BIG IDEA:
THE LORD’S PROMISE OF DELIVERANCE EXPOSES THE IMPOTENCE
OF THE BOASTING OF THE ARROGANT
I. (:1) THE PLIGHT OF THE ENDANGERED SPECIES:
(contrasted with vs. 8)
A. The Godly Man
“Help, Lord, for the godly man ceases to be”
B. The Faithful
“For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men”
II. (:2-4) THE WORD OF THE WICKED
(contrasted with vs. 6-7) – characterized by:
A. Falsehood -- empty talk
“They speak falsehood to one another”
B. Flattery -- smooth talk
“With flattering lips …”
C. Deceit -- double talk
“and with a double heart they speak”
D. Boasting -- big talk
"the tongue that speaks great things"
E. Threatening -- trash talk
"with our tongue we will prevail"
F. Rebellion against the authority of God – bigshot talk
"our lips are our own; who is lord over us?"
III. (:5) TRANSITION: THE LORD OF COMPASSION PROMISES
DELIVERANCE
A. The Lord Responds Out of Compassion
1. “Because of the devastation of the afflicted”
2. “Because of the groaning of the needy”
B. The Lord Promises Deliverance and Security
“’Now I will arise,’ says the Lord; ‘I will set him in the safety.for which he longs.’”
IV. (:6-7) THE WORD OF THE LORD
A. Pure words -- like silver refined in the furnace (cf. godly man of vs. 1)
“The words of the Lord are pure words;
As silver tried in a furnace on the earth, refined seven times.”
B. Faithful words -- God will carry out His promise of deliverance
(cf. faithful man of vs. 1)
V. (:8) THE PREDOMINANCE OF THE IMMORAL MAJORITY
(FOR THE MOMENT)
A. They Strut About Like Peacocks
“The wicked strut about on every side”
B. They are Encouraged by the Climate of Evil
cf. how TV exalts vileness
“When vileness is exalted among the sons of men”
* * * * * * * * * *
DEVOTIONAL QUESTIONS:
1) We are not the only generation where we look around and lament that “the godly man ceases to be.” What type of Help does the Lord offer for such a generation?
2) Analyze the political campaigns for instances of the type of abuses of speech that are detailed in this psalm. Where have we seen those same types of abuses in the church? How diligent are we in guarding our own speech?
3) Meditate on other passages that speak of the Lord’s compassion for the afflicted and the needy. Is part of our sluggishness in spiritual growth due to our personal comforts that diminish our longing for the type of spiritual maturity that only the Lord can
provide?
4) Are we careful to keep the Lord’s Word pure by not adulterating it with our traditions or our speculative interpretations? Do we allow God’s Word to speak
directly and forcefully without sugarcoating it or trying to make it more palatable?
Download the entire Psalms commentary in pdf format
(including notes on each psalm from other commentators)
from:
http://www.bibleoutlines.com
