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Wednesday, December 5, 2012

The Nations Are But Men (Psalm 9)


The nations have sunk down in the pit which they made; in the net which they hid, their own foot is caught. The LORD is known by the judgment He executes; the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God. For the needy shall not always be forgotten; the expectation of the poor shall not perish forever. Arise, O LORD, do not let man prevail; let the nations be judged in Your sight. Put them in fear, O LORD, that the nations may know themselves to be but men. (Psalms 9:15-20)

The nations are but men

David had a great outlook on life and he understood the frailty of the power of man. In every generation there are powerful nations who seek to rule the world. With every nation that exalts itself the sands of time bear witness to their folly. When nations turn away from God the destruction is certain.

America has dug its pit and we are sinking into the mire of immorality. But the Lord wants to remind us that we have dug the pit ourselves and the chaos in our country is the result of our being snared by the work of our own hands. We are destroying ourselves.

As a nation we have forgotten God. There was a time in our young history that our country embraced a belief and recognition of the “Almighty” but no more. The Bible is banned not believed. Worship of a higher being is not accepted but rejected. Expressions of love is about self and not about others. As a people we have no knowledge of God nor the acceptance of life after death.

David’s final plea in Psalm 9 is to remind all nations they are mere men. He sees clearly the weakness of the nations of men as made up of clay. History is the master teacher showing the rise and fall of the nations of men “but the Lord shall endure forever” (Psalm 9:7). Our trust must not be in the politics of today or the economic hopes built upon Wall Street nor the passions of a mad-crazed world of entertainment. “Those who know Your name will put their trust in You” (Psalm 9:10).

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