Psalms, the Wicked, 2021

kjv@Psalms:10:1 @ Why standest thou afar off, O LORD? why hidest thou thyself in times of trouble?

By most everyone's definition 2021 stands to be a time of trouble. (Covid, social unrest, political unrest, censorship of free speech and ideas and religion, lock downs, riots, national debt, talk of socialism/globalism/big media/big tech/big state, godlessness)

How did it ever come to all this? In a previous topic (see: IfTheFoundationsBeDestroyed ), I expounded the concept kjv@Psalms:11:3 that "If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?" Now, truly, the foundation of God cannot be destroyed, the LORD afterall "is in his holy temple, the LORD'S throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men", but the foundations of faith and the due effect of the faithful upon a society certainly can be destroyed. It could be argued that we live in such a time where the foundations of these important things has been or is in the process of being destroyed right before our eyes. If true in our present case, and there is very little left for the few righteous left to do, why then would the LORD stand so distant from us, seeming to watch this whole implosion happen?

Of late, I have been re-reading the book of Isaiah. In the first several chapters the nation Israel (both Ephraim and Judah) is going through such a time. The LORD asks the nation:

kjv@Isaiah:5:4 @ What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes?

kjv@Isaiah:5:5 @ And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down:

kjv@Isaiah:5:6 @ And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.

kjv@Isaiah:5:7 @ For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry.

Godless Assyria is used by the LORD like an "axe/razor" to cut HIS precious vineyard bare, head and tail and branches saving for HIMSELF only a tiny remnant. To paraphrase: HE asks "I've judged Damascus and other states for lesser idolatresses and oppression's, shall I not judge all the more chosen Israel"? Now, the axe of course puffs up it's head thinking that it alone did all of this by it's own power forgetting the axman God had slung this blade, Assyria has to be chopped down to size eventually on it's own, nevertheless the judgment of Israel is accomplished over the course of several hundred years and means the sudden death of the Ephraim side of Israel altogether. Keep this in your mind as I advance the discussion.

Today we are to consider from kjv@Psalms:10 (and other references found in the Psalms) a profile of the "wicked". Who are these "wicked"? What are they saying? What are they doing? Why are they doing this? I intend to look at this both in terms of foundations of faith and society that are being destroyed and the seeming futility of the saints to adequately do anything about it, along with this notion that God does stand aside at times having laid the vineyard bare. It's with very good intention of course, especially for the saint, but a trying time nonetheless.

One further point I would like to make in order to set the table to this topic: the United States is not to be considered on the same "chosen" level as was Israel. God has used our nation for HIS manifold purposes. God has blessed this nation in manifold ways. It has never though occupied God's favor and election as has Israel, though we might at times have felt it so. I am not prepared to go as far as to say the the USA is prophetic "Mystery Babylon - whore of the nations" as some/many have concluded, but I would (at least for the time of this brief consideration) like us to imagine the possibility that at the very least this nation might be judged by God in some sense as what we are going to profile as the "wicked".

PsalmsWicked - What they are saying: (Sumarized)

Instead of being preachy today, I would likely begin with a simple question that has recently been haunting me "Does the USA meet the criteria of being biblicaly wicked"? My hypothesis is "in it's present configuration - yes". Therefore in the following investigation I will lay out a profile of what wicked is, according to the psalmists and examine the current growing body of evidences.

Let's begin by defining some terms. The Hebrew word predominately used by the psalmists that has been translated into English as "wicked" is dict:strongs H7563 "רשׁע râshâ‛ raw-shaw' From H7561 morally wrong; concretely an (actively) bad person: - + {condemned} {guilty} {ungodly} wicked ({man}) that did wrong". The KJV sometimes translates it "ungodly" and other times "wicked". It is difficult when we are attempting to classify a nation as ungodly or wicked because in most cases that is just a generality, there are (or can be) morally good people that get lumped into the generality because of national direction or momentum overall. The term is used in the bible to describe certain other foreign nations, it was also used to describe Israel, both in it's united and partitioned forms. Even religious people can be ungodly (unlike God) in a pure biblical sense. Even religious people in their service to God can be in essence morally wrong (moral in a wrong way). The USA is neither exempt from this definition because of it's religious heritage/population nor by it's consequential secular morality. Let's then begin to examine the profile up against our present evidences!

kjv@Psalms:5:9 No faithfulness (stand erect/perpendicular) in their mouth DON"T STAND BEHIND WHAT WE SAY

Individual level = freely spewing to others what we believe at no cost to ourselves / committing to things we do not follow through on, saying whatever we think people want to hear and do the opposite, espousing things we have taken little time or effort to look into. (observed: rates of divorce, hypocritical child raising, duplicitous engagements and activities, loan defaults, superficial morality/politics/science/religion etc..)

National level = how we behave among our sovereign neighbors, treaties, trade agreements, loans and repayment of debt, the tampering/misrepresentation/falsification of intelligence and counter intelligence information etc...

5:9 continues "throat open sepulcher (grave) where the meaning and impact of words die/dead words come back out and fall back in, flattering (smooth) tongue.

(COMMENT) Many words don't mean what they once did, some words mean the total opposite, the language is being manipulated. It's hard to know what to say that will not be misconstrued or be offensive or worse totally ignored. Words are being used against people to put them down, words from 30 40 (even 250) years ago spoken in an entirely different context in some cases. People today are much more emotional and animated simply because they lack the arsenal of words to effectively convey their thoughts persuasively.

kjv@Psalms:10:3 boasts hearts desire, he blesseth covetous

kjv@Psalms:10:4-12 puffeth at enemies (blow/scoff), said shall not be moved (slip/fall) or be in adversity (evil/harm)

As a people we have long considered the USA the lone or dominate super power. Perhaps super power status has gone to our heads, telling ourselves that we shall not be moved or suffer adversity. That belief carries out into our daily approach and attitude among ourselves and among our fellow nations (allied and adversarial). It gives the sense to us of being impenetrable, unstoppable, technologically superior, just, morally right, some would even say God blessed.

10:4-12 continues "mouth full of deceit + fraud", "under tongue is mischief + vanity", said in heart God has forgotten/hidden/will never see.

kjv@Psalms:17:10 with mouth speak proudly (excellent/lifting things)

kjv@Psalms:36:1-4 flatter (smooths) himself, words are iniquity (exerted in vain) + deceit (fraud/craft/subtle)

kjv@Psalms:64:2-6 whet (pierce) their tongue like sword, shoot their arrows even bitter words, encourage themselves in a evil (naturally or morally bad) matter (cause)

kjv@Psalms:73:8-9 they are corrupt + speak wickedly (bad/evil naturally or morally) concerning oppression (injury/fraud)...

This is an interesting one. Notice what they are speaking badly about. There is a staggering amount of fraud occurring in the USA nowadays. The courts are being overrun with both fraud and injury cases; a whole lot of money changing hands, but not into the victim's hands. It seems the legal system is built for the legal and insurance system's benefit more than the victims. We might even consider that in many cases they (we all) are conducting an oppression on the victim. Most all of the time it comes down to who can afford the best lawyer. "They" (the system and therefore us) are "corrupt". What we say about it and what we plan to do to fix it is both naturally and morally bad.

73:8-9 continues "they speak loftily (altitude/elevated place), mouth set against the heavens (skies), tounge walketh through the earth"

So given this initial profile of what the wicked are speaking, our task is now to observe our society in the coming days to discover the supporting evidences. I believe that we will find numerous supporting evidences to the profile's claim. THe question then will soon be "how much of this behavior is enough for God to suddenly stand aside and let us experience the difficult consequences of it"? There are other concerns of this profile to consider however, let's not get too far ahead of ourselves.

PsalmsWicked - What they are doing: (Sumarized)

kjv@Psalms:10:2 in pride (arrogance/majesty) doth persecute (flame/inflame/kindle) poor (depressed in mind/circumstance)

kjv@Psalms:10:5-12 ways (trodden road) are grievous (twisting/spraling), sits (to judge) in lurking (ambush) places, in the secret (concealed) places doth murder (smite with deadly intent) the innocent (blameless/clean), eyes privily_set_against (hide/hoard/reserve - unfavorably) the poor (dark/unhappy/unfortunate), laying in wait to catch (clutch/seize/imprison) poor (depressed in mind/circumstance), crouching (collapse/contrite)/humbling (sink/depress) himself self that poor (intrenched army) may fall by his strong ones (powerful/numerous)

kjv@Psalms:11:2 bend bow (ready/take aim), privily (dark/obscure) shoot (flow as water/rain) at upright (straight/just) of heart (feeling/will/intellect)

kjv@Psalms:17:9-12 oppress (burly/powerful/impregegnable) me, compass me about (strike from all sides), like lion greedy (pale/pining after) of prey, lurking (sit down as to judge)

kjv@Psalms:22:16 assembly of (concourse/company/congregation)

kjv@Psalms:27:2 came upon (approached) me to eat (consume) my flesh (body/resemblance)

kjv@Psalms:37:12 plots against (plans evil) the just (lawful), gnashes (grates) upon (the just) with teeth

kjv@Psalms:37:14 drawn sword, bent bow to cast out poor (depressed in mind/circumstance) and needy (destitue), slay upright (straight) of conversation (road/course of life)

kjv@Psalms:37:32 watcheth (peers from a distance) righteous (just) seeking (praying) to slay (kill dead) him

kjv@Psalms:55:3-6 oppression (constraining) of.., cast (as to slip/fall) iniquity (vain panting) at me, in wrath (huff through nostril) hate (persecute/oppose against) me

kjv@Psalms:64:2-6 secret counsel (session/close deliberation) of.., insurrection (tumultous crowd) of workers (systematic and habitual doers) of iniquity (vain exertion), shoot (flow of water/rain) in secret (concealed) at perfect (morally pious) without fear, commune (mark/tally/inscribe/enumerate) of laying snares (noose/trap) privily, search out (conceal oneself/mask) iniquities (moralevil/perversness), accomplish (complete) a diligent (conceal oneself/mask) search (covert/trick)

kjv@Psalms:71:4 unrighteous (distort morally/deal unjustly) and cruel man (pungent/sour) (note: requiring hand of God to deliver from)

kjv@Psalms:109:3-5 compassed (surround/border) me about with words of hatred (exceeding hate), fought against (fed on/warred) me without cause (gratis/devoid of reason or advantage), rewarded (put) me evil (naturally or morally bad) for good and hatred (exceeding) for love

kjv@Psalms:119:53 forsake (loosen/relinquish) thy law (precept - especially Decalogue/Pentateuch)

kjv@Psalms:119:61 bands (rope/measuring line) of.. have robbed (duplicate or repeat robbing) me

kjv@Psalms:119:110 laid snares (a spring net) for me

kjv@Psalms:129:4 cords (intwined - string/wreath/rope) of.. (note: requiring God cutting assunder)

(note: the picture here is of a lot of secrecy and planning and efforts to engratiate self/cause to the poor in order to incite them against the just. They work in league with other like puposed persons and groups. They incite them via covetneousness, self exaltation and deceit, purposelly and repeatedly destroying the good character of the just, oppressing the just, loosening the restraints of morality and ethics, intimadation of by power/numbers/public perception of this being bigger than any one person or group of persons).

PsalmsWicked - Why they are doing it: (Sumarized)

kjv@Psalms:5:10 have rebelled (make bitter or unpleasant/rebel/provoke) against thee Lord

kjv@Psalms:10:4-12 will not seek after God (Eloheem), not in thoughts (plan - usually evil), said God forgotten (mislay/be oblivious) him + he hides HIS face (plural faces (but always used as singular)) + will never see it

kjv@Psalms:10:13 contemns (scorns) God, says God will not require (follow to pursue further) it

kjv@Psalms:28:5 regards (seperate mentally/distinquish) not the works of Lord not operation of hand

kjv@Psalms:34:21 they that hate (utterly) the righteous (lawful/just)

kjv@Psalms:36:1-4 no fear of God before eyes, left off (flabby/desist/lack/cease) to be wise (circumspect) + to do good (beautiful/happy)

kjv@Psalms:52:7 made not God his strength (fortified place), trusted (hie for refuge) in the abundance of his own riches (far richer riches), strengthened (stout/harden) himself in his wickedness (sense of eagerly coveting and rushing upon)

kjv@Psalms:58:3-5 estranged (turned aside) from womb.. go astray (vacilate/reel/stray) soon as born, their poison (heat/anger/hot displeasure) like serpent, deaf like ader that stoppeth (close/contract/window jamb/shut) her ear

kjv@Psalms:109:4 for my love they are my adversaries (attackers/accusers/resistors)

kjv@Psalms:119:155 salvation far (remote) from, they seek not thy statutes (enactment/appointment)

kjv@Psalms:139:20 take (lift) thy name in vain (sense of desolating/destructive/ruin)

kjv@Psalms:140:8 exalt (actively raise/bring up/extol) themselves

(note: the picture here is of enmity with God their maker and utter hatred toward those are no longer enemies with God by God's saving grace. We are all born of this. Mercifully we are not all sentenced to remain in it!)

PsalmsWicked - The effectiveness of: (Sumarized)

kjv@Psalms:12:8 the wicked walk on every side (cicle) when vilest (shaking/tempest) men are exalted (raised high)

kjv@Psalms:17:10 inclosed (shut up/surrendered/given over) in their own fat (to be fat, richest or choice part)

kjv@Psalms:37:7 prospers (pushes forward/break out/come mightily) in his way, bringing wicked_devices (plan = evil) to pass

kjv@Psalms:37:21 borrows and payeth not again

kjv@Psalms:37:35-38 seen in great power like green bay tree

kjv@Psalms:55:3-6 my heart sore pained, terrors of death, fearfulness, trembling overwhelmed me

kjv@Psalms:73:3-9 no bands in their death, not in trouble as others nor plagued, pride compasseth, violence covers as garment, eyes stand out with fattness

kjv@Psalms:92:7 spring up as grass/florishes

kjv@Psalms:107:34 fruitful land becomes bareness

kjv@Psalms:141:4 eating dainties (with men that work iniquity)

(note: the picture here is of wickedness being quite effective and prosperous; even to the point in some psalms of nearly being enviable. It appears to be a frequent contention of saints with God. If it can be that for the saint, think of draw it would have over the simple minded and poor)

Comment Board:PsalmsWicked2021

Further Resources:
BackToThePsalms010 - A previous BackToPsalmsSeries commentary.

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