The Great Antithesis: God's Face Toward and Against Text: Psalm 34:15-22
Introduction: A Universe of Sharp Edges
We live in a soft, squishy age. Our culture prizes ambiguity, prizes inclusivity, and despises sharp distinctions. The modern conception of God, to the extent that one exists at all, is that of a benevolent, slightly senile grandfather in the sky who would never hurt a fly and whose central attribute is being indiscriminately "nice." He is a God without edges, without wrath, without holiness. He is, in short, a God who is not there.
Into this therapeutic fog, the Psalms crash like a thunderclap. The Psalms, and this passage in particular, present us with a universe of sharp edges, a world of clear and absolute distinctions. This is a world where there are righteous and there are wicked. There is good and there is evil. There is a cry that God hears, and there is a memory that God Himself erases from the earth. There is a refuge that saves, and there is a hatred that condemns. This is the great antithesis, the fundamental dividing line of all reality. God is not neutral. He is not an impartial observer. His face is turned in two opposite directions at once. To His people, His face is turned in loving, attentive care. To the evildoers, His face is set against them in holy opposition. You cannot understand the gospel, you cannot understand your own soul, you cannot understand the cross of Jesus Christ, until you understand this great divide.
This passage is not a description of two kinds of people, the "pretty good" and the "really bad." It is a description of two covenantal standings before the living God. It is a description of those who are in Adam and those who are in Christ. And the difference between them is the difference between deliverance and destruction, between life and the second death. So let us attend to the Word of God, for it is a sharp, two-edged sword, and it is here to do its necessary work of division.
The Text
The eyes of Yahweh are toward the righteous And His ears are open to their cry for help.
The face of Yahweh is against evildoers, To cut off the memory of them from the earth.
The righteous cry, and Yahweh hears And delivers them out of all their troubles.
Yahweh is near to the brokenhearted And saves those who are crushed in spirit.
Many are the evils against the righteous, But Yahweh delivers him out of them all.
He keeps all his bones, Not one of them is broken.
Evil shall slay the wicked, And those who hate the righteous will be condemned.
Yahweh redeems the soul of His slaves, And all those who take refuge in Him will not be condemned.
(Psalm 34:15-22 LSB)
The Divine Attention (v. 15, 17)
The Psalmist begins with the glorious reality of God's covenantal watch-care.
"The eyes of Yahweh are toward the righteous And His ears are open to their cry for help... The righteous cry, and Yahweh hears And delivers them out of all their troubles." (Psalm 34:15, 17 LSB)
Notice the active, personal nature of this attention. God's eyes are not passively scanning the universe. They are "toward" the righteous. This is the look of a loving father watching his children, the look of a master craftsman inspecting his prized work. His ears are not simply capable of hearing; they are "open" to their cry. This is a posture of eager anticipation. God is leaning in, waiting to hear from His people.
And this is not a sentimental platitude. It is a statement of cause and effect. "The righteous cry, and Yahweh hears." The hearing is not just an acknowledgment; it is an action. Hearing, in the biblical sense, means hearing and doing. The result is deliverance. Not from some of their troubles, or the minor ones. He "delivers them out of all their troubles." This is a sweeping, comprehensive promise. The "righteous" here are not those who are sinlessly perfect in themselves. That is a category of one, Jesus Christ. The righteous are those who have been declared righteous by faith, those who have taken refuge in God. Their cry is the cry of dependence, the cry of faith, and it is the one sound in the universe to which God's ears are always and eternally open.
The Divine Opposition (v. 16, 21)
The contrast could not be more stark. If God's eyes and ears are toward the righteous, His very face is set against the wicked.
"The face of Yahweh is against evildoers, To cut off the memory of them from the earth... Evil shall slay the wicked, And those who hate the righteous will be condemned." (Psalm 34:16, 21 LSB)
This is the doctrine that makes modern man choke on his brunch. The face of God, the source of all blessing and light, is turned "against" the evildoer. This is not a passive disapproval. It is an active, holy, and just opposition. And the goal is ultimate. It is "to cut off the memory of them from the earth." This is not just death; this is oblivion. This is the desire of the wicked, to be autonomous, to be free from God. And God's final judgment is to give them exactly what they want, an existence utterly cut off from the source of all life, memory, and goodness. It is the blackness of eternal separation.
Verse 21 reveals the instrument of their destruction. It is not some external force. "Evil shall slay the wicked." Sin is a viper that always turns and bites the one who holds it. It is a spiritual acid that corrodes and ultimately dissolves the soul of the man who traffics in it. The wicked are not just punished for their sin; they are punished by their sin. And notice the defining characteristic: "those who hate the righteous will be condemned." The hatred of God's people is a sure diagnostic test for a heart at enmity with God Himself. To hate the righteous is to hate the Righteous One who made them so.
The Posture of the Saved (v. 18)
So, who are these righteous whom God hears? The Psalmist gives us their spiritual posture in verse 18.
"Yahweh is near to the brokenhearted And saves those who are crushed in spirit." (Psalm 34:18 LSB)
This is the great evangelical paradox. God does not draw near to the self-sufficient, the proud, the spiritually accomplished, or the morally preening. He is near to the brokenhearted. He saves those who are crushed in spirit. This is not a call to perpetual moping or emotional fragility. This is a description of repentance. A broken heart is one that has been shattered by the law of God, one that sees its own sin and despairs of its own resources. A crushed spirit is one that has had all of its self-righteousness and pride squeezed out of it. It is the spirit of the publican in the temple, who would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!" (Luke 18:13). This is the entrance requirement to the kingdom of God. You must be broken to be made whole. You must be crushed to be saved.
The Promise in the Pain (v. 19-20)
The Christian life is not a life free from trouble. In fact, the opposite is true.
"Many are the evils against the righteous, But Yahweh delivers him out of them all. He keeps all his bones, Not one of them is broken." (Psalm 34:19-20 LSB)
This verse is a direct assault on every form of the prosperity gospel. The promise is not that the righteous will face few evils, but "many." The Christian faith does not get you out of trouble; it gets you through it. The promise is not insulation but deliverance. "Yahweh delivers him out of them all." The deliverance may come in this life, or it may be the final deliverance of resurrection, but it is certain. God's record of deliverance for His people is perfect.
And then we have this very specific, almost strange promise: "He keeps all his bones, Not one of them is broken." While this is a comfort to all saints, that God's protection is meticulous and detailed, it finds its ultimate and perfect fulfillment in one place. On a Roman cross, the soldiers came to hasten the death of the three crucified men by breaking their legs. They broke the legs of the two thieves, but when they came to Jesus, they saw that He was already dead. The Apostle John, an eyewitness, tells us the theological significance of this non-event: "For these things took place so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, 'NOT A BONE OF HIM SHALL BE BROKEN'" (John 19:36). Jesus is the ultimate Righteous One who suffered many evils. And in His suffering, this promise was literally fulfilled, signifying that His sacrifice was perfect, whole, and unbroken. Because His bones were not broken, we who are "bone of His bones and flesh of His flesh" (Ephesians 5:30) can be sure of our ultimate preservation.
The Great Redemption (v. 22)
"Yahweh redeems the soul of His slaves, And all those who take refuge in Him will not be condemned." (Psalm 34:22 LSB)
This final verse is the gospel in miniature. It is the grand summary. Yahweh "redeems." This is the language of the marketplace. To redeem is to buy back, to pay a ransom for something or someone held captive. We were slaves to sin, and Yahweh, in the person of His Son, paid the ransom price with His own blood to purchase us for Himself. We are His slaves now, which is perfect freedom.
And here is the final statement of the great antithesis. The wicked who hate the righteous "will be condemned" (v. 21). But "all those who take refuge in Him will not be condemned." To take refuge in Him is to run to Him for safety, to hide in His shadow, to trust entirely in His provision and protection. It is the opposite of self-reliance. It is the essence of faith. And for all who do this, the verdict is already in. There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1). This is not because we are not guilty, but because our guilt has been condemned already, in our substitute, on the cross. The great divide is this: either you will be condemned for your own sin, or you take refuge in Him who was condemned for you. There is no third option.