the LORD is King

“1 Why, O Lord, do you stand far away?
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?

 2 In arrogance the wicked hotly pursue the poor;
let them be caught in the schemes that they have devised.
 3 For the wicked boasts of the desires of his soul,
and the one greedy for gain curses and renounces the Lord.
 4 In the pride of his face the wicked does not seek him;
all his thoughts are, “There is no God.”
 5 His ways prosper at all times;
your judgments are on high, out of his sight;
as for all his foes, he puffs at them.
 6 He says in his heart, “I shall not be moved;
throughout all generations I shall not meet adversity.”
 7 His mouth is filled with cursing and deceit and oppression;
under his tongue are mischief and iniquity.
 8 He sits in ambush in the villages;
in hiding places he murders the innocent.
His eyes stealthily watch for the helpless;
 9 he lurks in ambush like a lion in his thicket;
he lurks that he may seize the poor;
he seizes the poor when he draws him into his net.
10 The helpless are crushed, sink down,
and fall by his might.
11 He says in his heart, “God has forgotten,
he has hidden his face, he will never see it.”

12 Arise, O Lord; O God, lift up your hand;
forget not the afflicted.
13 Why does the wicked renounce God
and say in his heart, “You will not call to account”?
14 But you do see, for you note mischief and vexation,
that you may take it into your hands;
to you the helpless commits himself;
you have been the helper of the fatherless.
15 Break the arm of the wicked and evildoer;
call his wickedness to account till you find none.

16 The Lord is king forever and ever;
the nations perish from his land.
17 O Lord, you hear the desire of the afflicted;
you will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear
18 to do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed,
so that man who is of the earth may strike terror no more.” - Psalm 10

This psalm begins with a question.  One that we all have probably asked at one point in time, ”Why, O LORD, do you stand far away? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?”  There are times when I feel the same way the psalmist does.  At times, it does seem like the Lord is standing far away.  Sometimes the anquish in my soul is so deep that it feels like the Lord does hide himself in times of trouble. But, it is always important, as we will see in this psalm, that while we do feel this way at times we remember that “The LORD sat as King at the flood; Yes, the LORD sits as King forever” (Psalm 29:10). The Lord does sit as King, nothing escapes His eye and nothing escapes His hand.  Everything is either permitted or carried out by God. What a wonderful truth to hold firm to? Now back to the psalm…this question guides us through the psalm but also finds it’s answer in the psalm. Psalm 10 can be divided up into 3 sections; the pride of the wicked (1-11), the plea for the Lord to act (12-15), and confidence in the Lord’s reign (16-18).    

the pride of the wicked (1-11)

The psalmist cries out to the Lord and asks why the wicked get away with the things they do and say. He then goes into details about how the wicked pursue the poor, curse the Lord, says “There is no God,” thinks he will not be moved, fills his mouth with cursing and deceit and oppression, seizes the poor and helpless, and causes the helpless to say God has forgotten them. These are serious things.  Sometimes it does seem like the wicked are the ones who flourish while the faithful struggle.  The apostle Paul reminds us to take heart in this struggle because we fellowship with the suffering of Christ (Phil. 3). The wicked will not always flourish and will one day receive their due justice and the Lord hears the prayers of the faithful and strengthens their hearts.  

the plea for the Lord to act (12-15)

The plea of the psalmist is for the Lord to arise and end the arrogance of the wicked. He asks the Lord to forget not the afflicted and then confesses that he knows the Lord does hear the pleas of the helpless and is by their side.  He asks for the Lord to break the arm of the wicked, or make them powerless. To bring them to nothing so that all wickedness will not remain.  He is asking for the Lord to act because the wicked renouce God and claim that He will not answer the plea of the helpless.  He pleas with the Lord for His name sake.

confidence in the Lord’s reign (12-18)

Once again we see that the psalmist does not only cry out to God but has confidence that He will answer.  He knows that the “Lord is king forever and ever” and that “nations perish from His land.”  The psalmist knows that “the earth is the Lords and the fullness thereof, and all who dwell in it” (Psalm 24). The Lord reigns and the Lord is in control! He knows that the Lord will strenthen the hearts of the afflicted and incline His ear to their pleas.

Do you know that He hears you?

Do you know that the Lord hears you?  Do you know that the Lord sits on the throne?  It is easy to cry out to God and wonder why the wicked seem to prosper but it is harder to have the confidence that the psalmist has that the Lord is king.  Take heart from this psalm that you are not alone in wondering but know that the Lord reigns and does hear the prayers of His people and act on behalf of the afflicted that cry out to Him.

- one who knows that the LORD is King!