Psalm 64: steadfast believers will not be let down
This psalm unfurls like a little play. It’s different from other psalms, because the narrative thread is continuous. The author begins with a plea for protection, then describes the reason for it: wicked people are seeking his destruction, and hurting him in secret by spreading evil words. I love the way he describes them: “They search out iniquities; they accomplish a dilligent search.” In other words, they looked thoroughly for a way to make trouble, and they found it.
But the author trusts in God’s deliverance: “God shall shoot at them with an arrow; suddenly shall they be wounded.” Deus ex machina may be a less common plot mechanism in worldly tales, but in the Bible, it’s the norm.
I can just see the imagery of verse 8: “So they shall make their own tongue to fall upon themselves: all that see them shall flee away.” Can you picture it? A huge tongue, blackened with deceit and wickedness, which they’ve been wagging about, turns upon them, and crushes them. I’ll say one thing about the author of this psalm: he’s got imagination! (Yes, I know, he was only using a figure of speech…)
The story ends wonderfully, of course. “And all men shall fear, and shall declare the work of God; for they shall wisely consider of His doing.” In other words, everyone realizes it doesn’t pay to be wicked and starts playing nice. And, this also serves to strengthen the righteous, who’ve been rooting for the good guy and for God all along, and have now been justified in their beliefs: “The righteous shall be glad in the Lord, and shall trust in Him.”
Although the tone of this post was a little tongue-in-cheek, the message still comes through: those who are steadfast in their devotion to God will not be let down. It may not happen during their lifetime, but the evil shall get it, and boy, they’ll get it good! I’m talking about the final judgment, when the righteous get their day in court and the sentence is pronounced upon the wicked. It’s coming. “And all the upright in heart shall glory.”
