Promised Faithfulness to the Lord
A Psalm of David.
“I will sing of mercy and justice; to You, O Lord, I will sing praises. I will behave wisely in a perfect way. Oh, when will You come to me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart. I will set nothing wicked before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me.
A perverse heart shall depart from me; I will not know wickedness. Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor, him I will destroy; the one who has a haughty look and a proud heart, Him I will not endure. My eyes shall be on the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me; he who walks in a perfect way, he shall serve me.
He who works deceit shall not dwell within my house; he who tells lies shall not continue in my presence. Early I will destroy all the wicked of the land, that I may cut off all the evildoers from the city of the Lord.”
“I will sing of mercy and justice; to You, O Lord, I will sing praises. I will behave wisely in a perfect way. Oh, when will You come to me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart. I will set nothing wicked before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me.” It’s likely that this psalm might have been on of David’s earlier ones, before he fell into major sins himself, seducing Bathsheba and then having her husband murdered so he could marry her. Certainly David sounds smug, self-assured, and self-satisfied. On the other hand, there were always idol worshipers, even in Jerusalem. Perhaps David had been repulsed by those evil practices and was seeking to create a spiritual refuge within his own home.
Is there anything wrong with singing of mercy and justice? No. But when David promises to “behave wisely in a perfect way” or “walk within my house with a perfect heart,” we definitely begin wondering. When David affirms, “I will set nothing wicked before my eyes,” we can agree. On the other hand, when David claims to hate the work of those who fall away, we wonder how much life experience he had when he wrote this psalm. Live long enough and you are likely to fall away yourself.
“He who works deceit shall not dwell within my house; he who tells lies shall not continue in my presence. Early I will destroy all the wicked of the land, that I may cut off all the evildoers from the city of the Lord.” Did David write this after his kingship was assured and he was living in Jerusalem, or was he dreaming while he was still hiding out in caves to avoid being killed by King Saul? Certainly, while Saul was pursuing David, all kinds of people were willing to betray David in hopes of gaining favor with Saul. Perhaps David was dreaming of ruling a righteous nation, one from which he had eliminated all the wicked. But what standard would David use to determine those deserving of death? Someone might feed David misinformation in hopes of eliminating their personal enemies or settling old scores. Only God truly knows the human heart.
APPLICATION: There are two ways to view this psalm: we can be inspired by David’s passion for purity and righteousness or we can become troubled by his arrogant assumptions of his virtue.
There’s nothing wrong with promising God that you will be try to be as virtuous as possible. There is nothing wrong with focusing on purity. But one question this psalm raises is who determines righteousness? These days, strident voices proclaim all kinds of prejudices. In a world full of “isms” who determines which one is true?
If we start searching for righteousness among philosophies, we rapidly run into problems. If we consider ideologies, we wind up in the same mess. The only safe standard for righteousness remains God’s Word as recorded in the Bible. God is amazingly sloppy and incredibly tolerant. Vladimir Putin attacks Ukraine and God refuses to strike him dead instantly. Hamas slaughters hundreds of innocents at a music festival and God allows them to live. Isarel has been under attack for much of its existence, but international news media portray the Israelis as aggressors. Why does God allow such atrocities and lies?
2 Peter 3:9 says, “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” Most human beings are both judgmental and merciless, expressing very similar opinions to those David outlines in this psalm. God sees all human beings as both sinful and worthy of His Redemptive Love.
The Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy that” This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life.” (1 Timothy 1:15-16) Paul was a professional religious man, a teacher and an enforcer of traditional Judaism, until the day he had a personal encounter with Jesus Christ. Caught up in religious zeal, Paul attempted to kill as many Christians as possible prior to his conversion. This is why he refers to himself as the chief sinner.
While David promised to be faithful to God, eventually he fell. No matter how hard we try, all of us continue to sin. The fundamental message of Christmas has nothing to do with gifts, unless we realize that Christmas celebrates God’s greatest Gift to us. God sent His Son Jesus in the form of a baby to grow, to live a sinless life, and to eventually die as the ultimate Sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. Mary spilled her blood while giving birth to Jesus. Eventually, Jesus spilled His Blood, not only for his mother Mary but for all of us. Those of us who choose to believe that Jesus has done this are promised eternal life. Those who reject that Gift will eventually receive eternal damnation as payment for their sins. The choice is up to you. Choose wisely.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. We bless You and praise Your Name that You have sent Jesus as the ultimate sacrifice for our sins. Lord, help all who read these words to truly believe on You and to receive eternal life. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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