Psalm 73:23-24 23 Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. 9. In addition, as he looked around he saw those who had no regard for God living in prosperity and apparent happiness. 21ff. They wear a power-hungry, cutthroat, cynical attitude like a coat. In fact, he was a worship leader. The basis for the speakers short admission is the realization of Gods presence, the third reorientation, which is introduced by weani. 1 The LORD, the Mighty One, is God, and he has spoken; he has summoned all humanity from where the sun rises to where it sets. Based on this certainty the psalmist then proclaims that even though his health should fail, God is his Rock46 and portion.47 With respect to this confession of trust, Artur Weiser writes: Nowhere else in the Old Testament is the power of faith in God to master life so profoundly grasped in such purity and strength, nowhere so forcefully formulated, as in the nevertheless, uttered by faith, by which the poet of Psalm 73 commits himself to God.48. For I was envious of the boastful, When I saw the prosperity of the wicked. ", Building Your Life On The Rock (Matthew 7:24-27 sermon), "This Is My Story: The Woman At The Well" (John 4:1-42 sermon), "The Greatest Verse in the Bible?" Scholars disagree concerning the compositional structure of Psalm 73.8 Nevertheless, rhetorical and stylistic analysis shows that the poem has been skillfully constructed. What caused Asaph to almost lose his faith, and what brought him out of it and how can this help those of us today, who might have some questions like he did? Our challenge today is to believe that. God is the Christian's inheritance as the light of his intellect. They do not need God. Why do my classmates blatantly cheat on tests and assignments, and they are getting better grades than I am? So make the visit that Asaph made; put yourself in the place where God can speak to you about the issues of your life: be faithful in your church attendance; be faithful in your daily Bible reading. Envy blinded his vision. Cars, people, and local shops were splattered with whale entrails. Life has a way of suddenly altering its course down hard paths, leaving us hurt, confused, and weak, with lots of unanswered questions. Publisher's summary: Confraternities were the most common form of organized religious life in medieval and early modern Europe. Listen to his confession in v. Ps 26:7-8) in dramatic transformation of the psalmists despairing doubt (vv. Everything changed. However, the experience of the psalmist proved the opposite. More than anyone else he brought pornography into the public realm, and as one of his critics said, he basically bought and sold female flesh. In 21:17, Why do the wicked still live, continue on, also become very powerful? Asaph believes God exists, that He is good and sovereign over all. For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. He did what Job did. May Gods word continue to bless your life! And what we'll see is that just when we think God is nowhere to be found, GOD IS CLOSER THAN YOU THINK. Hang on to Him! Why do good people suffering, and wicked people prosper? Surely You place them on slippery ground; You cast them down to ruin. The author of Psalm 73, Asaph, was almost like Elie Wiesel. He says, the wicked people are succeeding, and the righteous are being punished. Self-centeredness Brief outline from a message given at a nursing home, but suitable for any audience. Because He had had thousands of children burned in His pits? On the basis of these and other repetitions the compositional structure of Psalm 73 may be subdivided as follows: vs. 1; vv. Lying Psalm 25:6-9 All The Wrong Notes. Because, according to verse 14, while the arrogant wicked are not plagued (vs. 5), the speaker is plagued constantly. : "When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you." The thing about these questions is that they are usually based on our circumstances on what we see happening around us and to us but what we have to learn is that these circumstances dont show us the whole picture. I thought you reap what you sow! How the Psalms Speak to All of Our Emotions Dane C. Ortlund. If you'll allow me to paraphrase it, it goes like this: "So this is how life really works! But he didnt get away with it, did he? More recently, Craig C. Broyles has called attention to the fact that Psalm 73 contains important echoes of the psalms of entry (Ps 15 and 24) and related psalms.14 The reference to a protestation of innocence in verse 15 and the expression of confidence in verse 28 that concludes in a vow to praise suggests that in Psalm 73 the poet reflects on his experience of the lament process in the temple. well researched. The congregation was well instructed in the theme and shape of this psalm, which presents a . When you did the right thing, but got the back of the hand anyway. [1] Psalm 73 is written by Asaph a Temple musician. According to verse 7, their hearts overflow with conceit. What happened to him, and what he saw happening around him, raised questions that caused him to give up his faith. It's not difficult for that to happen, by the way. Notice how personal, direct, and intimate the psalmist is in addressing God. This happened for Asaph in verses 16-17: "But when . Consider this godly guidance when you get a raw deal. Glorification also refers to our elevation to an exalted state in eternity. And then, in worship, he renews his relationship in praise: Yet I am always with you; You hold me by my right hand. Wicked emphasizes the guilt of those who are actively choosing that which is offensive to God. In short, the wicked are totally self-reliant and autonomous people. He was really troubled by what he had seen in the world around him, and it raised questions which bothered him. He ceased being concerned about the sin of the successful and starting focusing instead on the success of the sinful. Thank you so much for that blessing Peter! Thats the story of the Rich Man & Lazarus in Luke 16, isnt it? WHEN a man is sick, everybody knows what is good for him. surely in vain I have kept my hands pure like Asaph here in Psalm 73, However, the Hebrew verbs of verse 17 are not in the past tense. Do not covet your neighbor's wife, his male or female slave, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor." As Psalms 1-2 introduces Book I of the Psalter, so Psalm 73 functions as the thematic introduction of Book III (Ps 73-89),1 a collection of psalms that is dominated by communal lament psalms.2 In this position Psalm 73 intentionally echoes important themes from Psalms 1-2. When he had all those questions that were nagging him, he didnt run away from the house of God, he went TO the sanctuary of God. This is unfortunate, since his works contain priceless gems of information that are found nowhere except in the ancient writings of the Jews. On the contrary, the verb enter in the temporal clause of verse 17a is a simple future (YQTL) and the main clause (vs. 17b) is a cohortative.27 Perhaps verse 17 should be translated as follows28: Only when I enter Gods sanctuaries,29 am I able to understand30 their fate (lit. History will not see the wicked ultimately prosper. They scoff and speak with malice; loftily they threate ", Envy is the tendency to compare yourself with someone else in a way that leaves you feeling deprived. The negative moral evaluation and economic critique of verse 6 is intensified in the second part (vv. So when Asaph got this revelation from God, he said Oh, Ive been so foolish. He said in :22, I was senseless and ignorant; I was like a beast before You, God. Materialism (This is) a psalm of *Asaph. I don't know how it started. We do things that brought regret and heartache because we didn't stop to consider the consequences of our words and choices. They aren't accomplishing anything. Harvey Weinstein was for many years one of the top producers in Hollywood. As long as Asaph tried to reason his way out of his troubled perception apart from God, he would hit his head against the wall. He took his doubts and confusion to God in prayer. Thats the message were going to hear the next 3 Wednesday nights, in the video. As a result, their speech is arrogant and they threaten oppression (vs. 8). For this reason they do not fear divine retribution. Anybody here know what I'm talking about? Asaph said as I looked around in the world, there were some things that bothered me. Your community. Rover is only concerned with the immediate. Im sitting on the couchwith my eyes closedattempting to nap. In the next stretch of Psalms we only have one attributed to King David and this isn't it. 37:9-10).35 In other words, the poets initial perception of the carefree lifestyle of the wicked is wrong. Envy had poisoned him and had powerful effects on him. God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him Learn more about Desiring God . Verses 17b-19 show us that Asaph was now seeing things differently. You have words of eternal life. But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled; My steps had nearly slipped. As a dream when one awaketh; so, O Lord, when thou awakest, thou shalt despise their image. The first correction concerns the fate of the wicked in verses 18-20, which is introduced with the emphatic particle surely. In somber language he describes at length what was already introduced in summary fashion in Psalm 1:6b.34 Unlike Psalm 1:6b, however, God is directly involved in their destruction. You are the church, and Lifeway is here to serve you with biblical resources for everything life brings your way. Their eyes swell out through fatness; their hearts overflow with follies. I heard a sermon last Sunday on Psalm 73. The Bible says Jesus turned to His disciples and asked if they were going to go away too. He did what Job did. by Carl Bosma. But from the perspective of eternity, from the point of view in worship, there is a quick ride to the bottom. He preached in the same church as C. H. Spurgeon over one hundred years earlier. There is no record that God ever rebuffs Job for being honest. What do you do when with your theology clashes with reality? They can take care of themselves. They were at once the lay face of the church, the spiritual heart of civic government, and the social kin who claimed the allegiance of peers and the obedience of subordinates. He's Where the Joy Is by Tara-Leigh Cobble, Black Church Leadership & Family Conference. They are not in trouble as other men, nor are they plagued like mankind. As a result, "Psalm 32 serves as an important check against any tendency . 13-14), the poet first embarks on an extensive and vivid description of the actions and words of the wicked in verses 4-12.18. In Job 29-31, this broken man struggles with the raw deal he received. Fire devours everything in his way, and a great storm rages around . Back to Chuck Smith's Bio & Resources "THE PLACE OF UNDERSTANDING" Intro: I know a dear dedicated couple, tithe faithfully, serving God as active laymen in church, their first baby was born horribly deformed. He says, Im glad I never said what I was thinking about it not being worth it to serve God. 22-24). When I read that story I wrote an article and sent it to the Oklahoma Baptist Messenger, which basically said that because Whitney Hand knows Jesus as her Lord & Savior, that that wasnt the end of the story for her. ", Asaph had fallen into the trap of loving the world and the things that are in the world. He wrestles with the tension of holding onto God's goodness and sovereignty while dealing the tragedies he was experiencing. It is good for me to draw near We have already seen that those who are far off shall perish; therefore, it is ill for them. Certainly God is good to Israel, and to those whose motives are pure ( Psalm 73:1 ). Furthermore, to highlight the uniqueness of worship, the beatitude in Psalm 65:4 should also be used because it claims that true happiness consists of God bringing us to his courts where we may be satisfied with his goodness. Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance But it WILL change suddenly and even more dramatically, the moment they enter eternity. Denomination: Methodist. Dont turn FROM God in your questions, turn TO Him. He also announces the reason for his reaffirmation of faith: to tell of all of your works (Ps 26:7). (Lee Eclov, Vernon Hills, Illinois; source: "Thar She Blows!" I don't understand what is happening or why! We'll be back to it some day. Be like the disciples in John 6, when Jesus had told the crowds that had been following Him some difficult things about what it meant to believe, and everyone was leaving Him. And he doesn't keep the cause of his troubles a secret. Your Bible study. Intro: One day, six blind men decided to go to the zoo.They hired a guide to tell them about all the exotic animals they couldn't see. Psalm 24 Back On The Farm. Verse Psalms 73:28. Temptation General, Temptation Resisting, Denomination: 21-22). AOL News (1-29-04); see also BBC News http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3437455.stm). Verses 4-5 of the first part detail why the wicked enjoy shalom. In the Psalm Asaph recounts a time of wavering faith and growing doubts. Using the imagery of clothing in this verse, the psalmist boldly engages in shrewd moral and economic criticism.22 According to this verse, the affluent are well-off because of pride and violence. Since his works contain priceless gems of information that are in the world and the things that brought regret heartache! The video paraphrase it, it goes like this: `` Thar She Blows! by a! But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled ; my steps had nearly slipped the. Do n't understand what is happening or why 32 serves as an important check against any tendency 16, it. Very powerful God living in prosperity and apparent happiness Wednesday nights, in the world and the things that me... 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