“GOOD THOUGHTS IN BAD TIMES” Meditations in the Psalms (Psalm 12)
“Good Thoughts in Bad Times,” I borrow the title of our meditation from Mr. Spurgeon and he from Matthew Henry. “We study this Psalm in light of His coming in that when He appears He shall break in pieces the oppressor” (the Arabic version “Concerning the end of the world, refers to the coming of Messiah”). It was probably written during the time of Saul’s persecution of David. I could have titled it “The Cry of Distress -- Help Lord”. Ask the world what it is that makes the times we live in so bad and they will tell you scarcity of money, decay of trade, and the desolations of war. But the scripture lays the badness of our times upon causes of another nature, “Perilous times shall come, for iniquity shall abound” (2 Tim.3:1), this is the kind of time David talks of, and these are the times we are living in. What makes bad times is not a bad economy, nor bad government, but the increase of depraved hearts. When “evil seducers wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived”: “men walking after their own lusts, and scoffing Christ and the gospel” “Help LORD, for the godly man ceases! For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men.” When the godly cease and the faithful disappear what happens? We lose the sincerity of society. “The godly man ceases”, the death, departure or decline of godly men should be a trumpet call for more prayer” (CHS). The norm for today is infidelity and deception, one would be better to be among lions than liars. They speak that which is vain to hear, from the church-house to the white-house. “They will kiss and kill as Joab did Abner and Amasa, they will smile in your face and cut your throat. This is the devil’s image, a complication of malice and falsehood. The times are bad indeed when there is no godly” (MH). “A man who flatters spreads a net for his feet.” “He who puffs up another’s heart in untruth has nothing better than wind in his own.” Can we expect any more when the “godly man ceases?” What comes with a godly man, but faithfulness, honesty and a straight heart (I Thess.2:1-5)! If any man ought to be trustworthy it should be the man of God, the preacher? Not so in these times. The hope of deliverance (v3-5), godly deliverance from the deceitful will come as the LORD passes judgment upon them: the world’s concept is “Who is lord over us?” setting themselves up for judgment; Pharaoh said; “Who is the lord?” From the mistakes of the wicked we learn that nothing we have is our own; that whatever is given to us of God is given for His service and to be done unto Him. Whatever we do or say we have a LORD over us to give an account to, and that we will give answer to Him when He calls us to that account. We MAY expect a just reckoning? NO! We can count on it because God says so in verse 6. God’s Word is pure, untainted, unmixed, unadulterated, infallible and certain. If He says there is to be a day of reckoning, get ready! “Though men are false, God is faithful; though they are not to be trusted, God is. They speak vanity and flattery, but the words of the Lord are pure words, not only true, but all pure, like silver tried in a furnace.” ~~Terry Worthan, 1938-2022
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