Burunche’s Blog

The Assured Judgment of the Wicked

To the Chief Musician. Set to “Do Not Destroy.” A Michtam of David when Saul sent men, and they watched the house in order to kill him.

“Deliver me from my enemies, O my God; defend me from those who rise up against me. Deliver me from the workers of iniquity, and save me from bloodthirsty men. For look, they lie in wait for my life; the mighty gather against me, not for my transgression nor for my sin, O Lord. They run and prepare themselves through no fault of mine. Awake to help me, and behold! You therefore, O Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel, awake to punish all the nations; do not be merciful to any wicked transgressors. Selah

At evening they return, they growl like a dog, and go all around the city. Indeed, they belch with their mouth; swords are in their lips; for they say, “Who hears?” But You, O Lord, shall laugh at them; You shall have all the nations in derision.

I will wait for You, O You his Strength; for God is my defense. My God of mercy shall come to meet me;
God shall let me see my desire on my enemies. Do not slay them, lest my people forget; scatter them by Your power, and bring them down, O Lord our shield.

For the sin of their mouth and the words of their lips, let them even be taken in their pride, and for the cursing and lying which they speak. Consume them in wrath, consume them, that they may not be; and let them know that God rules in Jacob to the ends of the earth. Selah

And at evening they return, they growl like a dog, and go all around the city. They wander up and down for food, and howl if they are not satisfied. But I will sing of Your power; yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning; for You have been my defense and refuge in the day of my trouble. To You, O my Strength, I will sing praises; for God is my defense, my God of mercy.”

“Deliver me from my enemies, O my God; defend me from those who rise up against me. Deliver me from the workers of iniquity, and save me from bloodthirsty men.”  What’s the basis for this psalm? The story is told in 1 Samuel 19:11-17. David has married Saul’s daughter Michal, who loves him. Now Saul has guards surrounding David’s house in hopes of catching and killing him if he leaves. But Michal cleverly lets David down through a window on a rope and then creates a dummy in the bed that looks enough like a sleeping man that Saul’s soldiers think David is sick. Saul’s soldiers really don’t want to have to send David to Saul. When Saul forces the soldiers to return to bring David to him, they find David has escaped. When Saul reproves his daughter, she lies, saying that David has threatened to kill her if she informs Saul. But don’t blame Michal too much; she also fears that her father might kill her.

 “At evening they return, they growl like a dog, and go all around the city. Indeed, they belch with their mouth; swords are in their lips; for they say, “Who hears?” But You, O Lord, shall laugh at them; You shall have all the nations in derision.”  David is under surveillance 24/7. Even if David is in his house, he can still hear Saul’s men roaming through the streets and shouting threats periodically. It’s nerve-wracking!

“I will wait for You, O You his Strength; for God is my defense. My God of mercy shall come to meet me;
God shall let me see my desire on my enemies. Do not slay them, lest my people forget; scatter them by Your power, and bring them down, O Lord our shield.”  David realizes that if God simply wipes out his enemies, it will have little effect on people. Far better then for God to scatter and disgrace David’s enemies in such a way that people will remember for generations.

“For the sin of their mouth and the words of their lips, let them even be taken in their pride, and for the cursing and lying which they speak. Consume them in wrath, consume them, that they may not be; and let them know that God rules in Jacob to the ends of the earth. Selah” It’s quite possible that Saul’s men have been taunting David in the street, saying, “David, where is your God now? If your God is so great, let Him save you!”

“And at evening they return, they growl like a dog, and go all around the city. They wander up and down for food, and howl if they are not satisfied. But I will sing of Your power; yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning; for You have been my defense and refuge in the day of my trouble. To You, O my Strength, I will sing praises; for God is my defense, my God of mercy.” David has made up his mind to praise God, no matter the circumstances. Praise brings us closer to God and to His protection.

APPLICATION: Reading the story of David in the light of a modern perspective, you might wonder if David will battle PTSD for the rest of his life. Look at what David has suffered: Early rejection by his father, manipulation by King Saul, who only wanted David to play background music but not to succeed on the battle field, years of persecution by King Saul, and repeated betrayals by those he has saved and protected. How has David survived? Throughout all of David’s trials, he has persisted in praising God extravagantly.

Now if you or a loved one have suffered or are suffering from PTSD or depression, please do not misconstrue this statement. I am not trying to imply that all your problems will simply melt away if you will praise God enough. I am also not blaming you for whatever problems are assailing you; my husband and I have been through too much to be that foolish.

Nearly three decades ago, we went through a small tribal war. We routinely woke up to gunfire and then had to listen and decide whether it was a traditional funeral, the military shooting off a few rounds to remind us that we were still under occupation, or if we were under attack and needed to grab the backpack with our money and passports and rush to the River Oti so we could cross into Togo. We survived all this while running a bush hospital without electricity or running water. During these problems, one of our supporting churches pulled out, proclaiming that we “no longer fit into their missions program.” (We later learned that they wanted a nice location to which they could send short term groups, and no, our remote location and the danger would not be conducive to mission tourism.)

Once we reached New Orleans, where I was enrolled in a Master’s degree program in public health, a false positive result on a blood test left us in limbo for months, wondering if I was suffering from some chronic disease. Thankfully, I was later given a clean bill of health. Your problems might make anything we have endured pale by comparison, but I say all this so you will realize I am speaking from experience and not from theory. (At one point, I told one of my friends that I didn’t want to hear any advice from someone who had not earned a Ph.D. in suffering. The friend, who had overcome agoraphobia triggered by sexual abuse as a child, agreed whole-heartedly! )

There is no such thing as a “One size fits all” solution for problems; however, when we praise God in the midst of our struggles, we remove our focus from ourselves and our problems and put it on God instead. We may be powerless to help ourselves; however, God has unlimited power. Notice that while David is praising God, he continues to remind God of the mess he’s in and to beg for deliverance. We don’t have to LIKE our trials, but we do have to endure them. Praise makes it possible to endure trials while waiting for God’s deliverance.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, please help all those who read these words to realize how much You love them and how much You want for them to be healthy and whole. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

The Just Judgment of the Wicked

To the Chief Musician. Set to “Do Not Destroy.” A Michtam of David.

“Do you indeed speak righteousness, you silent ones? Do you judge uprightly, you sons of men? No, in heart you work wickedness; You weigh out the violence of your hands in the earth.

The wicked are estranged from the womb; they go astray as soon as they are born, speaking lies. Their poison is like the poison of a serpent; they are like the deaf cobra that stops its ear, which will not heed the voice of charmers, charming ever so skillfully.

Break their teeth in their mouth, O God! Break out the fangs of the young lions, O Lord! Let them flow away as waters which run continually; when he bends his bow, let his arrows be as if cut in pieces. Let them be like a snail which melts away as it goes, like a stillborn child of a woman, that they may not see the sun. Before your pots can feel the burning thorns, He shall take them away as with a whirlwind, as in His living and burning wrath.

The righteous shall rejoice when he sees the vengeance; he shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked, So that men will say, “Surely there is a reward for the righteous; surely He is God who judges in the earth.”

“Do you indeed speak righteousness, you silent ones? Do you judge uprightly, you sons of men? No, in heart you work wickedness; You weigh out the violence of your hands in the earth.” All over the world, there are those who scheme secretly to do wickedness and create mayhem. Although we may first think of terrorist groups such as Hamas, others are sitting behind computer screens, creating viruses and malware to disrupt the lives of people they will never meet. Others create pornography or mastermind human trafficking rings.

“The wicked are estranged from the womb; they go astray as soon as they are born, speaking lies. Their poison is like the poison of a serpent; they are like the deaf cobra that stops its ear, which will not heed the voice of charmers, charming ever so skillfully.”  We might wonder if those committing hate crimes ever enjoyed a period of innocence or if they were always vicious.

“Break their teeth in their mouth, O God! Break out the fangs of the young lions, O Lord! Let them flow away as waters which run continually; when he bends his bow, let his arrows be as if cut in pieces. Let them be like a snail which melts away as it goes, like a stillborn child of a woman, that they may not see the sun. Before your pots can feel the burning thorns, He shall take them away as with a whirlwind, as in His living and burning wrath.” When writers of psalms want to curse someone, they don’t mince words. But we can also use these same verses as prayers against the wicked. Want peace in the Middle East? Pray these verses! Want human trafficking to cease? Pray these verses!

“The righteous shall rejoice when he sees the vengeance; he shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked, So that men will say, “Surely there is a reward for the righteous; surely He is God who judges in the earth.” Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers tells us: “It is an allusion to a great conqueror, who, upon “returning with a complete victory from the slaughter of his enemies, dips his feet in their blood as he passes over their carcasses.”

APPLICATION: In the book Black Friday Coming Down, David J. Hunter describes the distraught family of two horrible young men. While Hunter was working as a police officer in Tennessee, he helped arrest two young men who were among the most evil felons he had ever met. When the mother of these young men reported to the police station, Hunter expected that she would be equally wicked, only to meet a sweet genuinely good woman grieving over the crimes her sons had committed. When this lady described all the efforts her husband and she had made to raise these men, it became obvious that they had truly “gone astray as soon as they were born.” This mother advised Hunter to lock her sons up, for as soon as they were free, they would commit even worse crimes.

Whether or not we choose to believe it, we stand before God every day. God sees everything we do and knows all our thoughts and the intents of our hearts. One of the fundamental laws of the Kingdom of God is this: the measure you give out is the measure you will receive, or “What goes around, comes around.” In an earlier day when many people lived on farms, people commonly said, “Be sure your chickens will come home to roost.” This saying refers to the fact that as free-range chickens will always return to the chicken house at night time, our actions have consequences and those consequences will catch up with us. My late mother was fond of adding, “and when they come back, they will have become turkey buzzards!” Sometimes we minimize the evil we have done, never realizing that evil doesn’t diminish; it continues to multiply like a virus.

While it is tempting to point fingers at others and criticize, one question for each of us is this: Are people better off or worse for being in our company? We have seen seemingly good people corrupted by a single evil leader. As soon as the influence of that leader has been removed, those same people revert to goodness. Are we building people up or tearing them down? Are we pointing them toward God or are we discouraging them? May God help us so that we will always influence people for righteousness and not for wickedness!

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to remember that we live and move and have our being in You and that You know us better than we know ourselves. Let us always point people toward You and not toward Satan. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.   

 To the Chief Musician. Set to  “Do Not Destroy.” A Michtam of David when he fled from Saul into the cave.

“Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me! For my soul trusts in You; and in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge, until these calamities have passed by.

I will cry out to God Most High, to God who performs all things for me. He shall send from heaven and save me; He reproaches the one who would swallow me up. Selah God shall send forth His mercy and His truth.

My soul is among lions; I lie among the sons of men who are set on fire, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let Your glory be above all the earth.

They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down; they have dug a pit before me; into the midst of it they themselves have fallen. Selah

My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and give praise. Awake, my glory! Awake, lute and harp! I will awaken the dawn. I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing to You among the nations. For Your mercy reaches unto the heavens, and Your truth unto the clouds. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let Your glory be above all the earth.”

“A Michtam of David when he fled from Saul into the cave.” David is on the run again. The story is told in 1 Samuel 22:1-2 “David therefore departed from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam. So when his brothers and all his father’s house heard it, they went down there to him. And everyone who was in distress, everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was discontented gathered to him. So he became captain over them. And there were about four hundred men with him.” Notice something: David enters the cave alone, but before it is over, 400 men join him.

“Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me! For my soul trusts in You; and in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge, until these calamities have passed by.” David is desperate for shelter and protection. The image here is of a mother bird sheltering her fledglings under her wings to protect them from marauders. All the fledglings must do is to remain silent and trust their protector.

“I will cry out to God Most High, to God who performs all things for me. He shall send from heaven and save me; He reproaches the one who would swallow me up. Selah God shall send forth His mercy and His truth.” God is the One who can truly settle all scores. Our knowledge is imperfect and we might jump to wrong conclusions; however, God knows the hearts and intents of the evil ones and He can intervene, sending the convicting power of the Holy Spirit to change hearts and minds.

“My soul is among lions; I lie among the sons of men who are set on fire, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let Your glory be above all the earth.”  What can you do if you find yourself trapped amid a pride of lions? STAY STILL! If you move, you might become a lion hors d’ouvre. Only God can save you from danger.

 “They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down; they have dug a pit before me; into the midst of it they themselves have fallen. Selah” Proverbs 26:27 warns “Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, and he who rolls a stone will have it roll back on him.” While we might not know of all the traps our enemies are setting, God sees all, knows all, and can deal with all.

“My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and give praise. Awake, my glory! Awake, lute and harp! I will awaken the dawn. I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing to You among the nations. For Your mercy reaches unto the heavens, and Your truth unto the clouds. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let Your glory be above all the earth.” When God delivers us, we should be so grateful that our shouts of praise would practically make the sun rise.

APPLICATION: Make no mistake, the dangers David is describing in this psalm are very real. David has spent long years running from King Saul. Just after David leaves the Cave of Adullam where he has been hiding, he sends his parents to stay with the king of Moab to prevent them from being taken hostage or even being killed. It’s truly tragic that David has to turn to a foreign king for help because the king of Israel is a madman; on the other hand, God is allowing David to forge alliances that will be very helpful in the future. Sending one’s family to someone for protection implies an enormous degree of trust in that person.

One of the laws of the Kingdom of God is that the measure you give out is the measure you will receive. Try being crafty and you might be hoist with your own petard. (The meaning of hoist on(or with or by) one’s own petard is to be harmed or defeated by one’s own plan or device that was meant to hurt someone else. The phrase comes from a speech in Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, where a petard was a small bomb used to blow up gates or walls. The phrase implies an ironic reversal or poetic justice.) Eventually, King Saul’s craftiness becomes his undoing.

Once more, David has penned a psalm for all of us under relentless pressure. Even when we have no words of our own, we can borrow those of David. If you are familiar with David’s story, you know that eventually things worked out for him; God is still a Redeemer and He can redeem things for us as well.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to trust when we cannot see and to continue to look for Your redemption. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Prayer for Relief from Tormentors

To the Chief Musician. Set to  “The Silent Dove in Distant Lands.” A Michtam of David when the Philistines captured him in Gath.

“Be merciful to me, O God, for man would swallow me up; fighting all day he oppresses me. My enemies would hound me all day, for there are many who fight against me, O Most High.

Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. In God (I will praise His word), in God I have put my trust; I will not fear. what can flesh do to me?

All day they twist my words; all their thoughts are against me for evil. They gather together, they hide, they mark my steps, when they lie in wait for my life. Shall they escape by iniquity? In anger cast down the peoples, O God! You number my wanderings; put my tears into Your bottle; are they not in Your book?

When I cry out to You, then my enemies will turn back; this I know, because God is for me. In God (I will praise His word), in the Lord (I will praise His word), in God I have put my trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?

Vows made to You are binding upon me, O God; I will render praises to You, for You have delivered my soul from death. Have You not kept my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living?”

“A Michtam of David when the Philistines captured him in Gath.”  Right after David and his men received the show bread from the priests at Nob, David fled to the Philistine city of Gath. The story is told in 1 Samuel 21:10-15 10 ”Then David arose and fled that day from before Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath. And the servants of Achish said to him, “Is this not David the king of the land? Did they not sing of him to one another in dances, saying: ‘Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands’?” Now David took these words to heart, and was very much afraid of Achish the king of Gath. So he changed his behavior before them, pretended madness in their hands, scratched on the doors of the gate, and let his saliva fall down on his beard. Then Achish said to his servants, “Look, you see the man is insane. Why have you brought him to me? Have I need of madmen, that you have brought this fellow to play the madman in my presence? Shall this fellow come into my house?” Whether or not David should have made such a drastic move, it failed. Before criticizing David, ask yourself what you would have done in a similar life-threatening situation. David had to be desperate to feign madness, so desperate that he forgot that God was still protecting him.

“Be merciful to me, O God, for man would swallow me up; fighting all day he oppresses me. My enemies would hound me all day, for there are many who fight against me, O Most High. Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. In God (I will praise His word), in God I have put my trust; I will not fear. what can flesh do to me?” Why didn’t David trust God rather than running off to Gath? David was probably in panic mode and was too stressed to think clearly.

“All day they twist my words; all their thoughts are against me for evil. They gather together, they hide, they mark my steps, when they lie in wait for my life. Shall they escape by iniquity? In anger cast down the peoples, O God! You number my wanderings; put my tears into Your bottle; are they not in Your book?” David realizes that he is being stalked by Saul’s spies and that only God can save him. This is not paranoia; this is being realistic.

“When I cry out to You, then my enemies will turn back; this I know, because God is for me. In God (I will praise His word), in the Lord (I will praise His word), in God I have put my trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?” Here David is making a wonderful affirmation of faith. Perhaps David has written this after being kicked out of Gath and is now realizing that God is his only hope.

“Vows made to You are binding upon me, O God; I will render praises to You, for You have delivered my soul from death. Have You not kept my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living?” Now David realizes that God is the only Source of his help and that God is the One who has preserved him.

APPLICATION: While it’s unlikely that any of us will go to the extreme lengths to hide as David has done during his flight to Gath, many of us may have been tempted to run from our problems. This psalm depicts David’s despair as well as his repentance from trying to take a quick way out.

I love white water canoeing and kayaking, but there’s one lesson I have had to learn repeatedly: Don’t look at the rocks; look at the river. If I focus on the rocks, I will wind up wrecking on the rocks. The only safe way is to focus on the path the water takes around the rocks and to follow that stream. The same thing holds true for mountain biking or for downhill skiing: you must focus on the path you want to take, not on the obstacles on either side. The second you remove your attention from your goal, you are likely to fall and hurt yourself.

We cannot obsess over our problems and praise God at the same time. When we praise God and lift our attention to Him, He can guide us safely through an obstacle-strewn course. We have had years during which our hospital has gone through financial crises, strikes by workers, theft by workers, and shortages of materials. Despite all these obstacles, God has continued to guide and provide. My only means of escape from these problems has been to continue to focus on caring for the patients. Watching children and their families happily leave the hospital for home buoys my spirits.

When we first came to our small town to visit the facility, we had NO intention of working here! At that time, there was only a health center with 11 workers, no electricity, and no running water. I am a fully-trained general and pediatric surgeon. But when we stepped out of the vehicle, the Holy Spirit descended and suddenly we KNEW we must come. Those first years were very difficult as we weathered a small tribal war and other daunting obstacles. But God has been faithful throughout our struggles. Today we have a district hospital with full surgical coverage, a lab, an eye unit, a dental unit, and other services. Truly, we can say along with David, ““Vows made to You are binding upon me, O God; I will render praises to You, for You have delivered my soul from death. Have You not kept my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living?”

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to focus on You and not on our problems, for when we do that, You can save and deliver us. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Cast Your Burden upon the LORD (2 Samuel 17:15-29)

For the choirmaster. With stringed instruments. A Maskil of David.

“Listen to my prayer, O God, and do not ignore my plea. Attend to me and answer me. I am restless in my complaint, and distraught at the voice of the enemy, at the pressure of the wicked. For they release disaster upon me and revile me in their anger. My heart murmurs within me, and the terrors of death assail me. Fear and trembling grip me, and horror has overwhelmed me.

I said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and find rest. How far away I would flee; in the wilderness I would remain. Selah I would hurry to my shelter, far from this raging tempest.”

O Lord, confuse and confound their speech, for I see violence and strife in the city. Day and night they encircle the walls, while malice and trouble lie within. Destruction is in the midst; oppression and deceit never leave the streets.

For it is not an enemy who insults me; that I could endure It is not a foe who rises against me; from him I could hide. But it is you, a man like myself, my companion and close friend. We shared sweet fellowship together; we walked with the crowd into the house of God. Let death seize them by surprise; let them go down to Sheol alive, for evil is with them in their homes.

But I call to God, and the LORD saves me. Morning, noon, and night, I cry out in distress, and He hears my voice. He redeems my soul in peace from the battle waged against me, even though many oppose me. God will hear and humiliate them—the One enthroned for the ages—Selah because they do not change and they have no fear of God.

My companion attacks his friends; he violates his covenant. His speech is smooth as butter, but war is in his heart. His words are softer than oil, yet they are swords unsheathed.

Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken. But You, O God, will bring them down to the Pit of destruction; men of bloodshed and deceit will not live out half their days. But I will trust in You.”

“Listen to my prayer, O God, and do not ignore my plea. Attend to me and answer me. I am restless in my complaint, and distraught at the voice of the enemy, at the pressure of the wicked. For they release disaster upon me and revile me in their anger. My heart murmurs within me, and the terrors of death assail me. Fear and trembling grip me, and horror has overwhelmed me.” Once more, David is in trouble and feels there is no way out. Not only are David’s enemies accusing him, but now he is even questioning and doubting himself.

“I said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and find rest. How far away I would flee; in the wilderness I would remain. Selah(Pause and calmly think on that.) I would hurry to my shelter, far from this raging tempest.”  Most of us can readily identify with David as we face problems that make us want to do nothing so much as run someplace and hide! We long for a safe place and for someone who can defend us from our attackers.

“O Lord, confuse and confound their speech, for I see violence and strife in the city. Day and night they encircle the walls, while malice and trouble lie within. Destruction is in the midst; oppression and deceit never leave the streets.” When we are attacked, we can pray as David has for our attackers to be confused and confounded.

“For it is not an enemy who insults me; that I could endure It is not a foe who rises against me; from him I could hide. But it is you, a man like myself, my companion and close friend. We shared sweet fellowship together; we walked with the crowd into the house of God. Let death seize them by surprise; let them go down to Sheol alive, for evil is with them in their homes.”  There’s nothing so painful as betrayal by a fellow believer.

“But I call to God, and the LORD saves me. Morning, noon, and night, I cry out in distress, and He hears my voice. He redeems my soul in peace from the battle waged against me, even though many oppose me.” God’s help line is open 24/7. No matter when we cry out to God, He hears and redeems us, no matter how vicious the opposition.

“My companion attacks his friends; he violates his covenant. His speech is smooth as butter, but war is in his heart. His words are softer than oil, yet they are swords unsheathed.” Few things are more discouraging than being attacked by friends who violate covenant agreements. You swiftly learn to disregard their fine phrases.

“Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken. But You, O God, will bring them down to the Pit of destruction; men of bloodshed and deceit will not live out half their days. But I will trust in You.” What a relief to know that God understands our problems even better than we do and that He will give us the strength to be faithful. We can trust the evil to God, knowing that He can sort things out far better than we can.

APPLICATION: Several years ago, Maria Anne Hirschmann wrote a book entitled Please Don’t Shoot! I’m Already Wounded. The author and her husband were in joint ministry when her husband misconducted himself, leaving her with no choice apart from divorce. While Ms. Hirschmann was still reeling from the shock of the breakup of her forever marriage, her fellow Christians proceeded to castigate and shun her, leaving her friendless and without refuge at a time when she needed help the most. The title came from a remark someone made indicating that “Christians are the only people who shoot their wounded.”

Sadly, the same people who had previously welcomed Hirschmann and her husband into their churches immediately began ostracizing her as soon as the divorce was announced. Hirschmann was actually very reluctant to enter on divorce proceedings until she was given a release to do so by the Lord. It took long years before Hirschmann was able to return to ministry of any kind.

Rushing to judgment is generally a sad mistake. One set of missionaries were sent into a difficult situation by a newly-formed mission group, despite warnings by experienced observers familiar with the situation. When the couple encountered problems with the project, the mission group blamed the couple, even going so far as to claim that the couple’s marriage must be unstable because they were previously divorced and remarried. Ironically, one of the board members pushing this claim later saw his own marriage fall apart; meanwhile, the couple remained married and in ministry decades later.

There are many gems in this psalm; however, my personal favorite remains “Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken.” That’s a promise that we can count on.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, we praise You and bless You for Your watch care and Your concern. Thank You that we can always call on You and that You can redeem us from any problems or give us the grace, courage, and strength to endure them. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Save Me by Your Name (1 Samuel 23:7-29)

For the choirmaster. With stringed instruments. A Maskil of David. When the Ziphites went to Saul and said, “Is David not hiding among us?”

“Save me, O God, by Your name, and vindicate me by Your might! Hear my prayer, O God; listen to the words of my mouth. For strangers rise up against me, and ruthless men seek my life—men with no regard for God. Selah

Surely God is my helper; the Lord is the sustainer of my soul. He will reward my enemies with evil. In Your faithfulness, destroy them.

Freely I will sacrifice to You; I will praise Your name, O LORD, for it is good. For He has delivered me from every trouble, and my eyes have stared down my foes.”

“A Maskil of David. When the Ziphites went to Saul and said, “Is David not hiding among us?” Once more, a crisis moves David to write a short but meaningful psalm. The Philistines are attacking the town of Keilah when David and his men come to the rescue. Are the people of Keilah grateful? Are you kidding? The town elders hustle off to King Saul and inform on David in hopes of a reward. But God warns David, so David and his men flee to the Wilderness of Ziph. The Ziphites are no better than the people of Keilah; they too rush off to King Saul, hoping for a reward. At one point, David and his men are very nearly caught; however, Saul gets word that the Philistines are invading. Saul must break off from chasing David and go to protect Israel from the Philistines. (1 Samuel 23)

““Save me, O God, by Your name, and vindicate me by Your might! Hear my prayer, O God; listen to the words of my mouth. For strangers rise up against me, and ruthless men seek my life—men with no regard for God. Selah”  Even though David and his men have rescued Keilah and are probably protecting the people of Ziph, all these people can think of is currying favor with King Saul.

 “Surely God is my helper; the Lord is the sustainer of my soul. He will reward my enemies with evil. In Your faithfulness, destroy them.” Abiathar, the son of Ahimelech, has carried an ephod with him during his escape from Nob, and now David and Abiathar use that ephod to consult God. God warns David that the citizens of Keilah and the Ziphites will betray him. Repeatedly, God delivers David and keeps him from despair. David realizes that only God can deliver him.  

“Freely I will sacrifice to You; I will praise Your name, O LORD, for it is good. For He has delivered me from every trouble, and my eyes have stared down my foes.” David is promising to worship and praise God, not to gain favor with God but because God is worthy of all praise.

APPLICATION: How is it that David can continue to fight on even as those he has helped are betraying him? David KNOWS that God has anointed him to become king. David has a divine calling on his life and he refuses to abandon that calling, no matter how desperate things appear to be.

As a missionary doctor, I have found myself in embattled situations many times. Lacking the support of competent administration, I have weathered several times of upheaval among hospital staff. But both my husband and I are convinced that God has called us to be where we are and to continue to work here. Once that calling is sure, we must press forward. Does it pain us when those whom we have helped turn on us in hopes of gaining more power or money? Absolutely. But when God called us to come, we didn’t lay out any conditions ahead of time. We didn’t tell God that we would only serve if everything ran smoothly. Once we have failed to negotiate those conditions on the front end, we must shut up and work.

Perhaps you find yourself in a similar situation. People are remarkably ungrateful and many are willing to turn on you just as did the men of Keilah and the Ziphites against David. The fundamental question is this: Are you doing the work God has called you to do? If you are convinced that you are in the center of God’s will, then nothing else matters. Trust God and work. He will bring you through.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, let this psalm speak to all of us and let us learn its lessons. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

The Fool Says There Is No God (Romans 3:9-20; Psalm 14:1-7)

For the choirmaster. According to Mahalath. A Maskil of David.

“The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt; their ways are vile. There is no one who does good. God looks down from heaven upon the sons of men to see if any understand, if any seek God. All have turned away, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.

Will the workers of iniquity never learn? They devour my people like bread; they refuse to call upon the LORD. There they are, overwhelmed with dread, where there was nothing to fear. For God has scattered the bones of those who besieged you. You put them to shame, for God has despised them.

Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come from Zion! When God restores His captive people, let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!”

“The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt; their ways are vile. There is no one who does good.” There have always been fools who deny the existence of God and attempt to set themselves up as their own deities. And inevitably, such people become corrupt and vile. You become what you worship; if you worship a righteous and holy God, you will become more righteous and holy. But if you celebrate only yourself, you will follow a downward spiral of evil.  

“God looks down from heaven upon the sons of men to see if any understand, if any seek God. All have turned away, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.” We don’t know exactly when David is writing this psalm, but he is obviously disillusioned. As David is writing these words, he is encouraging himself that God sees everything and knows everything. Even if people become corrupt, God remains righteous.

“Will the workers of iniquity never learn? They devour my people like bread; they refuse to call upon the LORD. There they are, overwhelmed with dread, where there was nothing to fear. For God has scattered the bones of those who besieged you. You put them to shame, for God has despised them.” Make no mistake, David has witnessed wartime atrocities and peacetime evil. Despite God’s commandments to protect the poor, the widows and orphans, many continue to exploit the vulnerable. But David remains confident that these people will ultimately pay the price of God’s wrath.

“Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come from Zion! When God restores His captive people, let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!” David longs for all this mess to be over and for God to assert Himself once and for all.

APPLICATION: As I am writing this, the Israeli Defense Force continues to attack Hamas strongholds while Hamas continues to use innocent civilians as human shields while they lob rockets into Israel. We might well ask where God is in all this? Has God removed His hand from Israel?

A study of Biblical prophecy shows that God promises that Israel will be attacked repeatedly by its enemies. Even though Messiah will eventually come, nothing short of Messiah will deliver them completely. The chaos in the Middle East makes David’s final prayer even more necessary. “Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come from Zion! When God restores His captive people, let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!”

How can we pray for the fighting in the Middle East? There are as many innocent Palestinian civilians suffering and dying as there are Israelis. We can pray for the righteous to be preserved. We can pray for God to move sovereignly, bringing lasting peace. But before we can pray, we must trust that God is there and that He is listening and that He will act.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, please intervene in the Middle East. Only You can solve these problems. Only You can bring a lasting solution. Only You can bring peace. We beg You to act! In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.  

Why Do You Boast of Evil? (1 Samuel 22:6-23)

For the choirmaster. A Maskil of David. After Doeg the Edomite went to Saul and told him, “David has gone to the house of Ahimelech.

“Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man? The loving devotion of God endures all day long. Your tongue devises destruction like a sharpened razor, O worker of deceit. You love evil more than good, falsehood more than speaking truth. Selah

You love every word that devours, O deceitful tongue. Surely God will bring you down to everlasting ruin; He will snatch you up and tear you away from your tent; He will uproot you from the land of the living. Selah

The righteous will see and fear; they will mock the evildoer, saying, “Look at the man who did not make God his refuge, but trusted in the abundance of his wealth and strengthened himself by destruction.”

But I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in the loving devotion of God forever and ever. I will praise You forever, because You have done it. I will wait on Your name—for it is good—in the presence of Your saints.”

“For the choirmaster. A Maskil of David. After Doeg the Edomite went to Saul and told him, “David has gone to the house of Ahimelech.”  Who was Doeg the Edomite? For the story behind this psalm, you need to go to 1 Samuel 21-22. David and his men are fleeing from King Saul when they come to Nob, the city of priests. David and his men are hungry and Ahimelech, the priest, innocently gives David and his men the show bread that has already been removed from the tabernacle. Ahimelech also gives David Goliath’s sword, that has been preserved by the priests. Ahimelech is unaware that Saul is attempting to kill David; unfortunately, Doeg, an Edomite and Saul’s chief herdsman, witnesses Ahimelech’s actions and immediately reports to Saul. King Saul swiftly moves to Nob and orders Doeg to massacre the priests, their families, and even their animals. Only Abiathar, one of Ahimelech’s sons, escapes to join David.

“Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man? The loving devotion of God endures all day long. Your tongue devises destruction like a sharpened razor, O worker of deceit. You love evil more than good, falsehood more than speaking truth. Selah” When King Saul began his reign, righteous men flocked to him; however, by this point in his career, Saul is growing increasingly evil by the day while David remains righteous. Evil people attract other evil people, and Saul is depending on evil people to inform on David. It is significant that Saul doesn’t dirty his hands by murdering the priests and their families himself, but instead delegates that horrible task to Doeg, a foreigner who is not even one of his warriors.

“You love every word that devours, O deceitful tongue. Surely God will bring you down to everlasting ruin; He will snatch you up and tear you away from your tent; He will uproot you from the land of the living. Selah” Here David is prophesying over Doeg, speaking ruin over him for spying, lying, and murder. It is significant that this is the last we hear of Doeg.

“The righteous will see and fear; they will mock the evildoer, saying, “Look at the man who did not make God his refuge, but trusted in the abundance of his wealth and strengthened himself by destruction.” Evidently, Saul has paid Doeg for being his hit man; however, Saul’s days are also numbered. Doeg is trusting the wrong person.

“But I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in the loving devotion of God forever and ever. I will praise You forever, because You have done it. I will wait on Your name—for it is good—in the presence of Your saints.” This statement of faith is particularly meaningful when you consider that David and his men are still fleeing from Saul with no refuge. What’s significant about David comparing himself to an olive tree? Olive trees can live and bear fruit for centuries. There are some olive trees in Israel that may have been bearing during the time of Jesus. Olive trees are survivors, and David is proclaiming that he will flourish in the house of God and not merely exist. David will promises to praise God forever, a promise he keeps for the rest of his life.

APPLICATION: Remain in leadership long enough and the nay-sayers, conspirators, and spies will turn up. It is particularly disheartening when people whom you thought you could trust betray you. How can you handle such people? You can copy David and trust God. Generally, you can outlast any lie if you keep breathing oxygen long enough; lies may have long legs, but truth ultimately comes out.

There is nothing wrong with growing older as long as you continue to be a blessing to those around you. Most olive trees live for at least 500 years but many are more than 2,000 years old and still fruitful. Want to continue to be fruitful for your entire life? “Trust in the loving devotion of God forever and ever. Praise God forever, because He has done it. Wait on God’s name—for it is good—in the presence of His saints.”

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help all those who read these words to realize that You have wonderful plans for them and that Your perfect Will is for them to be fruitful for their entire lives. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Create in Me a Clean Heart, O God (2 Samuel 12:1-12)

For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. When Nathan the prophet came to him after his adultery with Bathsheba.

“Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your loving devotion; according to Your great compassion, blot out my transgressions. Wash me clean of my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You may be proved right when You speak and blameless when You judge.

Surely I was brought forth in iniquity; I was sinful when my mother conceived me. Surely You desire truth in the inmost being; You teach me wisdom in the inmost place. Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones You have crushed rejoice. Hide Your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquities.

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from Your presence; take not Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and sustain me with a willing spirit. Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, and sinners will return to You. Deliver me from bloodguilt, O God, the God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing of Your righteousness.

O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare Your praise. For You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; You take no pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise. In Your good pleasure, cause Zion to prosper; build up the walls of Jerusalem. Then You will delight in righteous sacrifices, in whole burnt offerings; then bulls will be offered on Your altar.”

“For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. When Nathan the prophet came to him after his adultery with Bathsheba.” If you had just committed adultery with one of your best friends’ wives and had then arranged to have him killed to cover up the problem, would YOU write a psalm of praise to God? “But,” you say, “David was a man after God’s own heart!” Yes, he was….mostly. One of the great things about the Bible is that it doesn’t sugar coat anything.

The terrible story of how David committed adultery with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah, the Hittite, one of David’s “mighty men” is found in 2 Samuel 11-12. It was springtime, when kings go off to war, and David’s men were out in the battle field. But David remained behind in Jerusalem, and one evening when he was walking on the roof of his palace to relieve his boredom, he saw Bathsheba while she was bathing. Bathsheba was drop-dead gorgeous. David summoned Bathsheba to the palace, had sex with her, and then when she turned up pregnant, tried to get her husband Uriah to return to Jerusalem and stay with his wife, hoping that Uriah would sleep with his wife and the pregnancy would be attributed to Uriah. When none of David’s schemes worked, he arranged for Uriah to be sent into the heat of battle where he perished. Now David had a perfect reason to console a grieving widow, a pregnant grieving widow.

David thought he was getting away with everything when God sent Nathan the prophet to confront him. Nathan told David a heart-breaking story about a rich man with all kinds of sheep and a poor man with a single ewe lamb that he loved like a child. When the rich man needed to slaughter a sheep for guests, he seized the poor man’s ewe lamb. David was furious and demanded Nathan to tell him the name of the man, so that he could punish him. Nathan told David, “YOU are that man!” By the time the story ended, Bathsheba’s baby died. David was broken-hearted over his failure to honor God in this matter and over the realization that he could betray one of his best warriors in this fashion. This psalm is the result of David’s repentance.    

“Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your loving devotion; according to Your great compassion, blot out my transgressions. Wash me clean of my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You may be proved right when You speak and blameless when You judge.” David is owning his sin and begging God for forgiveness. David realizes that when he sinned, he sinned against God and not against Uriah and Bathsheba. As one of God’s representatives, David has just given God an undeserved bad name.  

“Surely I was brought forth in iniquity; I was sinful when my mother conceived me.” David acknowledges that he was born a sinner; only God can redeem him.

“Hide Your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from Your presence; take not Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and sustain me with a willing spirit.” David realizes that nothing he can do will blot out this sin; God is the only One who can cleanse and redeem. These verses have echoed through the years and many churches have incorporated these verses into their regular Sunday liturgies.

“Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, and sinners will return to You. Deliver me from bloodguilt, O God, the God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing of Your righteousness. O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare Your praise.” Sin blocks our ability to tell others about God or to praise Him. Only God can blot out sins.

“For You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; You take no pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise. In Your good pleasure, cause Zion to prosper; build up the walls of Jerusalem. Then You will delight in righteous sacrifices, in whole burnt offerings; then bulls will be offered on Your altar.” David realizes that no amount of blood offerings will atone for the horror he has brought on himself and on his nation as its head. When leaders sin, whichever group they are leading will also suffer.

APPLICATION: Nobody makes it through life without sinning. “But,” you ask, “I’ve never done anything as bad as David did. Do I REALLY need to repent?” Yes. God doesn’t grade on a sliding scale. To the most holy God, all sins grieve Him. We would love to re-classify sins into categories, with our pet sins demanding a smaller punishment than those of others. When we gossip, when we become angry, when we make cutting remarks, when we utter our prejudices as though we are speaking for God, we are grieving God’s heart.  

One problem many of us face is a lack of understanding the fatherhood of God. Our fathers may have been demanding, abusive, emotionally absent, or completely absent altogether. But children with loving fathers want above all else to please their fathers and not cause them pain. Even though David’s relationship with his own father wasn’t the best, David had come to accept God as his Heavenly Father. Now David’s sin had separated him from God and David couldn’t stand the pain of that separation.

There’s a good reason that part of this psalm is used routinely in many churches. As congregations repeat this psalm, those present can insert their own sins into the confession, rather than fumbling for words themselves.

Jesus told his disciples a story about two men who went up to the temple to pray. One was a religious leader while the other was a tax collector. The religious leader stood up in the center of the temple and proudly boasted, “God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.’ And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’  Jesus told his disciples that it was the tax collector who went home justified while the religious leader simply returned home in a cloud of self-righteousness,“for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Luke 18:9-14)

If you had asked the religious leader in this story to repeat Psalm 51, he might have told you that he had no need to do so, that he was righteous and had nothing to confess. It was the lowly tax collector, shunned by polite society, who realized his need for forgiveness. Also notice something else: The tax collector didn’t speak out a long list of sins. The Holy Spirit was probably convicting the tax collector of specific sins; however, the tax collector simply described himself as sinful. When we are truly repentant, God will tell us those sins we need to repudiate.

As you read this psalm today, you may find God speaking to your heart about specific things you have done wrong. Don’t despair! Allow God to bring those things to mind, confess them as sin, and then receive God’s forgiveness. A clean heart feels wonderful!

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, we do confess that we have sinned and grieved You. Open the eyes of all who read these words to see that You are a loving Father and that You stand ready to forgive as soon as we stop playing games and confess our sins. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

God the Righteous Judge

A Psalm of Asaph.

“The Mighty One, God the Lord, Has spoken and called the earth from the rising of the sun to its going down. Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God will shine forth. Our God shall come, and shall not keep silent; a fire shall devour before Him, and it shall be very tempestuous all around Him. He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that He may judge His people: “Gather My saints together to Me, those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.” Let the heavens declare His righteousness, for God Himself is Judge. Selah

“Hear, O My people, and I will speak, O Israel, and I will testify against you; I am God, your God! I will not rebuke you for your sacrifices or your burnt offerings, which are continually before Me. I will not take a bull from your house, nor goats out of your folds. For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the mountains, and the wild beasts of the field are Mine.

“If I were hungry, I would not tell you; for the world is Mine, and all its fullness. Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats? Offer to God thanksgiving, and pay your vows to the Most High. Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.”

But to the wicked God says: “What right have you to declare My statutes, or take My covenant in your mouth, seeing you hate instruction and cast My words behind you? When you saw a thief, you consented with him, and have been a partaker with adulterers. 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. These things you have done, and I kept silent; you thought that I was altogether like you; but I will rebuke you, and set them in order before your eyes.

“Now consider this, you who forget God, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver: Whoever offers praise glorifies Me; and to him who orders his conduct aright I will show the salvation of God.”

““The Mighty One, God the Lord, Has spoken and called the earth from the rising of the sun to its going down. Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God will shine forth. Our God shall come, and shall not keep silent; a fire shall devour before Him, and it shall be very tempestuous all around Him.” If you are a city dweller, it is easy to ignore the weather until it interferes with your activities. But for those in the country and who work outdoors, most of their livelihood is weather-dependent and they watch the movement of clouds and wind closely to monitor the coming of storms. Such people may have to work amid storms and understand the tempestuous nature of tornados, hurricanes, blizzards, and dust storms.

“He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that He may judge His people: “Gather My saints together to Me, those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.” Let the heavens declare His righteousness, for God Himself is Judge. Selah” These days, we are so surrounded by filth, pornography, and corruption that it is difficult to even imagine a holy and righteous God.

“Hear, O My people, and I will speak, O Israel, and I will testify against you; I am God, your God! I will not rebuke you for your sacrifices or your burnt offerings, which are continually before Me. I will not take a bull from your house, nor goats out of your folds. For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the mountains, and the wild beasts of the field are Mine.” We flatter ourselves on our possessions, forgetting that ultimately God owns everything. We do not make sacrifices because God needs our stuff; we give out of gratitude to God for His generosity in the first place.

“If I were hungry, I would not tell you; for the world is Mine, and all its fullness. Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats? Offer to God thanksgiving, and pay your vows to the Most High. Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.” God is eternal and has no need to eat or drink. But God commanded the ancient Israelites to make sacrifices because their animals were among their most prized possessions. When King David was bargaining for a piece of property on which to build a house of worship and the owner offered to donate it for free, David asked, “Shall I offer to the Lord that which costs me nothing?” Even if we are simply praising God, praises raised during times of trouble are far more meaningful than praises when everything is going smoothly.  “It isn’t a sacrifice of praise until you push it out through clenched teeth.” (Harold Hill, former CEO of Learjet Corporation)

“But to the wicked God says: “What right have you to declare My statutes, or take My covenant in your mouth, seeing you hate instruction and cast My words behind you? When you saw a thief, you consented with him, and have been a partaker with adulterers. 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. These things you have done, and I kept silent; you thought that I was altogether like you; but I will rebuke you, and set them in order before your eyes.” There is nothing so dangerous as creating a god in our own image and then imagining that the Eternal God is like this worthless figure we have contrived. But even worse is the possibility that we will set ourselves up as our own gods and worship ourselves. There have always been such people, and God knows exactly what they have been doing and the extent of their wickedness. When such people begin mouthing religious slogans, they only are demonstrating their hypocrisy. While such people might impress others, God knows their darkened hearts.

“Now consider this, you who forget God, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver: Whoever offers praise glorifies Me; and to him who orders his conduct aright I will show the salvation of God.” It is not God’s will that anyone should perish, but that all should have eternal life. But we are all creatures of free will, not puppets. God does not force anyone to sin, but we must make right choices. While Satan may tempt us, we are still the ones choosing to do wrong.

APPLICATION: This psalm serves as both a warning and an assurance. God is warning the wicked that He sees everything and knows everything; if they fail to repent, they will be lost eternally. God is also assuring the righteous that they should continue to praise Him and that their right conduct also is a form of praise.

The opening phrases of this psalm describe God in all His glory, something we often fail to consider. For those of us who work depending on faith donations, the verse about the cattle on a thousand hills is particularly meaningful. We work with poor people, many of whom need financial help simply to feed themselves while they are in the hospital. We depend almost totally on donations for our daily needs as well. Times without number, we have reminded God of this verse and have asked Him if He can send the price of a cow or two!

The warning about “you who forget God” remains pertinent. Many of us are distracted by trivia, never realizing we are wasting our lives on things that do not matter. In an earlier age, there was a saying, “Only one life-twill soon be passed. Only what’s done for God will last.” Nothing has changed.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to praise You, no matter the circumstances. And help us to truly worship You and You alone. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.