Psalm 4
1 Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness!
You have relieved me in my distress;
Have mercy on me, and hear my prayer.
2 How long, O you sons of men,
Will you turn my glory to shame?
How long will you love worthlessness
And seek falsehood? Selah
3 But know that the LORD has set apart[a] for Himself him who is godly;
The LORD will hear when I call to Him.
4 Be angry, and do not sin.
Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still. Selah
5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness,
And put your trust in the LORD.
6 There are many who say,
“Who will show us any good?”
LORD, lift up the light of Your countenance upon us.
7 You have put gladness in my heart,
More than in the season that their grain and wine increased.
8 I will both lie down in peace, and sleep;
For You alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.
You have relieved me in my distress;
Have mercy on me, and hear my prayer.
2 How long, O you sons of men,
Will you turn my glory to shame?
How long will you love worthlessness
And seek falsehood? Selah
3 But know that the LORD has set apart[a] for Himself him who is godly;
The LORD will hear when I call to Him.
4 Be angry, and do not sin.
Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still. Selah
5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness,
And put your trust in the LORD.
6 There are many who say,
“Who will show us any good?”
LORD, lift up the light of Your countenance upon us.
7 You have put gladness in my heart,
More than in the season that their grain and wine increased.
8 I will both lie down in peace, and sleep;
For You alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.
"How long, O you sons of men, Will you turn my glory to shame? How long will you love worthlessness And seek falsehood? Selah But know that the LORD has set apart for Himself him who is godly; The LORD will hear when I call to Him"--Psalm 4:2-3
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
As I mentioned in my previous post, David is being maligned and slandered by men who have turned against him and made Absalom king. David is speaking here to them, his enemies, and is referring to them aptly as sons of men. As I meditated on these words my mind went to psalm 2 which begins with: "Why do the nations rage and the people plot a vain thing. The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His Anointed..." Look at the contrast here...God and the sons of men are at opposite purposes. God had anointed David to be king not Absalom. Who do you think is going to win. Psalm 2 continues with "He who sits in the heavens shall laugh. The Lord shall hold them in derision. Then He shall speak to them in His wrath and distress them in His deep displeasure. Yet I have set My King on My Holy Hill of Zion." God would not be mocked or thwarted from His plans. His purposes would be served and the men who loved worthlessness and sought after lies would be dealt with for their sins.
Girls, when you are facing the fiery darts of the enemy do what David did. Acknowledge what is happening but then remember the Lord. David says it so beautifully in verse 3. "But know that the LORD has set apart for Himself him who is godly; The LORD will hear when I call to Him." The Lord is your shield and your exceedingly great reward. The sons of men were trying to throw dirt on the glory David had received from His Lord. Make no mistake here...if you are walking with the Lord in obedience to Him there will be mudslingers all around trying to dim your light by throwing dirt or perhaps trying to provoke you to anger in some way so that your witness is compromised. Purpose in your heart ahead of time to respond in love...to be gracious...By faith know that the Lord 's purposes will be served and those who are in opposition will pay dearly for their sins. God is the witness and the defender of your righteous cause. He keeps those who trust Him as the apple of His eye. The Lord will hear him who is godly when he calls. The enemy's efforts are futile. The enemy cannot win. If God is for us who can successfully be against us?? The battle is not ours..it is His and it was won at the cross.
Do not go after worthless and vain things. They will not profit here or in heaven. Israel comes to mind here when they asked God to put a king over them. Here is the section from 1 Samuel 12.
"I will call to the LORD, and He will send thunder and rain, that you may perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the LORD, in asking a king for yourselves.” So Samuel called to the LORD, and the LORD sent thunder and rain that day; and all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel. And all the people said to Samuel, “Pray for your servants to the LORD your God, that we may not die; for we have added to all our sins the evil of asking a king for ourselves.” Then Samuel said to the people, “Do not fear. You have done all this wickedness; yet do not turn aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart. And do not turn aside; for then you would go after empty things which cannot profit or deliver, for they are nothing. For the LORD will not forsake His people, for His great name’s sake, because it has pleased the LORD to make you His people. Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you; but I will teach you the good and the right way. Only fear the LORD, and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you. But if you still do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both you and your king.”
Israel had the God of the Universe ruling them with His perfect love and perfect justice, but they insisted on going after worthlessness and lies. They wanted to be like the world and specifically the other nations around them. God gave them what they wanted. A human king. Such blindness we think. We, however, cannot judge. Look closely at your lives. See the things that you go after that are full of emptiness and not only do not profit but whose end is destruction. See your own discontented spirit in your complaining and your lack of thankfulness or in your dissatisfaction in the things the Lord has blessed you with. Truly only one thing profits both here and in eternity. Mat 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Mat 6:19 "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal."
Nothing else matters.... “ Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher, “ All is vanity.”.... Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, For this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, Including every secret thing, Whether good or evil."
Love
Mom
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
As I mentioned in my previous post, David is being maligned and slandered by men who have turned against him and made Absalom king. David is speaking here to them, his enemies, and is referring to them aptly as sons of men. As I meditated on these words my mind went to psalm 2 which begins with: "Why do the nations rage and the people plot a vain thing. The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His Anointed..." Look at the contrast here...God and the sons of men are at opposite purposes. God had anointed David to be king not Absalom. Who do you think is going to win. Psalm 2 continues with "He who sits in the heavens shall laugh. The Lord shall hold them in derision. Then He shall speak to them in His wrath and distress them in His deep displeasure. Yet I have set My King on My Holy Hill of Zion." God would not be mocked or thwarted from His plans. His purposes would be served and the men who loved worthlessness and sought after lies would be dealt with for their sins.
Girls, when you are facing the fiery darts of the enemy do what David did. Acknowledge what is happening but then remember the Lord. David says it so beautifully in verse 3. "But know that the LORD has set apart for Himself him who is godly; The LORD will hear when I call to Him." The Lord is your shield and your exceedingly great reward. The sons of men were trying to throw dirt on the glory David had received from His Lord. Make no mistake here...if you are walking with the Lord in obedience to Him there will be mudslingers all around trying to dim your light by throwing dirt or perhaps trying to provoke you to anger in some way so that your witness is compromised. Purpose in your heart ahead of time to respond in love...to be gracious...By faith know that the Lord 's purposes will be served and those who are in opposition will pay dearly for their sins. God is the witness and the defender of your righteous cause. He keeps those who trust Him as the apple of His eye. The Lord will hear him who is godly when he calls. The enemy's efforts are futile. The enemy cannot win. If God is for us who can successfully be against us?? The battle is not ours..it is His and it was won at the cross.
Do not go after worthless and vain things. They will not profit here or in heaven. Israel comes to mind here when they asked God to put a king over them. Here is the section from 1 Samuel 12.
"I will call to the LORD, and He will send thunder and rain, that you may perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the LORD, in asking a king for yourselves.” So Samuel called to the LORD, and the LORD sent thunder and rain that day; and all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel. And all the people said to Samuel, “Pray for your servants to the LORD your God, that we may not die; for we have added to all our sins the evil of asking a king for ourselves.” Then Samuel said to the people, “Do not fear. You have done all this wickedness; yet do not turn aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart. And do not turn aside; for then you would go after empty things which cannot profit or deliver, for they are nothing. For the LORD will not forsake His people, for His great name’s sake, because it has pleased the LORD to make you His people. Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you; but I will teach you the good and the right way. Only fear the LORD, and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you. But if you still do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both you and your king.”
Israel had the God of the Universe ruling them with His perfect love and perfect justice, but they insisted on going after worthlessness and lies. They wanted to be like the world and specifically the other nations around them. God gave them what they wanted. A human king. Such blindness we think. We, however, cannot judge. Look closely at your lives. See the things that you go after that are full of emptiness and not only do not profit but whose end is destruction. See your own discontented spirit in your complaining and your lack of thankfulness or in your dissatisfaction in the things the Lord has blessed you with. Truly only one thing profits both here and in eternity. Mat 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Mat 6:19 "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal."
Nothing else matters.... “ Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher, “ All is vanity.”.... Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, For this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, Including every secret thing, Whether good or evil."
Love
Mom
Col 3:15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.
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