From the Pastor’s Pen

Final Thoughts on Psalm 37:25-33

I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread. He is ever merciful, and lends; And his descendants are blessed. Depart from evil, and do good; And dwell forevermore. For the LORD loves justice, And does not forsake His saints; They are preserved forever, But the descendants of the wicked shall be cut off. The righteous shall inherit the land, And dwell in it forever. The mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom, And his tongue talks of justice. The law of his God is in his heart; None of his steps shall slide. The wicked watches the righteous, And seeks to slay him. The LORD will not leave him in his hand, Nor condemn him when he is judged.           NKJV

Psalm 37 contrasts the heritage of the righteous with the condemnation of the wicked. In our text, the Lord gives us three characteristics of the righteous.

First, the Lord lends generously to the righteous (v. 25). Though everything actually belongs to the Lord (Psa. 24:1), yet He generously bestows it on His people (v. 28, Phil. 4:19, Matt. 6:25-33) and even extends these blessings to the children of the righteous (v. 25). Do you doubt the truth of this statement? Then go into the homeless shelters and the prisons and see for yourself how few are the children of godly parents in those facilities.

Because God is generous to the righteous, in turn the righteous are generous to others (v. 26, Prov. 21:26). The righteous understand that they cannot out give the Lord (Prov. 19:17). God even pays back the righteous with interest in the next generation (v. 26, Deut. 12:28).

Second, the righteous are obedient to the commandments of God (v. 27). The righteous speaks what is right (v. 30). He speaks with wisdom because he speaks the word of God (Psa. 19:7). The tongue of the righteous reflects the righteous character of his heart. As a result of their obedience to the Lord, the righteous are hated by the wicked (v. 32, Jn. 15:18, I Jn. 3:13, II Tim. 3:12). However, the Lord will ultimately deliver the righteous from the wicked (v. 33).

Third, the righteous have an eternal inheritance in the Lord (v. 27). They have eternal life and eternal security in the Lord (Psa. 37:23-24, Jn. 10:27-30, I Pet. 1:5) and ultimately an eternal dwelling place as well from which they will rule with Christ over the earth (v. 29; Rev. 5:10, 2:26, 22:5). Are you numbered among the righteous? Have you repented of your sins and trusted the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Savior? If so, are you obedient to His commandments?