WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:13.000 We're in Psalm 52, and the psalm is titled, To the Choir Master, a mass scale of David, 00:00:13.500 --> 00:00:19.859 when Doag the Edomite came and told Saul, David has come to the house of Ahimelech. 00:00:23.519 --> 00:00:29.379 So I'll read it out loud, and then we'll talk about the psalm for a little bit. 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:36.020 Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man? The steadfast love of God endures all the day. 00:00:36.640 --> 00:00:42.140 Your tongue plots destruction like a sharp razor, you worker of deceit. 00:00:43.060 --> 00:00:48.879 You love evil more than good, and lying more than speaking what is right, Selah. 00:00:49.700 --> 00:00:53.079 You love all words that devour, O deceitful tongue. 00:00:53.700 --> 00:00:58.659 But God will break you down forever. He will snatch and tear you from your tent. 00:00:58.659 --> 00:01:02.379 He will uproot you from the land of the living, Selah. 00:01:03.599 --> 00:01:07.379 The righteous shall see and fear, and shall laugh at him, saying, 00:01:07.879 --> 00:01:13.459 See the man who would not make God his refuge, but trusted in the abundance of his riches, 00:01:13.920 --> 00:01:16.400 and sought refuge in his own destruction. 00:01:17.359 --> 00:01:20.500 But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. 00:01:20.799 --> 00:01:24.280 I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever. 00:01:24.280 --> 00:01:27.820 I will thank you forever because you have done it. 00:01:28.320 --> 00:01:33.859 I will wait for your name, for it is good in the presence of the godly. 00:01:34.840 --> 00:01:36.159 This is Psalm 52. 00:01:36.859 --> 00:01:40.640 And so the title that mentions Doeg the Edomite, 00:01:41.020 --> 00:01:44.480 and this is an allusion to 1 Samuel 21 to 22. 00:01:44.480 --> 00:01:51.780 And so David is fleeing from King Saul because King Saul is really kind of mad. 00:01:51.900 --> 00:01:54.520 He's bent on killing his most loyal servant, David. 00:01:55.180 --> 00:01:59.219 And he's pursuing him, and David flees to Nob. 00:01:59.719 --> 00:02:03.800 And when he gets to Nob, he entreats the hospitality of Ahimelech the priest. 00:02:03.799 --> 00:02:08.960 And Ahimelech gives him the bread of presence to eat because he's hungry, 00:02:09.319 --> 00:02:14.859 and furnishes him with the sword of Goliath, which was stored there after the defeat of Goliath. 00:02:15.379 --> 00:02:18.419 And then also inquires of the Lord for him and sends him away. 00:02:19.060 --> 00:02:24.120 But David, at that point, doesn't tell Ahimelech what he's doing. 00:02:24.300 --> 00:02:28.800 He doesn't tell him that he's fleeing from Saul because he just tells him that he's on an urgent mission 00:02:28.800 --> 00:02:35.100 on behalf of Saul because he doesn't want Ahimelech to be associated with treason 00:02:35.100 --> 00:02:37.180 and later endanger his own life. 00:02:37.560 --> 00:02:38.800 So David doesn't tell him that. 00:02:39.480 --> 00:02:43.380 But then later, when Saul comes to Nob to find David, 00:02:43.860 --> 00:02:46.320 finds that David's not there anymore. 00:02:46.620 --> 00:02:48.760 And so he's interrogating everybody. 00:02:49.820 --> 00:02:52.220 And there's a man named Doeg the Edomite. 00:02:52.840 --> 00:02:58.420 And Doeg the Edomite happened to be right there when Ahimelech was providing all this stuff for David. 00:02:58.800 --> 00:03:01.180 And so he was lurking there. 00:03:01.620 --> 00:03:04.360 And he heard everything that Ahimelech did. 00:03:05.500 --> 00:03:10.620 And even though Ahimelech didn't know what David was doing, that he was fleeing from Saul, 00:03:10.900 --> 00:03:15.439 so Doeg the Edomite implicates him in this kind of conspiracy. 00:03:16.260 --> 00:03:21.460 And so he's lying in a way, even though he's telling the truth of what Ahimelech did. 00:03:21.520 --> 00:03:25.140 But he's implicating that Ahimelech was supporting him in treason, 00:03:25.400 --> 00:03:28.080 which he wasn't doing because he had no idea that David was fleeing from Saul. 00:03:28.080 --> 00:03:32.080 And so by doing that, he enrages Saul. 00:03:33.040 --> 00:03:38.660 And Saul wants to kill all the priests and tells the soldiers to kill all the priests. 00:03:39.180 --> 00:03:43.480 But the soldiers fear God, so they don't kill the priests. 00:03:44.439 --> 00:03:47.620 And then so Saul's like, okay, well then Doeg the Edomite, you kill him. 00:03:47.980 --> 00:03:51.960 And Doeg the Edomite has no qualms, and he kills 85 priests that day. 00:03:51.960 --> 00:03:56.520 And so that's what this Psalm 52 here is alluding to in the title, 00:03:56.659 --> 00:04:00.439 that when Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul, David has come to the house of Ahimelech. 00:04:00.760 --> 00:04:05.319 So David presumably heard about this, and then he penned this psalm. 00:04:05.319 --> 00:04:12.419 And so in this psalm, he teaches us that unlike the evil men, like Doeg, 00:04:12.539 --> 00:04:18.379 who disregard the steadfast love of God, that we should trust in the steadfast love of God in the way we live. 00:04:18.420 --> 00:04:19.279 So that's the main point. 00:04:19.819 --> 00:04:24.000 And we're talking about the way of evil, verses 1 to 4, and God's judgment in verse 5, 00:04:24.159 --> 00:04:26.779 and the way of righteousness in verses 6 to 9. 00:04:26.779 --> 00:04:32.839 And first, David begins with the portrait of what the wicked live, how the wicked live, 00:04:32.879 --> 00:04:34.179 in the way of evil in verse 1. 00:04:34.819 --> 00:04:37.779 Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man? 00:04:38.139 --> 00:04:40.379 So this evil person is dressed as a mighty man. 00:04:40.579 --> 00:04:44.879 Doeg the Edomite was a chief herdsman of Saul, so he was obviously close to Saul, 00:04:44.979 --> 00:04:47.419 but was also quite wealthy and influential, likely. 00:04:48.000 --> 00:04:50.859 So he's described here as a mighty man, and others like him. 00:04:50.860 --> 00:04:57.139 So the evil people, they stylize themselves as mighty, and they boast in their evil. 00:04:57.819 --> 00:05:00.980 But David calls their boasting into question in verse 1. 00:05:01.060 --> 00:05:02.800 He says, why do you boast of evil? 00:05:02.960 --> 00:05:06.139 Because for David, he believes that they shouldn't boast. 00:05:06.220 --> 00:05:11.000 In fact, they have no grounds to boast, since the steadfast love of God endures all the day. 00:05:11.080 --> 00:05:12.439 So that's an interesting contrast. 00:05:12.840 --> 00:05:17.300 He's saying that because God loves his people in a steadfast way, 00:05:18.020 --> 00:05:20.800 there's no reason for the mighty men to boast in evil. 00:05:20.960 --> 00:05:22.000 They should be loyal to him. 00:05:22.080 --> 00:05:26.240 They should be faithful to him, not disregard his steadfast love and boast in evil. 00:05:27.480 --> 00:05:31.460 And then verses 2 to 4, he tells us more specifically how this mighty man boasts of evil. 00:05:31.620 --> 00:05:36.720 He says, your tongue plots destruction like a sharp razor, you worker of deceit. 00:05:37.199 --> 00:05:41.840 You love evil more than good and lying more than speaking what is right, Selah. 00:05:42.080 --> 00:05:45.360 You love all words that devour, O deceitful tongue. 00:05:45.980 --> 00:05:49.199 So it's interesting because he's described as a mighty man, 00:05:49.199 --> 00:05:51.659 but this mighty man's weapon of choice is not a sword. 00:05:51.979 --> 00:05:56.620 It's his tongue, right, which he brandishes like a sharp razor, he says. 00:05:57.079 --> 00:06:00.199 And he works destruction through his deceit, which is mentioned twice. 00:06:00.300 --> 00:06:03.279 He loves evil more than good and lying more than speaking what is right. 00:06:03.319 --> 00:06:04.879 So his priorities are inverted. 00:06:05.039 --> 00:06:05.659 He's backwards. 00:06:05.660 --> 00:06:09.480 And it's not that he just does evil. 00:06:09.580 --> 00:06:11.340 He loves evil, he says, right? 00:06:11.480 --> 00:06:13.340 And so that's the way of the evil. 00:06:14.100 --> 00:06:19.780 And then David expresses his confidence in God's future judgment in verse 5. 00:06:20.940 --> 00:06:23.720 He says, but God will break you down forever. 00:06:23.900 --> 00:06:25.900 He will snatch and tear you from your tent. 00:06:26.000 --> 00:06:28.920 He will uproot you from the land of the living, Selah. 00:06:28.920 --> 00:06:33.240 And this is, it sounds quite forceful, right, and violent, 00:06:33.439 --> 00:06:38.780 but imagine being on that receiving end of injustice and oppression. 00:06:39.680 --> 00:06:43.060 And this is such a gratifying justice, right? 00:06:43.120 --> 00:06:45.200 It's a satisfying justice. 00:06:45.460 --> 00:06:48.400 Even though the mighty man seems to be getting his way in life, 00:06:48.819 --> 00:06:50.960 God will ultimately bring him to judgment. 00:06:51.639 --> 00:06:55.439 And even though Dweg the Edomite at this point seemed to triumph, right, 00:06:55.439 --> 00:06:57.860 he's ingratiated himself to King Saul. 00:06:58.000 --> 00:06:59.339 Now he has his favor. 00:06:59.459 --> 00:07:00.980 He seems fairly planted in the kingdom. 00:07:01.560 --> 00:07:04.360 But in the end, he will be uprooted in the land of the living. 00:07:04.639 --> 00:07:06.600 And in the Hebrew, it's even more emphatic 00:07:06.600 --> 00:07:09.980 because the second person pronoun is repeated with every verb. 00:07:10.079 --> 00:07:14.540 So it's like God will break you, snatch you, tear you, uproot you. 00:07:14.740 --> 00:07:17.659 Like, I mean, it's like, it's a frightening series of words. 00:07:17.659 --> 00:07:22.279 And David says that's what will happen to those who boast in evil, 00:07:22.459 --> 00:07:23.699 those who follow the way of evil. 00:07:23.759 --> 00:07:24.759 So that's God's judgment. 00:07:25.439 --> 00:07:27.540 And having seen God's future judgment, 00:07:27.839 --> 00:07:31.759 David tells us about the way of the righteous in verse 6 to 9. 00:07:32.439 --> 00:07:34.779 It says in verse 6 to 7, 00:07:34.860 --> 00:07:38.060 The righteous shall see and fear and shall laugh at him, 00:07:38.139 --> 00:07:41.199 saying, See the man who would not make God his refuge, 00:07:41.459 --> 00:07:43.899 but trusted in the abundance of his riches 00:07:43.899 --> 00:07:46.779 and sought refuge in his own destruction. 00:07:47.259 --> 00:07:51.060 So unlike the evil mighty man, so-called mighty man, 00:07:51.139 --> 00:07:53.480 who is characterized by his boasting, 00:07:53.480 --> 00:07:57.360 this righteous man is characterized by fear of God, right? 00:07:57.759 --> 00:07:59.460 Instead of flaunting his own might, 00:07:59.580 --> 00:08:02.980 the righteous understand and are aware of God's power. 00:08:03.100 --> 00:08:05.400 And because of that, they live in humility 00:08:05.400 --> 00:08:09.200 and conduct themselves with appropriate awe and reverence before God, right? 00:08:09.199 --> 00:08:12.459 And so, and it's this righteous person, 00:08:12.459 --> 00:08:15.639 the righteous who will ultimately get the final laugh, right? 00:08:15.719 --> 00:08:18.500 Because it's the righteous shall laugh at him, 00:08:18.579 --> 00:08:19.240 the wicked, saying, 00:08:19.339 --> 00:08:21.579 To see the man who would not make God his refuge, 00:08:21.740 --> 00:08:23.719 but trusted in the abundance of his riches 00:08:23.719 --> 00:08:25.639 and sought refuge in his own destruction. 00:08:25.639 --> 00:08:29.099 And then, in a really cool way, 00:08:29.279 --> 00:08:32.720 verses 8 to 9, this psalm takes a personal turn, right? 00:08:32.779 --> 00:08:35.860 So David talked kind of abstractly about the way of the evil 00:08:35.860 --> 00:08:36.919 and the way of the righteous, 00:08:37.199 --> 00:08:40.659 but now he starts using the first person pronoun to talk about this. 00:08:41.519 --> 00:08:42.699 And so he says, 00:08:42.919 --> 00:08:45.299 I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. 00:08:45.360 --> 00:08:48.179 I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever. 00:08:48.539 --> 00:08:51.100 And this is so helpful and cool to see 00:08:51.100 --> 00:08:54.720 because, you know, this faith in God's justice 00:08:54.720 --> 00:08:57.300 was not just this abstract truth for David 00:08:57.300 --> 00:08:59.279 that had no bearing on his life. 00:08:59.340 --> 00:09:01.159 It's what he banked on in his life. 00:09:01.279 --> 00:09:02.620 It's how he lived, right? 00:09:02.680 --> 00:09:04.279 When Doeg the Edomite triumphed, 00:09:04.320 --> 00:09:08.019 he banked on that truth and put his hope in God. 00:09:08.860 --> 00:09:12.600 And he, when he was being pursued by Saul unjustly, 00:09:12.680 --> 00:09:14.259 likewise, it's what sustained him 00:09:14.259 --> 00:09:15.440 because he believed this truth. 00:09:15.740 --> 00:09:17.379 This truth wasn't just in his head. 00:09:17.500 --> 00:09:18.440 It wasn't just cognitive. 00:09:18.440 --> 00:09:21.360 It was an experiential faith. 00:09:21.540 --> 00:09:23.660 He had truth, truth that he lived. 00:09:25.020 --> 00:09:28.880 And he contrasts the fact that the evil person, right, 00:09:28.960 --> 00:09:30.900 trusts in the abundance of his riches, 00:09:31.200 --> 00:09:35.820 but the righteous person trusts in the steadfast love of God, right? 00:09:35.920 --> 00:09:38.380 And so the question we should all ask ourselves 00:09:38.380 --> 00:09:39.740 in line of this text is, 00:09:39.820 --> 00:09:44.020 is our trust in God's steadfast love real and personal 00:09:44.020 --> 00:09:45.380 like David's is, right? 00:09:45.720 --> 00:09:46.800 Is it something, 00:09:46.799 --> 00:09:50.000 are we putting our trust in something else in our life, right? 00:09:50.439 --> 00:09:52.779 Does our sense of well-being in our life 00:09:52.779 --> 00:09:56.219 depend on how padded our bank account is, right? 00:09:56.279 --> 00:10:01.059 Or does our sense of well-being depend on how others perceive us 00:10:01.059 --> 00:10:03.000 or whether they think we're competent 00:10:03.000 --> 00:10:06.500 or accomplished or smart, right? 00:10:06.500 --> 00:10:11.759 Or does our sense of well-being depend on how our life seems to be progressing? 00:10:12.179 --> 00:10:13.580 Like, you know, are we making progress? 00:10:13.700 --> 00:10:16.399 Are we getting ahead of life? 00:10:16.500 --> 00:10:18.159 Are we doing better in work? 00:10:18.320 --> 00:10:19.519 And are we, you know, it's, 00:10:19.980 --> 00:10:24.120 because if any of these other things is where we place our trust, 00:10:24.279 --> 00:10:27.639 they will all, in the end, ultimately disappoint us 00:10:27.639 --> 00:10:30.080 because they're an inadequate basis for our trust. 00:10:30.080 --> 00:10:30.560 Trust. 00:10:30.960 --> 00:10:31.960 So instead, it says, 00:10:32.360 --> 00:10:35.480 trust in the steadfast love of God, right? 00:10:35.500 --> 00:10:37.480 It's because his love is steadfast, right? 00:10:37.500 --> 00:10:38.340 It's unchanging. 00:10:38.540 --> 00:10:39.259 It's constant. 00:10:39.500 --> 00:10:41.100 It's a worthy basis. 00:10:41.500 --> 00:10:43.080 It's worthy of our trust. 00:10:43.379 --> 00:10:45.500 He's worthy of our complete confidence. 00:10:46.020 --> 00:10:48.740 And so then even when our lives are topsy-turvy, right? 00:10:48.820 --> 00:10:54.519 Even when our, you know, people around us are being fickle and petty, right? 00:10:54.580 --> 00:10:57.220 It's even when everything in the world, 00:10:57.460 --> 00:11:00.139 all of our life circumstances seem to go awry, 00:11:00.299 --> 00:11:03.840 we could still hold on to the steadfast love of God, 00:11:03.879 --> 00:11:05.060 and we can trust in that. 00:11:05.379 --> 00:11:07.200 And that's what will sustain us 00:11:07.200 --> 00:11:10.100 because God's irrevocably and reasonably committed to us 00:11:10.100 --> 00:11:11.019 as he was to David. 00:11:11.700 --> 00:11:14.840 And, of course, for us, we have an even greater assurance 00:11:14.840 --> 00:11:18.159 of that steadfast love in what Christ has done for us, right? 00:11:18.159 --> 00:11:21.480 Because that was the climactic display of God's steadfast love 00:11:21.480 --> 00:11:25.120 and that Jesus, God sent his only son, 00:11:25.559 --> 00:11:30.579 his one beloved son, right, to die for our sins, right? 00:11:31.000 --> 00:11:34.419 And that's why he was able to be patient with David in Israel, right? 00:11:34.419 --> 00:11:35.579 Because he was looking ahead. 00:11:35.740 --> 00:11:39.740 He had ordained already that his son would die 00:11:39.740 --> 00:11:43.639 to pay the penalty for his people's sins. 00:11:44.059 --> 00:11:46.819 And because of that, so he was forbearing of their sins and failures. 00:11:46.820 --> 00:11:50.100 And when Jesus came, he died for us. 00:11:50.140 --> 00:11:51.000 He died for us willingly. 00:11:51.220 --> 00:11:52.980 He died to reconcile us to the Father. 00:11:53.340 --> 00:11:55.580 He died so that we might be adopted into his family. 00:11:55.680 --> 00:11:58.360 He died so that we can be forgiven of our sins 00:11:58.360 --> 00:12:01.100 and reconciled to God the Father instead of being his enemies. 00:12:01.620 --> 00:12:03.879 And that's the ultimate display of steadfast love. 00:12:04.080 --> 00:12:05.900 And if we live in light of that, 00:12:06.260 --> 00:12:08.440 if we look at the cross in our life, 00:12:08.940 --> 00:12:10.860 then that's what's going to help us 00:12:10.860 --> 00:12:13.600 when we look around in our life. 00:12:13.600 --> 00:12:16.019 After having looked at the cross, 00:12:16.080 --> 00:12:18.200 that's when we have eyes of faith 00:12:18.200 --> 00:12:21.519 to be able to see God's steadfast love in the midst of it all. 00:12:22.480 --> 00:12:26.120 And so let's turn our attention to that this evening. 00:12:26.340 --> 00:12:28.180 And the result is awesome, right? 00:12:28.240 --> 00:12:28.740 He says, 00:12:28.879 --> 00:12:32.659 And I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. 00:12:34.320 --> 00:12:37.460 Olive trees, I mean, Israel is known for olive trees, right? 00:12:37.460 --> 00:12:42.680 And olive trees is such a great picture of enduring fruit and life 00:12:42.680 --> 00:12:44.980 because it could last centuries. 00:12:45.100 --> 00:12:46.400 It bears fruit for centuries. 00:12:46.519 --> 00:12:47.660 And it's an evergreen, right? 00:12:47.660 --> 00:12:49.300 So it's always in season, right? 00:12:49.340 --> 00:12:51.639 So it's such a cool picture. 00:12:52.360 --> 00:12:55.200 And I learned this this week that olive tree, 00:12:55.420 --> 00:12:56.980 even if the main trunk dies, 00:12:57.040 --> 00:13:00.740 apparently it lets off other shoots and it continues to live. 00:13:01.180 --> 00:13:03.740 So it's like, wow, that's a pretty cool picture. 00:13:04.080 --> 00:13:05.180 That's the life. 00:13:05.179 --> 00:13:07.599 So it will be our life, we'll be enduring, 00:13:08.019 --> 00:13:09.179 have life, we'll be fruitful 00:13:09.179 --> 00:13:12.079 if we trust in God's steadfast love. 00:13:12.839 --> 00:13:16.079 So let's seek to do that every day in our lives 00:13:16.079 --> 00:13:18.739 and let's turn to prayer tonight 00:13:18.739 --> 00:13:20.759 as an expression of that trust in God. 00:13:20.899 --> 00:13:21.859 Maybe we can sing a song.