Psalms 62-65

Psalm 62:1-12

To the chief Musician, to Jeduthun, A Psalm of David.

“Truly my soul waiteth upon God:  from him cometh my salvation.  He only is my rock, and my salvation; he is my defense; I shall not be greatly moved.  How long will ye imagine mischief against a man?  ye shall be slain all of you:  as a bowing wall shall ye be, and as a tottering fence.  They only consult to cast him down from his excellency:  they delight in lies:  they bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly.  Selah.  My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him.  He only is my defence; I shall not be moved.  In God is my salvation and my glory:  the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.  Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him:  God is a refuge for us.  Selah.  Surely men of low degree are vanity, and men of high degree are a lie:  to be laid in the balance, they are altogether lighter than vanity.  Trust not in oppression, and become not vain in robbery:  if riches increase, set not your heart upon them.  God hath spoken once; twice have I heard this; that power belongeth unto God.  Also unto thee, O Lord, belongeth mercy:  for thou renderest to every man according to his work.”

Introduction

“Psalm 62, “To the chief Musician,” sung publicly, “to Jeduthun,” you can find him, one of the song leaders, it’s “A Psalm of David.”  And it is a song about waiting upon God.  No doubt it is during great trial, sometimes without a specific title, we don’t know if it’s David pursued by Saul, like a partridge on the mountains, he said in the days coming up to him taking the throne.  We don’t know if it’s during the days of Absalom when there was rebellion and David was driven from the throne, but certainly this is written during a period of great trial.  So we can all relate to that, as we look at it.  We want to take note of certain things here. 

‘My Soul Quiets Itself, Stills Itself Only Before God’

In verse 1, the word “Truly” there should be translated “Only”, ah, it says “Only” the idea is, “My soul waiteth only upon God”, you’ll see it repeated in verse 5, “My soul, wait thou only upon God,”  Down in verse 2, you’ll see the word “He only is my rock and my salvation,”  Look at verse 4, “They only”, ah, down in verse 6, “He only is my rock”, ah, verse 9, where is says “Surely” that’s the same word, “Only”, so there’s a lot of only’s in this Psalm, and you want to take note of that.  For some reason it’s repeated over and over.  The first verse to the fourth verse kind of tell us about trusting God in the trial itself.  Ah, “Truly my soul waiteth upon God” it is “My soul waiteth only upon God” and the “waiteth” there, it’s not like ‘I’m an American, and I’m impatient,’ one of the things my wife always challenges me on, “You’re so impatient.”  “I AM NOT!” You know, you’re so impatient, whether it’s a check-out stand or in traffic.  But this idea here of waiting is ‘to be silent, to sit before the LORD silently.’  And in that it says, ‘My soul settles itself and is silent only before God.’  Not before any other circumstance, not before any other promise, not before any other thing that seems like it might be the answer to my problems or my heartache.  ‘My soul quiets itself, stills itself only before God.’  Look, remarkable place to be.  We are so cluttered, there’s so much noise.  How often do we sit quiet, to the point where it’s so quiet your ears are ringing [I’m old, they do that all the time]?  And even when you’re in the house alone, you put the TV on, so there’s something going on, you get freaked out.  The house you live in, and that you’re completely familiar with, if you sit in that house with nobody in it, and you don’t put a sound on, the house makes noises that will freak you out, because you’re not used to listening to them.  But it creaks and it moans, it does all kinds of things, and you get freaked out.  He says ‘My soul silences itself only before God.’  “from him cometh my salvation.  He only is my rock and my salvation; he is my defense; I shall not be greatly moved.” (verses 1b-2)  You know, ‘Only God, my defense, my strength, my stronghold, nothing else, and because of that I shall not be greatly moved.  I might be a little moved, but not greatly moved.’  And the word “moved” there is actually “faltered,” it’s in a sense of stumbling, not just being moved.  ‘I shall not greatly falter.  I’m struggling, this is a hard time, I might make a mistake, I might falter some, but not greatly, because God is my only source of consolation, I’m trusting him.’ 

Where’s The Only Place You Get Silent, The Only Place Where You Settle Yourself?

Now to those who are threatening, “How long will ye imagine mischief against man?  ye shall be slain all of you:  as a bowing wall shall ye be, and as a tottering fence.” (verse 3)  ‘As a wall that starts to bow and you know it’s going to give way and going to collapse, shall ye be, and as a tottering fence.’ Now these are the wicked, “They only consult to cast him down from his excellency:  they delight in lies:  they bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly.  Selah.” (verse 4)  ‘Selah, i.e. what do you think about that?’  ‘I only trust him, I only get quiet before the him, he only is my strength, they only plant bad things, they only lie, they say something nice, but inside they got all kinds of rotten stuff going on.  What do you think about that?’  I got an only, and they got an only.  Does your only weigh more than their only?  Because people are going to do this about you, they’re going to come after you, they’re going to say stuff.  But what’s your only?  What’s your only defense, the only place you get silent, the only place you settle yourself?  David tells us that. 

‘Trust In The LORD At All Times’

He says in verse 5, he comes now, there’s trusting the LORD in trial, here he speaks really of the security, the sense of it, and you look at verse 5 and 6, they’re almost identical to verses 1 and 2.  “My soul only waiteth upon God” that’s what verse 5 [literally] says, “My soul, only waiteth upon God;” then he says, “my expectation is from him.” (verse 5)  in verse 1 he said “from him cometh my salvation.”  Which obviously is his expectation.  Then in verse 6, interesting, he says, “He only is my rock and my salvation:” you’ll see that in verse 2,  “he is my defense; I shall not be greatly moved.”  So you see there’s a slight difference here.  They’re saying the same thing.  In verse 1, he says “my soul waiteth only upon God” he said here, he says, “My soul, wait thou” he’s exhorting himself, he’s talking to himself.  He’s talking about “My soul, wait thou only upon God;”  There in verse 1 that his soul in fact “waits only upon God,” verse 5 here he’s talking to his soul, and he says “My soul, wait thou only upon God;” he’s reaffirming, “for my expectation is from him.”  He says in verse 6, “He only is my rock and my salvation:  he is my defense;” and notice now, he says, “I shall not be moved.” (verse 6c)  In the end of verse 2 he says “I shall not be greatly moved.”  I might move this way or that way a little bit.  Now he says, ‘I’m not gonna be moved at all, I’m not gonna be moved at all, I shall not be moved.’  “In God is my salvation and my glory:  the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.” then he turns to us, “Trust in him at all times; ye people pour out your heart before him:  God is a refuge for us.  Selah.” (verses 7-8)  ‘Selah, what do you think about that?’  He speaks to us from his struggle, he says “Trust in him at all times; ye people…”  Look, I’m not saying that.  If you’re sitting here this evening and say ‘That’s easy for you to say,’ I didn’t say it.  He said it.  And it wasn’t easy for him to say.  He’s getting chased with weapons, with armies, with great difficulties.  He can’t call the police, there were no police.  “Trust in him at all times,” it’s tough, I know, people.  What do you do in that process of trusting?  He says this, “pour out your heart before him.”  If you believe that he’s there, you commune with him, you’ll sit before him.  “pour out your heart before him:  God is a refuge for us.  Selah.” (verse 8b)  ‘God is a refuge for us.  What do you think about that?’ 

‘Men Of Low Degree, High Degree, They’re All Alike, Lighter Than Vanity’

Now he talks of the reality of it all in the rest of the Psalm.  Again, the King James says “Surely men of low degree are vanity,”  the Hebrew says, “Only vanity are men of low degree” what does that mean?  Human-kind, there’s only vanity there.  “Only vanity are men of low degree, and men of high degree” that you might admire, look up to, or covet what they have, or be envious of, he says “and men of high degree are a lie:” they’re an illusion, “to be laid in the balance, they are altogether lighter than vanity.” (verse 9)  King James says “altogether” the Hebrew says “they are alike”    the idea is ‘the man of low degree, the man of high degree, ultimately they’re all laid in the balances, they’re all alike, lighter than vanity.’  The human being in all of his glory, verses the poorest man that is the’ most downtrodden, when they take the last breath, they’re all made of the same stuff, they’re all lighter than vanity.  When it comes to sitting before God or standing  before him, and they’re laid in the balances, and their lives are weighed out, he says, it’s all an illusion, they’re all lighter than vanity. 

‘Don’t Stomp On People To Get Where You Want To Go, And Don’t Trust In Riches’

He says this, “Trust not in oppression, and become not vain in robbery:  if riches increase, set not your heart upon them.” (verse 10)  The idea is, some people, you know, they’re so aggressive even to step on other people, some people are so, you know, they’re A-positive, they’re so, they’re Alpha-males, they’re so aggressive that they can put other people under their heals to get where they want to go.  He says, ‘Don’t trust in oppression,’ and he says, “and become not vain in robbery:”  King James says “in robbery”, the idea is ‘in riches, in being able to move ahead of other people with riches’  “if riches increase, set not your heart upon them.”  And the Bible never says there’s anything wrong with that, hard work, enjoying the fruit of your labour.  But he says but “if riches increase, set not your heart upon them.”  The idea is, don’t trust in them, don’t trust in them.  In other places it says ‘Riches take wings and fly away.’  We say ‘Money talks,’  Mine does, it says ‘Good-bye!’ all the time.  “God hath spoken once; twice have I heard this; that power belongeth unto God.” (verse 11) the idea is, you know, ‘God has said this, listen, I’ve heard it more than once,’ he says, “power belongeth unto God.”  It isn’t in being so aggressive you can step on other people in a dog-eat-dog world and getting ahead, it isn’t in trusting in riches, it isn’t in that you’re going to be higher than somebody else, he says, ‘here’s the truth, listen to it, I’ve heard it more than once, the truth is this, power belongs to God, not to men, not to man’s estimate of his fellow man.’  He says, “Also unto thee, O Lord, belongeth mercy:  for thou renderest to every man according to his work.” (verse 12)  ‘not just power and strength belongeth to you, but mercy, Lord, belongs to you, for thou renderest every man according to his work, you’re the one that sees what somebody’s really all about.’  You know, you can fool some of the people, but you can’t fool him, any time.” 

Psalm 63:1-11

A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah

“O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee:  my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is; to see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.  Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.  Thus will I bless thee while I live:  I will lift up my hands in thy name.  My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:  when I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.  Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.  My soul followeth hard after thee:  thy right hand upholdeth me.  But those that seek my soul, to destroy it, shall go into the lower parts of the earth.  They shall fall by the sword:  they shall be a portion for foxes.  But the king shall rejoice in God; every one that sweareth by him shall glory:  but the mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped.” 

Introduction: Gaining Satisfaction Of Soul In The Midst Of Trials

“Psalm 63, interesting song, it’s again, during a time of trial, in great trial.  It says , “when he” David, it’s a Psalm of David, “when he was in the wilderness of Judah”, again that can be before he takes the throne, it could be afterwards, but David again, fleeing at this time in his life, and he’s talking about trying to gain satisfaction of soul, in the middle of all of the things that are going on around him, he’s groping at, ‘I need to get peace inside.’  And that’s certainly a lesson for all of us, when outward circumstances are doing something completely different, sometimes we judge God by our circumstances, instead of judging our circumstances by God.  And David in this Psalm is saying, ‘You know what, in the middle of all it all, I want to find something with him that produces stability and satisfaction in my life.’  You know, don’t do it Mick Jagger’s way, because he can’t get nothin’, and hasn’t, obviously.  And David finds it in the middle of everything.  This Psalm, John Chrysostom, one of the Church Fathers, in the 3^rd century, said, that the primitive Church Fathers said that not a day was to go by in the Church without Psalm 63 being sung publicly at some point, the Church Father’s so, you know, inclined to this song.  [Comment:  From wikipedia.org we get “John Chrysostom…349-407 [AD] Archbishop of Constantinople, was an important Early Church Father…The Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Catholic churches honor him as a saint and count him among the Three Holy Hierarchs…Chrysostom wrote of the Jews and Judaizers in eight homilies, Adversus Judaeos (“against the Judaizers”).  Among his homilies, eight directed against Jews and Judaizing Christians are considered by some to have been an impetus to periodic bouts of Christian anti-Semitism.”  Under the wiki article titled “Adversus Judaeos” we get this, “During his two years as a presbyter in Antioch (386-387), Chrysostom denounced Jews and Judaizing Christians in a series of eight sermons delivered to Christians in his congregation who were taking part in Jewish festivals and other Jewish observances…One of the purposes of those homilies was to prevent Christians from participating in Jewish customs, and thus prevent the perceived erosion of Chrysostom’s flock.  In his sermons, Chrysostom criticized those “Judaizing Christians”, who were participating in Jewish festivals and taking part in other Jewish observances, such as observing the sabbath, submitting to circumcision and pilgrimage to Jewish holy places…The most recent scholarly translations, claiming that Chrysostom’s primary targets were members of his own congregation who continued to observe the Jewish feasts and fasts, give the sermons the more sympathetic title Against Judaizing Christians.” (emphasis mine)  Considering this was a “Catholic Father” who was rabidly anti-Semitic and rabidly anti-Sabbatarian in his preaching, one also who was first to level the accusation against the Jews of being responsible for killing Christ, initiating 1700 years of anti-Semitic pogroms and genocide against the Jewish race, I don’t feel comfortable quoting anything this man had to say.  The early Sabbath-keeping churches of God were hounded and driven underground by men like this, from the time of this man’s “ministry” onward, and the very church I attend is historically descended from these Sabbath-keeping churches of God in Asia Minor of the 300s AD.  The early Christian churches of God under the apostles, including Paul, were Sabbath and Holy Day observing, the very things John Chrysostom rabidly preached against, setting off 1700 years of murder and mayhem against the Jews, all in the name of Christ, who himself was a Jew.  Hmmm, something wrong here folks, historically speaking.  For more evidence on what the real Early Church was like, see http://www.unityinchrist.com/history2/index3.htm Sorry, Pastor Joe, I have to take issue with you here about using a quote from John Chrysostom.]   

I Need To Get Peace Inside, That Inner Peace’

So, these first 4 verses tell us about David’s longing, in the midst of trial for peace with God, for satisfaction.  He says, “O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee:  my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land where no water is;” (verse 1)  Now, he says this,   He says this, “O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee:” the Hebrew indicates “I will search for thee.”  Of course if you get up early to do anything, you’re after something, you’re searching.  So it’s translated “early will I seek thee” the idea is, ‘he’s getting up early to search for God.’  When you get up early, there’s some benefits, usually the phone’s not ringing early.  Because any other time I try to read or pray, the stupid phone won’t stop ringing.  When you get up early, you kind of beat that.  Usually when you get up early, the rest of the house is pretty quiet.  You get up early, there’s not a lot of distractions.  Getting up early is a great way to start the day with the Lord.  I have different things to say to him at the end of the day, if I started the day with him than if I didn’t.  Then at the end of the day I usually have different things to say than I would have said if I started with him.  And it’s all ok with him, he loves me.  Just my list of what needs to get straightened out is usually longer at the end of the day when I didn’t start the day with him.  So, you know, David says, ‘I’m looking for satisfaction,’ he’s in a trial, he’s fleeing in the wilderness, ‘I want to find something with you God, I’m going to get up early, I’m going to search for you with my heart, I’m going to seek you.’  Now, one of the keys to this Psalm here, verse 1, is “my soul”, in verse 5, “my soul”, in verse 8, “my soul”, in verse 9, “my soul”, he talks about something that needs to take place inwardly, because his outward circumstances aren’t lining up.  You know, ‘If you love me, God, if I’m your anointed king, Samuel came and dumped the oil on my head, I never asked for it, I didn’t get up that day taking care of my dad’s sheep and think ‘Boy, I hope today somebody anoints me to be king.’  You did that, LORD.  And now my outward circumstances don’t line up with that.  What’s the deal?  Where’s your love, where’s your faithfulness?  I’m getting persecuted, I’m getting chased, everything in the world has gone wrong, I didn’t want any of this.  I went out, I killed a giant, I thought that was good for your rep.  He was making fun of your name.  It seems no matter how hard I try, or try to move in the right direction, things are falling apart.’  So he’s searching for something in his soul.  He knows there’s consolation that he can have within.  “O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee:  my soul thirsteth for thee,” isn’t it interesting?  The Hebrew word for “thirsteth” means “to be yearning deeply,” he’s saying ‘My inward man, my soul thirsteth for thee,’ he knows that.  ‘The deepest part of my being is not satisfied with these other things.  LORD, I have learned that much at this point in my life, the deepest part of my life thirsts for you and yearns for you.’  He says, “my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;” he’s in exile at this point in time.  But he says his longing is this, “to see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.” (verse 2)  He says ‘This is what I’m thirsting for, this is what I’m longing for,’ you know, he’s in exile somewhere, and he says, ‘LORD, I want to see your glory and power, I want to sit in church again, I want worship, I want to raise my hands, I want to hear the Word, I want to see your face, I miss church,’ imagine that, ‘I miss church, LORD, I miss the sanctuary.  There LORD, there’s so many times, deep in my being I sense your glory and your power, I want to see that again, LORD, I want to feel that, I’m thirsting for that, I’m longing for that,’ “as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.”  And he says, this is what he’s realized, “Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.” (verse 3)  because of that.  “Thus will I bless thee while I live:  I will lift up my hands in thy name.” (verse 4)  One of the old divines said, “That our vision of God in the mountains should sustain us in the valleys.”  Our vision of God in the mountains, what he showed to us in the mountains, there on Mount Zion, Mount Moriah, there as he was there he said ‘I’ve seen your power and your glory there in the sanctuary,’  and he says your vision of God in the mountains, those high places, should sustain you in the valleys, should supply comfort.  And here he says, ‘I’m going to bless you LORD while I live, I’m going to lift up my hands in thy name.’  So, it’s a good thing, guys, when we worship, it’s a great time to lift up your hands to the Lord, worship.  I love to see that when it happens.  There’s a wrong way for it to happen.  You know, sometimes you’re in the church, you’re worshipping, and there’s one person [chuckles], and they’re up [standing up], and everybody’s looking at them instead of paying attention to Jesus, because they’re making a spectacle of themselves.  Sometimes they’re dancing, and they don’t even know how to dance, you shouldn’t be dancing anyway.  But there is a time when everybody stands, and it is just so wonderful to see the Spirit of God move across the sanctuary, and see people in genuineness lift up holy hands without wrath or doubt.  It’s like, ‘Man, stick ‘em up.’  ‘I surrender.’  It’s the same thing with God, as a child lifts his hands, it’s a good thing, it’s not a bad thing.  It should be done, look, if you want to know how it should be done, decently and in order, look at Revelation chapter 5, that’s when Jesus has everything in heaven back under his control again, and everything is ordered there.  All the cherubim say the same thing at the same time, they all fall down on the same “Q”, everybody says the same thing at the same time, it’s like no one person all by himself, it’s like the head of one cherubim goes ‘Hey man!’ and everybody looks at him and goes ‘Oh man.’  Here’s perfect worship, and it’s wonderfully ordered, but it’s wonderfully emotional, it’s wonderfully loud and glorious.  I know God’s not deaf, but he ain’t nervous either.  And we should sing with all of our hearts, and David says, ‘You know LORD, I’m gonna lift my hands, gonna surrender to you, LORD, not to my circumstances.’  Good thing, good thing. 

Satisfaction, Hope In The Middle Of Trials

Verse 5 now, he talks about the hope in the middle of this trial, in regards to this hope of satisfaction.  He says, “My soul shall be satisfied” now there’s no doubt about it, ‘it’s gonna happen,’  “My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness;” (verse 5a)  He doesn’t say “with” he says “as with marrow and fatness;” like when you’re in the worshipping and sacrificing, and you’re going to eat part of the grilled lamb, you know, there’s something good about sometimes marrow and fatness, he says ‘my soul’s going to be satisfied like that, like I’m partaking, enjoying like I’m feasting.’  “My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:” (verse 5)  When? he says, “when I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.” (verse 6)  You know, that’s a good way to use your time.  When you are laying there at night, and you can’t fall asleep, that’s a great way to use your time.  Because what’s going to happen is when the morning comes, you’re going to be really tired, so then you’re going to feel bad that you’re not seeking him early.  So then, seek him late.  You know, you can’t go to sleep, you have insomnia, you know, you’re thinking ‘Should I take this stuff from the health-food store, I need to get more of this in my system, I need more of that.’   David says this, he says, “when I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.”  I love to lay in bed at night, house is quiet, head’s on the pillow, everything’s dark, nobody knows whether I’m awake or asleep, nobody’s calling, nobody’s asking questions, and I love just to lay there, think of my four children, and of my grandchildren, and to pray for them, think of the church and the remarkable guys and the women I get to work with.  I love that time.  I love that time, remembering him on your bed, meditating on him in the night watches, and he says, “Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.” (verse 7)  Over and over and over, David talks about the shadow of God’s wings, what a wonderful picture. 

My Soul Is Stuck To Thee

He says now, “My soul followeth hard after thee:” here’s the reality of how it happens, “My soul followeth hard after thee:  thy right hand upholdeth me.” (verse 8) now look, “My soul followeth hard” the Hebrew is very specific, it’s “My soul is stuck to thee” that’s a great place to be, “My soul is stuck to thee.”  You have a kid like that, sometimes you remember, wherever you go he’s holding onto you, you want to say ‘Let go of me!’ you know, they just hold on all of the time.  He says ‘That’s what my soul does,’ he says, ‘My soul is stuck to thee, LORD.  All kinds of things are going on around me, I think about you at night, I think about you on the bed, I lift my hands up to you, my soul, LORD, not my physical being, my soul is stuck to thee, O LORD, and your right hand, constantly upholds me.’  That’s the satisfaction that he finds. 

A Warning For Those Who Seek David’s Soul (Or Those Of Believers)

He says, in contrast, “But those that seek my soul, to destroy it, shall go into the lower parts of the earth.  They shall fall by the sword:  they shall be a portion for foxes.” (verses 9-10)  eaten by the scavengers [i.e. coyotes].  “But the king shall rejoice in God; every  one that sweareth by him shall glory:  but the mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped.” (verse 11)  David’s speaking of himself.  The idea is, keeping your vows to the Lord. 

Psalm 64:1-10

To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David

“Hear my voice, O God, in my prayer:  preserve my life from fear of the enemy.  Hide me from the secret counsel of the wicked; from the insurrection of the workers of iniquity:  who whet their tongue like a sword, and bend their bows to shoot their arrows, even bitter words:  that they may shoot in secret at the perfect:  suddenly do they shoot at him, and fear not.  They encourage themselves in an evil matter:  they commune of laying snares privily; they say, Who shall see them?  They search out iniquities; they accomplish a diligent search:  both the inward thought of every one of them, and the heart, is deep.  But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; suddenly shall they be wounded.  So they shall make their own tongue to fall upon themselves:  all that see them shall flee away.  And all men shall fear, and shall declare the work of God; for they shall wisely consider of his doing.  The righteous shall be glad in the LORD, and shall trust in him; and all the upright in heart shall glory.”

Introduction

Psalm 64, is “to the chief Musician,” it is “a Psalm of David.”  Most who have studied this Psalm call this “The Hurtful Tongue.”  Anybody around any of those ever?  A hurtful tongue, that can happen in your marriage, it can happen in your home, it can happen in your family, it can happen with your brothers and sisters, it can happen with your in-laws, it can happen with your out-laws, it can happen with the kids you go to school with, the hurtful tongue.  The truth is, you can say something to somebody and hurt them way deeper than you’re ever going to hurt them in any physical way.  Sometimes it cuts down to the bone and is painful.  And David’s going to talk to us here about what it is like to be around people that use their mouth in such a way that leaves you bleeding when you walk away.  The first 6 verses are his complaint, and from verse 7 to the end are his consolation, as he puts some interesting things in front of us. 

The Hurtful Tongue, People Who Use Their Mouths To Hurt Others

He says, “Hear my voice, O God, in my prayer:  preserve my life from fear of the enemy.”  Look what he says, “Hide me from the secret counsel of the wicked; from the insurrection of the workers of iniquity:” (verses 1-2)  He tells us now, why.  “who whet their tongue like a sword, and bend their bows to shoot their arrows, even bitter words:” (verse 3) you whet the blade, you run it over the stone, he said, ‘you know, they’re out there, just like they’re using a sword, they’re sharpening their tongue like a sword,’ “and bend their bows to shoot their arrows, even bitter words:” you know, ‘How many arrows do I have in my back?’ David’s saying, ‘you know, the bitter words, they pierce, they go in deep like arrows, they’re bending their bows, LORD, they’re these things that are hitting me, they’re shooting me in the back.’  Look, verse 4, “that they may shoot in secret at the perfect:  suddenly do they shoot at him, and fear not.”  King James says “at the perfect”, the idea is ‘they like to take their shots at the upright,’ David’s not saying he’s perfect, but he’s saying ‘I’m not guilty of what they’re accusing me of, what slander they’re spreading about me’ David says, ‘is not true.’  So he says ‘They whet their tongue, they sharpen it like a sword, they bend their bows and they shoot their arrows, and their arrows are bitter words,’ and he says, ‘and they shoot in secret at someone whose upright.  What they’re saying about me is not true,’  “suddenly do they shoot at him, and fear not.” (verse 4b)  They have no fear.  They’re not afraid.  They use their mouth like that, and they’re not afraid.  “They encourage themselves in an evil matter:  they commune of laying snares privily; they say, Who shall see them?” (verse 5) ‘They get together, they talk about laying snares,’ it’s a trap, ‘Did you hear what they did, let me tell you, I shouldn’t tell you, but you need to know this, did you hear this, this is what I heard,’ you know, you don’t ever get involved in that, but that’s what goes on about you all the time.  [I get that sense it does, but I can never prove it, put my finger on it.]  He says, “They encourage themselves in an evil matter:  they commune of laying snares privily;” laying traps, and then they say ‘Who shall see it?  Nobody’s going to see it, God doesn’t see, nobody knows, we’re going to do this, we’re going to get away with it.’  “They search out iniquities; they accomplish a diligent search:  both the inward thought of every one of them, and the heart is deep.” (verse 6)  David, as he moves into his consolation says ‘You ain’t going to get away with it.’  In fact, if you look down in verse 7, look what it says, “But God shall shoot at them” in verse 3 he says ‘They’re going to shoot their arrows,’ verse 4 he says, “That they may shoot in secret at the perfect:  suddenly do they shoot” and down in verse 7 he says, ‘But you know what?  God’s gonna shoot at them,’ and that’s way better to David than all the shots they can fire.  He says, ‘They do that, they get all their lies lined up, and they think ‘Whose going to see it?  Nobody sees.’  “They search out iniquities; they accomplish a diligent search:  both the inward thought of every one of them, and the heart is deep.” (verse 6)  What goes on there is deep.  Now look, that can happen on a personal level, sadly it happens in the halls of power, in this country, in England, in South America, in the Middle East, in Asia, where people are twisting reality for the sake of oil, oil’s become more important than blood for too many people.  Money has become more important than human life.  There are those in all kinds of power, and they change all kinds of things, they’re doing all kinds of things with American History, they’re changing all kinds of things about the ecology, they’re changing all kinds of things about morality, they’re laying traps for anyone whose righteous or moral who wants to stand up and tell the truth, this stuff goes on at all levels, not just on the personal level. 

God’s Going To Fire One Arrow, It Outweighs All Their Arrows

David says, “They search out iniquities; they accomplish a diligent search:  both the inward thought of every one of them, and the heart is deep.” (verse 6)  It’s deep, he says.  Here’s his consolation, “But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; suddenly shall they be wounded.” (verse 7) the idea is “one arrow.”  He says ‘They’re going to shoot arrows, plural,’ and he said ‘They’re going to shoot, going to fire off, they can shoot all the arrows they want,’ David says, ‘all day long.  God’s going to fire one arrow, and it outweighs all of their arrows, plural.’  “But God shall shoot at them with AN arrow; suddenly shall they be wounded.  So they shall make their own tongue to fall upon themselves:  all that see them shall flee away.” (verses 7-8)  The things they planned that are wrong are going to come on their own heads.  “all that see them shall flee away.”  And look what he says in verse 9, “And all men shall fear, and shall declare the work of God; for they shall wisely consider of his doing.”  He says up in verse 4, look, ‘They’re going to shoot, they shoot at the upright, they want to tear down what’s right and what’s good, suddenly they shoot at him, and they fear not.’  He says here in verse 9, ‘But in the final analysis, when God moves, all men shall fear,’ “and shall declare the work of God; for they shall wisely consider of his doing.” (verse 9b)  ‘It’s going to come, everything’s going to come into the light, and they’re going to realize.’ “The righteous shall be glad in the LORD, and shall trust in him; and all the upright in heart shall glory.” (verse 10)  “and shall trust in him” the Hebrew is beautiful, it says literally, “they shall take refuge in him,” the righteous shall take refuge in him.  Look what he said in verse 2, he said, “Hide me from the secret counsel of the wicked,” when people are gossiping about you, or slandering you, or saying stuff about you, instead of counter-attacking, instead of parlaying, instead of parrying, instead of getting your own posse together and planning on how to take them down, instead of knocking their teeth down their throat, David says, when those mouths are going off and they’re tearing me down, he says ‘LORD, hide me,’ and at the end he says, ‘this is how it happens, I will take refuge in you, because you have an arrow to shoot, and when you deal, it’s going to be dealt righteously, all men are going to fear.’  So he says “the righteous are going to be glad in the LORD,” ‘I know in the final analysis, I know the end of the story, I know the last chapter, I know who wins, I know how it all comes out.  It may look bleak and dreary sometimes now, but I know the last chapter, and it ain’t gonna change, and the devil can’t change his number from 666 to 667, it’s all going to roll out exactly the way it’s written down.’  So he says that, “The righteous shall be glad in the LORD, and shall take refuge in him; and all the upright in heart shall glory.” (verse 10)  Amen?  That day’s coming pretty soon. We’re going to see that. 

Psalm 65:1-13

To the chief Musician, A Psalm and Song of David

“Praise waiteth for thee, O God, in Sion:  and unto thee shall the vow be performed:  O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come.  Iniquities prevail against me:  as for our transgressions, thou shalt purge them away.  Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee, that he may dwell in thy courts:  we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, even thy holy temple.  By terrible [Hebrew awesome, fearful] things in righteousness wilt thou answer us, O God of our salvation; who art the confidence of all the ends of the earth, and of them that are afar off upon the sea:  which by his strength setteth fast the mountains; being girded with power:  which stilleth the noise of the seas, the noise of their waves, and the tumult of the people.  They also that dwell in the uttermost parts are afraid at thy tokens:  thou makest the outgoings of the morning and evening to rejoice.  Thou visitest the earth, and waterest it:  thou greatly enrichest it with the river of God, which is full of water:  thou preparest them corn, when thou hast so provided for it.  Thou waterest the ridges thereof abundantly:  thou settlest the furrows thereof:  thou makest it soft with showers:  thou blessest the springing thereof.  Thou crownest the year with goodness; and thy paths drop fatness.  They drop upon the pastures of the wilderness:  and the little hills rejoice on every side.  The pastures are clothed with flocks; the valleys also are covered over with corn; they shout for joy, they also sing.”

Introduction: God’s Grace, God’s Greatness, God’s Goodness

Psalm 65, ah, divine favour, God’s grace.  That’s wonderful after a song about hurtful tongues, and songs about trying to find satisfaction while things are falling apart, it’s wonderful to come to a Psalm now that’s about God’s divine favour.  And it falls out this way, the first 4 verses speak of God’s grace, then verses 5 to 8 speak of God’s greatness, and then verses 9 to the end speak of God’s goodness.  So, David in a remarkable way lays this out.  It says “to the chief Musician,” again, to be sung publicly, he says, and it’s “a Psalm of David.” 

God’s Grace

‘He’s The God That Hears Prayers’

He begins by saying this, “Praise waiteth for thee, O God, in Sion”, and the idea of waiting there again is sitting silent, ‘Praise, LORD, is waiting to be lifted up on your behalf, in Sion,’ “and unto thee shall the vow be performed:” (verse 1)  ‘Those who have committed themselves to you, that’s going to happen.’  And look what he says here, and I love this, read down again, “Praise waiteth for thee, O God, in Sion, and unto thee shall the vow be performed:  O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come.” (verses 1-2)  Isn’t that a great name for our God “O thou that hearest prayer”? Look, when those days come, when you feel like you’re praying, and your words are going to the ceiling and falling back down to the floor again, and it seems like the heavens are brass, it doesn’t matter how it seems, the truth is, he’s the God that hears prayers.  He says ‘If my people who call upon my name, would humble themselves and pray, seek my face, and turn unto me, then would I hear from heaven.’  So however far away it is, then will he hear from heaven.  How far is it?  You know, Elijah, when he’s in the cave.  God wasn’t in the storm, he wasn’t in the fire, he wasn’t in the earthquake, but then behold, a still small voice.  So however close or far away heaven is, it tells us that he can hear us from there.  And it says if we settle ourselves and listen, he can speak to us in a still small voice.  And that’s reality.  But again, we get everything talking out loud, blab, blab, blab, blab, everything’s out loud, we’re not used to sitting quietly like it says here, just ‘to praise and silently waiting before you LORD, to be raised, and to rise up.’  It’s to be cultivated, I think.  We need to do that, we need to find him in our generation, we need to find him.  Hey, we’re surrounded with the world that’s going to hell, it’s lost.  We have to be able to tell them that our God is real.  [How do we do this?  see http://www.unityinchrist.com/Does/Does%20God%20Exist.html]  They don’t just want to come to Bible studies, I think obviously they should, we want them to hear the Word of God, and they don’t want to just sing songs.  Even you and I as individuals, there has to be a testimony where we say to them ‘Our God is real, he’s the God who hears prayers.’  [Comment:  And this is where praying for the needs of our unconverted friends and family comes in, and when those prayers are answered by God, we must be sure to gently witness to them about that.  I do this for and with my adoptive daughters all the time, and some day soon, God is going to call them, using this gentle witness of his presence through answered prayers for them, all in his good time.]  He’s a God who speaks to us, he died for us, he rose again, he’s alive today, he’s real in my life.  It’s not a religion, it’s a relationship.  I know him, he speaks to me, his Word stands up on the page and brings tears to my eyes.  I know that when I pour out my heart he’s there, he’s promised never to leave me or forsake me.  He says ‘Lo, I’m with you always, even to the end of the age.’  He says here ‘Praise is waiting for you, LORD, in Sion,’ “and unto thee shall the vow be performed:  O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come.” (verses 1b-2)  Look what it says, “unto thee shall all flesh come.”  ‘Every knee shall bow, every tongue shall confess, of things in heaven, of things on the earth, and things under the earth, that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.’  It says, ‘God has given him’ not a name, ‘the name’ definite article, ‘that’s above every name…’  “O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come.” (verse 2)  And look what he says here, “Iniquities prevail against me:” you could have wrote that, couldn’t you.  “Iniquities prevail against me:  as for our transgressions, thou shalt purge them away.” (verse 3)  What a beautiful picture of God’s grace.  And the Hebrew is “thou shalt cover them.”  You know, you and I, our sins are not covered, they’re gone.  We’ve experienced redemption, we’ve experienced that our sins are sent away, they’re gone, and they cease to exist, we’re justified by the blood of Jesus Christ.  Here in the Old Testament, you know, it was different, but your sins were covered, it was a great consolation.  He says “Iniquities prevail against me:  as for our transgressions, thou shalt purge them away.” (verse 3)  ‘Thou shalt purge them away, LORD, you’re the one that will cover them, you’ll purge them away.’  Look, “Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee, that he may dwell in thy courts:  we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, even of thy holy temple.” (verse 4)  Look, this is grace.  Isn’t that amazing?  ‘Blessed is the man whom the LORD has chosen.’  You know that there is a teaching in the New Testament, Jesus said, ‘You haven’t chosen me, I’ve chosen you, that you should go and bear much fruit.’  [Comment:  Jesus also said in John 6:44, “No man [or woman] can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him:  and I will raise him up at the last day.”  It is God the Father who chooses and draws a person to Jesus, it is grace, not merit based, undeserved grace.]  He’s chosen us.  Until we got to Jesus, nobody else chose us.  Isn’t it remarkable he chose us?  And it says that he chose us, and he caused us to then approach unto him.  Isn’t that wonderful?  Maybe you’re sitting here tonight, and you’re not saved, and you think ‘Well that’s no fair.’  ‘What if I don’t want to come?’  Then you ain’t chosen.  ‘Well, that’s not fair.’  Well then come, [laughter] and be chosen.  But there’s no problem.  This is not a mental exercise, it’s a reality.  “Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee,” the reason he chooses him and wants him to approach?  “that he may dwell in thy courts:” God wants fellowship, “that he may dwell in thy courts:  we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, even of thy holy temple.”  (verse 4) 

God’s Greatness

Now he had spoken here of God’s grace.  Now he begins to speak of God’s greatness, look what he says, “By terrible things in righteousness wilt thou answer us, O God of our salvation; who art the confidence of all the ends of the earth, and of them that are afar off upon the sea:” (verse 5)  Now look, it’s “terrible” in the King James, it’s “By awesome things” or “by fearful things” the idea is ‘God is awesome.’  “By fearful things in righteousness wilt thou answer us, O God of our salvation; who art the confidence of all the ends of the earth, and of them that are afar off upon the sea:” David seeing down to Calvary Chapel Philadelphia, thousands of years later on the other side of the earth, “which by his strength setteth fast the mountains; being girded with power:  which stilleth the noise of the seas, the noise of their waves, and the tumult of the people.” (verses 5-7) he stills all of that.  How he did that with the disciples in the boat (cf. Mark 5), he stills the noise of the seas, and the noise of the waves.  “They also that dwell in the uttermost parts are afraid at thy tokens:  thou makest the outgoings of the morning and evening to rejoice.” (verse 8)  God working in the earth today, shaking…

God’s Goodness

Now verse 9 to the end of this Psalm has been called ‘The greatest harvest song that has ever been written.’   Ah, different of the ancients, Bernard, different other ones, in studying this portion of this Psalm, would say to their students, ‘Leave your books, not the Bible, your studies, your books, and go out into the hills, go out into the mountains, go out by the streams and the river, because they will say things to you about God that your books could never say.’  Go out into God’s creation, look at the sky, look at the fields, look at the flowers, look at the trees in the wind, look at the river flowing, because they will speak to you things that no book will ever say.  And just how true it is, if we were just away for a couple days in the mountains.  And I’m telling you, the mountains were screaming at us.  It was wonderful.  And they say things that no human book can ever say.  Here he begins to speak now, this greatest harvest song ever written.  He says, “thou”, and look, in verse 9, “thou, thou, thou, thou” four times in verse 9.  Verse 10, “thou, thou, thou, thou,” four times in verse 10.  Verse 11, “thou,” I think “thou” has a lot to do with what’s going on out there.  He ascribes everything in nature, everything in harvest, everything in the process, directly to the providence of God.  Look, “Thou visitest the earth, and waterest it:  thou greatly enrichest it with the river of God, which is full of water:  thou preparest them corn, when thou hast so provided for it.”  [“corn,” King James for “grain”]  In other words, to cultivate, to water.  “Thou waterest the ridges thereof abundantly:  thou settlest the furrows thereof:  thou makest it soft with showers:  thou blessest the springing thereof.  Thou crownest the year with thy goodness; and thy paths drop fatness.  They drop upon the pastures of the wilderness:  and the little hills rejoice on every side.  The pastures are clothed with flocks; the valleys also are covered over with corn [grain]; they shout for joy, they also sing.” (verses 9-13)  So LORD, you visit the earth, look, in all of these natural things there are spiritual truths that are brought before us.  Jesus says, ‘Behold the sower went forth to sow, and some of the seed fell the wayside where it was trampled, some of it fell on the ground where it was plucked up by birds of the air.  Some fell on the soil, there was no depth, and it sprung up, and it withered away because it (their roots) have no depth, and some fell on good soil, but the thorns grew up around it, and choked it.’ and he said, ‘Other’s fell on good ground, brought forth thirty, sixty, hundredfold.’  They said, ‘LORD, what are you talking about?’  He said, ‘If you don’t understand, how will anybody understand?  The sower is the Son of God, the seed is the Word of God, the soil is the hearts of men, and sometimes they’re hardened like the pathways of this world, sometime they hear something, they’re glad, and then Satan snatches it away.  Sometimes they receive it and they start to bear fruit, and it looks like things are growing, but the cares and the riches of this life choke it out.  And then he says sometimes it brings forth thirtyfold…’ he talks about that here, where he says ‘The LORD brings forth the grain, the LORD does those things.’  Look, “thou visitest the earth, thou waterest it, thou greatly enrichest it with the river of God,”  “there is a stream that maketh glad there the city of God,” back there in Psalm 46, remarkable passage.  Jesus said, “Any man who thirsts, let him come unto me and drink, and out of his inmost being shall flow rivers of living water.’  Here, you know, he says “thou greatly enrichest with the river of God, which is full of water:”  You know, he says ‘You greatly enrich it with the river of God which is full of water,’ “thou preparest them grain, when thou hast so provided for it.  Thou waterest the ridges thereof abundantly:  thou settlest the furrows thereof:  thou makest it soft with showers:  thou blessest the springing thereof.” (verses 9b-10)  I read this thing, several hundred years old, by an author, he said “Lord, make me soft with thy showers.”  He says, “thou makest it soft with showers:  thou blessest the springing thereof.”   ‘LORD, soften me with thy showers, let your Holy Spirit rain down on me,’ always a picture of water in the Scripture, the Holy Spirit.  Lord, soften me, how many of us this evening, on the way over here, somebody pulls out in front of me, and they’re driving 2 miles-an-hour, and immediately I’m going ‘Aaw  Come on!’ and then I think ‘Oh Lord, forgive me, I sound like a crabby old man, I don’t want to be a crabby old man, I want to be like Jesus, Lord, what’s wrong with me, why does that go off so fast?  Soften me with thy showers, pour your Holy Spirit out on me.  The fruit of the Spirit is love, it’s joy, it’s peace, and it’s longsuffering in traffic [chuckles], meekness, temperance, faith, soften me with your showers, Lord, let it cause springing forth in my life.’  Amen?  That sounds good, Lord, let your river flow forth from my being.  Look, “thou makest it soft with showers:  thou blessest the springing thereof.  Thou crownest the year with thy goodness; and thy paths drop fatness.” (verses 10b-11)  The season in our lives with goodness.  “They drop upon the pastures of the wilderness:  and the little hills rejoice on every side.” (verse 12) where nobody else cares, the things that no one else cares about, in the wilderness, the place where nobody else looks, where there’s wild flowers, and there’s ferns, and there’s beautiful things.  He says, ‘LORD, they drop upon the pastures of the wilderness, and the little hills, not just the mountains, they rejoice’ he says, ‘on every side.’ and “The pastures are clothed with flocks; the valleys also are covered over with grain; they shout for joy, they also sing.” (verse 13)  ‘They know, they know where their Sustainer and their Originator is, they know, they shout for joy, they also sing.’ 

In Closing

So, these Psalms, 62, 63, Psalms where there’s great trial,  ‘LORD, I need to be satisfied in my soul, LORD, something needs to happen down deep inside of me, and you only LORD, I realize that much, you’re the only one that can cause that satisfaction, LORD, let it happen.’  ‘Around me, Psalm 64, is the tongue, constantly troubles and cuts, LORD, I live there, I know that, it goes on.  Sometimes I get so frustrated I want to smash somebody, but LORD you’re going to do that.  You got your own arrows, you got your own deal, LORD, hide me.  What I’m going to do to be hidden is I’m going to take refuge in you.  Instead of striking out myself and handle this on my own.   Psalm 65, because LORD, you’re gracious, you’re the God that hears prayer.  And all flesh is going to come before you.  And LORD it’s so good to come into your courts, come into your presence.  Your voice goes to the ends of the earth, LORD you’re going to gather from the other side of the world, someday you’re going to gather your people, they’re going to come, they’re going to enjoy your glory.  And your goodness, it flows off like rivers, like showers of water, LORD, it rains down, it encourages, LORD, it softens, LORD.  So soften me LORD with your showers, when I’m in trial, when my soul’s at stake, when I’m saying you’re my only hope, those tongues are going off slicing me and dicing me like one of those vegematics on TV.  LORD, when that’s going on, instead of letting me get bitter and angry, because I can do that LORD,’ we can, can’t we, ‘instead LORD, soften me with thy showers, O God.’  You see because the toughest guy I know, he gave his face to the smiters, and to those who pluck out the beard.  The toughest guy I know allowed himself to be beaten beyond human recognition, and nailed to a cross.  When he was reviled he didn’t revile again, and he didn’t strike back.  And he trusted himself to the Shepherd and the Bishop of his soul.  And believe me, I’m not preaching to you, I’m preaching to me.  I need to learn, when I’m getting sliced and diced, and I do, I’m a high priority target, tongues, arrows are always flying at me.  Instead of me getting out my crossbow, firing back, I need to take refuge in him.  I need to say ‘LORD, you’re gracious, you’re great, you’re good, soften me LORD, with your showers, rain down on my heart, LORD, form Jesus in me.  Don’t let me respond to these things in my flesh and in my own nature.  Father, let me be like Jesus, rain down on me, LORD.’  Are we ready for that?  Let’s have the musicians come, and let’s ask for that.  It would be a great way to end this evening, ‘LORD, rain down on us, with the showers of heaven and of your Holy Spirit’  You know, it says that, ‘the former and the latter rains are going to come, and in the last days he’s going to pour out his Spirit upon all flesh.  Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams,’  Right now I’m dreaming and prophesying, I’m not sure where I’m at.  Let’s stand, let’s pray…[transcript of a connective expository sermon given on Psalms 62:1-12, Psalm 63:1-11, Psalm 64:1-10 and Psalm 65:1-13, given by Pastor Joe Focht, Calvary Chapel of Philadelphia, 13500 Philmont Avenue, Philadelphia, PA  19116]