Song of Justice

Introduction

Life isn’t fair. Children repeat this phrase with some regularity. Adults are more selective with their phrasing but the sentiment is there. Adults will say things like “I don’t understand how they get away with that” or “Some things don’t make sense.” Listen carefully—it is the rephrasing of the fairness statement. What is particularly disturbing is to see people get away with mistreating others and in taking advantage of others, they get wealthy. This may be why we like superheroes. We like the idea of someone rescuing those who are at a disadvantage. Psalm 37 is written from the perspective of one who has seen the wicked prosper and the wicked hurt others and nothing seems to happen. The righteous are hurt by the schemes of the wicked and the author of this song laments that the wicked seem to carry on as if nothing is wrong.

This psalm is written in the form of wisdom literature. That is, the style of the writing is a wisdom psalm. It is an acrostic poem with each stanza being a successive letter from the Hebrew alphabet. The author is passing on truths that he has seen in his life. These truths if followed will relieve anxiety and anger as we watch the wicked prosper at the expense of the righteous. Notice in verse 25—“I was young and now I am old.” These are the words of experience. These are words of an older person who has lived a lifetime trying to understand the events in life along with the observations made about this world. And the psalm serves as a conclusion about the wicked, the righteous, and God’s activity in this world. Even now we should listen.

The Wicked

There is no doubt that wicked people can get away with evil acts and motivations. The wicked in this psalm are described as those who plot (v. 12), use their power to take advantage of the poor (v. 14), steal (v. 21), and deceive (v. 32). The wicked in this psalm are not those who deserve prison for their evil acts. These are everyday folks. People who hurt others not in a criminal way but in a morally reprehensible way. And nothing seems to happen to them. Their plots succeed; they prosper as they take advantage of the poor; their theft provides more wealth; and their deceit is not stopped. How can these things happen? Doesn’t God care about the injustice in this world?

That is really the dilemma. When there is injustice, why doesn’t God do something about it? Why doesn’t God intervene to set things right? And the psalmist doesn’t have an answer for us. What the psalmist focuses on is trusting God’s wisdom and timing to bring the wicked down. The point of the psalm is not to exalt the righteous as recipients of God’s reward, but to encourage the righteous to be patient in waiting on God to act. The author says in verse 1 that we are not to fret because of evil men. The word ‘fret’ is too tepid. The word means to allow yourself to become angry. This anger leads to sin (v. 8). In fact the anger may be against the wicked or it may be against God. The word ‘fret’ is used in verses 1, 7, and 8. Don’t be angry when you see the wicked prosper. Don’t be angry because it leads to sin. Don’t be anxious. Don’t be envious of the success of the wicked. Why? Two reasons.

First, the success of the wicked is temporary (v. 2). Think about it. Everything of a physical nature is temporary. The schemes and the lies are temporary. If you knew that a person was going to die in one hour, would you want to change places with them? Of course not. The temporary nature of life—it appears for a brief time and then vanishes. The wicked do indeed prosper, but it is short lived. It is temporary.

Second, you want to be on God’s side. Look at verses 9, 11, 16-17. The temporary victory of the wicked will be no more (v. 10). The word means nothing or nonexistence. They will go away, but what happens to the righteous? To inherit the land speaks not about wealth but about permanence. Land was about roots, a place to call home, the opposite of nonexistence and they will find peace. See verse 18. The contrast is plain. Choosing to take advantage of others is the stupidest choice. You can trust God and live forever or you can choose to take advantage of others and disappear.

Choose to Trust

But how do we do that? How do we keep from getting angry over the success of the wicked?

First, trust in God (v. 3). It isn’t easy to trust God when life isn’t fair. Our response to that says a lot about what we value. To trust God means we want him to be seen through us. Look at verse 40—to trust in God means we take refuge in him. The word refuge also means to trust. For us God is our place of safety. He is our protection. We trust God to take care of the wicked and we do what we know is good and right.

Second, delight in God (v. 4). We are more impressed with God than distracted by the success of the wicked. Take joy in the unseen not in the seen. When our delight is in the Lord then the desires of our heart are given to us. This is not to say that God is a doting grandfather, but our desires center upon the Lord and he gives us what we need.

Third, be still and wait on the Lord (v. 7). This may be the hardest part of it all. Patience may not be our strongest virtue. At times waiting can seem as if we are lazy. The author is painting a picture of one who is standing calmly in circumstances waiting for God to act in his time. Our anger about the injustice will not force God’s hand. We take our stand in confidence knowing that God will act when in his time.

Fourth, while these are not passive responses—trust, delight and patience demand that we actively find alternatives to our anger. Look at verses 21 and 26. Tell me what the righteous do? They give generously. God will take care of the wicked who take advantage of others. As God’s people we can give generously. We cannot undo what the wicked have done, but we can show God’s goodness.

So what does all of this mean for us?

As followers of Christ we want permanence not nonexistence. We look to the end not the here and now. When you find your anger erupting over injustice, find ways to invest in others who need. Speak the truth to your emotions that God is at work and he sees. Speak the truth that God will deal with the wicked and pray for your patience. Pray that your anger will not keep another from seeing God’s goodness. Then go help someone. Go be God’s blessing to another. Turn your anger into generosity. Not easily done but as the psalmist implies—why join the wicked or desire to be a part of the wicked? Choose to trust God.

We must relinquish our reliance on our own strength. We like to fix things. Some things just can’t be fixed by our wisdom and abilities. But the assurance from God is that he knows what is going on and will bring an end to the ways of the wicked.

Jesus saw the wicked prosper in his day. He trusted the Father to bring about his will. Jesus saw the religious leaders of his day bring great hardship on the people of God. Jesus waited for God to act. And when it was time for him to die, he committed himself to God’s way and three days later the justice of his cause was brought out of the tomb for all to see. The wicked do not last. Our focus is on God. He is our center.

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