My Consolation In Evil Days
Psalms 94
January 17, 2021
Tonight we approach a Psalm that I have been eager to reach.
It has been a Psalm which has been
MY PERSONAL CONSOLATION many times over.
We live in evil days.
• Our culture is filled with violence
• Our culture is filled with corruption
• Our culture is filled with immorality
• We live in a nation of abortion
• We live in a nation of sexual deviation
• We live in a world of human trafficking
On a daily basis I feel very much like the Bible says Lot felt in Sodom.
2 Peter 2:8 “(for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds),”
That is a perfect description.
• I have a tormented soul regarding the world in which we live.
• I long more now for the return of Christ than I have ever longed in my life.
• I have such an intense craving for a city in which righteousness dwells.
Hebrews 13:14 “For here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come.”
2 Peter 3:13 “But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.”
I (at least in some ways) understand the groaning of Jesus who would say:
Mark 9:19 “And He answered them and said, “O unbelieving generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you?”
This world is a depressing place to be.
Evil runs rampant and appears to be unchecked.
And we, as we have said many times before
Are held in check by the commands of God.
Matthew 5:43-45 “You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.’ “But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”
• We know that we are called to love and pray.
• We don’t get to attack either verbally or physically.
• We are called to be like our Father, who despite His wrath toward humanity,
still maintains basic benevolence toward them.
Even in their rebellion God SUSTAINS their life, PROVIDES them with food and clothing. He sends rain and sunshine on the just and the unjust.
God is kind and merciful to evil men.
And we are called to be His children in this world.
Our behavior is clearly mapped out for us.
• We pray for them (mostly for their repentance)
• We show love and consideration toward them.
• We turn the other cheek
• We go the extra mile
That has never been in question
Regarding our Christian duty in this sinful world.
We have also often times referenced the reminder of Paul who said:
Romans 12:19 “Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY,” says the Lord.”
We’ve said it before, but we say it over and over again.
It is extremely hard to live like Jesus in a sinful world.
His meekness is perhaps the hardest attribute to emulate.
• He was omnipotent
• He could do whatever He wanted
• He could stop any person He wanted to stop
• And yet, this omnipotent God-Man willfully submitted Himself to the scorn and
abuse of sinners.
BUT THIS IS THE CALLING
1 Peter 2:21-23 “For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, WHO COMMITTED NO SIN, NOR WAS ANY DECEIT FOUND IN HIS MOUTH; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously;”
But humbling ourselves as we watch the world
Grow all the more wicked is incredibly difficult.
THE PSALMIST AGREED.
Hence the infamous (3) “How long shall the wicked, O LORD, how long shall the wicked exult?”
It’s getting old.
And in his frustration he has turned to God.
As we have said repeatedly, THIS IS WHAT WE DO.
This is why I love the imprecatory Psalms.
• I love being able to lay out my raw emotions and indignation before God.
• I can so identify with that widow in Luke 18 who continually went before that unrighteous judge asking for justice.
• God has given us many great Psalms to pray that we can lay right at His feet.
• We don’t go beat up our enemies. Instead, we deal with our anger and frustration by laying it at the feet of our just Judge.
Well that is certainly what our Psalmist is doing,
And in doing so, HE HAS FOUND GREAT CONSOLATION.
(17-19) “If the LORD had not been my help, My soul would soon have dwelt in the abode of silence. If I should say, “My foot has slipped,” Your lovingkindness, O LORD, will hold me up. When my anxious thoughts multiply within me, Your consolations delight my soul.”
So, if you’re angry…
• If you’re anxious…
• If you’re defeated…
• If you’re impatient…
• If you’re frustrated…
Here’s the Psalm for you that will bring consolation
To a troubled soul during evil days.
Now, I do want to give you a backdrop passage.
This isn’t a cultural backdrop, it’s a theological one.
• I can’t line up for you the historical event that has prompted this Psalm,
• But I do think I can give you the scripture that has prompted it.
• I think I can give you the passage that has inspired this specific prayer from the Psalmist.
TURN TO: DEUTERONOMY 32
• Deuteronomy 32 is a song of Moses.
• It is highly prophetic about where Israel is headed
• And it is a warning about how they shouldn’t go there
We actually see the motivation for this song in the previous chapter.
Deuteronomy 31:26-29 “Take this book of the law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, that it may remain there as a witness against you. “For I know your rebellion and your stubbornness; behold, while I am still alive with you today, you have been rebellious against the LORD; how much more, then, after my death? “Assemble to me all the elders of your tribes and your officers, that I may speak these words in their hearing and call the heavens and the earth to witness against them. “For I know that after my death you will act corruptly and turn from the way which I have commanded you; and evil will befall you in the latter days, for you will do that which is evil in the sight of the LORD, provoking Him to anger with the work of your hands.”
Perhaps you can call him a pessimist, Moses was certainly a realist.
He had led these people for 40 years
And he knew exactly what kind of people they were.
He knew that rebellion was coming.
In as a prophetic warning, Moses wrote this song in chapter 32.
It is long, but we can cover it quickly and you’ll get the gist of it pretty easily.
(1-4) – Opening Praise
(5) – Announces that Israel are illegitimate and corrupt children.
(6-14) – The rebellion is undeserved since God has done so much good.
Obviously Moses is speaking prophetically there
Since Israel wasn’t even in the land yet.
(15-18) – Israel’s prophetic idolatrous rebellion.
(19-25) – This is the coming punishment of God that will follow their rebellion
(26-27) – God announces that their sin would have been enough to actually destroy them, but He doesn’t want the nations thinking that He has been defeated.
But God is going to use foreign nations to chastise and punish Israel.
(28-33) – This is about Israel’s enemies. God says that those enemies should have realized that God was helping them when they punished Israel. And that this understanding would cause them to (29) “discern their future”.
But those foreign nations won’t.
They will afflict God’s people without mercy and without repentance.
• SO we have Israel who has offended God
• And who has brought on themselves the chastisement of foreign nations.
• Those nations fail to realize that God remains for Israel
• And are afflicting them beyond God’s intent.
(34-36) – God will respond to their chastisement by punishing those foreign nations.
Hopefully you noticed that verse that Paul quoted, “Vengeance is Mine”
(37-43) – And God will make it clear to everyone that He was the One who both chastised and delivered Israel.
• SO it is a song about the sin and failure of Israel.
• It is a song about how God will use the wicked to chastise.
• It is a song about how God will then vindicate His children and punish the wicked.
• It is a song about how God will ultimately be glorified and worshiped.
And now when we work through Psalms 94 you’ll see that
It is rather obvious that the Psalmist had this song in mind.
They also are chastised by the godless…
They also are eagerly awaiting the vengeance of God…
Their consolation is found in the promise that God will bring it.
Well, let’s look at this Psalm and the consolation it brings.
There are actually 4 truths here that console our Psalmist,
And they will console you in a wicked world as well.
#1 WHAT GOD HATES
Psalms 94:1-7
What we are saying here is that
The Psalmist is actually consoled and comforted
Because he knows what God hates.
And it is this knowledge that actually fuels his imprecatory request.
(You don’t ask God for vengeance if you don’t know that He is against it)
He cries out:
“O LORD, God of vengeance”
And we stop there because we get a theological description of God.
The LORD is the “God of vengeance”
He is also referred to as:
• God of forgiveness (Neh 9:17)
• God of righteousness (Ps 4:1)
• God of truth (Ps 31:5)
• God of salvation (Is 17:10)
• God of justice (Is 30:18)
• God of hope (Rom 15:13)
• God of peace (Rom 15:33)
• God of all comfort (2 Cor 1:3)
• God of love (2 Cor 13:11)
• God of all grace (1 Peter 5:10)
And most of those we are familiar with,
But we do not lose sight of the fact that
He is also the “God of vengeance”
He is the God who avenges His own.
He is the God who repays His enemies.
That is NOT a contradiction to His mercy.
His mercy is readily available to all who repent.
Psalms 7:11-13 “God is a righteous judge, And a God who has indignation every day. If a man does not repent, He will sharpen His sword; He has bent His bow and made it ready. He has also prepared for Himself deadly weapons; He makes His arrows fiery shafts.”
And the Psalmist knows this.
In fact, it is his consolation.
• He knows that God is NOT a corrupt judge.
• He knows that God is NOT one who refuses to see evidence
• He knows that God is NOT one who refuses to deliver out justice
And so he prays:
“God of vengeance, shine forth! Rise up, O Judge of the earth, Render recompense to the proud.”
By now you know that such prayers are NOT anti-christian,
But are rather a blessing to the Christian.
• We do not take our own revenge…
• That Luke 18 widow did not try to kill her legal opponent…
• But we do go before our righteous Judge.
And our Psalmist goes before God because he knows what God hates.
(3-7) “How long shall the wicked, O LORD, How long shall the wicked exult? They pour forth words, they speak arrogantly; All who do wickedness vaunt themselves. They crush Your people, O LORD, And afflict Your heritage. They slay the widow and the stranger And murder the orphans. They have said, “The LORD does not see, Nor does the God of Jacob pay heed.”
Are you picking up on his complaint?
We’ve actually seen something similar to this recently in Luke,
Though granted the example we saw was a dishonest one.
But consider for a moment the trial of Jesus before the Sanhedrin.
Remember they condemned Him because He claimed to be God.
But when they hauled Jesus before Pilate, and Pilate asked why He deserved to die, what was the answer?
Luke 23:2 “And they began to accuse Him, saying, “We found this man misleading our nation and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, and saying that He Himself is Christ, a King.”
Now why did they tell Pilate about taxes and insurrection?
That clearly wasn’t the consensus at their trial.
Because they wanted vengeance from Pilate.
But in order to receive it they needed to appeal to something Pilate hated.
Pilate didn’t care that Jesus claimed to be God,
But Pilate did hate people who didn’t pay taxes or who revolted against Rome.
It is a similar thing happening here with our Psalmist.
He is able to cry for vengeance because he knows what God hates.
We have the wicked boasting and speaking arrogantly, crushing God’s people, saying widows and orphans, and thinking God doesn’t see it.
And the Psalmist knows how God feels about all those things.
Jeremiah 50:31 “Behold, I am against you, O arrogant one,” Declares the Lord GOD of hosts, “For your day has come, The time when I will punish you.”
Psalms 5:5 “The boastful shall not stand before Your eyes; You hate all who do iniquity.”
Psalms 11:5 “The LORD tests the righteous and the wicked, And the one who loves violence His soul hates.”
Proverbs 6:16-19 “There are six things which the LORD hates, Yes, seven which are an abomination to Him: Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, And hands that shed innocent blood, A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that run rapidly to evil, A false witness who utters lies, And one who spreads strife among brothers.”
Zechariah 2:8 “For thus says the LORD of hosts, “After glory He has sent me against the nations which plunder you, for he who touches you, touches the apple of His eye.”
Isaiah 1:17 “Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, Plead for the widow.”
You see why he is able to come before God during this evil time,
And that is because he is confident that God hates it.
And we understand that.
• We live in a day where innocent blood is shed in massive amounts.
• But we have no problem at all praying for God to avenge those infants who
have been murdered because we know God hates it.
As grievous as the sin is,
It is actually consoling to us to know that our God hates it too.
And I can pray for vengeance on the shedding of innocent blood
BECAUSE I KNOW WHO GOD IS.
I would have despaired if I thought God didn’t care.
But my consolation is to know that
He most certainly does and that He will avenge.
What God hates is a consolation to the Psalmist and it is to me as well.
#2 WHAT GOD HEARS
Psalms 94:8-11
The Psalmist revealed in verse 7 that these wicked are so smug.
They think they are getting away with everything.
They sin, they oppress, they speak arrogantly, they shed innocent blood,
They attack the weak and helpless and they THINK NO ONE KNOWS.
If that were true, it would crush my soul.
BUT IT IS NOT TRUE.
The Judge of all the earth knows!
(He hears)
(8-11) “Pay heed, you senseless among the people; And when will you understand, stupid ones? He who planted the ear, does He not hear? He who formed the eye, does He not see? He who chastens the nations, will He not rebuke, Even He who teaches man knowledge? The LORD knows the thoughts of man, That they are a mere breath.”
They think they get away with it,
But nothing could be further from the truth.
Do they really think the One who created the ear doesn’t hear?
Matthew 12:36 “But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment.”
Do they really think the One who created the eye doesn’t see?
Psalms 11:4 “The LORD is in His holy temple; the LORD’S throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men.”
Amos 9:8a “Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD are on the sinful kingdom, And I will destroy it from the face of the earth…”
Proverbs 5:21 “For the ways of a man are before the eyes of the LORD, And He watches all his paths.”
Proverbs 15:3 “The eyes of the LORD are in every place, Watching the evil and the good.”
David reminded us:
Psalms 139:1-6 “O LORD, You have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You understand my thought from afar. You scrutinize my path and my lying down, And are intimately acquainted with all my ways. Even before there is a word on my tongue, Behold, O LORD, You know it all. You have enclosed me behind and before, And laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is too high, I cannot attain to it.”
GOD KNOWS ALL.
He even judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
And do we really think that the God who has judged nations has somehow lost His nerve?
• Do we really think that the God who flooded the earth refuses to judge?
• Do we really think that the God who rained fire on Sodom won’t kill?
• Do we really think that the God who crushed Egypt won’t punish?
It’s absurd!
God knows the futile thoughts of man
And He will most certainly punish them.
AND THAT IS A CONSOLATION TO US.
The God who avenges knows every evil deed.
Revelation 20:12 “And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.”
What God Hates & What God Hears
#3 WHO GOD HELPS
Psalms 94:12-16
Here the Psalm takes an interesting turn,
Because the focus has now left the arrogant oppressor
AND THE PSALMIST LOOKS INWARD.
And he begins with a sobering beatitude.
(12) “Blessed is the man whom You chasten, O LORD, And whom You teach out of Your law;”
Now if you’ll remember that song of Moses we opened with
• You’ll remember that the very point of that song was to point out to Israel the danger of idolatry.
• Moses was very clear that if Israel defected from God into idolatry that they would be chastised for it.
• The purpose was not destruction, but ultimately redemption.
Well, here we find the Psalmist listing that very silver lining.
He sees the recent persecution as being “chastened”.
He sees that God has used this enemy to “chasten” Israel
And to refocus them on God.
And the Psalmist even lists the goal of this chastening.
(13) “That You may grant him relief from the days of adversity, Until a pit is dug for the wicked.”
God chastened this man to turn him back to Himself
Namely so that he would be saved from further adversity.
In other words, it has been a little hardship now
To save you from greater hardship later.
And the Psalmist says that it good news.
That is a blessing.
And it only reiterates to him that God is for Him and God cares.
(14-15) “For the LORD will not abandon His people, Nor will He forsake His inheritance. For judgment will again be righteous, And all the upright in heart will follow it.”
So here is what the Psalmist knows.
• Does God chastise His people? Yes
• Does God use that chastisement for their good? Yes
• And ultimately, God will never forsake His people, regardless of their sin.
I often find comfort in this promise regarding Israel that Paul quotes.
• Speaking in reference to Israel’s murder of Jesus and them being broken off.
• Paul reminds that regardless of this heinous sin,
• And even though God has surely chastised them for it,
• God has not forgotten them.
Romans 11:2a “God has not rejected His people whom He foreknew.”
He goes on to say:
Romans 11:25-27 “For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery — so that you will not be wise in your own estimation — that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, “THE DELIVERER WILL COME FROM ZION, HE WILL REMOVE UNGODLINESS FROM JACOB.” “THIS IS MY COVENANT WITH THEM, WHEN I TAKE AWAY THEIR SINS.”
THAT COMFORTS ME even though I am not Jewish
Because I realize that I, like they, absolutely deserve to be abandoned.
If God would not abandon them, He will not abandon me either.
Matthew 28:20b “…and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Is that a consolation to you?
It is to me.
In the midst of evil days I am so glad to know that GOD HATES EVIL TOO.
In the midst of evil days I am so glad to know GOD KNOWS WHAT IS GOING ON.
In the midst of evil days I am so glad to know GOD HAS WILLED TO HELP US.
That being the case, I love verse 16.
(16) “Who will stand up for me against evildoers? Who will take his stand for me against those who do wickedness?”
That’s a little hard to understand exactly what he means.
This is NOT a statement of despair.
He has just emphatically stated that God won’t leave him.
It is best to read this verse like this: “Who [else] will stand up for me against evildoers? Who [else] will take his stand for me against those who do wickedness?”
The answer is – NO ONE
God alone is our hope, God alone is our help.
But that is a tremendous comfort.
Psalms 20:7 “Some boast in chariots and some in horses, But we will boast in the name of the LORD, our God.”
Psalms 37:35-40 “I have seen a wicked, violent man Spreading himself like a luxuriant tree in its native soil. Then he passed away, and lo, he was no more; I sought for him, but he could not be found. Mark the blameless man, and behold the upright; For the man of peace will have a posterity. But transgressors will be altogether destroyed; The posterity of the wicked will be cut off. But the salvation of the righteous is from the LORD; He is their strength in time of trouble. The LORD helps them and delivers them; He delivers them from the wicked and saves them, Because they take refuge in Him.”
That is such a consolation.
• God hates the evil of our world
• God hears and knows all about it
• God has chosen to help us
One more consolation
#4 WHO GOD HIDES
Psalms 94:17-23
You certainly love his response to the truth of God’s help.
(17) “If the LORD had not been my help, My soul would soon have dwelt in the abode of silence.”
That is to say, “If I couldn’t count on God I’d fall into a bottomless depression and hopelessness.”
THAT’S TRUE.
It is God’s help alone that satisfies and encourages our soul.
We count on nothing else.
It echoes:
Psalms 27:13-14 “I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD In the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the LORD.”
And that is why the Psalmist goes on to say:
(18-19) If I should say, “My foot has slipped,” Your lovingkindness, O LORD, will hold me up. When my anxious thoughts multiply within me, Your consolations delight my soul.”
• Ever feel like giving up?
• Ever get overwhelmed with discouraging despair?
Well the Psalmist says even when I would give up, God holds me up.
When I am overcome with my anxieties, God consoles me.
We aren’t holding ourselves, He is holding us.
That is such good news.
Jude 24 “Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy,”
Luke 22:31-32 “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.”
He is holding us. He is helping us.
And this cannot be said of the evil ones in our world.
Listen to his logical conclusion. There is comfort here.
(20-21) “Can a throne of destruction be allied with You, One which devises mischief by decree? They band themselves together against the life of the righteous And condemn the innocent to death.”
• He talks of this fierce enemy who attack the righteous and innocent.
• It is these same people who he described up in verses 1-7.
But here the question is this.
Knowing the level of their evil, is it even remotely possible for them to be on God’s side? Or for God to be on their side?
No, it is not possible.
“Can a throne of destruction be allied with You..?” NO
What does that mean?
God is definitely for us and God is definitely not for them.
THAT IS A CONSOLATION.
And that is why the Psalmist closes here.
(22-23) “But the LORD has been my stronghold, And my God the rock of my refuge. He has brought back their wickedness upon them And will destroy them in their evil; The LORD our God will destroy them.”
The picture is of the coming day of destruction.
The picture is of the day when all wickedness is brought to light and destroyed.
• On that day, these wicked whom God hates…
• On that day, these wicked whom God hears…
• On that day, these wicked whom God is opposed to…
“The LORD our God will destroy them.”
But for us who are oppressed…
• For us who are helped by God…
• For us whom God will not abandon…
• For us whom God is for…
GOD IS FOR US A HIDING PLACE
“But the LORD has been my stronghold, And my God the rock of my refuge.”
Psalms 18:30 “As for God, His way is blameless; The word of the LORD is tried; He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him.”
Psalms 34:22 “The LORD redeems the soul of His servants, And none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned.”
And that is also a consolation.
We certainly live in evil times,
And such evil is prone to lead us into anxiety, despair, and even hopelessness where we might be tempted to give up.
But God is for us.
• He hates the evil we hate
• He hears the evil we hear, it has not escaped Him
• He helps us His people
• He hides us from the coming judgment
LET THAT CONSOLE YOU IN AN EVIL WORLD.
He is a God of vengeance
And there is coming a day when His people will be avenged.
The Psalmist begins with a cry for vengeance
And he ends with absolute peace that it will occur.
2 Peter 2:4-10 “For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment; and did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; and if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter; and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds), then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment, and especially those who indulge the flesh in its corrupt desires and despise authority.”
