Commentary - Psalm 92:5-9

Bird's-eye view

This section of Psalm 92 draws a sharp and necessary contrast. The psalmist has just been exulting in the works of God, and now he explains the nature of that work. It is not a trifle. It is not a small thing. God's works are great and His thoughts are profound beyond our ability to measure. But this profundity is precisely what the fool cannot see. He sees the wicked prospering, and because he is a fool, he draws the foolish conclusion. He thinks their momentary flourishing is the whole story. But God, who is exalted forever, has written a different end to that story. The contrast is not between the righteous man and the wicked man primarily, but rather between the everlasting God and the wicked man. Their ultimate destruction is set against His eternal exaltation. The enemies of God are just that, enemies of God, and only because of that are they our enemies. Their end is to perish and be scattered, like so much chaff in the wind.

The central point here is a lesson in divine perspective. The world offers a snapshot, and the fool takes it for the whole feature film. He sees the green grass and assumes it will be green forever. The man of God, however, has been granted a peek at the script, and he knows that the mower is coming. The wicked flourish, yes, but they flourish in order to be cut down permanently. God's eternal nature is the backdrop against which all temporary realities must be measured. This is a truth a brutish man cannot grasp. He lives by sight, and so is deceived by the temporary success of evil. The wise man lives by faith, and so he understands the end of the wicked from the beginning.

Outline

Verse by Verse Commentary

5 How great are Your works, O Yahweh! Your thoughts are very deep.

The psalmist begins this section with an exclamation of worship. He is not simply stating a theological fact; he is overwhelmed by it. When we triumph in the works of God, we are not triumphing in trifles. God does not do small things. His works are great, not just in size or scale, but in their intricate wisdom and purpose. And behind these great works are His thoughts, which are described as very deep. We are talking about infinite depths here. This is not a shallow stream a man can wade through, but an ocean without a bottom. Every action of God in history, from the parting of the Red Sea to the quiet growth of a seed, is rooted in a wisdom so profound that our sharpest minds can only skate on the surface of it. To contemplate the works of God is to be driven to worship, because you are confronting a mind that is limitlessly intelligent and a power that is absolutely sovereign.

6 A senseless man does not know, And a fool does not understand this:

Here is the pivot. The greatness of God's works and the depth of His thoughts are plain to see for those with eyes to see. But the senseless, or brutish, man does not get it. The word here suggests an animalistic existence, living by instinct and appetite alone. The fool, likewise, does not comprehend it. He doesn't understand the previous statement about God's greatness, and as we will see, he certainly doesn't understand the contrast that follows. The issue is not a lack of IQ points. The problem is a moral and spiritual one. The fool has said in his heart there is no God, and so when he is confronted with the works of God, he has no category for them. He is spiritually blind and deaf. He sees the world as a meaningless jumble of events, and so the profound wisdom woven into the fabric of creation is entirely lost on him. He cannot connect the dots because he denies the existence of the one who is doing the connecting.

7 That when the wicked flourished like grass And all the workers of iniquity blossomed, It was only that they might be destroyed forevermore.

This is the specific truth that the fool cannot grasp. He sees the wicked flourishing. They spring up like thick, green grass after a rain. Their businesses prosper, their political power expands, their cultural influence spreads. They blossomed. From a worldly perspective, they are the very definition of success. The fool sees this and concludes that either God does not exist, or He does not care, or He is on their side. But the psalmist reveals the divine perspective. Their flourishing has a purpose, but it is not the one they imagine. They are being fattened for the slaughter. They are like grass that grows lush and green right before the haymaker comes. Their prosperity is not a sign of God's approval, but rather a prelude to their final and eternal destruction. They are future hay. This is a hard truth, but a necessary one. The temporary success of evil is part of God's plan to demonstrate His ultimate justice.

8 But You are on high forever, O Yahweh.

In stark contrast to the flourishing but temporary wicked, there is God. The grass grows and withers. The blossoms bloom and fall. But Yahweh is different. He is on high forever. He does not wax and wane. His throne is not subject to the cycles of growth and decay that govern His creation. This is the anchor for the soul when we are tempted, like Asaph in Psalm 73, to envy the prosperity of the wicked. Their success is a fleeting illusion; God's exaltation is an eternal reality. He is not scrambling to respond to their apparent victories. He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers. His eternal, unchanging nature is the bedrock of our confidence that justice will ultimately prevail.

9 For, behold, Your enemies, O Yahweh, For, behold, Your enemies will perish; All the workers of iniquity will be scattered.

The psalmist repeats the phrase "For, behold, Your enemies" for emphasis. He wants us to look and see what he sees. He is not just stating a doctrine; he is pointing to an inevitability. These are not his enemies primarily, but God's enemies. Their rebellion is against the Most High, and the outcome of such a rebellion is not in doubt. They will perish. Their flourishing will come to a sudden and catastrophic end. All the workers of iniquity, who may seem so unified and powerful in their opposition to God, will be scattered. Their coalitions will break, their power structures will crumble, and they will be dispersed like dust. The image is one of complete and total defeat. There is no middle ground, no negotiated settlement. To be an enemy of the eternally exalted God is to be destined for ruin.

Application

The central application for us is to learn to see the world as God sees it, not as the 24-hour news cycle presents it. We are constantly bombarded with images of the wicked flourishing. We see godless ideologies seemingly triumphant in our institutions, and it is easy to become discouraged or envious. This psalm calls us to lift our eyes from the green grass to the eternal God who is on high forever.

We must refuse to be brutish men who cannot see past the immediate. We must ask God for the wisdom to understand His deep thoughts. This means interpreting the morning headlines in the light of Scripture, and not the other way around. The prosperity of the wicked is real, but it is temporary and serves a divine purpose in their ultimate judgment. Our confidence must not be in the shifting fortunes of men, but in the unchanging character and eternal reign of God.

Therefore, do not envy the wicked. Do not be dismayed by their apparent success. Understand that they are on a slippery slope, being set up for a great fall. Instead, give thanks to the Lord, for His works are great and His thoughts are very deep. Align yourself with the One who is on high forever, and you will find that your own life, though it may have trials, is planted like a tree in the house of the Lord, destined for a flourishing that will never end.