#717 Fret Not

Fret not yourself because of evildoers;

be not envious of wrongdoers!

2 For they will soon fade like the grass

and wither like the green herb.

3 Trust in the Lord, and do good;

dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.

4 Delight yourself in the Lord,

and he will give you the desires of your heart.

5 Commit your way to the Lord;

trust in him, and he will act.

6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,

and your justice as the noonday.

7 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;

fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,

over the man who carries out evil devices!

8 Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!

Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.

9 For the evildoers shall be cut off,

but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land.

10 In just a little while, the wicked will be no more;

though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there.

11 But the meek shall inherit the land

and delight themselves in abundant peace.

12 The wicked plots against the righteous

and gnashes his teeth at him,

13 but the Lord laughs at the wicked,

for he sees that his day is coming.

14 The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows

to bring down the poor and needy,

to slay those whose way is upright;

15 their sword shall enter their own heart,

and their bows shall be broken.

16 Better is the little that the righteous has

than the abundance of many wicked.

17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,

but the Lord upholds the righteous.

18 The Lord knows the days of the blameless,

and their heritage will remain forever;

19 they are not put to shame in evil times;

in the days of famine they have abundance.

20 But the wicked will perish;

the enemies of the Lord are like the glory of the pastures;

they vanish—like smoke they vanish away.

21 The wicked borrows but does not pay back,

but the righteous is generous and gives;

22 for those blessed by the Lord shall inherit the land,

but those cursed by him shall be cut off.

23 The steps of a man are established by the Lord,

when he delights in his way;

24 though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,

for the Lord upholds his hand.

25 I have been young, and now am old,

yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken

or his children begging for bread.

26 He is ever lending generously,

and his children become a blessing.

27 Turn away from evil and do good;

so shall you dwell forever.

28 For the Lord loves justice;

he will not forsake his saints.

They are preserved forever,

but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.

29 The righteous shall inherit the land

and dwell upon it forever.

30 The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,

and his tongue speaks justice.

31 The law of his God is in his heart;

his steps do not slip.

32 The wicked watches for the righteous

and seeks to put him to death.

33 The Lord will not abandon him to his power

or let him be condemned when he is brought to trial.

34 Wait for the Lord and keep his way,

and he will exalt you to inherit the land;

you will look on when the wicked are cut off.

35 I have seen a wicked, ruthless man,

spreading himself like a green laurel tree.

36 But he passed away, and behold, he was no more;

though I sought him, he could not be found.

37 Mark the blameless and behold the upright,

for there is a future for the man of peace.

38 But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed;

the future of the wicked shall be cut off.

39 The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;

he is their stronghold in the time of trouble.

40 The Lord helps them and delivers them;

he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,

because they take refuge in him. Psalm 37 ESV

Fret not - This is the point that so many cannot get past, and they even think of it as their religious interest, what others have. So many men have run successful political campaigns on this very platform, that if someone else has this then so should you. Thou shalt not envy is part of the moral law, and for good reason, from envy comes strife, murder, adultery and discontent. "Why do the wicked prosper", we cry, but we cry for the wrong reason, for this is all they have. This great spread is a temporal feast, and the child of God has eternity while the wicked only have right now. Take the bitter root of envy out of me, oh God, for You are more than my fair share, You have caused my cup tor run over, and all this belongs to You anyway. The thing that makes you so worked up here is that you lack the eternal perspective, there you would find pity to replace your envy. Every thing that has been so dear to this poor creature is fading.

Trust in the Lord - Spurgeon wrote:

“Faith cures fretting. Sight is cross–eyed, and views things only as they seem, hence her envy; faith has clearer optics to behold things as they really are, hence her peace.” (Spurgeon)

 Refrain from anger - I have often been asked what bugs me most about my job, and the passions of resentment flow far too easy. It is difficult to embrace the lot that providence has dealt to us, but for every flaw in every boss I have ever had, I have also had the opportunity to examine my own self in light of what I have found to be a fault in them. The greatest leaders don't brag about integrity, because they know there is none where there is no sincerity behind their words. I am learning not to ask, "Can I help you, or what can I do for you?" unless I am willing to do it, to follow up, to follow through. If it made me angry in them, then why not 100 times more when I find the same flaws within myself. Confront them in love, and do not forget what you looked like in that mirror. Forgive, and set out to have that sincerity that insists we look like our namesake, not just take His name.

Meek shall inherit the land - This is one of the beatitudes that Christ speaks of in His sermon on the mount. He doesn't destroy the core achievements of the OT, but He rather gives power to them, bringing the people back to what they had heard, but had not lived. It was an old precept, and He came to fulfill it perfectly before their eyes. "Meekness is not weakness, it is power under control."

“The context gives the best possible definition of the meek: they are those who choose the way of patient faith instead of self-assertion.” (Kidner)

Though he fall - The righteous are tempted like all men, and stumble though they may, yet they are helped back to their feet. He will not leave us there forever, but we will be the more humble for it, the more grateful to be found. 

Now am old - This gives us a little context for the time of David's life, a proverbial psalm springing forth from the wisdom of old age. David held God high, delighted in the Lord from a very tender age, stumbled hard, but was deeply repentant and truly grateful for God's mercies. 

And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

5 “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons[a] of God.

10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Matthew 5: 2-12