- Psalm 82 is quoted by Jesus to confront the Pharisees. The psalm says, “You are gods.” People have acted like Jesus is calling us gods. He’s not. The context is the divine council where God is holding judgment. We see pictures of the divine council in the beginning of Job where Satan has to report to God, and when God sends a lying spirit to Ahab (1 Kings 22:19-22).
- Psalm 83 is mostly just a plea for God to get their enemies. He’s too specific for my taste in telling God what He should do to them. I say, let God be God. He doesn’t need our direction. The psalmist concludes, though, asking God to do these things that they would know that the Lord alone is the God Most High over all the earth. That’s a worthy goal.
- Psalm 84 inspired the worship song about how one day in God’s house is better than a thousand elsewhere.
- Can you identify with what the psalmist is feeling when he says that a day in God’s court is better than a thousand?
- Before Psalm 84 ends with a exclamation that the man who trusts in God is blessed, there is this great truth. “No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly.”
- There are two parts to it. No good thing and those who walk uprightly.
- Who are those who walk uprightly? They are those who keep God’s commandments. What does upright have to do with it? They aren’t groveling before God. They can walk into His presence with their heads up. They approach the throne of grace with confidence.
- No good thing is kept from such a person. God loves to bless His children. He loves to give good gifts.
- 1 John 3:22 says that if our hearts do not condemn us before God then we know that we will receive whatever we ask from God because we keep His commandments and because we do the things that are pleasing to God. That’s confidence before God. That’s someone with their head held high. Someone who is upright. And as the verse says, they can know they will receive whatsoever. That’s true because their heart is right before God! They aren’t going to ask for selfish, evil things. They please God. They will ask the things that will please God because that’s what their heart is set on. And no good thing will be withheld from them.
