Beloved, I am glad to share with you today the above theme from Ps 10:1-2 and following. Indeed, the “times of distress” described in these Pss. 9 and 10 will be frightening. Covetousness, pride, unbelief, perfidy, violence…, these characters that exist in today’s world will give their full measure when “he who holds back” (the Holy Spirit) is far away, in the days of the Antichrist whose sinister portrait these verses give us (2 Thess 2:6-12). But contrary to the thoughts of the wicked man who believes that God “will not inquire about anything,” everything he does in secret with cunning and malice is discovered. And everything he says “in his heart” is published by the One who searches hearts (Luke 12:1-5). “I will not be shaken” is here the language of folly, but perhaps also that of faith (Ps 62:1-8). The thought that God sees everything, encourages the tried faithful; the unfortunate can surrender to Him. And verse 2 contains another reassuring truth: the wicked will always get caught in his own net (Ps 7:15-18; Ps 9:14-17).
For Ps. 9 ended with the thought that nations “are only men”; Ps. 10 ends by calling the persecutor” “the man who is of the earth.” Believers, let us never forget that we are from heaven and therefore out of the reach of the world and its prince. This is why the cry of the residue extends further into it, and the iniquity of the enemy is specified in more detail. The response to the cry, and then the establishment of the kingdom are beautifully anticipated at the end of the psalm. Atheistic pride – man becoming his own god, receiving no lessons from God, neither in grace nor in judgment – and the persecution of the righteous, give a marked character to this last form of evil. Then are revealed some features of the great enemy of the last days, as everywhere in Scripture whenever it is mentioned of him, prophetically or typically.
Ps 10 as a whole, depicts the state of things in the last days, until the moment when the Lord rises for judgment, and more particularly the character of the wicked, for the wicked is recognized by his character, and it is in the Jew especially that this character is found (Isa 40 to 48 which deals particularly with idolatry and Babylon; and 49 to 58 which deals with the rejection of the Messiah, these two deadly sins that bring the Jews to judgment, sin against Jehovah and sin against his Anointed One). The wicked, in his pride, acts according to what is seen, while the righteous act by trusting in the character of the Lord, by faith in him. The wicked man glorifies himself with the desire of his soul and blesses the miser whom the Lord abhors; he pursues his plans, without conscience, seeking to destroy the afflicted by his artifices, and believing that God has forgotten him. What help can Christ not be here for the residue? The debonair raise their voices under oppression; Why does Jehovah stand far away and hide in the time of distress?
The debonair are indeed far from being where Christ has been; however, the shadow, if I may put it that way, of these sufferings that Christ went through, passes over them, but they can hope in God. Thus in verse 12, they implore God to raise his hand, not to forget the afflicted; Why does the wicked despise God? – The Lord has seen it, and will seek: – the unfortunate abandons himself to him. Verses 16 and following celebrate Jehovah’s entry into the scene in response to the supplications of the debonairs, and the results that flow from this intervention. Jehovah is King forever, – the nations perished from above his land. This is the public judgment; then Jehovah’s secret: Jehovah fulfilled the desire of the debonairs; he prepared their hearts; then he heard their cry; and his answer will be judgment; he will be judge in favor of the orphan and the one who is oppressed, so that the man of the earth, the one who has his strength and hope on earth, no longer frightens.
Next to the poor and debonair residue that awaits God, there are two others, and even in a certain sense, three other classes of people: there are the nations alien to Israel, which oppress it, enemies of God; then the wicked, who will then be especially in the midst of the Jews, as we have seen. But these wicked are mentioned from a double point of view, and that is why three classes of people have been spoken of: in general, – in Ps. 10 everywhere, and in Ps. 9 everywhere, except in verse 17, – it is spoken of the wicked in the singular; in verse 17, it is spoken of the wicked in the plural, in order to show that they will all be precipitated into the abode of the dead. The expression wicked, in the singular, defines character, although I have no doubt that there will be a particular Wicked, the antichrist; he is mentioned here certainly by his character, not by a separate prophecy concerning his person.
The following verses have been compiled for your edification and grouped together for your better understanding.
The Lord, Savior of the Poor and Oppressed:
· Divinity revealed, says of God when he hides
Jb 23.9 Is it occupied in the north, I cannot see it; Is he hiding at noon, I can’t find out. Ps 10:1 Why, O Lord, do you keep yourself away? Why do you hide in the time of distress? Ps 13:2 Until when, Lord! will you forget me without ceasing? Until when will you hide your face from me? Isaiah 45:15 But you are a God who hides from you, God of Israel, savior!
· Neglect and oppression of the Poor
Ps 10:2 The wicked in his pride pursues the unfortunate, They are victims of the frames he has designed. Ps 109:16 Because he did not remember to exercise mercy, Because he persecuted the unfortunate and the destitute, to the point of making the broken man die! Ez 18:11 if this son does not imitate in any way the conduct of his father, if he eats on the mountains, if he dishonors the wife of his neighbor, Am 2:6 Thus saith the Lord: Because of the three crimes of Israel, even four, I do not revoke my judgment, Because they sold the just for money, And the poor for a pair of shoes.
· The Fate of the Villains
Ps 75:9 There is in the hand of the Lord a cup, Where ferments a wine full of mixture, And he pours some: All the wicked of the earth suck, drink to the dregs. Ps 112:10 The wicked man sees him and gets irritated, he grinds his teeth and consumes himself; The desires of the wicked perish. Ps 139:19 O God, may you make the wicked die! Men of blood, get away from me! 2 Pet 2:17 These people are fountains without water, clouds that are chased away by a whirlwind: the darkness of darkness is reserved for them. Jude 13 of the furious waves of the sea, rejecting the foam of their impurities; of the wandering stars, to which the darkness of darkness is reserved for eternity.
· The Stages of Spiritual Preparation
-Abandonment of idols 1 Sam 7:3 Samuel said to the whole house of Israel: If it is with all your heart that you return to the Lord, remove from your midst the foreign gods and the Astarte, direct your heart to the Lord, and serve him alone; and he will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines. 2 Ch 19:3 But good things have been found in you, for you have made idols disappear from the land, and you have applied your heart to seek God.
-The purification of God’s temple 2 Ch 29:15 They gathered their brethren, and after sanctifying themselves, they came to purify the house of Jehovah, according to the king’s command and according to the words of Jehovah.
-Returning to the Lord Luke 1:17 he will walk before God with the spirit and power of Elijah, to bring the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the rebels to the wisdom of the righteous, in order to prepare for the Lord a well-disposed people.
-Personal purification 2 Tim 2:21 If someone therefore keeps himself pure, abstaining from these things, he will be a vessel of honor, sanctified, useful to his master, proper to all good work.
From all the above, we note that the analogy of all that concerns Christ in his circumstances of rejection on earth is clear: it is so with all forms of wickedness; the trinity itself is imitated, in evil, in Revelation; there is the city of corruption, as well as the bride of Christ, and so on. So far, except for the Messiah of God’s counsel, presented in Ps. 2, the righteous man has been placed before us characteristically: here, as is necessary, the Word characterizes the entire class of people opposed to Jehovah and his Christ, although one man may be the concentrated expression, so to speak, of this character. The residue was called to judge according to this character, morally. Also, notice, the wicked are judged with the nations; they all fall together under the same judgment. The wicked will be pushed back into the abode of the dead, and with them all the nations that forget God: “You have exterminated the nations, you have caused the wicked to perish.” So, in Ps. 10 we have especially the position of the afflicted and tormented residue within; that’s why we find that there is mention of the wicked (a man), not of the nations, until, during the execution of the judgment, they are all equally entrenched from the land of the Lord, so as to identify the judgment with the general statements of Ps. 9. And this fully responds to the history given to us of the last days. Our prayers are with you all.
PRAYER OF ACCEPTANCE OF JESUS CHRIST AS LORD AND PERSONAL SAVIOR
I now invite every person who wants to become a new creation by walking in the truth, to pray with me the following prayer:
Lord Jesus, I have long walked in the lusts of the world ignoring your love for humans. I admit to having sinned against you and ask your forgiveness for all my sins, because today I have decided to give you my life by taking you as Lord and personal Savior. I recognize that you died on the cross of Calvary and rose from the dead for me.
I am now saved and born again by the power of the Holy Spirit. Lead me every day to the eternal life that you give to all who obey your Word. Reveal yourself to me and strengthen my heart and faith, so that your light may shine in my life right now.
Thank you, Lord Jesus, for accepting me into your divine family, so that I may also contemplate the wonders of your kingdom.
I will now choose a nearby waterpoint to baptize myself by immersion, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
All adoration, power and glory are yours, now and forever and ever. Amen!
I would be happy to respond to any questions and comments you may have, before sharing with you tomorrow “praise after deliverance.”
May the Lord Jesus Christ bless you abundantly.
David Feze, Servant of the Almighty.