GOD’S WORD FOR YOU
PSALM 5:7-12
7 But I, by your great mercy, I will come into your house.
I will bow down toward your holy temple.
David is delighted to be able to worship God in his tent or tabernacle. Remember when reading the Psalms of David that he never worshiped in the temple, since Solomon his son built the temple after David’s death. David’s references to the house or temple of the Lord are usually to be understood as the ancient tent constructed by Moses and Aaron (doubtless with some mending and replacement parts added in the four centuries since Moses’ day). Over David’s lifetime, this tabernacle was at Nob (1 Samuel 21:1-6), although it had formerly been at Shiloh (1 Samuel 1:3), and finally it was at a high place at Gibeon (1 Chronicles 16:36). The ark however, was at Kiriath Jearim for twenty years (1 Samuel 7:2) until David moved it, with a short stop at the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite (2 Samuel 6:11) to a special tent, not the true tabernacle, near his home in Jerusalem (2 Samuel 6:17). Since David appointed Zadok (the high priest) to minister at the tabernacle at Gibeon and Asaph the musician to minister before the ark at Jerusalem, we might hope to deduce from these details which “holy temple” he means when he wrote his Psalms. In my opinion, when David wrote “for the director of music” he was writing psalms for use before the ark with Asaph the musician (this Psalm is an example, along with 6, 8, 9, 11-14, and so on), but someone else might dispute this.
8 Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness.
Because of those who slander me,
make straight your way before me.
9 Nothing that comes out of their mouth is reliable.
Their heart is filled with destruction.
Their throat is an open grave;
They speak smooth flattery with their tongue.
10 Declare them guilty, O God!
Let their schemes be their downfall.
Banish them for their many sins,
for they have rebelled against you.
David’s complaint turns from sinners in general to specific enemies who were opposing their king. Some were guilty of slander, others were guilty of the sort of flattery that betrays a sinister intent. These are the words of men who smile with their mouth but not with their eyes, or as the O’Jays put it: “They smile in your face / all the time they wanna take your place, the backstabbers.” The central phrase of verse 9 is an amazing passage: “Their throat is an open grave.” The Lord also accused the Scribes and Pharisees: “You hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside by on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean” (Matthew 23:27). This shows that men’s hearts are responsible when they sin, because God punishes men for the kind of wickedness when they say one thing and intend something different in their hearts.
The Lord God is not responsible for the sins of men, but he punishes those sins. Nevertheless, there are times when God appears to allow certain sins to take place. In the world, God works especially among mankind through the government (that is, the state) or directly himself through four actions: permission, hindrance, direction, and limitation, with regard to the sins of mankind.
Permission is when God does not restrain men from evil actions, but lets them fall into sin. In the Psalm, we see that God has allowed David’s enemies to slander him, to lie, to falsely accuse, and so on. This also happens today when a nation’s laws allow people to sin in direct violation of God’s will, such as in their filthy language, openly deviant sexual practices, and even murdering their own children through abortion.
Hindrance is when God takes away from sinful men the results of their sinful nature that their actions would otherwise have carried out. Sometimes God destroys a sinful man before he carries out a certain terrible sin, or he might pull the godly away from the godless as he did with Lot (Genesis 19:16) or when Luther was swept away to the Wartburg, or God might confuse the intent of the godless as with Hushai and Ahithopel (2 Kings 6:17-18).
Direction is when God gives to a person (or perhaps to a nation) the course that is acceptable to him. This is especially true of good actions that lead to God’s intended result, as when the Urim and Thummim were used to divine Saul as king (1 Samuel 10:21). If God also directs a terrible crime to a wholesome goal, then the goal and not the crime must be ascribed to God, who cannot sin. “Does Christ promote sin? Absolutely not!” (Galatians 2:17). But God saw the certain horrific crimes were committed in the past that nevertheless led to cures for disease and so forth, and he can bless the world with the result even though he is in no way pleased with nor condoning of the path taken to produce it.
Limitation is when God sets boundaries for power, action, passion, and so forth. The wicked are not always given the capacity to act (Job 1:12).
11 But let all who take refuge in you be glad;
let them sing for joy forever.
Spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may rejoice in you.
12 For surely you bless the righteous, O LORD.
You surround them with your favor as with a shield.
The Psalm is brought to a close with happy words of praise to God. His protection is like a blanket over a sleeping man or a tent over a resting family– we would say, the Lord himself is the roof over our heads. God preserves us because he loves us and he has in mind our salvation. Yet we acknowledge that he also preserves the wicked in the world, but for another reason. Their preservation is first of all to bless the godly, such as when an ungodly leader keeps the nation from war or starvation. Secondly, the wicked are preserved to serve the godly, such as when they produce goods or services that the godly need to survive and to thrive. Thirdly, the wicked are preserved because God does not desire their destruction, but wants them to come to faith. Therefore he preserves their lives for that reason, but his patience will not last forever if they reject him. Finally, the wicked are preserved because a wicked man’s child might possibly be brought to faith and serve the kingdom of God.
Although it does not come into this Psalm, we could also add that the Lord preserves the world especially for the same first two reasons that he preserves the wicked: to bless the godly and to serve the godly. God’s preservation extends outward to all creation, the animals, the plants, the seas and deserts, and the planets and stars, but in differing measures. But there is a particular and unique reason for the special preservation and affection God has toward the members of the church (1 Timothy 4:10). “Surely you bless the righteous, O Lord. You surround them with favor as with a shield.” Remember this, and thank your Lord for it in your prayers tonight.
In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith
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Pastor Smith serves St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, New Ulm, Minnesota
God’s Word for You – Psalm 5:7-12 God preserves us