“For a cup is in the hand of the LORD, and the wine foams; It is well mixed, and He pours out of this; Surely all the wicked of the earth will drain and drink down its dregs.” (Psalms 75:8)
Leave it to Asaph to deliver that often forgotten and yet sobering truth. God is holy. God is just. Therefore God will absolutely and totally and thoroughly judge all sinners. This cup in the hand of the LORD is the cup of His wrath. Go read the book of Revelation, specifically chapter 16 and see the effects of God pouring out His bowls of wrath upon the earth. His judgment is not to be taken lightly. He holds the cup and the wine foams because it is well mixed. He has left nothing out. And He pours out of this for this is no idle threat. God will in fact pour out His wrath upon the wicked. And the wicked will feel it. Surely all the wicked of the earth will drain and drink down its dregs. They won’t miss one drop. All the wrath, all the fury, all the pain, all the suffering, all the judgment; they will taste it all. God is not to be trifled with, and He is most certainly not to be ignored. God is the Judge (vs. 7)
This was the reality I pondered this morning as I read. Honestly I crumpled under the thought. I tremble at the reality. God is in fact a holy and righteous judge who does not overlook sin nor fail to give the wicked all that they deserve. Wishing away the wrath of God or minimizing the extent of judgment does no one any favors. Judgment is real and it is coming. No wonder Jesus told us not to fear him who can destroy the body but not the soul, and that instead we should fear Him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matthew 10:28) Judgment is real and it horrifying!
And that is what makes the end of this Psalm seem somewhat peculiar. Verses 9-10 say, “But as for me, I will declare it forever; I will sing praises to the God of Jacob. And all the horns of the wicked He will cut off, But the horns of the righteous will be lifted up.”
Seriously? You just outlined the terrible judgment of God and your response is to “declare it forever” and to “sing praises”? I think we could understand that response if Asaph had just spoken of the mercy of God or the grace of God or the love of God or the patience of God or the provision of God or any other number of His favorite realities, but Asaph is pledging to praise God for His judgment. What is more, Asaph pledges to let this be the message forever on his lips. It almost sounds like he actually loves this message. And here is the truth…he does love it! Let me show you why.
Verse 10, “And all the horns of the wicked He will cut off, But the horns of the righteous will be lifted up.” Now first let me remind you, if you just read that verse and you assumed that you were the righteous and that other people are the wicked you’ve already misread the verse. You have deluded yourself. There is none righteous, not even one. (Romans 3:10) Take inventory for a second if you must. Can you really look back over the course of your life and honestly declare that you are righteous? I’m not even talking about the common “I’m a good person” concept. I’m talking absolute flawless perfection. Righteousness like God is righteous. Would you really say that you fit the bill? Not if you are honest. There is no way that any of us can claim to be the righteous who anticipate being lifted up. We are the wicked in this verse. The wicked who Asaph said in verses 4 and 5 have boasted and lifted up our sinful horn in pride and done what we wished regardless of the righteous ordinances of God. SO HOW IN THE WORLD IS ASAPH REJOICING IN THIS?
Because Asaph understands the gospel! 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” Look at the end of that Psalm again.
“And all the horns of the wicked will be cut off,” – That’s Christ because of us.
“But the horns of the righteous will be lifted up.” – That’s us because of Christ.
It was Christ who on the cross drained the cup of God’s wrath to the dregs. He suffered the full fury of God’s judgment for every sin ever committed for every one of God’s children who would ever believe. On the cross God treated that righteous man as though He had lived my sinful life so that now God can treat this sinful man as though I had lived His holy life. And that is why I can rejoice with Asaph and commit to declare this forever.
Oh don’t overlook God’s holy wrath and judgment! Proclaiming the judgment of God is to proclaim the salvation of Christ! It is to allow us to focus on the glory of what Christ has done for us! “But as for me, I will declare if forever; I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.”
We love to declare God’s wrath because it elevates the work that Jesus accomplished for us on the cross! And when I look at the cross I am overwhelmed with praise!
Grace to You!
