Every year it works out the same. That first ripe tomato is a much coveted commodity. Watching the first tomato approaching ripeness is like a slow dance with your sweetheart. I have learned, however, that I am not the only one watching and dancing. For the past 3 years, I have checked my tomatoes on the night before the first one will be ripe. I say to myself, “Self, one more night on the vine and tomato perfection with be reached. Tomorrow, you will enjoy this tomato that you have watched, cared for, and protected.” Without fail, on the next morning when I hurry out to the vine to pick my tomato, I discover that it is half eaten. I don’t know what bothers me most that some creature beat me to my tomato or that it left half of it there just to taunt me. It is like this creature has studied me. It knows my thoughts and intentions and my hopes and dreams. Just at the right moment, it inflicts maximum harm upon me. My response is always the same, “That’s just wrong.”
Something is wrong in the world.
The only context in which any of us experience God is the context of a fallen world, and that within the context of fallen culture, and that within a fallen subculture (my family, friends, and institutions), and within that I myself am impacted at every level (my thoughts, attitude, actions, desires, body) by sin (my own sin and the sin of others).
Paul said that something is wrong in this world. For the creation, Paul says, was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope… (Romans 8:20).
This is the only world we know. Here is the good news. God has subjected creation to futility not for the sake of futility but to teach us to hope in him. We do now experience glimpses of a better reality, but only glimpses.
Here is the problem. Not everyone hopes in God or even thinks it a reasonable thing to do so. Two kinds of people inhabit the planet: those who hope in God and those who don’t. The world at large thinks the things of which we speak and sing and pray are irrational and contemptible.
Paul said, The word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God (1Cor. 1:18). Paul is right.
Yet, even believers are plagued at times by doubt. In this fallen world, we, believers, are faced with context after context, event after event, that causes us to say, “What if this is not true?” We are like the father at the foot of the Mount of Transfiguration with the demon possessed son who asked Jesus to heal his son if he could. Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.” Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!”(Mark 9:22-24 ESV) Life, the devil, and the wicked give us every reason not to believe, but the message that repels the unbelieving world is the message that compels us to believe.
The point is I cannot not believe. I can’t help but believe. God not only calls us to faith, He keeps us in faith. He keeps us in faith through all of the hardships that we face personally and corporately.
We are impacted deeply by things that we experience in life. Too often when all is well, we offer a confident apologetic that explains and deals neatly with the hardships of life. It’s funny how we know what to do, how to respond, and what to say from the comfortable spot of the spectator. The corner of Easy Street and Explanation Avenue is no place to wax eloquent and confident.
When we, ourselves, however, are in the grip despair, depression, oppression, grief, loss, need, and heartache, the enemy attacks us in our mind and heart. He always attacks at the levels of relationship with God and the easy state of everybody else. Particularly, He suggests that God does not love us after all, that He does not have our best interest at heart, which is an attack on God’s goodness, and that those who are wicked have a much easier life. Everything seems to go their way. They prosper, their kids are handsome and smart, and they are happy and content. Their house is nice, their jobs are good, their car runs, their lawn doesn’t have weeds, and they vacation constantly.
In Psalm 36, the psalmist helps us to think rightly about the world through evaluating it in light the nature of God and to pray with perspective gained from the Word of God.
Wickedness is not as appealing as the enemy likes to suggest when we are in great distress. The enemy wants to hold up to us an allusion of a godless life that has it all together.
Verses 1 and 2 are difficult to translate. As the translation stands in the ESV, it seems that transgression is personified so as to speak to the wicked deep in his heart. The word speaks is the word oracle. It is most often used in the prophets and has Yahweh as its subject: says the Lord. To use oracle in the context of transgression speaking is odd. If that is the case, the meaning would be that sin or rebellion or transgression is the prophet of the wicked. He resonates with it.
What then does transgression say to the wicked? It doesn’t say, you have no fear of God, you are flattering yourself, etc. If we stay with this rendering, we are going to have to say that v1a stands alone as a matter of fact, but what follows is a description of the wicked with which the wicked would not agree.
The verse can be read another way. A literal rendering would be an oracle of transgression concerning the wicked…. In the footnotes, the text says that in my heart rather than in his heart is a majority reading of the Hebrew Texts. The NIV translates the verse, An oracle is within my heart concerning the sinfulness of the wicked. What follows then in vv1b-4 is the content of the oracle.
However, you read this verse, all agree that the psalmist gives us a description of the wicked from beginning to end, from the fundamental premise of wickedness (there is no fear of God before his eyes v1) to the ultimate outworking of that premise (he does not reject evil v4).
David seems to be saying that he knows about the transgression of the wicked because God has revealed it to him, and this revelation has had a deep impact in this life (deep in my heart v1). A divine understanding of the wicked is essential to help us keep our bearings in fallen world. What David says about the wicked is not how they would describe themselves, but rather it is God’s assessment of the anatomy of the wicked.
In Wisdom Literature, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge (Pr. 1:7). All reason that is not grounded in the fear of the Lord is fundamentally flawed. Fear in this text is more than reverential awe. It is dread. The wicked reason either that God approves of whatever they do or He does not exist.
When Jesus was crucified between two thieves, one joined in the mocking of Christ. The other rebuked him saying, Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?... (Lk 23:40). A person who does not fear God will blaspheme the Son of God while hanging on a cross. That is where no fear leads.
I often hear people say, We shouldn’t be afraid of God, but we should be reverent toward Him. Well, that all depends on what you are up to!
In Romans 3, Paul quotes a collage of verses from the Psalms (14:1-3; 53:1-3; 5:9; 140:3; 10:7; Pr. 1:16; 3:15-17; and Ps. 36:1) to establish the universal sinfulness of humans. He ends with Psalm 36:1 for emphasis, I think, to show that the foundation of all wickedness is a lack of fear of God. People reason within themselves that they have no accountability to God.
When our worldview is not trained by the fear of the Lord, we lose the ability to soberly evaluate life. We are not static in this state, but rather we descend from the twisted reason of self-flattery (v2) to destructive speech (v3a) to foolish behavior (v3b) to a lifestyle of plotting self-advancement to the harm of others (v4).
Verse 2 shows the outworking of a lack of fear of God. We either fear God and evaluate life through the lens of accountability to God, or we flatter ourselves. Flattery in this context is the idea of rationalization, self-deception, or self-justification. The point of verse 2 is that such rationalization of sin keeps us from discovering our sin and repenting of it. Such self-justification is the suggestion of the wicked one.
Rationalization of sin blinds the sinner to the Gospel. Paul said, And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. (2 Corinthians 4:3-4 ESV)
Often people respond to the gospel by saying, God is a God of love. He won’t put people in hell. The reality is that is the very reason He does put people in hell. Someone may say, The good I do will outweigh the bad. What if someone takes your wife, but comes and mows your yard for the next 10 years? The point is that is absurd. No one really believers doing good cancels bad.
Words that are harmful to others have a deceitful purpose. Such words keep sin hidden from the sinner and others. It the old trick of covering one’s tracks. For example, a man may say to his wife, When we argue, I have a harder time in my struggle with lust. What if we turned that a bit? How would it sound to a husband if His wife said, When things aren’t good between us, I fanaticize about what it would be like to be married to another man.
Verse 4 gives us view of the wicked man lying on his bed at night plotting how he might advance himself to the harm (trouble cf. v3) or manipulation of others. His highest value is to promote himself. Whether family, business, law, politics, education, or religion, the end of self-gratification justifies every means.
At the end of the descent of the wicked, is lifestyle that has changed the definition of good and evil. When reason is the only judge of reason, any behavior can be justified and rationalized.
This text helps us see the downward trajectory of fallen humans. Consider one of the cases before the Court regarding gay marriage. 84 year old Edie Winsor protested paying 363K in death taxes on the estate of her same sex partner. Seemingly, the only answer to this dilemma was to file a case with the Court to change the institution of marriage with a history dating back to the beginning. It seems to me the easy solution would be to overturn the death tax not the institution of marriage.
Just this week, the morning after pill was made available to females of any age. The DOJ overturned rules to bar girls younger than 15 from buying this over-the-counter drug so that it would be available to girls of any age. I am trying hard to find anything that resembles thought in this ruling.
We can site these extreme examples and morn the direction of our society, but this description of the wicked is not primarily about such unthinkable extremism. This is everyday wickedness. When we compare ourselves to this text, we see these tendencies in ourselves. When we lament that the wicked prospers, this is what we envy.
David makes a sudden transition in verse 5 from a description of the wicked to exalting the character of God, especially in relation to His covenant love.
Notice that the psalmist is not contrasting the wicked and the righteousness in this text. He, rather, is drawing a contrast between the wicked and God. A fundamental error of unbelievers is to compare themselves with believers. The unbeliever cannot look at the believer and say, Well, I’m as good as you. The only standard of righteousness is God. If you are not a believer, comparing yourself with me gives you no reason to boast before God. Rather it should testify to you the nature of saving grace of God. He has had mercy on me. He will have mercy on you as well.
God’s steadfast love, faithfulness, righteous, and judgment in relation to His people is the OT language for the NT concept of Gospel. David seems to by saying that in the midst of fallen world, there is good news. God is a God characterized by steadfast love. God’s steadfast love finds its ultimate fulfillment in the new covenant that Christ instituted in His blood on the cross so that all who repent and believe in Him will be saved from the wrath of God.
When trouble starts the first place the enemy attacks us by casting doubt on God’s love for us and His goodness toward us. The psalmist uses two sets of attributes that often appear together in the Psalms. First is steadfast love and faithfulness. Next is righteousness and judgment. David piles up metaphors to show us the vast expanse of the character of God. Steadfast love and faithfulness are unsearchable and boundless (heavens, clouds v5). Examine it, search it out, read books about it and meditate on it in the Word. You will always come away astounded by God’s love for His people.
His righteousness is insurmountable (mountians v6). Whatever God does is right because He is God. What is right in our sight and what God deems right may be two different things. When we judge God by our standard of what is right and wrong, we put ourselves in the category of verses 1-4. His judgments are unfathomable (great deep v6). No one can possibly get to the bottom of His decisions (Ross, 791). The reference to the great deep and saving man and beast alludes to the flood. Again righteousness and judgment are in the context of God’s saving covenant. The question is not, Why did God destroy the world? That question again puts us in the thinking of verses 1-4. Considering the flood in relation to God’s righteousness and judgment, the question becomes, Why did God save anybody?
Such thoughts lead the Psalmist to cry out, How precious is your steadfast love, O God! (v7a). The people that God saves are not better than other people. He saves them because He sets His love on them. That God would save sinners is an insurmountable and unfathomable truth that takes us to the very nature of who God is.
In Denali National Park and Preserve, we have one of the few wildernesses left on the planet. From the roadway, you can see the illusive Mount McKinley rise into the clouds to an elevation of 20,320 feet. Rarely, does the Mountain show its peak. Normally, about 45% of it is visible. Only about 33% of visitors get the see a full view of the mountain. As you approach the Mountain it appears to move and to grow. The nearer to the Mountain you get the more you are overwhelmed by its vastness. The righteousness and judgment of God is like a great mountain and a great deep. Our view of the goodness and rightness of God is limited in this world. We, however, know by faith that beyond our ability to comprehend where God’s love, faithfulness, righteousness and judgment are in the circumstances of our lives God reigns, and He is for us.
This verse was used by Jesus when He wept over Jerusalem two days before the great storm of the wrath of God engulfed Him on the cross. He said, How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! See, your house is left to you desolate. (Matthew 23:37-38 ESV) People like the ones described in verses 1-4 are those whom God sets His love on draws them into verses 5-9. God shelters His people in His saving love.
Are you struggling to believe? He will shelter you under His wings. Are you struggling with lust, fantasies, a desire for riches, wanting fame, desiring attention from the opposite sex, same sex attraction, addictions, wanting approval, etc., He will shelter you under His wings.
Some say these verses refer primarily to the temple. They refer primarily to Eden. The temple was a temporary fixture between Eden and Christ and His Church. Eden was God’s house because that was where God dwelled with His people. The mission of Eden was to encompass the earth. The temple recalled Eden. The church now is the Eden of God. The mission of the church is to encompass the earth.
Between here and the consummation when the mission of the church is complete, blessing enough is to be found in the church family. The choicest (abundance) of all of God’s goodness is to be found in the church. The Gospel we preach is precious, choice, the best of all God’s provision. It is the river of God’s delights (Eden). A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden (Gen 2:10). A river flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1). God is the source of that river. The Gospel is the fountain of life. This water is the water Jesus offered the woman at the well (Jn 4). The Gospel is light, and if we are ever to have light, it will be when God awakens us to the glory of Christ in the gospel.
This language is rich gospel language. The gospel is the only thing that will the satisfy the human heart. In the gospel, is blessing enough to for the people of God.
The only hope that we have for safety and security in a world dominated by godless, evil people is the faithful love of the Lord (Ross, 795). The devil is a destroyer. He pushes societies toward a culture of death. Whatever promotes destruction and death, no matter what name is given to it, is demonic.
The Yanamomo people were an isolated rainforest people, untouched by outside influence. They were the anthropologists’dream. They were studied, and books were written about them. The anthropologists called their life context Eden. Yet, their isolated culture was a culture of death. They were dominated spirits that manipulated them to murder, steal, and rape. They gloried in the murder of each other, even children. The measure of a man was how many people he had killed. They would cheer on our culture of death. They would have held in high esteem the terrorist and shooters and street thugs of our culture.
Oddly enough, some villages came to faith, the spirits were eradicated, and the people began love and care for each other. Their health, standard of living, and longevity dramatically improved, and the anthropologists considered it Eden destroyed.
The psalmist is not in doubt of God love for His people. Rather, he is expressing confidence in the steadfast love of God. It’s not steadfast if it does not continue. Those, however, in the category of verses 1-4 should not console themselves with the idea of the love of God.
Let God be God. The danger is that we create a God in our minds with which we are comfortable. We have no room for a God who is bigger than we are and whose purpose and rightness, and judgment may be different from our own. Rather than, conform our minds and hearts to Him, we expect God to conform to us.
Whatever happens to you, if you through repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ have come to God, know that God loves you, and He will never cast you off. If you are crucified and everybody in town mocks you, don’t worry about it. God will raise you from the dead.
All evil and wickedness is personal. Evil is not some impersonal force in the world. We are not dualists holding to some cosmic struggle between the impersonal forces of good and evil. God is taking us to the full realization of verses 7-9, to paradise restored only better. To accomplish His purpose, God must judge the wicked. Through prophetic eyes the psalmist sees that accomplished in verse 12.
We live in a world that has been invaded and occupied by an enemy. At the present time, God is calling those under the domination of the devil (vv1-4) to Christ and bringing them into His family, the church. Here we have a foretaste of what is to come in the consummation of all things. As His church, God has sent us into enemy territory as His ambassadors for peace to compel sinners to believe before the great and terrible Day of the Lord.
We gather here in this outpost to taste the delights of the world to come and to find healing for the wounds inflicted in the battle. As we gather at the Lord’s Table, we are reminded again that there is a life giving fountain that flows from the throne of God to give life and light to those who believe.