Psalm 73: Perceiving Reality Accurately
A right or true perception of reality is absolutely crucial in order for a person to be true to the call God has placed upon all whom he has created, and for a life that is meaningful and for life that is eternal. But it is all too easy to have a wrong or false perception of reality in a world that frequently seems to belie that reality. Those who follow their own distorted vision of reality and pursue evil frequently seem to suffer no ill effects from this self-centered way of living. They snub their nose at God and seem to get away with it.
In order to lift up those who are true to God and to the true nature of reality as he has revealed it to us in his Word, the Bible, and who are discouraged by this seeming victory of self-seeking and evil over God-seeking and good--to them God has given encouragement that his way triumphs after all and that the apparent victory of the false is only an illusion and a dream that vanishes in the light of the dawn of truth. All this is given by God to true seekers of truth in Psalm 73.
"Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart" (Ps. 73:1).
The psalm begins with an affirmation that sets the stage for what follows. For in the rest of psalm, the follower of God pours forth the confused, hurting thoughts of his heart as to why those who openly and defiantly oppose God and his ways seem to prosper when they do this. But before those questions are voiced, the psalmist first qualifies his comments by stating that despite all his doubts, he knows ("surely") that God is good and in control and does not abandon those whose hearts are pure with a love for the truth and love for him. Despite all that he will shortly say that seems to bring into doubt this premise, he knows in his deepest heart that it is not so, that the answer will be revealed and that that answer will show what he here states, that God is still good and still God:
"Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart."
However, even though he knows that this is true in the depths of his heart, he still has surface doubts about it because of things he sees in the world that seem to go against this truth. He has been standing firmly upon God's declaration that He is still God, but his stand is not as firm as it once was. It may all still be true for God, but for the psalmist. . . . He has almost lost faith that God's Word is the ultimate truth about reality . . . almost--but not quite.
"But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold" (Ps. 73:2).
But just what is the problem here? Why has his former firm foothold of faith in God and what He says about reality being true been weakened? What has the psalmist seen that threatens to make him fall from faithfully following God's way and pattern to following the world's way?
"For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked" (Ps. 73:3).
What a telling statement! The first thing the psalmist enters on his long list of what bothers him about following God in a world that does not is the matter of wealth and money. How human! Jesus spoke often about the temptation of money, for he knew how much the human heart desires to attain worldly riches for itself. But, truthfully, it is not the money itself that is so dangerous as it is the human desire to be its own god. It is true that the sinful human heart desires comfort for the body, but in reality, that is just another manifestation of the deeper desire in the heart to be the one in control, to be in charge of how one's life will be lived: to be god. The next two verses list just some of the desirable things the psalmist sees in those who are their own gods. They indeed display in their lives some of the characteristics of a god-like being who has power over reality and is not affected by the common assaults human beings encounter in that reality:
"They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong" (v. 4).
"They are free from the burdens common to man; they are not plagued by human ills (in other words, they are godlike--v. 5).
But even though these things might indicate to them (and now somewhat to the psalmist as well) that they are godlike, other things the psalmist sees cast doubt on this premise. Though they may have some degree of godlike powers, their lives do not reflect the true nature of God. They are like God only in a very limited, external way; inside, in their character, they are definitely not like God.
"Therefore pride is their necklace" (v. 6). But God is not proud; indeed, he humbled himself, left his glory in heaven to become man and die for sinful, proud man (Ph. 2:7,8). Therefore, though their immunity to the common burdens of man make them think that they are above man and thus a god, that perception is false and a deception, for God did not sit back in ease in heaven, undisturbed by the plight of man, but had compassion on us and emptied himself of his protected sanctuary in heaven to join in our suffering here on earth, in his Son Jesus Christ. They may wear pride as a necklace around their necks, but Jesus wore humility as a wreath of sharp thorns around his head on a cross. No, in this they are not like God.
Also, "they clothe themselves with violence" (v. 6). In this they also fail to be like God. For God is a God of peace and kindness, not violence and war:
"I am for peace; but when I speak, they are for war!" (Ps. 120:7).
God, who is holy and pure, had mercy on sinful human beings; his heart was tender and full of grace. But these . . . :
"From their callous hearts comes iniquity" (v. 7).
They care not for others, only for themselves. Their hearts are callous, full of iniquity, of ways to exploit others for their own benefit rather than helping them to attain their own privileged position in life. They do not want to share that blessedness but rather keep it all for themselves, thinking, in their conceit, that only they are worthy of such high position and rewards: They are gods.
"The evil conceits of their minds know no limits" (v. 7).
"They scoff, and speak with malice; in their arrogance they threaten oppression" (v. 8).
So much do they want to keep all their riches for themselves that they threaten oppression of anyone among the masses of less fortunate who would dare to seek some of the same for themselves. These arrogant lords of the earth thus think of themselves as gods both of earth and heaven:
"Their mouths lay claim to heaven, and their tongues take possession of the earth (v. 9).
They seem to be in complete control and have great power, therefore many are they of the people who look to them for whatever they can receive from them and they emulate their ways.
"Therefore their people turn to them and drink up waters in abundance" (v. 10).
Since these wicked, arrogant rulers and wealthy have defied God and gone their own way and gotten rich and escape the common ills of man, the people see this and say:
"'How can God know? Does the Most High have knowledge?' This is what the wicked are like--always carefree, they increase in wealth. 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" (vs., 11-14).
But to speak thus and have such a false view of reality is to be deceived. It is only in appearance that any shred of truth seems to be associated with such a perception of reality. Reality itself is much deeper and does not sway itself to every false, ill-conceived vision of man's limited mind. The wise person knows this and refuses to succumb to such a false vision and refuses to add his voice to those who do:
"If I had said, 'I will speak thus,' I would have betrayed your children" (v. 15).
So the psalmist knows that the arrogant viewpoint and lifestyle of these rebels against truth and reality and the God of truth and reality is wrong, but still he is troubled by it. Why does God allow this?
"When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me" (v. 16).
If the psalmist had left the problem there and tried to solve it with his reasoning ability, he would never have been successful and would been in danger of joining the vast throng of those who abandon God for following their own ways. That is very likely what would have happened if left to his own resources.
But the psalmist was a dedicated, devoted, true follower of God and he knew where to turn to find the answer. So he did not stay within the confines of his own, limited human mind and reasoning powers, but went to the one place he knew he could find the answer. The mystery remained unsolvable only until "I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny" (v. 17).
Two things are worthy of note here. First, he had to go to the right place to find the right answer: the sanctuary of God. The world looks to government or society or education or the reasoning power of the human mind to find the answers to its problems and questions. But none of these are capable of answering the deepest questions of human existence. Only in the presence of God, in his sanctuary where he is, are the deep mysteries of life and existence able to be explained by the deepest mystery of all himself. That is why Mary wisely sat at Jesus' feet while her sister Martha busied herself running from here to there in a noble pursuit of serving God. But it was Mary who was able to discern the more noble quest yet. Knowing where to find the answer is the first prerequisite for actually finding it.
But the second point important to discern in this notable passage from Scripture is found in a single word, ultimate. It is extremely important to recognize the use of this one word here, for if we fail to see that there are levels and degrees of understanding of the deep depths of reality and God, we will fail to find the real truth that underlies all the surface truths that enshroud the most basic or ultimate truth of all.
For this world is full of lesser truths and lesser destinies. In his litany of inconsistencies of life, the psalmist at first noticed only the immediate destinies of people. He saw with his eyes that many who defied God and went their own way did, in fact, flourish; there was no use denying it. But it is fatal to true understanding to stop there, with the immediate results. In order to truly understand reality one must be concerned not only with the present and the immediate but the future and end result of one's actions and attitudes. Does he who drinks himself into a stupor immediately die of his foolishness? No, his body feels no pain and so he thinks he has escaped the natural retribution of his folly:
"'They struck me,' you will say, 'but I was not hurt; they beat me, but I did not feel it. When shall I awake? I will seek another drink'" (Prov. 23:35).
But the numbing effect of alcohol is temporary, and what is temporary is not the final verdict of what is true or not true. In order to judge accurately the real measure of what one sees, account must be taken of the end result, not just what is seen at the moment. So the psalmist says that in the sanctuary of God he saw their ultimate destiny; that is where the real truth lies. Just like the drinker's false vision of his own state of being is not real but leads him to think that yet more drink will assure him of continuing to conquer reality, when it is really reality that is conquering him and his false perception is leading him ever more downward to a final, ruinous destiny.
"Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin" (Ps. 73:18).
That is the final, ultimate fate of those who rely on what takes place now and what they see with their eyes instead of seeing with their hearts and the knowledge of God and reality that God places in all hearts regarding truth and life and himself. Now they may enjoy their false vision of reality, but it will not last long. There always comes the time of ultimate awakening:
"How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors! As a dream when one awakes, so when you arise, O Lord, you will despise them as fantasies" (Ps. 73:19,20).
God lets such rebels go their own way for a while--but only for a while. Even the existence and boasting of evil serves a purpose in the plan of God (Prov. 16:4). God is no more disturbed or alarmed by such evil and boasting than a lion by scavengers around his prey:
"This is what the Lord says to me: 'As a lion growls, a great lion over his prey--and though a whole band of shepherds is called together against him, he is not frightened by their shouts or disturbed by their clamor--so the Lord Almighty will come down to do battle on Mount Zion and on its heights'" (Is. 31:4).
God lets such rebels go their own way for a while, for which delay of his judgment they erroneously deduce that he is either impotent to stop them or does not care or, possibly, that their success is proof that he actually approves of their ways, that he is just like them. After all, are they not the lords of their own domain? But God says to them:
"These things you have done and I kept silent; you thought I was altogether like you. But I will rebuke you and accuse you to your face" (Ps. 50:21).
"They know nothing, they understand nothing. They walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken.
'I said, "You are 'gods'; you are all sons of the Most High."
But you will die like mere men; you will fall like every other ruler.'
Rise up, O God, judge the earth, for all the nations are your inheritance" (Ps. 82:5-8).
This world is not the final, ultimate destiny of anyone. We live here for a brief time that is the determiner of where we shall live for eternity. The ultimate destiny is heaven or hell, not this world--and the judgment of God passes sentence on all in this world. If we fail to see this, fail to keep our eyes focused on eternity, but allow them, instead, to stay fixed only on what passes in this world, as the psalmist did at first before going into the sanctuary of God, we open ourselves up to sorrow and bitterness of heart:
"When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered,
I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you" (Ps. 73:21,22).
But, praise God! even if this should happen to us, God does not abandon us to our sorrow and confusion, but steers us back to a right and true and proper perspective on life and reality and himself:
"Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory.
Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you.
But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds" (Ps. 73:23-28).
Thus the psalmist concludes his message to the people, fulfilling his promise to tell of all God had done in bringing him back to his senses. To this I add my own affirmation, for the Lord also opened my own eyes to this same truth of reality, and like the psalmist, I pass on to you, dear reader, the same joy and wonder at God's gracious gift to us of understanding how it all works together in accord with his wonderful plan for us.
"We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words" (1 Cor. 2:12,13).
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