“I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and doggone it, people like me.”¹ Does this sound familiar? Perhaps you have found yourself guilty of saying something like this. This was the programmatic catchphrase of Stuart Smalley, a fictional character played by Al Franken on Saturday Night Live in the early 1990’s. Smalley’s show was called “Daily Affirmation” and was an attempt to boost his listeners’ self-esteem as well as his own. How often do we run into a similar phrase in conversations with people in our lives, certainly as it relates to God, sin, and salvation? Do we frequently seek comfort by whispering these kinds of things to ourselves? But the question must be asked: Good or smart enough for what?

“I believe I am a good person”—we commonly hear this asserted from people in the public square regarding moral and ethical behavior. They believe themselves to be “good enough;” but by what measure and to what end? Scripture testifies in a multitude of places that the measuring rod of goodness belongs to a holy God who created all things, and that all of humanity due to sin is found severely lacking in the moral, ethical, and behavioral metric, with sure and everlasting consequences. Regarding the punishment for sin, we can say with much certainty, “We are all bad enough.”

This is not Saturday Night Live; it is the Saturday Psalm Series. In this two-part series, we will investigate one of the places in Scripture that testifies to the human condition: Psalms 14 and 53. The hope is that studying these psalms will reveal the dire predicament in which we find ourselves. To be sure, this is very bad news, but good news is on the horizon. We will look at these psalms in their context and then move on to enlist the help of the apostle Paul and his use of the Old Testament in the third chapter of his epistle to the Romans. We will begin by investigating exegetical considerations and application of Psalms 14 and 53. Then in part two, we will travel onward along the Roman road to the biblical and systematic-theological conclusions which will lead to practical implications for all of our lives.

Psalm 14

These two psalms are nearly identical, and they both tell quite a different story than what our current culture desires were true. Recall Smalley’s grasping for significance and approval, his rallying cry for you: “I’m good enough.” In contrast to this, Psalms 14 and 53 tell it as it truly is. Let us look at Psalm 14 while integrating Psalm 53 in the interpretive commentary below:

To the Choirmaster. Of David.²

1 The fool in his heart says, “No God.”
They are corrupt, they act abominably;
none does good.

2 The LORD from heaven looks down upon the sons of man,
to see if any have understanding,
who seek God.

3 The whole of them have turned aside; altogether, immorally corrupt;
none does good,
not even one.

4 Do they have no knowledge, all the makers of evil,
those who eat my people like they eat bread
and do not call to the LORD?

5 There they are in terrorizing terror,
because God is with the righteous generation.

6 Plans of the poor you would be ashamed of,
but the LORD is his refuge.

7 Oh, give from out of Zion salvation for Israel!
When the LORD returns fortune to his people,
rejoice Jacob, be glad Israel.³

Interpretation and Commentary

Much ink has been spilt over the forms and ways of Hebrew poetry and the literary genre of the Psalms. This article will avoid that discussion, other than to say that these two psalms seem to fit best in the wisdom genre.⁴ Here, the fool is in view. The righteous one is David the psalmist whose hope is in the Lord for the well-being of Israel. There is an implicit connection in Psalms 14 and 53 to Psalms 1 and 2 in the introduction to the Psalter, particularly the first Psalm where the two ways—life and death—are shown.⁵ In these psalms, we gaze sadly upon the foolishness of the wicked. But remember, Psalms 14 and 53 were written by the righteous generation.” The psalmist David seems to “draw on the analysis of wisdom and on prophecy’s vision of reality to redescribe the situation of the lowly righteous.”⁶ Though they think themselves clever, the wicked continue in foolishness while the righteous are considered fools.

The foolish persons described here are no intellectual slouches.⁷ The fool is not lacking a high IQ, but rather is defiant against God’s moral standard of righteousness—against the good. They are rocket scientists, doctors, and lawyers; but in their heart, they say, “There is no God!” They yell in unbelief, “God does not exist, so I may do what I want—I define right and wrong.” Simply put, this is the continual retelling of what occurred in the garden with the rebellion of Adam and Eve. The maker of evil resists any accountability, to the point of self-delusion and idol-creation.

Just as in the days of Noah, those the psalmist David looks upon do acts of corruption and abomination, always. This is the intent of their hearts (Gen 6:5). They thrive on iniquity, injustice, and perversity.⁸ Not a one of them acts any differently than the rest. David seems to be all alone on the side of the righteous. The Lord looks and sees that all have fallen short of his glory, that none seek after him.⁹ All lack the understanding and wisdom to realize their dire circumstances.

Psalms 14 and 53 use two similar looking but different words in Hebrew to describe what these abominable children are doing. In Psalm 14, they have turned aside towards corruption; in Psalm 53, they have fallen or moved away into corruption. If it was not obvious before, none—not even one—does any good. The question is then raised in verse four: How do they not know? How are they so blind? These fools make and work evil. Evil is in their bellies. David describes them as eating the Lord’s people as if they were merely consuming bread. The Lord’s people are treated as daily sustenance for the wicked.

At verse five, the two psalms diverge in meaning in a couple of ways, perhaps, only on pointed emphasis. First, as the ESV has it, Psalm 14 is composed of seven verses, whereas Psalm 53 is composed of six verses. Verse five in Psalm 53 seems to take on verses five and six of Psalm 14, but with some alteration. There is a terrorizing terror in the midst of the fools, but Psalm 53 adds that, “No terror comes to pass,” even though terror roams (53:5). Their terror seems imaginary in a sense, but their very real dread is existentially felt.¹⁰ They are deluded. In Psalm 14, God is with the righteous, but in Psalm 53, God spreads out the wicked deeds (“bones;” ESV) of those who lay siege against you (the righteous?). Though the fool is deluded in the riches and faux-comfort of life, and the righteous poor are consumed, the covenant-keeping Lord God knows all. The concept and Hebrew word for shame (bosh) appears in verse six of Psalm 14 and speaks of God as the refuge of the poor from the wicked’s intentions to shame them. This same word and concept is pictured in Psalm 53:5, but there it refers to God shaming the wicked through his people because he has rejected them. So, it seems that Psalm 14 focuses on the righteous (the poor) and the Lord’s steadfastness for them as their refuge; in Psalm 53, the righteous (the “you” in whom the wicked has laid siege) are still present, but the emphasis is on the terrorized wicked, their scattering like chaff, and their shameful rejection.

After the unique nuances in the middle portions of these two Psalms, we come to the closing verse. Although differently numbered in our English Bibles, these psalms are nevertheless joined in union of meaning. The hope of Israel is on display in the power and love of the Lord God who restores blessing and life. David pleads for Israel’s salvation. Oh, that out of Zion this salvation will come! Perfect beatitude will arise from Zion—rejoicing and worship and blessing and glad tidings for Jacob and the Israel of God (14:7; 53:6).

Application for the Christian Life

The Israel of God is how Paul refers to the people of God, the church (Gal 6:16).¹¹ As God’s people, we should feel the Psalms. Perhaps you have felt like David at times. Indeed, God allows us to feel as David did, so we should place ourselves there in his pen as we read and sing the Psalms. Christian, this is your book, too. The people of God often feel eaten up, abused, and discarded by the world. We should not be surprised by the actions of the corrupt, immoral, and perverse. We, like David, cry out to the promise-keeping Lord to rescue his people, the people of his namesake unto his glory. Evil rises, but God will keep you from those encamped around you. Corruption persists, but the Lord will be your refuge and scatter your and his enemies. Salvation will come and everlasting blessing be restored. Still, in the ever-continuing lack of understanding, the few faithful are the growing exception.

We live in a world that has forgotten God: “For most people today there is no fear of God because . . . they don’t understand who they are dealing with.”¹² In modern terms we call them atheists. Though David may not have our modern notions in mind, and it may be argued that he writes to a more religiously mindful community than that of today, he nonetheless “does uncover [a] more dangerous, insidious, and general [“atheism”] because it is a reasoning that can be found, as the prophets and Jesus insisted, in the hearts of the religious as well as the secular.”¹³ Foolishness continues rampant. None seek after the Lord except for God-fearing believers, says David. This should be true of you also, Christian, for the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. One who seeks the Lord is the opposite of the fool (Prov 9:10).

Was it always the case that David sought the Lord and feared him? David’s own words would suggest otherwise, “In sin did my mother conceive me” (Ps 51:5). Is simply being a good person good enough? What qualifies one as good? There are many “good” people who want nothing to do with their Creator. Remember what Stuart Smalley said of himself: “I’m good enough.” In response we posed a necessary question: Good enough for what and to what end?

Is “Daily Affirmation” enough? One truth we do want to affirm is that there is a “very good” foundational nature to our being created in the image of God. All human beings are image-bearers, bearing the greatest of all dignities in creation. But there is none who does good; all have turned away (14:1, 3; 53:1, 3). Sin has altered that foundation. David looked outward and saw none; all have fallen. We must not attempt to soften the sweeping reach of David’s assertions here. What exactly is David claiming when he says that “none do good?” Some may say that David’s declaration is not against the totality of humankind but rather against those outside the covenant community.¹⁴ Can this be true? David elsewhere admits it cannot be (Ps 143:2). Likewise, Paul’s use of these Psalms will prove the point, that “all” have fallen; “none do good.” Paul’s letter to the Romans will assist us in that matter in part two of this series.

We have covered Psalms 14 and 53, looking at the text and the context of David, the author of the two Psalms, as he gazed upon his own vista in Israel. This in turn applies to our lives as we look out into a world where fools abound in corporate business affairs and celebrity life, and amongst civil leaders, our neighbors, and sometimes members of our own families. But before we point our finger at everyone else, we must come to realize, as David did (e.g., Ps 143:2), that the “all” and the “none” include us as well. It may be tempting to think that we are not as wicked as they—we are a good and God-fearing people. As we encounter Paul’s words in Romans 3 within the context of the beginning of his letter coupled with the Old Testament background, we will discover the much dirtier truth about us all. We will see that our righteousness is not at all ours, but comes from outside of us, from the truly righteous One. There is, indeed, hope of good news right around the corner.

Notes

1. Al Franken, “Saturday Night Live: Daily Affirmation,” YouTube, September 23, 2013.
2. Mark Futato cites Willem VanGemeren’s Psalms commentary, suggesting that the two psalms are two versions of the same original, which “seemingly was adapted to fit two different settings as it circulated in two different collections.” Mark Futato, Interpreting the Psalms: An Exegetical Handbook, (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel, 2007), 119–20. There are some textual differences as I will note below. The Psalter is made up of five books, Psalm 14 belonging to the first, and Psalm 53 to the second. James Mays, Psalms, (Louisville, KY: John Knox Press, 2011), 205–6.
3. Author’s translation.
4. Ernest Lucas favorably cites the work of Norman Whybray, “Reading the Psalms as a Book,” on why these two Psalms belong to the wisdom genre. Ernest Lucas, Exploring the Old Testament: A Guide to the Psalms and Wisdom Literature, (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2003), 33. Though not explicitly argued, helpful evidence for Psalms 14 and 53 as wisdom genre can also be found in Roland Murphy, The Tree of Life: An Exploration of Biblical Wisdom Literature, (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2002), 103–4; Futato, Interpreting the Psalms, 172; Mays, Psalms, 80–1.
5. Here, for the fool it is the way of death. For more on Psalm 1, its role as in introduction to the Psalter, and how it sets up the wisdom genre in the Psalter, see the wonderful four-part Saturday Psalm Series entry on Psalm 1 by Sean Morris, “Saturday Psalm Series: The Blessed Man, The Blessed Life, The Blessed Word.”
6. Mays, Psalms, 80.
7. “In the society that this psalm describes, however, nabal does not mean things like dumb, inept, silly, clown, buffoon. Rather, the term designates a person who decides and acts on the basis of the wrong assumption.” Mays, Psalms, 81.
8. In verse 1, Psalm 53 has another word, “iniquity” (avel), other than “acts” or “deeds” or “actions” (alila) as in Psalm 14:1.
9. Psalm 53, being part of the second book of the Psalter, refers to God as elohim (God) throughout. Psalm 14, however, has the covenant name of the Lord, YHWH, such as here in verse 2. Mays, Psalms, 205.
10. “The evildoers will be gripped with the dread of the divine, the experience that comes from overwhelming confrontation with the presence and power of the LORD.” Mays, Psalms, 83.
11. For more on the case that the “Israel of God” Paul refers to in Galatians 6:16 is the church made of Jew and Gentile, see Thomas Schreiner, Galatians, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Academic, 2010), 381–3; T. David Gordon, Promise, Law, Faith: Covenant-Historical Reasoning in Galatians, (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Academic, 2019), 201–3.
12. Douglas Sean O’Donnell, The Beginning and End of Wisdom: Preaching Christ from the First and Last Chapters of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Job, (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2011), 40. O’Donnell aptly suggests that the all-encompassing “no fear” of the fool is the full-orbed result of not understanding “who he is, what he has done, and what he will do” (40).
13. Mays, Psalms, 82.
14. Mays, Psalms, 82.

© Charles Vaughn. All Rights Reserved.

You can find this whole series here.

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Post authored by:

• Charles Vaughn

  

  Charles lives in San Diego county with his wife and four covenant children. He has a B.A. in Biblical & Theological Studies from Regent University and an M.A. in both Biblical and Theological Studies from Westminster Seminary California. Charles works as a Junior High history teacher at a Christian school in Escondido, CA.

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