Bible Lessons

Psalms 137, 138
We have completed our examination of the history-telling psalms. What remain are a supplementary series, and the final outburst of praise with which this most interesting book closes. Psalm 137 tells how, long ago in far-away Babylon (2 Chron. 36:20,20And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia: (2 Chronicles 36:20) and Esther, Ezekiel, Daniel) the faithful Israelites thought upon Zion. How could they sing a song of Jehovah's upon a foreign soil? They could not be contented there, but longed for Jerusalem's walls, and nowhere else could be at home.
In a certain way, the same spirit rightly characterizes the Christian; if the Word of God is really dwelling in and governing us, we cannot be contented here, where our blessed Saviour and Lord is absent. The Lord is a stranger to this present world, and we desire to share His rejection and be strangers too, and pilgrims, looking on to His rest, but we are to be happy on the way, and sing the songs of our heavenly land. (See Ephesians 5: 18-21, and Colossians 3: 16-17).
It is difficult, sometimes, to understand the demands for vengeance upon enemies which are found in the Psalms, as in verses 7 to 9 of this one, but the difficulty arises from not seeing that our own dispensation, and really from the birth of Christ, to His coming to take away His heavenly people (1 Thess. 4) is one of grace, when the righteous judgment of a sin-hating God is withheld. Presently, when the Church has been translated, like Enoch in Genesis 5:24,24And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him. (Genesis 5:24) the stored-up judgment will begin, for God is righteous. (Romans 2:2-162But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things. 3And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God? 4Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? 5But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; 6Who will render to every man according to his deeds: 7To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life: 8But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, 9Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; 10But glory, honor, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile: 11For there is no respect of persons with God. 12For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law; 13(For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified. 14For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: 15Which show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;) 16In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel. (Romans 2:2‑16); Jude 5-155I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not. 6And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. 7Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire. 8Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities. 9Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee. 10But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves. 11Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core. 12These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots; 13Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever. 14And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, 15To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him. (Jude 5‑15)).
Psalm 138 briefly gives the ground of faith—the Word of God. Great as His name is, what He has written, the Bible, He has magnified above all His name (verse 2). Upon that unchangeable Word, faith rests. We received and believe what He has said. In the day when we, individually, called upon Him, He answered us: He encouraged us with strength in our souls (verse 3). Presently, when His word reaches the ears of the kings of the earth, they will own Him and sing of His ways (verse 5).
He looks upon the lowly (verse 6); were it not so, how would salvation have ever been ours who trust in Jesus? And in verse 8 is the reminder that He will finish what He has begun (Philippians 1:66Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: (Philippians 1:6)) .
Messages of God’s Love 1/24/1932