Psalm 10:1-18, The Saint’s Hope

Psalm 10:1-18, The Saint’s Hope

Do you witness absurdity, improperness, irrationality, and injustice in society? The wicked should perish but they do not seem to fall. They are triumphant. They are powerful. They lead the world. The righteous may feel discouraged when the wicked succeed since it may be hard to understand why the wicked does not fail. How should the saints respond when the wicked prosper?

1. We should get down and pray (v1).
When we encounter the wicked man, we criticize them and try to face them and fight them on our own. However, we are weak and helpless. We cannot face the wicked and defeat them with our strength. We should fall down on our knees and pray. When David encounters the wicked, he falls down to the LORD and pray. Psalm 10:1 writes, “Why, Lord, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?” We should do the same. We will be defeated when we live life without prayer. 1 Samuel 21 and 29 demonstrates that David experienced failures when he made decisions on his own without prayer. David fled from Saul and went to Achish king of Gath. David was afraid of him, pretended to be insane, and acted like a madman. Later, David joined the Philistines to fight Israel, but the Philistine commanders were angry that David was sent away. But in 1 Samuel 30:6,8, when David was greatly distressed, David found strength in the LORD. David inquired of the LORD whether he should pursue the raiding party and if he will overtake them. 2 Samuel 2 also shows that David inquired of the LORD whether he should go up to one of the towns of Judah. David fell prostrate before the LORD and put his complete trust in Him. In the same way, we should get down on our knees and pray to the LORD, who even counts every hair on our head, and knows everything and all our situations.

2. Why does God leave the wicked alone? God calls us to grow in maturity through it all.
God is in control of everything. God is sovereign over all things. There are times God leaves the wicked alone and let them be. But there are also times God punishes them and takes them away. It may seem like the wicked rule the world, but God is in charge of everything, He is the LORD of all, King of kings, sovereign over everything. Psalm 10:16 writes, “The Lord is King for ever and ever; the nations will perish from his land.” Why are there wicked nations around us? Why are there evil people in our lives? The wicked and wickedness can challenge us to change and grow in maturity. In Psalm 10:2-4, David tells us that the wicked has certain traits.

2 In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak, who are caught in the schemes he devises.3 He boasts about the cravings of his heart; he blesses the greedy and reviles the Lord.4 In his pride the wicked man does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.

1) The wicked man is arrogant (v. 2, 5, 6). Pride is the root of all sin. Angel became Satan because it was arrogant.
2) The wicked boasts about the cravings of his heart and he is proud of himself (v3).
3) The wicked say that God does not exist and reviles the LORD (v. 3, 4, 11).
4) The wicked man speaks reckless words. His mouth is full of lies and threats (v7).
5) The wicked lies in wait, from ambush, harass and afflict others (v. 8-11).

There are times we deal with evil people in our lives. When David encountered the wicked men, he humbly depended on the LORD and earnestly prayed to Him. The wicked may change and transform us. The life of Jacob demonstrated that. Jacob was a deceiver. But he met a worse trickster, his uncle, Laban. Through it all, God changed Jacob. When Jacob experienced transformation, problems with Laban went away. If Jacob kept fighting with Laban, conflicts with Laban probably did not die away. When we have compassion for the wicked man like Laban and experience change and transformation in our hearts, problems will fade away.
3. Pray that God will call the evildoer to account for his wickedness and remove the wickedness (v. 12, 15).
The wicked says that there is no God. However, David seeks God’s righteousness and His glory. David prays that God will arise and lift up His hand, break the arm of the wicked man, and call the evildoer to account for his wickedness (v. 12, 15).  David is not simply expressing his anger and affliction. David is petitioning the LORD and pleading with Him. David earnestly prays and hopes for God’s intervention. David prayed and he committed himself to this cause. Nehemiah also prayed for Jerusalem that was desolate and lied in ruins. He mourned, fasted, and prayed. He committed himself to the task of rebuilding and restoration. He asked the king for permission to return and rebuild the wall of Jerusalem. We should pray so that we can serve God and His Kingdom. We need to reach out to those who are lost, those who do not know and believe in God. We need to rescue those souls who are drowning in the world. There was a memorable moment in the last scene of the movie, Schindler’s List. Schindler said,  “I could have saved one more person. I could have got one more out. I didn’t do enough…” Where is our Schindler’s List? We should have the spiritual list. If we were once thankful that God has saved us from sin and death, we need to fast and pray for others, those who do not yet know the LORD. We need to pray for their salvation. We need to tell others about Jesus with tears and prayers. Fig tree produces fruit without flowers. Spiritually speaking, we should be like fig trees that produce fruits. Hymn 216, #4 sings, “All that I am and have, Thy gifts so free, In joy, in grief, thro' life, Dear Lord, for Thee! And when Thy face I see, My ran-somed soul shall be, Thro' all e-ter-ni-ty, Some-thing for Thee. A-men.” Romans 14:8 also says, “If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.” With everything that God has given us, our talents, abilities, resources, let us serve God’s Kingdom and be committed to reach the lost and save their souls. Amen.