Today’s Scripture: Psalm 139:19-24
“If only you would slay the wicked, O God! Away from me you bloodthirsty
men!” (vs. 19)
Words of Devotion
Why do these psalmists
seem all of a sudden to interject these bloody thoughts? Why this sudden word
of passion, If only you would slay the wicked! This has troubled many
because it seems so far from the New Testament standard, Love your enemies
and pray for those who persecute you (Matthew 5:44). How shall we
understand these things?
We need to recognize that
everything the psalmist asks for is not necessarily a reflection of God's will.
We are reading the experiences of believers, and their thoughts are not always
reflections of God's perfect will. At times, the Psalms earnestly mirror the human
viewpoint, and we need to understand these passages in their context. In this
paragraph, the psalmist, having been gripped by his close relationship with
God, now naturally comes to the place where he asks God for something. That is
also what we do. When we are aware of being near to God, being dear to Him, we
tend to ask God for things, but those things are not always in keeping with
God's best for us. That is what this psalmist is doing.
He asks God to take care
of the problem of the wicked. His suggested manner of handling it is rather
naive. He says, Lord, wipe them out, as though such a simple remedy
for human ills had never occurred to the Almighty. Have you ever felt that way?
One of the refreshing things about these psalms is the honesty they reflect.
There are several things
we need to note about this: For one thing, this psalmist's request falls short
even of the Old Testament standard. It is the Old Testament that first
says, Love your neighbor as yourself (Leviticus 19:18). The New Testament
and the Old Testament are not opposed to one another in this matter of moral
standards. But this man has not yet learned this. In his honesty, he saysLord,
it seems to me the easiest way for You to handle this problem of evil would be
to slay the wicked. Why don't you do that?
Here is the case of a man
who has felt God's hatred against sin but not yet God's love for the sinner.
That is why, I think, he concludes with these words: Search me, O God, and
know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any
offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting (Psalm
139:23-24). Is he not saying, Lord, I don't understand this problem of
evil? It appears to me the easiest way is for you to eliminate the evil person.
But Lord, I also know that I don't think very clearly, and I don't often have
the right answer. So Lord, in case I don't have the right remedy for this
problem, let me add this prayer: 'Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me
and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead
me in the way everlasting.
Today: How much of your prayer time is occupied
with petitions formed by your finite understanding? Is there a better way to
pray? Have you yet felt God's love for sinners?
Pray: Father, how desperately I need to be led
through the complexities of my life. Help me not to settle for simple yet wrong
solutions but to be willing to let You work out Your own purposes knowing that
You have taken all the factors into consideration. Amen
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