Daily Thought

This psalm presents two great contrasts. The first picture relates to godlessness, vv. 1, 2, and its awful results, vv. 3, 4. The second presents the glorious attributes of God, vv. 5, 6, and His lovingkindness to man, vv. 7-9. Then David prays for blessing, v. 10, protection, v. 11, and is confident of the overthrow of the wicked, v. 12. The wicked have no eye for God’s providential dealings and defy Him, but David sees ultimately His attributes and dealings as supreme, and His purposes must be fulfilled.

The two main parts of the psalm are similar to a proverb presenting opposition of ideas, Prov. 14. 22.

David compares God’s attributes to His creation, ‘Thy mercy [lovingkindness], O Lord, is in the heavens; and thy faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds [skies]. Thy righteousness is like the great mountains [mountains of God]; Thy judgments are a great deep: O Lord, thou preservest man and beast’, vv. 5, 6. In contemplating such a glorious One, David expresses, ‘How excellent is thy loving kindness, O God!’, v. 7. In contrast to the godless, he finds God’s lovingkindness excellent, ‘how precious’. It is his treasure, Ps. 139. 17. The substitution of ‘God’ for ‘Lord’ is significant. David is speaking of a love which embraces all mankind, cp. John 3. 16. ‘The children of men put their trust [take refuge] under the shadow of thy wings’, v. 7. But He is much more than a protector. He makes rich provision for men, as was His original intention (‘pleasures’, v. 8, is a cognate of ‘Eden’, Gen. 2. 8). God is the source of life and light, v. 9. Gems like this verse anticipate the gospel of Christ, John 1. 4.

David prays for the continuance of God’s lovingkindness and for protection from the wicked, assured of the final over throw of evildoers, vv. 10-12. The lovingkindness of God is preferable to the ways of the wicked, vv. 1-4, precious to the believer, giving great protection, provision and pleasure, vv. 7, 8. David continues, ‘in thy light shall we see light’, v. 9.

Only as God reveals Himself can we know anything of Him. He has fully revealed Himself and His lovingkindness in the matchless person of the Lord Jesus Christ, John 1. 18. How excellent! How precious!