2 For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.
3 Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.
4 Delight thyself also in the LORD: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.
5 Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.
6 And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.
7 Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.
9 For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth.
10 For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.
11 But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
12 The wicked plotteth against the just, and gnasheth upon him with his teeth.
13 The LORD shall laugh at him: for he seeth that his day is coming.
14 The wicked have drawn out the sword, and have bent their bow, to cast down the poor and needy, and to slay such as be of upright conversation.
15 Their sword shall enter into their own heart, and their bows shall be broken.
16 A little that a righteous man hath is better than the riches of many wicked.
17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken: but the LORD upholdeth the righteous.
18 The LORD knoweth the days of the upright: and their inheritance shall be for ever.
19 They shall not be ashamed in the evil time: and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.
20 But the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the LORD shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away.
21 The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again: but the righteous sheweth mercy, and giveth.
22 For such as be blessed of him shall inherit the earth; and they that be cursed of him shall be cut off.
23 The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way.
24 Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand.
25 I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.
26 He is ever merciful, and lendeth; and his seed is blessed.
27 Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore.
28 For the LORD loveth judgment, and forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off.
29 The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever.
30 The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom, and his tongue talketh of judgment.
31 The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps shall slide.
32 The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh to slay him.
33 The LORD will not leave him in his hand, nor condemn him when he is judged.
34 Wait on the LORD, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.
35 I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree.
36 Yet he passed away, and, lo, he was not: yea, I sought him, but he could not be found.
37 Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace.
38 But the transgressors shall be destroyed together: the end of the wicked shall be cut off.
39 But the salvation of the righteous is of the LORD: he is their strength in the time of trouble.
40 And the LORD shall help them, and deliver them: he shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them, because they trust in him.
Key Verse:
37 Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace.
Key Observation:
This psalm is a double acrostic poem in Hebrew with two verses beginning with each letter of the alphabet.
Memory Verse:
23 The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way.
Devotion:
This is a magnificent psalm. I have long noticed the relationship between this psalm written by David and Psalm 73 written by Asaph. Both psalms deal with the subject of the prosperity and success of the wicked. Both psalms are beautiful and they make a wonderful study to put them side by side. I was delighted to notice that McGee noted their relationship to one another.
There is a whole field of theology that has interested men for ages. It is called theodicy. Theo means God, and dicy means justice. The problem of God and the evil in the world. Many ask where is the justice? How can a moral God allow this evil? Both of these psalms deal richly with this theme.
Christians need to remember that though this psalm has immense spiritual application to our living situations today, this psalm contains many promises directly to Israel. I do get aggravated when I hear false teaching telling us that the church has replaced Israel in all the promises of God. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of promises that God made to Israel—he did not make them to the church. God, who foreknows everything, and has designed the end from the beginning, knew that Israel would not receive his son. He made all of those promises to Israel, knowing that Israel would not do their part. Sometimes men teach that Israel disappointed God and thus the church was arranged as a back up plan of God. Not so! It is impossible that man should disappoint or in any way surprise God. This psalm tells us that God shall laugh at the wicked for He knows their end. One day the Lord is returning and the Bible specifically tells us that he will put his foot on the Mount of Olives, and so will begin his reign on earth through Israel. “The Lord will be king over the whole earth.” (Zech. 14:9)
Chafer says it this way:
“There is a sense in which the kingdom of God, as the rule of God in the hearts of individuals, is present in the world today. (italics mine) This should not be confused with the Messianic kingdom which is to be set up over a nation, and extended through them to all nations, with the King ruling, not in the individual heart, but on the throne of David, in the city of Jerusalem.”The Bible says it. Clearly. Your job is just to believe it. I do wonder how many of us will even be looking for his appearing on that day!
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