the young”

— He says, “Turn from evil and do good” (v. 27)

— This is similar to “Trust in the Lord and do good” (v. 3)

— It is an affirmation of faith leading to good works

— It goes on to speak of good “words” (v. 30)

— The reason is because “the law of God is in his heart” (v. 31)

Taking the Long View

— Part give encourages us to take the long view (vv. 34-40)

— The psalmist commands us to “Wait for the LORD and keep his way” (v. 34)

— Here the wicked are compared to a great tree (v. 35)

— Earlier they were compared to a flowers that do not last very long, which seems right (v. 2)

— But it is hard to think of a great tree suddenly dying

— I imagine the image of the tree to be teaching that there are times when the wicked do so well that they seem indistinguishable from the righteous

— There certainty seems equally assured

— They flourish

— But don’t judge based on appearances but by the Word of God (Prov 3:5-6)

Exploring the Meaning

Pursuing righteousness does not preclude individual aspirations

Submitting to the will of God does not necessarily mean that we give up personal desires. We should never pursue anything that is opposed to God and His righteous character, but we are free to enjoy whatever is not immoral. Nevertheless, we are called to submit everything we do to the will of God, seeking to honor Him in everything. If you “delight yourself in the LORD,” then “He shall give you the desires of your heart” (Ps 37:4). But notice that “delight[ing]… in the LORD” is the condition He demands before you receive the “desires of your heart.” This means that whatever you desire is in accordance with God’s character, or at least not contrary to it. Therefore, you are free to pursue your own heart’s desires so long as those desires do not violate God’s law. Ecclesiastes 11:9 reads, “Rejoice, young man, during your childhood, and let you heart be pleasant during the days of young manhood. And follow the impulses of your heart and the desires of your eyes. Yet know that God will bring you to judgment for all these things” (NASB)

Additional Resources

Boice, J. M. (n.d.). Psalms. Vol 1: Psalms 1-41. Baker Books.

MacArthur, J. (2023). Psalms. Hymns for God’s People. Harper Christian Resources.

MacArthur, J. (Ed.). (2020). The MacArthur study Bible (2nd ed., New American Standard). Thomas Nelson.

C. H. Spurgeon. The Treasury of David, Vol 1a, Psalms 1-26.

Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy: The Inferno, trans. Dorothy L. Sayers (Harmondsworth, England: Penguin, 1951)

Webb, P. (Ed.). (2022). Psalms of grace. The Master's Seminary Press.