PSALM 52
Warriors boast in mischief and lies verse 1- 3
Why boast you yourself in mischief – O mighty man?
the goodness of God endures continually
Your tongue devise mischief – like a sharp razor
working deceitfully
you love evil more than good
and lying rather than to speak righteousness SELAH
God will judged mischief verse 4- 5
You love all devouring words – O you deceitful tongue
God shall likewise destroy you forever
HE shall take you away
and pluck you out of your dwelling place
and root you out of the land of the living
SELAH
Wicked trust in the abundance of riches verse 6- 7
The righteous also shall SEE – and FEAR
and shall LAUGH at him
Lo this is the man that made not God his strength
BUT trusted in the abundance of his riches
and strengthened himself in his wickedness
Righteous will trust in the mercy of the LORD verse 8- 9
BUT I am like a green olive tree in the house of God
I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever
I will praise YOU forever – BECAUSE YOU have done it
and I will wait on YOUR name
for it is good before YOUR saints
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 2 Your tongue devises mischiefs, like a sharp razor, working deceitfully. (1942 “mischiefs” [havvah] means calamity, wickedness, perverse thing, naughtiness, destruction, the termination of something by causing so much damage to it that it cannot be repaired or no longer exists.)
DEVOTION: Our tongue can be used for good or evil. The problem is that most of the time most people use it for evil. They use it to put down those they don’t like. They use it to say things that are not true to make themselves look better.
The tongue of a believer should always be used for good. It should be used to help others know Jesus. It should be used to teach fellow believers how to live a life that is pleasing to the LORD.
The problem is that most of us, even believers, don’t watch what we say and how we use our tongues are a way to teach others to use their tongues.
Our children listen to us as we talk about others and they learn what can be said to put others down and say bad things about others. If a parent is careful with the use of their tongue they could learn to say things that are only pleasing to the LORD.
Many people who claim Christ use their tongues to put down others in front of their children and friends. Then the children and friends repeat what they have heard from their parents and it continues to spread.
God wants us to use our tongue to say things that re pleasing to HIM. HE wants us to use our tongues to teach others how to worship the LORD in spirit and in truth.
We should be willing to tape our conversations throughout the day and then replay them during our time of prayer to the LORD. Would HE be pleased if this happened?
CHALLENGE: Our tongue can be used for good or evil. For a believer out tongue should always be available to tape and play in church from the pulpit.
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 4 Thou love all devouring words, O you deceitful tongue. (1105 “devouring” [bela] means a gulp, eat up, that which he hath swallowed up, gulp down, harmful words, evil destructive speech or what is consumed.)
DEVOTION: The Psalms contrast the difference between those who are followers of the LORD for real and those who fake or are not followers of the LORD. We have to remember that God is the ultimate judge of people. We can see by their actions what is going on in their life. If they want to follow the LORD they will trust in HIM alone.
David is describing the actions of Doeg the Edomite in relationship to the killing of the house of Ahimelech. David had asked him for help. Doeg had observed the priest giving David help. Doeg reported the occasion to Saul. Saul ordered Doeg to kill the priest and all of his family.
Doeg thought he was a mighty man but David tells him that he is going to face the LORD one day. He was going to be destroyed. David received his strength from the LORD. This mighty man liked to say bad things about people. He liked to harm people with his words. He is trying to be destructive in talking about other people. He took a good actions and made it sound bad. Ahimelech knew nothing of what David was doing. Doeg just liked to see others destroyed while he was lifted up.
This should not be part of the conversation of those who are saints. Our speech is to be an encouragement. We are not encouraging sin but we are encouraging our brothers and sisters in the LORD to move closer to the LORD. Our speech should be seasoned with salt.
How has our speech been this week toward our fellow saint? Encouraging or discouraging? Saints are supposed to be ones who are praising the LORD at all times. Let us help those around us to praise the LORD!!!
CHALLENGE: Our tongue can be used for good or evil. We can turn good things into evil things by the way we present them. Be occupied with encouragement!!!
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:5 “God shall likewise destroy you forever; He shall take you away, and pluck you out of your dwelling place, And uproot you from the land of the living.” The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982). Forever – 5331 נֵצַח [netsach, netsach /neh·tsakh/] n m. From 5329; TWOT 1402a; GK 5905; 43 occurrences; AV translates as “ever” 24 times, “never” four times, “perpetual” three times, “always” twice, “end” twice, “victory” twice, “strength” twice, “alway” once, “constantly” once, “evermore” once, and “never + 3808” once. 1 eminence, perpetuity, strength, victory, enduring, everlastingness. 1A eminence. 1B enduring of life. 1C endurance in time, perpetual, continual, unto the end. 1D everlastingness, ever. James Strong, Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2001).
DEVOTION: To be betrayed is an awful feeling to experience. To have someone that you trust and then find out that they have been using that friendship to undermine or sabotage your efforts. That is the background of this psalm. David had discovered that one of Saul’s men had spied on him and the result was death to people that had helped him and prosperity to the spy.
Sometimes it appears that the wicked are the fortunate ones and the deceitful tongue is victorious.
But the psalmist reminds us of God’s work of judgment! It may seem like initially the wicked succeed but the game is not over. As verse five states God will have the last word and action! His action leads to eternal separation and removal from the living.
CHALLENGE: When someone betrays you and prospers from it remember that the Lord is in control and the game is not over! You continue to be faithful! (Dr. Brian Miller – board member)
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
:7 “Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength; but trusted in the abundance of his riches, and strengthened himself in his wickedness.” (“Strength,” 4581 [ma`owz], place or means of safety, protection, refuge, stronghold; place of safety, fastness, harbor, stronghold; refuge (of God) (fig.); human protection (fig.).)
DEVOTION: The context for this psalm is David running away from Saul after Saul decides to capture and murder him. David is desperately looking for a safe haven away from Saul, having run away from Jerusalem for his life. He composes this psalm to contrast the evil man with the godly man.
The evil man, then, is someone who has trusted in his own strength, rather than relying on God for a refuge. In other words, Saul has now turned to doing what he thinks is God’s will by his own power. David, on the other hand, has few that he can trust in, and even those he thought he could trust (people from Ziph) turn on him and report him to Saul. So David reflects that God’s refuge is the only true refuge.
At some point we are all forced to decide where we will put our trust when we encounter difficulties or opposition. God wants to be our refuge especially when we need it the most. We will always choose Him over our own resources if we have a proper perspective of His greatness and of our weakness. Not only that, the choice we make will show whether or not we are godly.
CHALLENGE: Have you yet reached the end of your own resources? God allows us to be placed in these situations so that we can discover that our only hope is in His provision and refuge! Claim yours today! (Dr. Marc Wooten – board member)
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: 9 I will praise YOU forever, because YOU have done it: and I will wait on YOUR name; for it is good before YOUR saints. (2623 “saints” [chaciyd] means the faithful, godly, a person characterized by loyal love to the God of Israel, pious, devout, or the ones who practice.)
DEVOTION: David who is the author of this Psalm wants to use his tongue to praise the LORD. This should be our goal each day. Our tongue has to be under control for us to please the LORD with our words.
Too often we forget that our tongue needs to be given to the LORD on a daily basis. We need to pray to the LORD each morning that we can guard our tongue, so that, our words are pleasing to the LORD and to others.
It is not easy to control our tongue. It takes work. Each moment of each day is a challenge to us to keep our tongue used for praise alone. As saints or those who have become followers of the LORD we should challenge ourselves each day to control our words to others.
People should hear us praise the LORD for all that HE has done for us. If we don’t have something good to say we should ask the LORD to help us keep our mouth shut.
Too many believers open their mouths and say things that they wish they could take back but that doesn’t happen very often because the ones who hear us remember the bad things we have said MORD THAN the good things that we have said.
If we are persons who are characterized by a love for the LORD and want to practice the proper use of our tongue than we need to commit our tongue to the LORD each morning. If this takes place with conviction than we can be good representatives of the LORD to others.
CHALLENGE: Did you say something yesterday that you wish you could take back today? Are you using your tongue to praise the LORD every moment of every day? It is only possible with the help of the LORD!
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DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
House of God verse 8
Praise the LORD verse 9
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DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
God – Elohim (Creator, Sovereign) verse 1, 5, 7, 8
Goodness of God verse 1
House of God verse 8
Mercy of God verse 8
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Mighty man verse 1
Tongue devises mischiefs verse 2
Tongue works deceitfully verse 2
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Boasting verse 1
Mischief verse 1, 2
Deceit verse 2, 4
Evil verse 3
Lying verse 3
Devouring words verse 4
Make not God their strength verse 7
Trusted in abundance of riches verse 7
Wickedness verse 7
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Good verse 3, 9
Speak righteousness verse 3
Righteous verse 6
Fear of the LORD verse 6
Laugh verse 6
Strength verse 7
Trust verse 8
Mercy verse 8
Praise verse 9
Wait verse 9
Saints verse 9
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
David – author of this Psalm verse 1- 9
I trusted in the mercy of God
I will praise the LORD forever
I will wait on YOUR name
Good for the saint to do
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
God will destroy those speaking evil forever verse 5
God will root them out of the land of the living verse 5
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QUOTES regarding passage
52:8–9. In striking contrast with Doeg, the treacherous man (vv. 1–7), David portrayed his own blessed state in the Lord. He compared himself to a green olive tree, a figure of prosperity in God’s presence (cf. Hosea 14:6). This contrasts with the wicked who will be rooted up (Ps. 52:5). The metaphor of a flourishing tree was used in Psalm 1:3.
David’s flourishing was because of God’s unfailing love, in which he said he trusted forever. So he vowed to go on praising God for what He had done. David would wait (hope) in God’s name (which signified His attributes and actions; cf. Ex. 34:5–7) and then he would praise Him among the saints.
So the righteous, unlike people of treachery, place their confidence in God’s love, for there abide justice and blessing. (Ross, A. P. (1985). Psalms. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, pp. 833–834). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
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The contrast is clear: the wicked are like uprooted trees, but the godly are like flourishing olive trees that are fruitful and beautiful. Saul and Doeg would perish, rejected by the Lord, but David and his dynasty would be safe in the house of the Lord! It’s possible that the tabernacle at Nob had olive trees growing around it and David would have seen them. The olive tree lives for many years and keeps bearing fruit (1:3; 92:12–15; see Jer. 17:7–8, and note 37:35–36), and certainly David was a blessing to the nation while he lived and long after he died—and he is a blessing to us today. He trusted God’s lovingkindness and the Lord did not fail him, and he never failed to give God the glory. The phrase “wait on thy name” (v. 9, kjv) means to hope and depend on the character of God as expressed in His great name. The psalm ends with David vowing to praise the Lord in the congregation as soon as God established him in his kingdom. The private victories God gives us should be announced publicly for the encouragement of God’s people. Meanwhile, though evil may seem to triumph, we must continue to obey and serve the Lord and not get discouraged. The “last laugh” belongs to the Lord’s people. (Wiersbe, W. W. (2004). Be worshipful (1st ed., p. 191). Colorado Springs, CO: Cook Communications Ministries.)
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52:8 green olive tree. The psalmist exults (through this simile) that the one who trusts in the mercy of God is productive and secure. (MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). The MacArthur study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Ps 52:8). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.)
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8. But I am like a green olive-tree in the house of God. I am safe and happy, notwithstanding the effort made by my enemy, the informer, to secure my destruction. I have been kept unharmed, like a green and flourishing tree—a tree protected in the very courts of the sanctuary—safe under the care and the eye of God. A green tree is the emblem of prosperity. See Notes on Ps. 1:3; 37:35; comp. Ps. 92:12. The “house of God” here referred to is the tabernacle, considered as the place where God was supposed to reside. See Notes on Ps. 15:1; 23:6; 27:4, 5. The particular allusion here is to the courts of the tabernacle. An olive tree would not be cultivated in the tabernacle, but it might in the courts or area which surrounded it. The name “house of God” would be given to the whole area, as it was afterwards to the entire area in which the temple was. A tree thus planted in the very courts of the sanctuary would be regarded as sacred, and would be safe as long as the tabernacle itself was safe, for it would be, as it were, directly under the Divine protection. So David had been, notwithstanding all the efforts of his enemies to destroy him.
I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever. (a) I have always done it. It has been my constant practice in trouble or danger. (b) I will always do it. As the result of all my experience, I will still do it; and thus trusting in God, I shall have the consciousness of safety. (Barnes, A. (1870–1872). Notes on the Old Testament: Psalms (Vol. 2, p. 98). London: Blackie & Son.)
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Ver. 8. But I am like a green olive-tree in the house of God, &c.] Or rather it should be supplied, I shall be; since David was at this time an exile from the house of God: and this expresses his faith and confidence, that, notwithstanding his present troubles, he should be restored again, and be in a very flourishing condition, in the church of God; which is here meant by the house of God: it being of his building, and where he dwells, and where to have a place is the great privilege of the saints; they are planted there by the Lord himself, and shall never be rooted up; they are fixed there, and shall never go out; which was David’s confidence, Psal. 23:6 and where he believed he should be as a green olive-tree; which is a very choice and fruitful tree, has fatness in it, produces an excellent oil; is beautiful to look at; delights in hot climates and sunny places; is found on mountains, we read of the mount of Olives; is ever green and durable, and its leaves and branches are symbols of peace: all which is applicable to truly righteous persons and believers in Christ; who are the excellent of the earth, are filled with the fruits of righteousness; are fat and flourishing; have the oil of grace, the anointing which teacheth all things; are a perfection of beauty, made perfectly comely through Christ’s comeliness; thrive under him, the sun of righteousness; grow in the mountain of the Lord’s house, the church: their grace is incorruptible, their leaf withers not; they are rooted in Christ, and ever continue; they are the sons of peace, and their last end will be eternal peace. Now as such David was assured he should be, when his enemy would be rooted up out of the land of the living, and cast like a dry and worthless branch into everlasting burnings; the ground of which confidence follows: I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever; the mercy of God is not only an encouragement to trust, but the object of it; not the absolute mercy of God, but the grace and goodness of God in Christ Jesus, which endures continually, ver. 1 and so does hope in it, which never makes ashamed, but abides to the end. The psalmist seems to have respect to the mercy promised him, that he should sit upon the throne. This he believed, and therefore was assured he should be in the flourishing circumstances in the house of God before mentioned. (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 3, p. 746). London: Mathews and Leigh.)
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8. “But I,” hunted and persecuted though I am, “am like a green olive tree.” I am not plucked up or destroyed, but am like a flourishing olive, which out of the rock draws oil, and amid the drought still lives and grows. “In the house of God.” He was one of the divine family, and could not be expelled from it; his place was near his God, and there was he safe and happy, despite all the machinations of his foes. He was bearing fruit, and would continue to do so when all his proud enemies were withered like branches lopped from the tree. “I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever.” Eternal mercy is my present confidence. David knew God’s mercy to be eternal and perpetual, and in that he trusted. What a rock to build on! What a fortress to fly to! (Spurgeon, C. H. (n.d.). The treasury of David: Psalms 27-57 (Vol. 2, pp. 427–428). London; Edinburgh; New York: Marshall Brothers.)
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FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
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Marriage is much like that, isn’t it? The longer you are together, the more things you learn about this man or woman—this person you once kissed at a candlelit altar—that are not very pleasant, not too pretty. Marriage truly is the process of two selfish people learning to love one another in the midst of their imperfections. (Moments with You on Feb.16, 2015 by Dennis & Barbara Rainey)
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The Holy Spirit gives us His power, and, thank God, He not only gave it to the first apostles, He has also given it to quite unknown people throughout the centuries. He has enabled some simple people to speak just the right word at the right moment. John Bunyan tells us in his autobiography, Grace Abounding, that one of the greatest blessings and helps he ever had was one afternoon listening to three uneducated women who were doing some knitting together in the sunshine, outside a house, talking about the Lord Jesus Christ. He got more from them than from anybody else. And you find that is what happens. God gives this power to the simplest, humblest Christian to testify to the Lord Jesus Christ, sharing what He has done and the difference He has made to human life. This is how the Holy Spirit glorifies the Son. When He works in us, what He does is to make us glorify the Lord Jesus Christ. The man in whom the Spirit dwells does not talk about himself; whether he is a preacher! or whatever he may be, you do not come away talking about him. (Walking with God by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
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What does the bad eye refer to in Matthew 20:15? It refers to an eye that cannot see the beauty of grace. It cannot see the brightness of generosity. It cannot see unexpected blessing to others as a precious treasure. It is an eye that is blind to what is truly beautiful and bright and precious and God-like. It is a worldly eye. It sees money and material reward as more to be desired than a beautiful display of free, gracious, God-like generosity. (www.desiring God.org by John Piper)
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There are always reasons behind failure to delegate, and we need to identify them in order to cure them. Some are not easy to admit, such as our fear that delegating responsibility may give someone else prominence and perhaps push us out of the public eye. We may fear that we will be displaced in people’s affections. There may even the fear that the person concerned may eventually prove to do the job better than we do in ourselves, and thus prompt people to feel we could have done better. Or behind our slowness to delegate may be sheer possessiveness. We need to recognize the evil of these and similar attitudes. We are to rejoice in the usefulness God gives to others, not to be jealous of it. We must not see the Church as our kingdom, but as Christ’s. If we engage in His work successfully, we must decrease in it, and He must increase – and since delegation furthers that great goal, it is a priority. (p. 228, ON BEING A PASTOR by Derek J. Prime & Alistair Begg)
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A criminal aspect of the failure to delegate is that other people’s potential for responsibility and leadership may remain untapped and undeveloped. (p. 230, ON BEING A PASTOR by Derek J. Prime & Alistair Begg)
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David N. shared (NY): Retweeted Jerry Bridges (@BridgesWisdom):
Certainly there are people who are difficult to love. The fact is, we all are to some degree. We don’t have the power in ourselves to love the unlovable, but that also is no excuse. We do have the Holy Spirit enabling us to love others as we look to Him.
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Daily Hope
Today’s Scripture
Luke 1:26-38
God works in extraordinary ways, His wonders to perform. Often, we take the amazing acts, wonders of His powers and the daily ministry of the Holy Spirit as commonplace events. They are anything but common place. The beauty of a sunrise and the exquisite composition of a flower in bloom reminds us of God’s handiwork in the everyday, normal realm of life.
Adding a supernatural facet to the natural realm, affords the opportunity for some to experience a miracle. A definition of a miracle is an act of the immediate power of God intervening in the connection of natural causes and effects. He does not violate His own laws, suppress, or hinder them but simply inserts a new catalyst to fit His purpose. That mechanism is the Holy Spirit who operates sovereignly to accomplish His Divine purpose for that moment.
Mary, an apparently devout young woman is suddenly confronted by an angelic being that brings an announcement to her which is naturally impossible. This young woman would conceive and bring forth a Son! Her natural response is to question the messenger, since she had not known a man. The reply was, God would do an unbelievable feat and a Son would be born!
The miraculous work of God would be such that the normal law of impregnation would be adapted by the Holy Spirit and Mary would bear a Child from God. From conception, this Child was to be the promised “Son of the Highest” (v.32), “the Son of God” (v.35). The miracle the nation of Israel had been waiting hundreds of years for was about to transpire. Mary calmly and devotedly gave herself to the plan and program of this angelic messenger. Her reply was, “Let it be to me according to your word” (v.38).
Miracles are not going to happen in our lives as it occurred in Mary’s but we need to be sensitive and submissive to the will and plan of God. Mary’s attitude was what set her apart and permitted God to accomplish His plan through her. As we go through the day, allow the wonder and glory of God’s work to fill us with awe. Take in the beauty and extraordinary power of God’s majestic creation! Then give Him praise for the miraculous work He has done through obedient people. Rejoice that the power of God is still at work confirming the words of the angel, “For with God nothing will be impossible” (1:37).
With an Expectant Hope,
(Pastor Miller – Board member of Small Church Ministries)
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THREE FRUITS OF REBIRTH
Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him. 1 John 5:1
The first fruit of the rebirth is that I believe that “Jesus is the Christ.” And obviously, believing that is not something intellectual or something I only do with my mind. If I believe, I commit my whole life to Him. If I believe, I know I am delivered because Christ has done that for me. I see that apart from Him I am lost and undone and doomed. This is a profound action; it is a commitment; it is a banking of one’s everything upon that fact.
The second fruit of rebirth is love for God. John’s way of putting it is: “every one that loveth him that begat…” Christians see that they are hell-deserving sinners and that they would have arrived in hell were it not for His great love in sending His Son. They realize the love of God for them, and therefore they love God; they realize they owe everything to Him. It seems to me that this again is one of those fundamental things about Christian men and women.
However good a life they may be living now as saints, they still feel that they are hell-deserving sinners in and of themselves, and that they owe everything to the grace of God; it is God’s love alone that has made them what they are. They lose their sense of fear and a sense of enmity against God and are filled with a sense of profound gratitude to Him.
And the final thing is, of course, that we love our brethren—“Every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.” We look at other believers, and we see in them the same disposition as in ourselves. We realize that they owe everything to the grace of God, just as we do. We realize that in spite of their sinfulness God sent His Son to die for them, exactly as He did for us; and we are aware of this bond. Though there are many things about them we do not like, we say, “That is my brother, my sister.”
A Thought to Ponder: We realize that in spite of their sinfulness God sent His Son to die for them, exactly as He did for us.
(From Life I God, pp. 19-20, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
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Help Me, O Lord
“Help me, O LORD my God: O save me according to thy mercy: That they may know that this is thy hand; that thou, LORD, hast done it.” (Psalm 109:26-27)
There is disagreement as to the proper interpretation of this psalm of David. Its center section (vv. 6-20) consists of a strong denunciation and curse, while the beginning and ending sections petition God for judgment and deliverance (vv. 1-5, 21-31).
Most hold that David is speaking in both sections. If so, it is a bitter and vindictive spirit finding vent. “Let Satan stand at his right hand….let his prayer become sin. Let his days be few….Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow. Let his children be continually vagabonds, and beg:…Let the extortioner catch all that he hath….Let there be none to extend mercy unto him” (vv. 6-12).
Others would claim that David is quoting the curse of his enemy directed toward him and point to the use of the singular personal pronouns “he,” “his,” and “him” used 30 times in 15 verses. Indeed, if this is the proper interpretation, the psalm becomes the plea of a persecuted man of God who entrusts his enemies’ judgment entirely to the Lord. “But do thou for me, Oh GOD the Lord, for thy name’s sake: because thy mercy is good, deliver thou me. For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me….I became also a reproach unto them….Let them curse….I will greatly praise the LORD with my mouth; yea, I will praise him among the multitude. For he shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save him from those that condemn his soul” (Psalm 109:21-22, 25, 28, 30-31).
Like his master who had come after him, “when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously” (1 Peter 2:23). (JDM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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