Matthew Henry Commentary Psalms 73
Matthew Henry Commentary
Psalms 73
Matthew Henry Commentary
Psalms 73
"Surely God is good to Israel, [Even] to such as are pure in heart. But as for me, my feet were almost gone; My steps had well nigh slipped. For I was envious at the arrogant, When I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For there are no pangs in their death; But their strength is firm. They are not in trouble as [other] men; Neither are they plagued like [other] men. Therefore pride is as a chain about their neck; Violence covereth them as a garment. Their eyes stand out with fatness: They have more than heart could wish. They scoff, and in wickedness utter oppression: They speak loftily. They have set their mouth in the heavens, And their tongue walketh through the earth. Therefore his people return hither: And waters of a full [cup] are drained by them. And they say, How doth God know? And is there knowledge in the Most High? Behold, these are the wicked; And, being alway at ease, they increase in riches. Surely in vain have I cleansed my heart, And washed my hands in innocency; For all the day long have I been plagued, And chastened every morning." — Psalms 73:1-14 (ASV)
The psalmist was strongly tempted to envy the prosperity of the wicked; a common temptation, which has tested the graces of many saints. But he lays down the great principle by which he resolved to abide. It is the goodness of God. This is a truth that cannot be shaken.
Good thoughts of God will fortify against Satan's temptations. The faith even of strong believers may be severely shaken and ready to fail. There are storms that will test the firmest anchors. Foolish and wicked people sometimes have a large share of outward prosperity. They seem to have the smallest share of the troubles of this life; and they seem to have the largest share of its comforts.
They live without the fear of God, yet they prosper and succeed in the world. Wicked people often spend their lives without much sickness and end them without great pain; while many godly persons scarcely know what health is and die with great suffering. Often the wicked are not frightened, either by the remembrance of their sins or the prospect of their misery, but they die without terror.
We cannot judge people's state beyond death by what happens at their death. He looked around and saw many of God's people greatly at a loss. Because the wicked are so very daring, therefore his people are perplexed by this; they do not know what to say to it, all the more because they drink deep of the bitter cup of affliction. He spoke feelingly when he spoke of his own troubles; there is no arguing against experience, except by faith.
From all this arose a strong temptation to abandon religion. But let us learn that the true course of sanctification consists in cleansing a person from all pollution of both soul and body. The heart is cleansed by the blood of Christ, grasped by faith; and by the works begun by the Lord's Spirit, manifested in sincere resolution, purpose, and study of holiness, and a blameless course of life and actions, the hands are cleansed.
It is not in vain to serve God and keep his ordinances.
"If I had said, I will speak thus; Behold, I had dealt treacherously with the generation of thy children. When I thought how I might know this, It was too painful for me; Until I went into the sanctuary of God, And considered their latter end. Surely thou settest them in slippery places: Thou castest them down to destruction. How are they become a desolation in a moment! They are utterly consumed with terrors. As a dream when one awaketh, So, O Lord, when thou awakest, thou wilt despise their image." — Psalms 73:15-20 (ASV)
The psalmist having shown the progress of his temptation, shows how faith and grace prevailed. He maintained respect for God's people, and with that, he restrained himself from speaking what he had thought amiss. It is a sign that we repent of the evil thoughts of the heart if we suppress them.
Nothing gives more offense to God's children than to say it is vain to serve God; for there is nothing more contrary to their universal experience. He prayed to God to make this matter plain to him; and he understood the wretched end of wicked people. Even in the height of their prosperity, they were only ripening for ruin. The sanctuary must be the resort of a tempted soul.
The righteous man's afflictions end in peace, therefore he is happy; the wicked man's enjoyments end in destruction, therefore he is miserable. The prosperity of the wicked is short and uncertain, slippery places. See what their prosperity is; it is only an empty show, it is only a corrupt imagination, not substance, but a mere shadow; it is like a dream, which may please us for a little while as we are sleeping, yet even then it disturbs our rest.
"For my soul was grieved, And I was pricked in my heart: So brutish was I, and ignorant; I was [as] a beast before thee. Nevertheless I am continually with thee: Thou hast holden my right hand. Thou wilt guide me with thy counsel, And afterward receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven [but thee]? And there is none upon earth that I desire besides thee. My flesh and my heart faileth; [But] God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever. For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish: Thou hast destroyed all them that play the harlot, [departing] from thee. But it is good for me to draw near unto God: I have made the Lord Jehovah my refuge, That I may tell of all thy works. " — Psalms 73:21-28 (ASV)
God would not allow His people to be tempted if His grace were not sufficient, not only to save them from harm but also to make them gain from it. This temptation, the working of envy and discontent, is very painful. In reflecting upon it, the psalmist acknowledges it was his folly and ignorance to trouble himself in this way. If good people, at any time, through the surprise and strength of temptation, think, speak, or act wrongly, they will reflect upon it with sorrow and shame.
We must attribute our safety in temptation, and our victory, not to our own wisdom, but to the gracious presence of God with us and Christ's intercession for us. All who commit themselves to God will be guided by the counsel of both His Word and His Spirit—the best counselors here. They will also be received into His glory in the next world. The believing hopes and prospects of this glory will reconcile us to all difficult providences. And the psalmist was thereby moved to cling more closely to God.
Heaven itself could not make us happy without the presence and love of our God. The world and all its glory vanishes. The body will fail through sickness, age, and death; when the flesh fails, conduct, courage, and comfort fail. But Christ Jesus, our Lord, offers to be all in all to every poor sinner who renounces all other sources of satisfaction and objects of reliance. By sin, we are all far from God.
And a profession of Christ, if we continue in sin, will increase our condemnation. May we draw near, and keep near, to our God by faith and prayer, and find it good to do so. Those who with an upright heart put their trust in God will never lack reason for thanksgiving to Him. Blessed Lord, who has so graciously promised to become our portion in the next world, prevent us from choosing any other portion in this world.
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