The God of Vengeance. Psalm 94: 1-23

Transcription

1 1 Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell The God of Vengeance Psalm 94: 1-23

2 2 Text: Psalm 94: 1-23, The God of Vengeance Commentary By Clyde M. Miller 1. O LORD, the God who avenges, O God who avenges, shine forth. 2. Rise up, O Judge of the earth; pay back to the proud what they deserve. 3. How long will the wicked, O LORD, how long will the wicked be jubilant? They pour out arrogant words; all the evildoers are full of boasting. 5. They crush your people, O LORD; they oppress your inheritance. 6. They slay the widow and the alien; they murder the fatherless. 7. They say, "The LORD does not see; the God of Jacob pays no heed." 8. Take heed, you senseless ones among the people; you fools, when will you become wise? 9. Does he who implanted the ear not hear? Does he who formed the eye not see? 10. Does he who disciplines nations not punish? Does he who teaches man lack knowledge? 11. The LORD knows the thoughts of man; he knows that they are futile. 12. Blessed is the man you discipline, O LORD, the man you teach from your law; 13. You grant him relief from days of trouble, till a pit is dug for the wicked. 14. For the LORD will not reject his people; he will never forsake his inheritance. 15. Judgment will again be founded on righteousness, and all the upright in heart will follow it. 16. Who will rise up for me against the wicked? Who will take a stand for me against evildoers?

3 Unless the LORD had given me help, I would soon have dwelt in the silence of death. 18. When I said, "My foot is slipping," your love, O LORD, supported me. 19. When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul. 20. Can a corrupt throne be allied with you one that brings on misery by its decrees? 21. They band together against the righteous and condemn the innocent to death. 22. But the LORD has become my fortress, and my God the rock in whom I take refuge. 23. He will repay them for their sins and destroy them for their wickedness; the LORD our God will destroy them. NIV Introduction: I. This psalm is not written in the literary form of an enthronement psalm (see the Introduction to Ps. 93), but rather in the form of a psalm of lament and petition. A. The fact that God is here portrayed as a mighty warrior implies the role of God as king, which is also the major theme of enthronement psalms (cf. Ps. 93; Ps ). 1. Psalm 93:1-5, The LORD reigns, he is robed in majesty; the LORD is robed in majesty and is armed with strength. The world is firmly established; it cannot be moved. Your throne was established long ago; you are from all eternity. The seas have lifted up, O LORD, the seas have lifted up their voice; the seas have lifted up their pounding waves. Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea the LORD on high is mighty. Your statutes stand firm; holiness adorns your house for endless days, O LORD. NIV 2. Psalm 95:1-11, Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come

4 4 before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song. For the LORD is the great God, the great King above all gods. In his hand are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to him. The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land. Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker; for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care. Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah, as you did that day at Massah in the desert, where your fathers tested and tried me, though they had seen what I did. For forty years I was angry with that generation; I said, "They are a people whose hearts go astray, and they have not known my ways." So I declared on oath in my anger, "They shall never enter my rest." NIV 3. Psalm 96:1-13, Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth. Sing to the LORD, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples. For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the LORD made the heavens. Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and glory are in his sanctuary. Ascribe to the LORD, O families of nations, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength. Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; bring an offering and come into his courts. Worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness; tremble before him, all the earth. Say among the nations, "The LORD reigns." The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved; he will judge the peoples with equity. Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it; let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy; they will sing before the LORD, for he comes, he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in his truth. NIV 4. Psalm 97:1-12, The LORD reigns, let the earth be glad; let the distant shores rejoice. Clouds and thick darkness surround him; righteousness and justice are the foundation

5 5 of his throne. Fire goes before him and consumes his foes on every side. His lightning lights up the world; the earth sees and trembles. The mountains melt like wax before the LORD, before the Lord of all the earth. The heavens proclaim his righteousness, and all the peoples see his glory. All who worship images are put to shame, those who boast in idols worship him, all you gods! Zion hears and rejoices and the villages of Judah are glad because of your judgments, O LORD. For you, O LORD, are the Most High over all the earth; you are exalted far above all gods. Let those who love the LORD hate evil, for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked. Light is shed upon the righteous and joy on the upright in heart. Rejoice in the LORD, you who are righteous, and praise his holy name. NIV 4. Psalm 98:1-9, Sing to the LORD a new song, for he has donemarvelous things; his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him. The LORD has made his salvation known and revealed his righteousness to the nations. He has remembered his love and his faithfulness to the house of Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music; make music to the LORD with the harp, with the harp and the sound of singing, with trumpets and the blast of the ram's horn shout for joy before the LORD, the King. Let the sea resound, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it. Let the rivers clap their hands, Let the mountains sing together for joy; let them sing before the LORD, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples with equity. NIV 5. Psalm 99:1-9, The LORD reigns, let the nations tremble; he sits enthroned between the cherubim, let the earth shake. Great is the LORD in Zion; he is exalted over all the nations. Let them praise your great and awesome name he is holy. The King is mighty, he loves justice you have established equity; in Jacob you have done what is just and right. Exalt the LORD our God and worship at his footstool; he is holy.

6 6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel was among those who called on his name; they called on the LORD and he answered them. He spoke to them from the pillar of cloud; they kept his statutes and the decrees he gave them. O LORD our God, you answered them; you were to Israel a forgiving God, though you punished their misdeeds. Exalt the LORD our God and worship at his holy mountain, for the LORD our God is holy. NIV B. This thematic similarity doubtless accounts for the placement of Ps. 94 among the enthronement psalms. II. The form of Ps. 94 is unusual in that it begins with a community lament (Ps. 94:1-15) and ends with a personal lament (Ps. 94:16-23), which is a reversal of the usual pattern. A. Psalm 94:1-15, O LORD, the God who avenges, O God who avenges, shine forth. Rise up, O Judge of the earth; pay back to the proud what they deserve. How long will the wicked, O LORD, how long will the wicked be jubilant? They pour out arrogant words; all the evildoers are full of boasting. They crush your people, O LORD; they oppress your inheritance. They slay the widow and the alien; they murder the fatherless. They say, "The LORD does not see; the God of Jacob pays no heed." Take heed, you senseless ones among the people; you fools, when will you become wise? Does he who implanted the ear not hear? Does he who formed the eye not see? Does he who disciplines nations not punish? Does he who teaches man lack knowledge? The LORD knows the thoughts of man; he knows that they are futile. Blessed is the man you discipline, O LORD, the man you teach from your law; you grant him relief from days of trouble, till a pit is dug for the wicked. For the LORD will not reject his people; he will never forsake his inheritance. Judgment will again be founded on righteousness, and all the upright in heart will follow it. NIV B. Psalm 94: 16-23, Who will rise up for me against the wicked? Who will take a stand for me against evildoers? Unless the LORD had given me help, I would soon have dwelt in the silence of death. When I said, "My foot is slipping," your love, O

7 7 LORD, supported me. When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul. Can a corrupt throne be allied with you one that brings on misery by its decrees? They band together against the righteous and condemn the innocent to death. But the LORD has become my fortress, and my God the rock in whom I take refuge. He will repay them for their sins and destroy them for their wickedness; NIV C. The concept of community solidarity, whereby the fortunes of the individual and of the community intertwine, is involved. D. It should be noted that the individual lament is both an invitation and an exhortation for the community to stand with the psalmist in his opposition to evil. III. There is in this psalm a perfect blending of urgent immediacy and reflective confidence. A. Based on the conviction that the divine nature is immutable, the psalmist can trust God to deliver the unfortunate as he has in the past. B. The intensity of his present frustration and that of the nation causes him to urge God to hasten to their help. Commentary: God, the Judge (Ps. 94:1-3) Psalm 94:1-3, O LORD, the God who avenges, O God who avenges, shine forth. Rise up, O Judge of the earth; pay back to the proud what they deserve. How long will the wicked, O LORD, how long will the wicked be jubilant? NIV Psalm 94:1-2, O LORD, the God who avenges, O God who avenges, shine forth. Rise up, O Judge of the earth; pay back to the proud what they deserve. NIV

8 8 I. In stair-like parallelism, the Lord is set forth as the God who avenges (1a). A. As judge of the earth (2a), God should rise up (2a) and let the light of His truth shine forth (1b) in the form of judgment against the proud (2b). Psalm 94:3, How long will the wicked, O LORD, how long will the wicked be jubilant? NIV I. In stair-like parallelism, the familiar plaintive cry, How long?, lays stress on the urgency of the situation (cf. the notes on Ps. 79:5). A. Psalm 79:5, How long, O LORD? Will you be angry forever? How long will your jealousy burn like fire? NIV II. The Pentateuch bears testimony to the fact that God was recognized as the judge of the earth (Gen. 18:25) and as an avenger (Deut. 32:35). A. Genesis 18:25, Far be it from you to do such a thing to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?" NIV B. Deuteronomy 32:35, It is mine to avenge; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them." NIV Arrogance of the Wicked (Ps. 94:4-7) Psalm 94:4-7, They pour out arrogant words; all the evildoers are full of boasting. They crush your people, O LORD; they oppress your inheritance. They slay the widow and the alien; they murder the fatherless. They say, "The LORD does not see; the God of Jacob pays no heed." NIV I. Not only do such wicked men commit acts of callous brutality (Ps. 94:5-6), but they also boast that they will not be called into account for it (Ps. 94:4,7).

9 9 A. Psalm 94:5-6, They crush your people, O LORD; they oppress your inheritance. They slay the widow and the alien they murder the fatherless. NIV B. Psalm 94:4,7, They pour out arrogant words; all the evildoers are full of boasting. They say, "The LORD does not see; the God of Jacob pays no heed." NIV II. Such attitudes of unbelief and pride could be manifested by pagan nations (cf. Ps. 10:4,13,15-16), or on occasion by apostate Israelites (cf. Ps. 50:19-21). A. Psalm 10:4, 13, 15, 16, In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God. Why does the wicked man revile God? Why does he say to himself, "He won't call me to account"? Break the arm of the wicked and evil man; call him to account for his wickedness that would not be found out. The LORD is King for ever and ever; the nations will perish from his land. NIV B. Psalm 50:19-21, You use your mouth for evil and harness your tongue to deceit. You speak continually against your brother and slander your own mother's son. These things you have done and I kept silent; you thought I was altogether like you. But I will rebuke you and accuse you to your face. NIV III. God had a special interest in the widow and the alien and in the fatherless (6). A. Psalm 94:6, They slay the widow and the alien; they murder the fatherless. NIV B. These had little or no legal rights, and so were unusually vulnerable. C. God came to their rescue.

10 10 God Does See (Ps. 94:8-11) Psalm 94:8-11, Take heed, you senseless ones among the people; you fools, when will you become wise? Does he who implanted the ear not hear? Does he who formed the eye not see? Does he who disciplines nations not punish? Does he who teaches man lack knowledge? The LORD knows the thoughts of man; he knows that they are futile. NIV Psalm 94:8, Take heed, you senseless ones among the people; you fools, when will you become wise? NIV I. These dullards and fools are morally insensitive. Psalm 94:9-10, Does he who implanted the ear not hear? Does he who formed the eye not see? Does he who disciplines nations not punish? Does he who teaches man lack knowledge? I. The Hebrew text better fits the English verse divisions. A. Does He who teaches man lack knowledge (10b) is in apposition to the preceding. 1. Surely, the creator of the ear and eye does hear and see (9). B. Disciplines (10a) can also be rendered instructs (cf. 1 Chron. 15:22), and punish (10b) can be translated rebuke, correct (cf. Ps. 50:8; 105:14). 1. Psalm 74:10, How long will the enemy mock you, O God? Will the foe revile your name forever? NIV 2. 1 Chronicles 15:22, Kenaniah the head Levite was in charge of the singing; that was his responsibility because he was skillful at it. NIV 3. Psalm 50:8, I do not rebuke you for your sacrifices or your burnt offerings, which are ever before me. NIV

11 Psalm 105:14, He allowed no one to oppress them; for their sake he rebuked kings: NIV B. God has placed within all people an innate capacity for moral discernment (cf. Ps. 94:2:12-16). 1. Psalm 94:2, 12-16, Rise up, O Judge of the earth; pay back to the proud what they deserve. Blessed is the man you discipline, O LORD, the man you teach from your law; you grant him relief from days of trouble, till a pit is dug for the wicked. For the LORD will not reject his people; he will never forsake his inheritance. Judgment will again be founded on righteousness, and all the upright in heart will follow it. Who will rise up for me against the wicked? Who will take a stand for me against evildoers? NIV C. Ps. 94:8-11 seem to be applied especially to Israel (cf. people, singular, Ps. 94:8, and see Ps. 94:12-15). 1. Psalm 94:8-15, Take heed, you senseless ones among the people; you fools, when will you become wise? Does he who implanted the ear not hear? Does he who formed the eye not see? Does he who disciplines nations not punish? Does he who teaches man lack knowledge? The LORD knows the thoughts of man; he knows that they are futile. Blessed is the man you discipline, O LORD, the man you teach from your law; you grant him relief from days of trouble, till a pit is dug for the wicked. For the LORD will not reject his people; he will never forsake his inheritance. Judgment will again be founded on righteousness, and all the upright in heart will follow it. NIV Psalm. 94:11, The LORD knows the thoughts of man; he knows that they are futile. NIV I. Futile could also be rendered vanity.

12 12 The Blessedness of Discipline (Ps. 94:12-15) Psalm 94:12-15, Blessed is the man you discipline, O LORD, the man you teach from your law; you grant him relief from days of trouble, till a pit is dug for the wicked. For the LORD will not reject his people; he will never forsake his inheritance. Judgment will again be founded on righteousness, and all the upright in heart will follow it. Ps. 94:12-13, Blessed is the man you discipline, O LORD, the man you teach from your law; you grant him relief from days of trouble, till a pit is dug for the wicked. NIV I. These verses involve external parallelism in which the second couplet Ps. 94:13) provides a reason for what is said in the first couplet (Ps. 94:12). A. Discipline (or instruct ) and teach are synonyms. B. To grant him relief could also be rendered to give him rest, or quiet (cf. Isa. 7:4). 1. Isaiah 7:4, 4 Say to him, 'Be careful, keep calm and don't be afraid. Do not lose heart because of these two smoldering stubs of firewood because of the fierce anger of Rezin and Aram and of the son of Remaliah. NIV Ps. 94:14-15, For the LORD will not reject his people; he will never forsake his inheritance. Judgment will again be founded on righteousness, and all the upright in heart will follow it. NIV I. Ps. 94:15 explains how God will care for His people, the positive counterpart of the negatives in Ps. 94:14. A. Righteous and upright are synonyms. B. Judgment here means the rendering of the right verdict, fairness, equity.

13 13 God the Only Sure Champion (Ps. 94:16-19) Ps. 94:16-19, Who will rise up for me against the wicked? Who will take a stand for me against evildoers? Unless the LORD had given me help, I would soon have dwelt in the silence of death. When I said, "My foot is slipping," your love, O LORD, supported me. When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul. NIV Ps. 94:16, Who will rise up for me against the wicked? Who will take a stand for me against evildoers? NIV I. Others are invited to join him in his effort to eradicate wickedness. Psalm 94:17-19, Unless the LORD had given me help, I would soon have dwelt in the silence of death. When I said, "My foot is slipping," your love, O LORD, supported me. When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul. NIV I. God is the only one capable of preserving one from death and consoling the troubled heart. Wicked Allies (Ps. 94:20-23) Psalm 94:20-23, Can a corrupt throne be allied with you one that brings on misery by its decrees? They band together against the righteous and condemn the innocent to death. But the LORD has become my fortress, and my God the rock in whom I take refuge. He will repay them for their sins and destroy them for their wickedness; NIV Psalm 94:20, Can a corrupt throne be allied with you one that brings on misery by its decrees? NIV I. The rhetorical question obviously expects an emphatic no in response. Psalm 94:21, They band together against the righteous and condemn the innocent to death. NIV

14 14 I. Condemn to death suggests that these wicked rulers utilize apparently legal means of disposing of their enemies by suborning false witnesses to testify against them in the courts of law. Psalm 94:22, But the LORD has become my fortress, and my God the rock in whom I take refuge. NIV I. Fortress and refuge here refer to places of protection and safety (cf. 1 Sam. 22:1-5; Ps. 18:1-3). Rock is frequently used of God as a support and deliverer (cf. Deut. 32:4,15,18,30,31,33-38). A. 1 Samuel 22:1-5, David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam. When his brothers and his father's household heard about it, they went down to him there. All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their leader. About four hundred men were with him. From there David went to Mizpah in Moab and said to the king of Moab, "Would you let my father and mother come and stay with you until I learn what God will do for me? So he left them with the king of Moab, and they stayed with him as long as David was in the stronghold. But the prophet Gad said to David, "Do not stay in the stronghold. Go into the land of Judah." So David left and went to the forest of Hereth. NIV B. Psalm 18:1-3, 1 I love you, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call to the LORD, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies. NIV II. Rock is frequently used of God as a support and delivered (cf. Deut. 32:4, 15, 18, 30, 31, 33-38) A. Deuteronomy 32:4, 15, 18, 30, 31, 33-38, He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who

15 15 does no wrong, upright and just is he. Jeshurun grew fat and kicked; filled with food, he became heavy and sleek. He abandoned the God who made him and rejected the Rock his Savior. You deserted the Rock, who fathered you; you forgot the God who gave you birth. How could one man chase a thousand, or two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the LORD had given them up? For their rock is not like our Rock, as even our enemies concede. Their wine is the venom of serpents, the deadly poison of cobras. "Have I not kept this in reserve and sealed it in my vaults? It is mine to avenge; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them." The LORD will judge his people and have compassion on his servants when he sees their strength is gone and no one is left, slave or free. He will say: "Now where are their gods, the rock they took refuge in, the gods who ate the fat of their sacrifices and drank the wine of their drink offerings? NIV Psalm 94:23, He will repay them for their sins and destroy them for their wickedness; NIV I. The first two lines of this climactic triplet are synonymous, and the third line adds the thought that God is the one who will destroy these wicked persons. II. This protection will be provided by God's executing His sentence against the unscrupulous wicked. Application: I. God s vengeance is always just and fair. A. Man s efforts at exacting vengeance are likely to be faulty because of his human limitations. 1. The scriptures, therefore, wisely instruct us to leave vengeance to God who promises to repay (Rom. 12:19-21) a. Romans 12:19-21, Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord. On the

16 16 contrary: "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head." Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. NIV 2. This passage quotes Deuteronomy 32:25 and Proverbs 25: a. Deuteronomy 32:25, In the street the sword will make them childless; in their homes terror will reign. Young men and young women will perish, infants and gray-haired men. NIV b. Proverbs 25:21,22, If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; if he is thirsty, give him water to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head, and the LORD will reward you. NIV 3. Hence, both the Old Testament and New Testament warn against our taking vengeance into our own hands. II. How fortunate we would be if we always heeded this admonition of God!

17 17 Questions Psalm 38:1-22 (Questions based on NIV text.) 1. O, the who, O who., O of the ; to the what they. How will the, be? 2. They ; the are of. They your, O, they your. They the and the ; they the. They say, The does not ; the of no. 3. Take, you among the ; you, when will you become? Does he who the not? Does he who not? Does he who man? The the of ; he

18 18 that they are. 4. is the you, O, the you from your ; you him from the of, till a is for the. For the will not his ; he will his. will again be on, and all the in will it. 5. Who will up for me the? Who will take a for me? Unless the had given me. I would soon have in the of. When I said, My is ; your, O, me. When was within me, our brought to my. 6. Can a be with your one that brings on by its? They together against the and the to. But the has become my, and my the

19 19 in whom I take. He will them for their and them for their ; the our will them. 7.This psalm is not written in the literary form of an Psalm, but rather in the form of a psalm of and. 8. What is the major them of enthronement psalms? 9.In what way(s) is the form of Psalm 94 unusual? 10. In Psalm 94, there is a perfect blending of and. What does that mean? 11. What does the Bible say about God s being a judge and avenger of wrongs?

20 According to Psalm 94, what words describe the evil doers? What were their sins? 13. Not only do such of, but they also that they will not be into for it. 14. Such of and could be manifested by or an occasion by. 15. God had a special interest in the and the and in the. These had little or no, and so were. 16. God has placed within all an for.

21 God does not lack. The creator of the eye and ear does indeed an. God,, and corrects the wicked. 18. What are the benefits, results of God s discipline, instruction, teaching? 19. According to verses 22 and 23 what will God do for the righteous? 20. God is the only one capable of one from and the. 21. to suggests that these utilize apparently of their by to against them in of. 22. God is the,,, and for the righteous.

22 God will make things right. God will the righteous and his against the. 24. God s is always and. Man s efforts at exacting are likely to be because of his. 25. What do Romans 12:19-21, Deuteronomy 32:25 and Proverbs 25:21-22 say?