Psalm 37:22-40 Esv

Of one thing we may be sure; we can never escape the external stimuli that cause vexation. The world is full of them and though we were to retreat to a cave and live the remainder of our days alone, we still could not lose them. The rough floor of our cave would chafe us, the weather would irritate us and the very silence would cause us to fret.

Deliverance from a fretting spirit may be by blood and fire, by humility, self-abnegation and a patient carrying of the cross. There will...

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN Psalms 37 admonishes us to beware of irritation in our religious lives:

"Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity."

The word "fret" comes to us from the Anglo-Saxon and carries with it such a variety of meanings as bring a rather pained smile to our faces. Notice how they expose us and locate us behind our disguises. The primary meaning of the word is...

For Reading and Meditation:     Job 21:11-16

We come now to the heart of the issue with which the psalmist is struggling in Psalm 73: "Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence. All day long I have been plagued; I have been punished every morning" (

For Reading and Meditation:     Job 9:21-35

The more the psalmist contemplates the condition of the ungodly, the more his perplexity increases. The next verses show him to be upset over the fact that people treat the ungodly with such admiration: "Therefore their people turn to them and drink up waters in abundance. They say, 'How can God know? Does the Most High...

For Reading and Meditation:     Matthew 7:13-20

Today we look at the special understanding the psalmist received when he came into the sanctuary of God: "Then I understood their final destiny" (Psalm 73:17). As soon as he considered the final destiny of the ungodly, everything dropped into focus for him. He had looked...

"The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps shall slide." Psalms 37:31

Put the law into the heart, and the whole man is right. This is where the law should be; for then it lies, like the tables of stone in the ark, in the place appointed for it. In the head it puzzles, on the back it burdens, in the heart it upholds.

What a choice word is here used, "the law of his God"! When we know the LORD as our own God His...

When his Son was on the earth, clothing humanity with a perfection it had not known since it had forfeited paradise, the beautiful spectacle attracted the regard of God, and nothing would do but that he should send his voice down into the ranks of men exclaiming, " This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased."

When Christ was about to depart out of the world, he took steps to have this pleased regard of the Father continue towards those whom he was to leave behind, even to his...

We are here called upon to observe the providential wisdom and faithfulness of God, shown in his care of the good. "We are not merely to glance at these good ones, but to keep our eye upon them; for though God's providence may, for a season, appear to be adverse to them, yet at the end it will be found that he has led them carefully by his all-righteous hand. Not that they will die in affluence, in splendor, or in great worldly honor; but they shall exhibit their sure trust in God by a...

The faithfulness of the Lord to his people is secured not more by the fact that he delighteth in mercy than by the fact that he loveth judgment. The propitiation made for sin is so effectual that by it all the perfections of God become pledged to promote the everlasting interests of those who believe. It is God in the unlimited fulness of his nature, not a part of God, that is made favorable to the sinner by the blood of Jesus The believer should understand that he is not taking refuge in...

A good man is one whose steps are ordered by the Lord. Having come to the conclusion that there is none good but God, he has sought such an alliance with God as secures to him the benefit of the divine goodness. A good man is one in whom you can behold the goodness of the Lord. To the world's apprehension a good man is one who is able to order his steps aright, able of himself to know and to pursue the best path. This is a fundamental error; and religion can only begin with its overthrow....