THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION

Psalms: God's Nurture Of The Inner Man In The Life Of Faith

LXXV: Learning To Wait For God's Timing To Meet Our Needs

(Psalm 75:1-10)

I. Introduction

A. When God's people face needs in life's trials that require God's help, they may be tempted to urge God to hurry to address those needs now where the Lord may decide to take His time to address them at a later time.

B. Psalm 75:1-10 addresses this matter with insight and application for us (as follows):

II. Learning To Wait For God's Timing To Meet Our Needs, Psalm 75:1-10.

A. The introductory remarks of this psalm comprise the first verse in the Hebrew text (Kittel, Biblia Hebraica, p. 1040), so we stay with the numbering system of the English Bible.

B. We thus translate Psalm 75:1-10 as follows:

1. "Unto You do we give thanks, O Elohim, we give thanks, for Your Name [where God's Name in the Hebrew idiom stands for God Himself, H. C. Leupold, Expos. of the Psalms, 1974, p. 543) is near [i. e., God is near]; men have always declared Your wondrous works," Psalm 75:1.

2. "Because (You say), 'I choose the appointed time; it is I Myself (emph. pron.) Who makes a verdict uprightly,'" Psalm 75:2.

3. "'When the earth and all its people quake, it is I Myself (emph. pron.) Who hold its pillars [fig. of the foundations under the surface of the ground, Ibid., p. 544] firm. Selah,'" Psalm 75:3.

4. "'To the arrogant, I say, 'Boast no more,' and to the wicked (I say), 'Do not lift up your horns,'" v. 4.

5. "'Do not lift up your horns against heaven; do not speak with outstretched neck [in arrogance],'" v. 5.

6. "Because no one from the east or the west or from the desert (in the south) can exalt a man," Psalm 75:6.

7. "Because it is Elohim Who makes judgments: He brings one down, He exalts another," Psalm 75:7.

8. "Because in the hand of Jahweh is a cup full of foaming wine mixed with spices; He pours it out, and all the wicked of the earth drink it down to its very dregs [they experience all of God's wrath]," Psalm 75:8.

9. "As for me (emph. pron.), I will declare this forever; I will sing praise to the Elohim of Jacob," Psalm 75:9.

10. "And I will cut off all the horns of the wicked, but the horns of the righteous will be lifted up," Psa. 75:10.

C. We note significant observations and applications of this psalm (as follows):

1. Leupold (Ibid., p. 544ff) argues effectively that the point of this psalm is that God's people must wait for God's timing in addressing their needs versus taking action themselves ahead of the Lord (as in the case of Saul in 1 Samuel 13:1-14). "God times His acts so that they may come at the time that is best suited for the results He desires to attain . . . When that period has arrived, then it is He and none other that acts with decision and sometimes startling effectiveness. In doing this He may often let an issue develop into a certain crisis that is far beyond what man would have allowed to develop. But man cannot foresee outcomes as God can. Man's action would often be very premature. This is one of the basic laws of history and one of the fundamental rules in the kingdom of God," Ibid., p. 544.

2. Once God has acted, and it is time for man to act, the psalmist declares that he will do his part to fulfill his calling of God to support and to align in action with God's will, Psalm 75:9-10 with 75:4-7; Ibid., p. 547. [Note how the psalmist claims he will cut off the horns of the wicked while the horns of the upright will be lifted up in line with God's earlier charge for the wicked not to lift up their horns against Him, and that He brings down and lifts up whom He chooses]. The life of faith is not a lifestyle in which a believer never performs an act, but a life in which he FOLLOWS the LORD'S LEAD in what human works he does.

Lesson: The believer is always encouraged to pray for God's help in times of need, for God is always near and ready to hear. However, God has a timetable for addressing the believer's needs, so he must accept God's timing by waiting on the Lord to act in his behalf. Once God has shown the believer the way he should function in his situation of need, God expects him to perform his work in alignment with the will of God.

Application: (1) If we face times of significant need or trials that require God's intervention and help, may we always know that He is willing to hear our prayer. (2) However, God's TIMING in acting to address our needs can be DIFFERENT from OUR timing, so we must WAIT on the Lord to do HIS part instead of foolishly rushing to perform our own concocted solution in subsequent unbiblical error! (3) Once God has CLARIFIED what steps WE are to take in the situation, may we FULFILL that divine assignment in alignment with His will!