Beloved, I am glad to share with you today the above theme from Ps 40:2-3 and following. Indeed, glorious Psalm: Christ, the risen Man, speaks there to unfold “the wonderful works” and “thoughts” of God (towards us: he associates his own) as in four successive paintings. The first transports us to past eternity (Heb 10:5-10). The only one capable of settling the question of sin, the Son presents himself to be the obedient servant: “Behold, I come… ” And he came… Ephesians 2:17-18 confirms. The following chart shows jesus on earth, announcing and fulfilling “all righteousness” (Mat 3:13-17), bearing witness to God of goodness and truth, speaking of His faithfulness and salvation. The whole life of Christ is summarized in these verses 9 through 11. Then the Savior is before us at the solemn hour when He must cry out, “My iniquities have come to me.” My iniquities…? But they were mine and yours! There are too many of them. In Psalm 38:1-5 they were too heavy.
And finally, the last painting: The “well of destruction” and the “raging quagmire” have given way to the rock of resurrection. Christ, delivered from death by the power of God that He patiently waited for, sings His praise and invites people to turn to Him to celebrate Him too. But the Spirit who spoke through David, and in the circumstances of David, soon left him to give expression to the feelings of Jesus alone (Heb 10:5-7). In the first verses, the Lord anticipates the deliverance to Him in the resurrection; then he recalls his consecration, his ministry, his afflictions and his cry. He tells us that He patiently waited for the resurrection. He could, as we know, have manifested His divine power; but he waited to be brought back from the dead “into the power of the blood of the eternal covenant” (Heb. 13). He was thus, as he says in this psalm, the poor and the afflicted – the one who depended on God for everything, the one who waited, in the patient exercise of faith.
As in other psalms, he confesses the sins he had taken upon himself. For such a confession justifies God at the same time as it is the full acceptance of grace of what had been put upon him, so that we may have firm consolation, being assured that our sins have really been imputed to him; thus the high priest, under the law, confessed the sins of Israel on the head of the goat azazel. For the innumerable sum of God’s thoughts (Ps 139:17) beautifully expresses God’s care for Christ and his redeemed people and the delights he finds in him and in them, as the objects of his care and the center of all his counsel. If only we knew how to enjoy this truth as we should! (Ps. 70 in relation to the last verses of it ).
In Ps. 40, therefore, Christ does not appear only as going through the afflictions that cluttered his path, as long as he took up the cause of the people of his love, disobedient and guilty, afflictions in the midst of which he learned the language of the learned and by which he was made able to enter into the afflictions of those who will be tried and spared in the last days, and to express desires and requests that suited their state before God; – but this Psalm places us above all in front of the deliverance in which Christ, having patiently waited for the Lord in the midst of these afflictions, experiences the faithfulness of the Lord, so that he is delivered from these afflictions for the encouragement of many; then we find the key to all his history, when he undertook to do the will of the Lord, the whole Jewish system under the law thus ending and being set aside. Christ was perfectly faithful to Jehovah in the midst of the whole congregation of Israel, through the deepest trial and affliction; but the Psalm closes, as it should have, on the theme of deliverance.
For the purpose of the Spirit, in our Psalm, is to show those who were tried, that someone had gone before them in the path of suffering, and had been answered. We can say that it was in resurrection that Jesus was fully answered; but on the cross itself the hour of darkness had passed, and with a loud voice he was able to surrender his spirit to his Father (Luke 23:46), and his mother to his beloved disciple (John 19:26-27). These details are given to us by history, not by prophecy, and they would not have been beneficial to the faithful of the residue, for what they need is to know that they will be answered when they patiently expect Jehovah. If they are put to death, the answer will be for them in resurrection; if they remain alive, they will be answered to enjoy the position of Israel in blessing, with the Lamb on the Mount of Zion, because they have gone through, however weak and infirm they may have been, similar trials and sufferings, faithful to Jehovah in the great assembly.
For when they will look to him, they will judge their sins in that light where they will see the One who bore them, and they will have peace; but the foundation of peace is laid here for them, in hope. A heart burdened by the weight of its iniquities can, relying on it, wait for deliverance. Deliverance is found, and no matter how obscure the light of the faithful, for it will be, the foundation of hope is laid. (Isaiah 50:10 -11 describes this state, result for the residue of what Christ was justified and rescued). But that’s not all: the Messiah places himself in his association with the saints: “He has put in my mouth a new hymn, the praise of our God. Many will see and fear him, and trust in the Lord.” “Blessed is the man who has placed his trust in the Lord, and has not turned to the proud and those who turn to lies!” These are God’s thoughts toward us!
Thus, in the first verses, we see Christ patiently waiting for the Lord, answered and pulled out of the well of destruction and a fangy quagmire. For David’s heart sang this, but it is certainly not about him, but about Christ, with the intention of prophecy. Then we saw it, Christ, although distinguishing the residue, identifies with Israel. The praise of our God, he said; the result is that “many will see him, and fear, and trust in the Lord.” What they have seen affects the faithful in the last days and encourages them to trust in the Lord; they can also expect deliverance; many will. His preaching of justice to the great congregation gathers a small flock; His deliverance, as a suffering Christ, will be blessed for many. “Who begat me all these?” said Zion on that day (Isaiah 49:21). This expression embraces, perhaps, the ten tribes too; however, as a principle, a multitude of people will be there present and blessed, which did not happen at the first coming of Christ: then, he must have been, in his history and his personal sufferings, the despised and rejected of men.
The following verses have been compiled for your edification and grouped together for your better understanding.
Let everyone know what you have done for me:
· Divine condescension
Ps 113:6 He lowers his gaze on heaven and on earth. Isaiah 57:15 For thus speaks the Most High, Whose abode is eternal and whose name is holy: I dwell in high places and in holiness; But I am with the contrite and humiliated man, In order to revive the humiliated minds, In order to revive the contrite hearts. Mt 9:11 The Pharisees saw this, and they said to his disciples: Why does your master eat with publicans and people of bad life? Jn 13:4 got up from the table, took off his clothes, and took a cloth, from which he surrounded himself.
· Patience, waiting for God
Gen 49:18 I hope in your help, O Lord! Ps 37:7 Keep silent before the Lord, and hope in him; Do not be irritated against the one who succeeds in his ways, against the man who overcomes his evil designs. Ps 40:2 I had put my hope in the Lord; And he bowed to me, he listened to my screams. Ps 130:6 My soul counts on the Lord, More than the guards rely on the morning, Let the guards rely on the morning. Isaiah 33:2 Eternal, have mercy on us! We hope in you. Be our help every morning, and our deliverance in the time of distress! Acts 1:4 As he was with them, he advised them not to go away from Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, what I have announced to you, he said to them;
· Works of God, general references
Ps 8:4 When I contemplate the heavens, work of your hands, The moon and the stars you have created: Ps 19:2 The heavens tell of the glory of God, and the expanse manifests the work of his hands. Ps 40:6 You have multiplied, Jehovah, my God! Your wonders and designs on our behalf; No one is comparable to you; I would like to publish and proclaim them, but their number is too great for me to tell. Ps 111:4 He left the memory of his wonders, The Lord is merciful and compassionate. Ps 139:14 I praise you for being such a wonderful creature. Your works are admirable, and my soul recognizes it well. Ec 3:11 He does all good things in his time; even he has put in their hearts the thought of eternity, although man cannot grasp the work that God does, from beginning to end. Rev 15:3 And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the lamb, saying: Your works are great and admirable, Lord God Almighty! Your ways are just and true, king of the nations!
· Divine Delays Test Human Courage and Patience
Ps 69:4 I exhaust myself screaming, my gosier dries out, My eyes burn, while I look to my God. Ps 119:82 My eyes languish after your promise; I say: When will you console me? John 11:21 Martha said to Jesus, Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 2 Pet 3:9 The Lord does not delay in fulfilling the promise, as some believe; but He uses patience with you, not wanting any to perish, but wanting all to come to repentance.
From all the above, we note that our Psalm therefore presents us with Christ, according to the eternal counsel of God, who came here on earth to accomplish God’s will in human nature, placing himself in the midst of the great congregation of Israel, suffering accordingly deeply, descending into the well of destruction; but his trust in Jehovah remains firm. He waited patiently for him; he was delivered and a new hymn was put in his mouth. Jehovah heard his cry and brought him out of the quagmire. It’s a lesson for all the residue: Oh! how blessed is the man who has placed his trust in the Lord and has not turned to the proud! Then comes the rest of the events: God’s advice has been wonderful; Christ comes to do God’s will as man; he finds his delights in making it; he declares god’s righteousness before all. But he is brought there in the deepest distress; countless evils surround him, and moreover, his iniquities (those of his people) reach him; but patience has its perfect work: he is perfect and fulfilled in all the will of God (Jac. 1:4), and as the Psalm shows us in the beginning, he is delivered. However, the Psalm announces his fidelity, especially; that is why we follow him until the completion of the test, but always without him being delivered from it yet. For the object of his request is that the wicked, having found his enemies, be entrenched, but that the poor of the flock be made capable of praising, brightening up, and rejoicing in the Lord. How beautiful it is to see his perfect patience in the trial, so that all the will of God may be fulfilled, and to contemplate him seeking the joy and perfect bliss of the poor residue, but taking himself the position of dependence on Jehovah and begging him to intervene as God. Obedience and dependence are the two characteristic features of the action of divine life in man towards God. 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 ” the faithful celebrate the power and righteousness of the Lord.”
May the Lord Jesus Christ bless you abundantly.
David Feze, Servant of the Almighty God.