And that story is well-documented in the Old Testament books of Samuel. And if it’s been a particularly rainy summer and now it’s time for harvest, you might see a lot of produce that’s unusable because the fields have actually been too wet. The Lord has set apart the godly man for himself. They’re not seeking the Lord to provide the increase that they need. Click to enable/disable _gat_* - Google Analytics Cookie. You have relieved me in my distress; Thanks for the comment. “Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer.”. Psalms 4:3 But know that the LORD hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the LORD will hear when I call unto him. It can turn into ungodliness, for sure. They’re shaming the Lord – Psalm 4:2. I think it better explains the presence of the statements that we read in Psalm 4. So, again, the focus is on increase – in this section, about how not to go about looking for increase. BRIEF OUTLINE. B. David talks to himself. Be angry, and do not sin. 4:1 B. We started last time studying a sub-set of psalms known as lament or complaint psalms. And so, he can praise the Lord for doing what only he can do – provide increase to sustain David’s life. They need rain. We’ve dealt with overarching matters in Psalm 4. Who really thinks it’s a good use of one’s time to pursue “leasing” or deception? If possibly you can fall asleep with some heavenly meditation, then will your sleep be more sweet (Proverbs 3:21, 24, 25); and more secure (Proverbs 6:21, 22); your dreams fewer, or more comfortable; your head will be fuller of good thoughts (Proverbs 6:22), and your heart will be in a better frame when you awake, whether in the night or in the morning. The Lord might withhold the kind of increase we think we need. It looks like you’re in Edmonton? So, don’t lose sleep in lean times. Because they’re just now recognizing that they’ve offended the only true and living God. 27 ¶ And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel; and I will bless them.”. You have relieved me in my distress; Have mercy on me, and hear my prayer. 1. Not the supposed blessing of idols. I’m aware of two good possible interpretations. This is our lesson studying the Psalms. Your email address will not be published. That wasn’t just their job, either. I taught a few semesters of Greek online to some students at Foundation Baptist College up yonder. 1 Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness! We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. And God heard him. 3 But know that the LORD hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the LORD will hear when I call unto him. So, this interpretation of the underlying situation is plausible so far. The title does not tell us, as that of the former did, that it was penned on any particular occasion, nor are we to think that all the psalms were … (6-8) 1-5 Hear me for thy mercy-sake, is our best plea. And it’s providing a temptation for faithless Israelites to abandon the Lord and seek false gods whom they hope will help them overcome this drought and make sure they have food to put on the table. An apostrophe to his enemies, which is, 1. Yahweh ain’t giving it. David was a preacher, a royal preacher, as well as Solomon; many of his psalms are doctrinal and practical as well as devotional; the greatest part of this psalm is so, in which Wisdom cries to men, to the sons of men (as Prov. Not in temporal things in and of themselves. And speaking of things not happening too soon, we need to get to explaining the details of this psalm. Then some of them are asking who will show us any good. With stringed instruments. Let’s see if Baal will do it for us. God hears that kind of a person when he calls. I. He reminded himself to not sin in his anger, and to find solace in meditation before the LORD. Give me relief from my distress; have mercy on me and hear my prayer. It seems both Psalm 3 and Psalm 4 were written after David and his followers had left Jerusalem and crossed the Jordan River. Reprehensive, ver. Let me read that for you. And that’s what most of ancient Israel was – farmers. 1. They’ve been completely wrong about how to approach attaining material provisions. Ask the Lord to bless your efforts – to lift up the light of his countenance upon you. And when David addresses the idolatrous Israelites in Psalm 4:2-5, he’s really taking them to task for going about seeking increase in the wrong way. But this verb translated as “enlarged” here means to make wide or to extend or to provide wide room for something. Its context is a drought that’s tempting Israelites to turn to idols. And be gracious to you; But in this case I think David is not counseling the idolaters to be angry. Who wouldn’t be excited? So said David, and so says the Messiah. Or, Be angry, as the word is here rendered by all the ancient, and by some modern translators, and even by St. Why would David tell the slanderers to tremble and not sin? i. that so many should make so fearful a choice. When money is hard to come by for us, don’t we say something like we feel pinched? You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. Required fields are marked *. Be angry, and do not sin: With the ungodliness around him, David had reason to be angry, but he had no reason to sin. Last week we dealt with Psalm 3. And thank you for the encouragement. Well, enter Baal – the Canaanite rain god. And he’ll give you gladness that surpasses anything this temporal life has to offer. Or what about this phrase – “money is a little tight right now”. This trembling can indicate that the one who’s trembling is angry in some contexts. Commentary for Psalms 4 . Well now, where is there any mention of Baal or false gods in this psalm? He slept well because his safety was from the LORD, not from circumstances or even feelings. That’s it! And at the same time, David is filled with peace that God will provide him all the increase he needs. In it the servants of a god meet together. Psalm 4 shares themes with Psalm 3. His fields would have been suffering, too. c. Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the LORD: David knew the value of doing religious things (offer the sacrifices), yet he also knew that those could not replace trust in the LORD. By the way, do you ever find yourself confronting your enemies in your mind and heart? Because the Lord is with him. And so David prays that the Lord would indeed do these things for his people. The theme is then what the poet says about his topic. In fact, it’ll probably be pretty disappointing – especially to the farmers who depend on the crop to come in. Be angry, and do not sin. Keep serving and trusting in the Lord. The Lord wants righteous sacrifices. It was God himself. The Lord sets apart the godly for himself – didn’t you know that? Let’s think a little more about the imagery in this verse. Would we expect the idolaters to respond with something like “well, just a little longer” or “well, I intend to keep doing these things.” No, I think if the idolaters would have heard the questions posed this way they would have seen the obvious errors in their thinking. He’s telling them to tremble with fear. So, what’s the topic? David moved it to Jerusalem. So, in a very narrow-feeling spot in David’s life, the Lord extended David. It “is linked to Psalm 3 in mood and concept. LORD, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.” Confidence. Thank you and stay blessed. Do you ever feel a little embarrassed about doing that? We see that later in Psalm 4:6. We provide you with a list of stored cookies on your computer in our domain so you can check what we stored. 8:4, Prov. We may request cookies to be set on your device. These cookies are strictly necessary to provide you with services available through our website and to use some of its features. We can also expect to be able to sit and listen in while the Psalmist develops a strategy for mastering a crisis in his life. Will be prompted again when opening a new browser window or new tab... Go about looking for increase this kind of way to look at Psalm 4 - for security... About how not to sin, because the word translated “ distress psalms 4 commentary can also be translated “... Were written after David and his provision don ’ t lose sleep in lean times any time of harvest empty... These enemies are saying of David to the questions posed in Psalm 3 puts gladness in our so! Context given to us right in the Lord demanded that men trust in God 's.... 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