Latest / Faith by annm2705 / 926. Bible Study: Psalm 12 (The Protection and Refuge found in God, Trust Him)

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926. Bible Study: Psalm 12 (The Protection and Refuge found in God, Trust Him) · Faith by annm2705

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  Psalm 12 from the book of Psalms.
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  First let's pray, dear Lord, please open our minds and our
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  hearts and our ears to what you have to say through David.
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  We ask this in Jesus name. So Psalm 12 says it's for the
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  director of music according to the Shemaneth, a Psalm of David
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  and this let's see the Shemaneth is probably a musical term.
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  So it's begins, help Jehovah or help Lord, for no one is
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  faithful any more. Those who are loyal have
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  vanished from the human race. Everyone lies to their neighbor.
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  They flatter with their lips, but harbour deception in their
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  hearts. May the Lord silence all
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  flattering lips, in every boastful tongue.
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  Those who say by our tongues we will prevail, our own lips will
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  defend us. Who is Lord over us?
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  Because the poor are plundered and the needy groan.
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  I will now arise, says the Lord. I will protect them from those
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  who malign them, And the words of the Lord are flawless, like
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  silver purified in a Crucible, like gold refined 7 times.
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  You, Lord, will keep the needy safe and will protect us forever
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  from the wicked who freely strut about when what is vile is
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  honored by the human race. And that ends Psalm 12.
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  So when I was looking at this, it was, you know, David was
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  distraught. And just now as I was reading
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  this, I was looking at David was referring to himself as the
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  needy. At least the way the NIV
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  translates this, it says you, Lord, will keep the needy safe
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  and will protect us forever from the wicked.
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  So it's very interesting. I, I don't know at what time of
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  David's life this was he was exclaiming this, but remember,
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  David was the king. And so he is, he's, he's humble
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  in that way where he's calling himself the needy.
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  And I didn't look up the actual Hebrew word for that, but I, I
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  can, I just, maybe I should right now.
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  It's so it's Psalm 12, verse 7, and let's say you, O Lord, and
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  that's again, as we've talked about in the past, it's Jehovah
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  or Yehovah. You will preserve them from this
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  generation forever. You will keep.
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  Let's see. So the NASB sentence would be
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  you, O Lord will keep them. You will preserve him from this
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  generation forever. So it's kind of, it is a little
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  bit different than the way the NIV says it.
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  So either way though it, it does talk about God being the, you
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  know, preserving this generation.
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  So you, O Lord, will keep them. You will preserve him.
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  That's really interesting. It was them and then it says him
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  from this generation forever, I guess the wicked generation and
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  so that you know, it's really, you know, God is our refuge.
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  David says that so many times and we have protection in him
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  and forever. That's that's a keyword that's
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  translated in in both NIV and the NASB in Hebrew.
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  It is, it is said, you know, forever, everlasting, perpetual,
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  evermore, always. Those are different synonyms for
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  the word that's being used. So God is a forever protection
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  from the wicked. So I think it's more in, in an
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  eternal sense because we know that innocent people do get
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  harmed. Innocent people do get killed,
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  but in an eternal sense, God is their protection and they will
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  not be condemned like the wicked ones will, provided they've put
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  their trust and faith in God as their refuge.
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  And again, they, they are faithful to God.
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  They believe and they you know, God is God is the judge here.
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  So it says again, I looked up every reference to the Lord and
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  it was Jehovah on this one in this Psalm.
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  And so at the beginning he's he's talking about people who
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  are liars and deceivers and they are prideful yet and they reject
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  God and they don't think God has any in you know, God to them.
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  It doesn't like who is Lord over us.
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  You know, they just reject God. And then it this was interesting
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  to me, verse 5, where it said, because the poor are plundered
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  and the needy groan, I will now arise, says the Lord, I will
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  protect them from those who malign them.
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  And that gives me a thought of, you know, a future prophecy
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  where the Lord will arise. He he perhaps has done this many
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  times throughout history where he's defended his people.
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  There are times where he supernaturally protected his
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  people. So I think this is an ongoing
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  fulfillment because it says, you know, the Lord will keep the
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  needy safe and will protect us from ever from the wicked who
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  freely strut about when what is vile is honored by the human
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  race. When I read that part, I think
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  about again the end of the age where it says what is vile is
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  honored by the human race. This is probably like one of
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  those those Psalms or those parts of Scripture that is
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  fulfilled multiple times like in history, because there are
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  different times where there is other images.
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  I mean way back in the beginning and Exodus when Exodus 20 when
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  God gave the 10 commandments, the Israelites while Moses was
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  gone for the period of time, I guess it was 40 days on the
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  mountain getting the 10 commandments from God.
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  The people melted their gold jewelry and then made calf idols
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  to worship. So it didn't take them very long
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  to go back into idolatry. And that's like an image that
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  they were worshipping right after God himself LED them out
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  of Egypt out of slavery. They went back to what they
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  learned in Egypt. And it just shows like how weak
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  people are in general. And I'm not saying those
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  specific people, I'm saying all of us are weak on our own.
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  It and it says like you in our weakness.
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  That's when our strength comes from God.
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  It's through the Holy Spirit that we actually have strength
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  through God. And but again in verse 8, it
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  says when, when what is vile is honored by the human race.
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  So we also know that there was this what Antiochus Epiphanes
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  who set up some image and and some Zeus image and I think also
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  sacrificed a pig. It's written in the Book of
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  Maccabees, which is not in all Bibles, but in some.
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  And so that was a time when something vile was being honored
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  by the human race, like any of these other gods that are being
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  worshipped by the human race. I mean, that is considered vile.
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  That is idolatry according to the 10 Commandments.
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  And that's the truth. That's what that is.
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  And in the future, it talks about a time when people will
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  worship an image that gets set up and an image that is enabled
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  to speak. I don't know if that's
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  supernatural or something, but that's what the Book of
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  Revelation talks about. Like in the end.
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  So again, history repeats itself over and over again and but God
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  always remains protection. So we just need to remember that
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  no matter what time period in history we're in, God is our
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  protection and the words of God are perfect and refined.
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  So it says and you know this is verse 6 and the words of the
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  Lord Lord are flawless, like silver purified in a Crucible,
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  like gold refined 7 times. So and then he is our safety and
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  protection. So throughout history, we just
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  have to know that God is our protection.
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  No matter what is going on in the world, God wants us to call
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  on him and he will protect us and we just have to put our
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  faith in him and then we will receive his protection.
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  Even I think about like Stephen, who was, it's in the New
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  Testament where Stephen was being stoned to death and he was
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  a believer. And as he was being stoned to
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  death, he looked up and he said he saw the Son of God.
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  And and so even in his suffering, he saw God.
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  And it said his something like his face was peaceful or
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  something like that of an Angel or something like, I don't know
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  when we put our trust in God. Perhaps, you know, just I'm just
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  saying it from Stephen's experience that's described in
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  the in the Bible with his face like that in the midst of being
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  stoned. I don't know if you would have
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  that. I don't know how you would have
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  that look. And and I don't know this for
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  sure, but I do. It does make me wonder if God's
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  supernatural protection, it, you know, just does something to a
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  person who is suffering on behalf of Christ where perhaps
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  that pain may be taken away. Like it really does happen, like
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  people do die, but perhaps, and I don't know this, that they are
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  relieved of their pain to some degree by God.
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  I, I don't know, but it just seems like he had this peaceful
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  look. And how could you have a
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  peaceful look when you're being stoned except if you are under
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  the power of God? So just something to consider
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  and maybe explore that passage in the New Testament.
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  I did not look that one up either.
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  Let's see where that's found. It was Steven.
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  I'm going to see if it if it's easy to find or not.
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  Let's see. I can't.
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  They stirred up. They were sitting OK here it
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  says. But Stephen full of the Holy
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  Spirit looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus
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  standing at the right hand of God.
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  While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, Lord Jesus,
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  receive my spirit. So, you know, how did he endure
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  this? We don't know if it just, I, I
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  thought there was something about his face looking like, you
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  know, very peaceful or something.
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  I don't know. I just, I'll read the whole,
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  it's an Acts in the book of Acts verses 54 through 60.
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  When the members of the Sanhedrin heard this, they were
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  furious, furious and gnashed their teeth at him.
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  But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and
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  saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of
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  God. Look, he said, I see heaven
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  open, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of
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  God. At this, they covered their ears
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  and yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed him,
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  dragged him out in the city and began to stone him.
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  Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a
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  young man named Saul. Now this is this is this young
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  man named Saul is actually Paul. Later his when is this is Saul
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  before his name was changed to Paul, who wrote these books?
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  Because there's a later reference that says this was it.
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  So Saul is witnessing all of this and he's not stopping it.
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  That's just a side note. I'm not going to get into that.
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  And then it says while they were stoning him, Stephen prayed,
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  Lord Jesus receive my spirit. Then he fell on his knees and
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  cried out, Lord, do not hold this sin against them.
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  When he had said this, he fell asleep.
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  Now falling asleep. A lot of times what the Bible
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  talks about is that's the kind of the transition from our life
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  here on earth into the heavenly realms with the Father and, and
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  it says like he fell asleep. So it doesn't, you know, it
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  doesn't say like he died. And that's very interesting how
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  the Scripture does say this often about those who have
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  fallen asleep. It references that quite a bit.
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  Falling asleep is very different from struggling and death.
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  And it's, it sounds much more peaceful, which brings to mind
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  something that I've heard from Hospice nurses who have been
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  interviewed that say that there is a significant difference with
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  someone who transitions from this life here on earth when
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  they they are a believer and when they are not.
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  So when they are a believer, oftentimes they will see things,
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  they will have peace. It will be very, very peaceful
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  transition to the next age. But those who do not believe,
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  they have these like horrible violent struggles as they pass
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  from this, this age, this world, this life, it's it's a very,
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  very different experience. I would suggest, you know, just
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  look on YouTube and search like nurses or Hospice nurses.
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  I don't know what you'd use like Hospice nurses and patients who
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  believe or patients who don't believe and see what you find
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  out from the words of the actual Hospice nurses.
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  But I've seen multiple accounts with Hospice nurses talking
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  about the extreme difference between a believer and a non
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  believer. And so Steven here, you know, it
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  just says he fell asleep. So he had a peaceful transition
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  and he said something that was very similar to what Jesus said
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  on the cross. Lord, do not hold the sin
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  against them. Jesus said something about that
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  when they were the people referring to the people that
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  were crucify him. Lord forgive them for they do
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  not know what they do. Something to that effect and
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  Lord forgive. I'm going to see if I can find
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  those. Actually, that verse too, but
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  it's very similar to what I can't.
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  I didn't look it up. Well, I didn't find it.
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  Our father, maybe Father forgive.
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  I'll see if that shows it. Yes, this is it.
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  So Luke 23 verse 34, Jesus said Father forgive them for they do
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  not know what they are doing and they divided up his clothes by
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  casting lots. So you know, this is Jesus on
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  his cross. I well, I don't know if he was
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  on the cross yet. Yeah, I guess yes, He was on the
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  cross when he said this because it says when they came to the
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  place called the Skull, they crucified him there along with
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  the criminals, one on his right and the other on his left.
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  Jesus said Father forgive them for they do not know what they
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  are doing and they divided up his clothes by casting lots.
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  The people stood watching and the rulers even sneered at him.
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  They said he saved others, let him save himself if he is God's
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  Messiah. The Chosen 1.
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  The soldiers also came up and mocked him.
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  They offered him wine vinegar and said if you are the king of
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  the Jews, save yourself. There was a written notice above
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  him which read This is the King of the Jews.
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  One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him.
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  Aren't you the Messiah? Save yourself and us.
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  But the other criminal rebuked him.
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  Don't you fear God? He said, since you are under the
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  same sentence, we are punished justly.
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  For what? For we are getting what our
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  deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing
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  wrong. Then he said, Jesus, Remember Me
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  when you come into your Kingdom. Jesus answered him Truly, I tell
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  you today you will be with me in paradise.
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  Isn't, you know, like Can you imagine that the mercy and the
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  love of God on the cross, the Son of God he is, he sees like
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  there's two criminals and one of them is mocking him on the cross
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  and the other one has this realization.
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  He comes to repentance on the cross and immediately Jesus says
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  to him, you know, you're going to be with me in paradise.
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  Like you realized the wrong, like he, you can see that this
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  other man on the side, he said, you know, we are punished justly
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  for we are getting what our deeds deserved.
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  He recognized that we deserve this and Jesus doesn't deserve
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  this. And then he asked, you know,
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  Please remember me, which is kind of interesting.
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  Like I wonder why he says, and he was saying Jesus remember, it
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  says Mim Neskome. I don't know how you say that in
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  Greek, but I want to look like remember it says to remind, to
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  recall, to remember a thing, be mindful of it's kind of
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  interesting. It's like, Please remember me.
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  And who knows what his background was.
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  We aren't giving it any information about that.
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  But Jesus, you know, gives him forgiveness right there on the
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  cross, just showing again the love of God and, and the mercy
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  of God and what is available to us.
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  I mean, this man was sincere on the cross.
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  He wasn't just saying, you know, forgive me so I can go sin
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  again. He was, he realized, yeah, I'm
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  getting what I deserved. So anyway, that is, that's
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  pretty much all I have on Psalm. 12 But I'm there's a few
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  questions and answers in the Study Bible.
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  I will read those and then conclude this chapter.
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  So why were there no faithful people left?
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  There were still faithful people, but David was
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  exaggerating for emphasis, a figure of speech known as a
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  hyperbole. David felt like there was no one
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  left who was faithful and would stand with him.
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  Didn't they have a right to freedom of speech?
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  Yes, but their speech. This is referring to may the
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  Lord's silence, all flattering lips and every boastful tongue.
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  Those who say our tongues will prevail, our own lips will
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  defend us. Who is Lord over us?
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  So it says. Didn't they have a a right to
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  the freedom of speech? Yes, but their speech revealed
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  the proud attitudes that motivated them.
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  By announcing their freedom to say what they wanted, these
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  people showed their desire to do what they wanted.
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  Their loose lips revealed their rebellious hearts.
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  So who was maligning whom? The rich and powerful were
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  verbally attacking the oppressed in the weak.
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  Perhaps they wanted to justify their own lack of compassion and
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  failure to help the poor. It may have been that they
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  unfairly blamed the poor for their own problems, accusing
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  them of laziness. So I don't I don't know how we
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  can it says this is referencing the verse that says because the
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  poor are plundered and the needy groan, I will now arise that the
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  Lord I will protect them from those who maligned them.
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  I guess those who who use them, I don't know, OK, what vile
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  things were people honoring the wealthy were apparently
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  arrogantly parading their riches around while neglecting the
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  poor. God was displeased with their
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  pompous self centeredness and desire to use their wealth to
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  court people's favor. And I don't, you know, I don't
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  know where that comes from as far as the wealthy part.
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  I just see, you know, in in verse 8 that it talks about what
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  is vile is honored and you know what is vile or evil.
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  And I know oftentimes I mean that maybe I see things a little
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  bit differently than the study Bible, but I see it as idolatry
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  and wealth can be idolatry if you're putting wealth above God
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  and if that's where your trust is in like, and we do see that
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  today. Like if people know Bible
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  prophecy, they know that at some point Jesus is going to return.
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  And I don't know if you know, there there are wealthy people
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  who are building bunkers now, they're maybe not thinking about
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  the return of Jesus, but they're thinking and looking at what is
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  happening in the world and looking for a place of
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  protection that their wealth can buy.
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  But in the Book of Revelation in chapter 6, it says that, you
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  know, they hid in caves saying fall on us and hide us from the
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  face of him, from the wrath, the wrath of God and his Son.
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  And, and there is no protection. And just like David and other
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  prophets said, you know, I can go here, I can go there, but
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  nowhere can I escape you. There is no hiding from God.
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  God sees and knows everything and he is a just God and someday
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  he will bring everything to justice.
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  And if not in this life, it'll be at judgement time.
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  So we can't escape God. We will be held accountable.
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  And but yet at the same time, that's not really what this this
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  whole Psalm is about. This Psalm is about God being
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  the protector of the needy, that putting our faith and trust in
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  God and in his word because what he says is true and righteous.
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  And, and then to remember like what Jesus did on the cross and
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  his mercy and his love. I mean, that's really the the
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  thing that we should remember from the Psalm.
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  So I'm going to conclude Psalm 12.
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  And if you felt this was beneficial, please share this
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  with other people. If you are not subscribed and
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  want to stay in the word every day, I try to do this every day,
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  then please subscribe. Thank you.