They were men shaped and tempered to the harsh ways of a harsh land, strong in their sense of justice, ruthless in their demand for punishment, relentless in pursuit. In the desert and the wilderness they had built their homes, and from the desert and the wilderness they drew their courage and their code. And the desert knows no mercy, the wilderness shows no kindness.”
–Louis L’Amour (The Key-Lock Man)
“Justice is a joy to the godly, but it terrifies evildoers.”
–Proverbs 21:15(NLT)
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In this section of the “Pleas for Judgment of False Accusers”, Psalm 109, it seems quite harsh by today’s standards. Love and mercy tends to be the theme of believers today and there seems to be little emphasis upon judgment of the wicked and evil doers. But what happens if there is no judgment? True there should be mercy, but there must also be justice. Oh, how to balance the two…
9 — Let his children be fatherless, and His wife a widow.
10 — Let his children continually be vagabonds and beg; let them seek their bread also from their desolate places.
11 — Let the creditor seize all that he has, and let strangers plunder his labor.
12 — Let there be none to extend mercy to him, nor let there be any to favor his fatherless children.
13 — Let his posterity be cut off, and in the generation following let their name be blotted out.
14 — Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD, and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.
15 — Let them be continually before the LORD, that He may cut off the memory of them from the earth;
16 — Because he did not remember to show mercy, but persecuted the poor and needy man, that he might even slay the broken in heart.
17 — As he loved cursing, so let it come to him; as he did not delight in blessing, so let it be far from him.
18 — As he clothed himself with cursing as with his garment, so let it enter his body like water, and like oil into his bones.
19 — Let it be to him like the garment which covers him, and for a belt with which he girds himself continually. (NKJV)
Reading through verse 15 this seems very harsh. But then, starting in verse 16, we see the reason why. Before we may be crying “unjust” show mercy. But now we see the reason why David is speaking so tough. This “evil man should be judged by God because he never thought of doing a kindness.” (Steven Lawson) He showed hatred, lacked mercy, oppressed the poor and needy. He was a foul-mouthed man and he was not grateful for the blessings that had come upon him. David is saying, now, let all that he did to others come back upon him.
Have you ever been around people whose every other word seemed to be a cuss word? It is like this person, it is part of his “garments.” David is pleading for divine justice. Now, here is an important point. He gives the man to God; he asks that God take care of him in His justice. He does not become the object of wrath upon the man, but asks for the Lord’s judgment, for His justice, and then David be vindicated. Let him be accursed with his own cursings. “Our words and our acts create conditions in which we ourselves must live.” (Eugene Peterson) Repentance is available (mercy) but if there is no repentance we will remain unforgiven. David turned the matter over to the Lord, we should have the grace to follow his actions with our adversaries.
“Depth of mercy! can there be mercy still reserved for me?
Can my God His wrath forbear–me, the chief of sinners, spare?
There for me my Savior stands, holding forth His wounded hands;
God is love! I know, I feel, Jesus weeps and loves me still.”
–Charles Wesley
—————————
In this section of the “Pleas for Judgment of False Accusers”, Psalm 109, it seems quite harsh by today’s standards. Love and mercy tends to be the theme of believers today and there seems to be little emphasis upon judgment of the wicked and evil doers. But what happens if there is no judgment? True there should be mercy, but there must also be justice. Oh, how to balance the two…
9 — Let his children be fatherless, and His wife a widow.
10 — Let his children continually be vagabonds and beg; let them seek their bread also from their desolate places.
11 — Let the creditor seize all that he has, and let strangers plunder his labor.
12 — Let there be none to extend mercy to him, nor let there be any to favor his fatherless children.
13 — Let his posterity be cut off, and in the generation following let their name be blotted out.
14 — Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD, and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.
15 — Let them be continually before the LORD, that He may cut off the memory of them from the earth;
16 — Because he did not remember to show mercy, but persecuted the poor and needy man, that he might even slay the broken in heart.
17 — As he loved cursing, so let it come to him; as he did not delight in blessing, so let it be far from him.
18 — As he clothed himself with cursing as with his garment, so let it enter his body like water, and like oil into his bones.
19 — Let it be to him like the garment which covers him, and for a belt with which he girds himself continually. (NKJV)
Reading through verse 15 this seems very harsh. But then, starting in verse 16, we see the reason why. Before we may be crying “unjust” show mercy. But now we see the reason why David is speaking so tough. This “evil man should be judged by God because he never thought of doing a kindness.” (Steven Lawson) He showed hatred, lacked mercy, oppressed the poor and needy. He was a foul-mouthed man and he was not grateful for the blessings that had come upon him. David is saying, now, let all that he did to others come back upon him.
Have you ever been around people whose every other word seemed to be a cuss word? It is like this person, it is part of his “garments.” David is pleading for divine justice. Now, here is an important point. He gives the man to God; he asks that God take care of him in His justice. He does not become the object of wrath upon the man, but asks for the Lord’s judgment, for His justice, and then David be vindicated. Let him be accursed with his own cursings. “Our words and our acts create conditions in which we ourselves must live.” (Eugene Peterson) Repentance is available (mercy) but if there is no repentance we will remain unforgiven. David turned the matter over to the Lord, we should have the grace to follow his actions with our adversaries.
“Depth of mercy! can there be mercy still reserved for me?
Can my God His wrath forbear–me, the chief of sinners, spare?
There for me my Savior stands, holding forth His wounded hands;
God is love! I know, I feel, Jesus weeps and loves me still.”
–Charles Wesley