Last time, in part 1 of our study on Psalm 92, we began to consider how the Lord’s Day is an often neglected, yet crucial, component in the Christian’s arsenal. It is an essential ingredient and marvelous gift of God meant for the believer’s refreshment and joy.
There are a number of legitimate ways we could outline this psalm, but for the purposes of our Saturday Psalms series, we are considering it under four broad headings.
- Verses 1–4 speak of Delight
- Verses 5–11 speak of Downfall
- Verses 12–15 speak of Blessing
- Recapping a bit in verses 8–11 the psalm speaks of the Savior
Having given attention to verses 1–4 (A Psalm of Delight), we continue today by beginning with verse 5 and that second broad heading, the judgment or downfall of the wicked.
A Psalm of Downfall
So many of the psalms regard matters of joy and gladness, others speak of lament, and still others address the darker issues of judgment and destruction. As is the case with a number of psalms, the ninety-second psalm contains more than one of these elements—in this case, speaking of joy and gladness on the one hand, and judgment and destruction on the other hand.
The contrast could not be clearer: in the end, joy and gladness await the righteous, but judgment and destruction await the wicked.1
As is typical of Hebrew poetry, a stark contrast is held up for us. Verse 5:
How great are your works, O Lord!
Your thoughts are very deep!
And then, verses 6–8:
The stupid man cannot know;
the fool cannot understand this:
that though the wicked sprout like grass
and all evildoers flourish,
they are doomed to destruction forever;
but you, O Lord, are on high forever.
In verse 5, the psalmist continues the thought he began in verse 5, delighted in the works of God. As was observed in our previous article, it is not only God himself, not only God’s works of redemption, but also God’s works of creation that move him to sheer delight. But here, in verse 5, it is quite possible the psalmist has in mind God’s redemptive or salvific works, particularly with reference to verses 9–11 of this same psalm. When the psalmist speaks of “your works, O LORD,” does he mean them in the Psalm 19:1 sense (works of creation) or the Psalm 98:1 sense (saving works)? On balance, it seems that verse 5 is in reference to God’s saving works, since verse 4 may have had more of God’s creation works in view, though the wording is broad enough (“works of your hands”) to support reference to both categories of God’s works.
In any event, in verse 5, the psalmist extols the grandeur of God’s works and the vastness of his thoughts. “The Lord’s plans are as marvelous as his acts; his designs are as profound as his doings are vast. Creation is immeasurable, and the wisdom displayed in it unsearchable.”2 Assuming our interpretation above is sound, the “works” of the Lord are his actions in delivering the psalmist from the malice of his enemies (vv. 9–11). Pondering what God has done prompts the psalmist to exclamations of wonder both on account of his deeds, and at the depth of his thoughts.3
As he contrasts the greatness and vastness of God’s deeds and thoughts with the insipid nature of the wicked’s deeds and thoughts, note the parallel that the psalmist uses in verse 6, “the stupid man . . . the fool.” The Hebrew word בַּ֫עַר can be woodenly rendered “brutish” like a cow, like a dumb beast. Andrew Bonar notes that the phrase could even be rendered “the carnal man, ‘a man-brute.’”4 The psalmist is speaking here about the enemy of God—the rebel in love with the things of this world, scorning his Creator. The use of the word “fool” (כְּסִיל) is remarkable, as that word appears also in Psalm 94:8, but beyond that, appears only in Proverbs and Ecclesiastes.5 This is the type of person who reasons that it is better to live unconstrained by the demands of the reality of God or the laws of God, supposing that the stupid person is the one who orders his life around the fear of God. But, as the psalmist is about to showcase, such a fantasy construction is the height of delusion.
Indeed, the truly stupid man fails to grasp the laughably short life cycle of the wicked. Verse 7:
. . . that though the wicked sprout like grass
and all evildoers flourish,
they are doomed to destruction forever.
The psalmist is nothing if not a realist. He lives in a world where everything is not as it should be. The use of the words “sprout” and “flourish” acknowledges the reality that this is how things seem when it comes to the wicked, at least for a time—perhaps a rather long time. The psalmist concedes that he lives in a world where wickedness abounds and justice is perverted, a world where sin seems normal and holiness seems weird.
If we or the psalmist stopped reading or limited our perspective to just the first part of verse 7, we might be tempted to throw up our hands and scream, “What’s the point?!”
Do you ever feel like that? You strive for holiness and faithfulness, the world continues to get sourer and go to pot, your friends and family mock you for your tired and antiquated religious convictions, you get practically no support for seeking righteousness, and you want to throw up your hands and say, “Why even bother?!”
Psalm 92 recalibrates our clouded thinking in a sin-sick world. This is part of the reason why the believer so desperately needs the Sabbath. In his own way, the psalmist is saying, “This is why I love this Day.” The reality is, friends, that we need a day to recalibrate our souls and come back into the presence of God to readjust our gazes toward eternity. We need our perspectives broadened and reoriented. How easy it is—when we are bogged down in the muck, mire, and misery of toiling through a sin-glutted world—to lose sight of the guaranteed end result. How easy to forget, to despair as if the relief and redemption will never come, and to passively assume that the abounding wickedness will simply win the day. How our souls need to have the truth placarded right before our faces that there is coming a day when God will make everything right side up again, when everything (not just sad, to invoke the popular Tolkienism) wrong will become untrue.
We will return to verses 8–11 in a subsequent article to discuss more aspects of this section, but for now, notice that verse 8 is the pivot point of the psalm. Though the wicked seem to be abounding and succeeding, nevertheless, “you, O Lord, are on high forever,” and the actual end of the wicked is irrevocably assured (verse 9):
For behold, your enemies, O LORD,
for behold, your enemies shall perish;
all evildoers shall be scattered.
The wicked are doomed to destruction forever (v. 7), but God is exalted forever (v. 8). And the flourishing that the wicked appeared to have (v. 7) will be seen to have been a farce. In actual fact, as verses 12 and 13 go on to make clear, it is the righteous who will be sprouting and flourishing.6 God will have strengthened the power and resolve (the “horn”) of the righteous man (v. 10), like that of the wild ox (a vivid picture of tremendous power), even refreshing him as with oil (v. 10; cf. Psalm 23:5), and the news of his enemies’ downfall will be absolutely incontrovertible, with his eyes and his ears bearing witness to the fact (v. 11).
But, you see, the psalmist is not just reveling in God’s justice, and he is not just gleaning hope. In his own way, by putting this prophetic declaration within the pages of Holy Scripture, he is making a plea to the wicked. Even in predicting his downfall, Scripture appeals to the rebellious man that he might realize his folly and flee to God for refuge. Psalm 92 tells us that the Sabbath, the Lord’s Day, is a day when we remember judgment is coming and, consequently, we plead with people, “Examine yourself!”7
Is that not part of what we do when we gather to worship God in the assembly of his people? As we proclaim God’s Word, we also plead with any who may not know Christ: Take heed! The righteous LORD is coming.
Even here in Psalm 92, God, through the Scripture, appeals to sinners, “Come to me for mercy; come and cling to my Son, let him be the One who has died in your place and paid the penalty two thousand years ago on Calvary’s cross for all your sins. For if you will not come to Christ, God will come to you in judgment.”
There is no refuge from him. There is only refuge to be found in him. It is a sober reminder, but it is part of what the Sabbath is for.
There is more for us to unearth in this marvelous chapter of Scripture, and we will do just that when we return next week to part 3 of our ongoing Saturday Psalm Series.
Notes
- Psalm 92 is very resonant of Psalm 1 in this regard.
- Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David: Psalms 88-110, vol. 4 (London; Edinburgh; New York: Marshall Brothers, n.d.), 118.
- Cf. Romans 11:33, “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!”
- Andrew A. Bonar, Christ and His Church in the Book of Psalms (New York: Robert Carter & Brothers, 1860), 279.
- Christopher Ash, The Psalms: A Christ-Centered Commentary, 4 vols. (Wheaton IL: Crossway, 2024), 3.561.
- The same Hebrew word (פרח) stands behind the “sprout” of verse 7 and the “flourish” of verses 12 and 13.
- Cf. Psalm 95:8, Hebrews 3:7–11,15.
©Sean Morris. All Rights Reserved.
You can find the whole series here.
RESOURCES
- Subscribe To The Heidelblog!
- Download the HeidelApp on Apple App Store or Google Play
- The Heidelblog Resource Page
- Heidelmedia Resources
- The Ecumenical Creeds
- The Reformed Confessions
- The Heidelberg Catechism
- The Heidelberg Catechism
- The Heidelberg Catechism: A Historical, Theological, & Pastoral Commentary (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2025)
- Recovering the Reformed Confession (Phillipsburg: P&R Publishing, 2008)
- Why I Am A Christian
- What Must A Christian Believe?
- Heidelblog Contributors
- Saturday Psalm Series
- Support Heidelmedia: use the donate button or send a check to:
Heidelberg Reformation Association
1637 E. Valley Parkway #391
Escondido CA 92027
USA
The HRA is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization
Sean Morris
Sean was educated at Grove City College, Reformed Theological Seminary (Jackson, MS), and the University of Glasgow (Scotland). He is an ordained teaching elder in the Presbyterian Church in America, and serves as a minister at the Covenant Presbyterian Church in Oak Ridge, TN. He also serves as the Academic Dean of the Blue Ridge Institute for Theological Education. He is currently pursuing his PhD in Historical Theology at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Sean lives in Oak Ridge with his wife, Sarah, along with their children and useless beagle.
More by Sean Morris ›