Psalm 73

Psalm 73

Complete Jewish Bible

A Psalm of Asaf:

How good GOD is to Isra’el, to those who are pure in heart!

But for me, I lost my balance, my feet nearly slipped, when I grew envious of the arrogant and saw how the wicked prosper.

For when their death comes, it is painless; and meanwhile, their bodies are healthy; they don’t have ordinary people’s troubles, they aren’t plagued like others.

So for them pride is a necklace; and violence clothes them like a robe.

Their eyes peep out through folds of fat; evil thoughts overflow from their hearts.

They scoff and speak with malice, they loftily utter threats.

They set their mouths against Heaven; their tongues swagger through the earth.

Therefore his people return here and (thoughtlessly) suck up that whole cup of water.

Then they ask, “How does GOD know?” “Does the Most High really have knowledge?”

Yes, this is what the wicked are like; those free of misfortune keep increasing their wealth.

It’s all for nothing that I have kept my heart clean and washed my hands, staying free of guilt; for all day long I am plagued; my punishment comes every morning.

If I said, “I will be like them,” I would have betrayed a generation of Your children.

When I tried to understand this, I found it too hard for me – until I went into the sanctuaries of GOD and grasped what their destiny would be.

Indeed, You place them on a slippery slope and make them fall to their ruin.

How suddenly they are destroyed, swept away by terrors!

They are like a dream when one awakens; ADONAI, when You rouse Yourself, You will despise their phantoms.

When I had a sour attitude and felt stung by pained emotions, I was too stupid to understand; I was like a brute beast with You.

Nevertheless, I am always with You; You hold my right hand.

You will guide me with Your advise; and afterwards, You will receive me with honor.

Whom do I have in Heaven but You? And with You, I lack nothing on earth.

My mind and body may fail; but GOD is the Rock for my mind and my portion forever.

Those who are far from You will perish; you destroy all who adulterously leave you.

But for me, the nearness of GOD is my good; I have made ADONAI ELOHIM my refuge, so that I can tell of all Your works.

So, do you as a believer ever have those thoughts of the futility of living righteously when you see the prosperity of the wicked all around you? Do you remember when you as a non-believer thought that there were no eternal consequences for your lifestyle and behaviors? I do!

In the first and last verses Asaf nails what the heart of the believer should be, unlike Paul and Peter who rejoiced in their trials and tribulations, I am not at that place yet. I do thank GOD for them and I rejoice in who GOD is, this is a process that takes time and the amount of time is different for every person. But to be holy as GOD is Holy means that we have to see everything from GOD’s perspective as CHRIST did. He said that He only did what He saw the Father doing and only said what the Father was saying; He said that He did not come to do His will but the will of the One who sent Him, to serve and not be served.

Being a servant is a key teaching throughout the Bible, especially in the Gospels and Epistles. All the writers of the New Testament called themselves servants and slaves of CHRIST and workers of GOD’s Will. In western culture this goes against the grain of social teaching; which is be your own person, pursue your own dream, don’t let anyone stand in your way, etc. We do learn to serve when necessary employers, government, laws but most of us do it with a personal liberty to not conform to that which we disagree with; such as driving the speed limit, honesty on our tax return, etc. I know!

But, serving is the key component to being a Christian; JESUS told us that if we loved Him we would keep His commandments, He told us to treat others as we wanted to be treated, to lay down our life for other believers, we are called ambassadors of GOD’s Kingdom. Ambassadors are servants of the ruler who serve at the ruler’s pleasure.

The point is that if we are serving GOD our only thoughts and desires should be to obey Him in faith. What others are doing and saying should only be motivation to pray and minister not complain and grumble. This has been a slow learning process for me, but GOD’s love for me continues to drive me to yield and serve Him only, not myself; “Do nothing out of rivalry or vanity; but, in humility, regard each other as better than yourselves – lookout for each other’s interests and not just for your own. Let your attitude toward one another be governed by being in union with the Messiah Yeshua: Though He was in the form of GOD, He did not regard equality with GOD something to be possessed by force. On the contrary, he emptied Himself, in that He took the form of a slave by becoming like human beings are. And when He appeared as a human being, He humbled Himself still more by becoming obedient even to death – death on a stake as a criminal!” Philippians 2:3-8 CJB