By Jeremy Bell
I am going to highlight Christian agreement. Finding points of agreement helps build unity among people. Often, disagreements are in the application of fundamental ideas. I will share how Psalm 5 supports Christian fundamentals. I will continue by posting Romans 3 directly afterwards because this New Testament writer refers to it. Understanding the unity across scripture is excellent theological practice.
Check out this direct quote from the same author, David.
[ Psalm 53: 1 – 3: ]
The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, and have done abominable iniquity.
There is no one who does good.
God looks down from heaven on the children of men,
to see if there are any who understood,
who seek after God.
Every one of them has gone back.
They have become filthy together.
There is no one who does good, no, not one.
In understanding David’s’ intended meaning, I think referencing this is important. Often, including this Psalm, David appears to arrogantly declare himself righteous enough to have the Lord accept him and not his enemies. But David, the author, declares everyone unrighteous, himself included. It is an important note to remember that David knows he is as equal to the wicked human race as anyone. Jew or Gentile, all are filthy together, no one does good.
Hopefully that gives some perspective and things to consider while preparing to hear or read this Psalm. They are by no means the only perspectives or considerations, just the ones right now. So… without further hesitation, here is Psalm 5 and selections from Romans 3. Highlights show a pattern in my book, Psalms in Motif Visualization.
[ Psalm 5 ]
Give ear to my words, Yahweh.
Consider my meditation.
Listen to the voice of my cry, my King and my God;
for I pray to you.
Yahweh, in the morning you will hear my voice.
In the morning I will lay my requests before you, and will watch expectantly.
For you are not a God who has pleasure in wickedness.
Evil can’t live with you.
The arrogant will not stand in your sight.
You hate all workers of iniquity.
You will destroy those who speak lies.
Yahweh abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.
But as for me, in the abundance of your loving kindness I will come into your house.
I will bow toward your holy temple in reverence of you.
Lead me, Yahweh, in your righteousness because of my enemies.
Make your way straight before my face.
For there is no faithfulness in their mouth.
Their heart is destruction.
Their throat is an open tomb.
They flatter with their tongue.
Hold them guilty, God.
Let them fall by their own counsels.
Thrust them out in the multitude of their transgressions,
for they have rebelled against you.
But let all those who take refuge in you rejoice.
Let them always shout for joy, because you defend them.
Let them also who love your name be joyful in you.
For you will bless the righteous.
Yahweh, you will surround him with favor as with a shield.
Romans Context
In Romans, Paul addresses grace. He is confronting a particular human justification that states righteousness is based on what family a person is born into. This principal can be applied to all sorts of human justification, but read what he says about birth, righteousness, and who it is that has any control over relationship with God.
[ Romans 3: 9 – 18 ]
What then? [Are Jews better than everyone else?] Are we better than they? No, in no way. For we previously warned both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin. As it is written,
“There is no one righteous;
no, not one.
There is no one who understands.
There is no one who seeks after God.
They have all turned away.
They have together become unprofitable.
There is no one who does good,
no, not so much as one.”
“Their throat is an open tomb.
With their tongues they have used deceit.”
“The poison of vipers is under their lips.”
“Their mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.”
“Their feet are swift to shed blood.
Destruction and misery are in their ways.
The way of peace, they haven’t known.”
“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
Paul has a great summary and reminder in chapter 9. He states:
[ Romans 9: 6 – 8, 14 – 16 ]
But it is not as though the word of God has come to nothing. For they are not all Israel that are of Israel. Neither, because they are Abraham’s offspring, are they all children. But, “your offspring will be accounted as from Isaac.” That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as heirs.
What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? May it never be! For he said to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who has mercy.
Desperate, Not Hopeless
So, the human condition is desperate, but not hopeless. God alone reaches out to repair the relationship with his human creatures. There is good news because salvation is only by grace through faith alone. Faith in the one who God sent, Jesus, and grace from God because there is nothing a person can bring to Him to earn relationship. Relationship happens between two or more. So, a person must respond to Gods’ call to repair the relationship. But there is no human condition required to make that happen. Every person is equal to another in this regard.
It doesn’t matter if a person is born poor or rich, Jew or otherwise. Male and female, slave or free, from a family of thieves or a family of priests. There is no bank of good works or terrible deeds that is considered. If one is more self-aware or emotionally stable, suicidal, or hopelessly optimistic. Good looking is equal to ugly, young, old, healthy, disabled, single or married. There is no difference of skin color, sexual preference or political association. There is no denomination affiliation, career advancement or charity work that makes any difference.
It’s About God
God reaches out, all are equal to answer through the one He sent, Jesus. It is not up to willpower or hardest worker; it is up to God and His mercy. There are no multiple ways, everyone is in the same filthy boat. It is God’s way, and everyone brings the same empty justification to have relationship with Him. God has a glorious plan to manifest His glory throughout His good creation in and through His people. Everything to accomplish this plan was finished through Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection.
There is great news because to be declared one of His people, any person who has faith in Jesus and depends on the grace of God will have life with Him forever. The bad news is that not everyone will want this, many reject God and despise His glory. Resting on self-accomplishment or privilege is willful contempt for what God has declared and who He is. These thoughts in these people make them restless and warlike now and, in the end, they will suffer an eternity of weeping and gnashing their teeth for relying on them as they reject Gods’ grace. All are equal to response to God but are not equal to consequence of that response. Jesus heals the sick and exalts the humble. Have faith in Him and experience now and forever the peace that comes through relationship with the very Nature of Joy.
Resources and Notes
All scripture in this article is from the WORLD ENGLISH BIBLE (WEB). The World English Bible (WEB) is a Public Domain (no copyright) Modern English translation of the Holy Bible. The World English Bible is based on the American Standard Version of the Holy Bible first published in 1901, the Biblia Hebraica Stutgartensa Old Testament, and the Greek Majority Text New Testament.
For more related to this blog, check out my post on Reliable Fundamentals for Healthy Discipleship Ministries.
This is a reliable translation, but it is always good to read other translations as well. Biblegateway.com has a multitude of translations to read from. It is a great resource.
Another great resource is Biblehub.com. There are multiple translations, commentaries, and so much more. Great research can be done on this platform.
One more I use regularly is Gotquestions.org. This is a great site to answer questions and find threads of related questions.
There are many resources. The key is that God wants relationship directly with you, the individual. His primary source for revealing who He is and growing in intimacy is His word, the scriptures. Don’t just read for instruction. Analyze and read for understanding. Explore, ask questions, and be transformed in Jesus every moment you possibly can. There is no dispute this is a key desire of God. People are brough to the Father, in the Son, by the power of the Holy Spirit. This… This is the Nature of Joy.
Jeremy is an author, musician, and business intelligence manager. His mission is to equip and encourage those in Christ, to equip and encourage others in Christ. Jesus, Christ, is the Nature of Joy and melody of the heart. Jeremy unites business analytics (business intelligence), songs, and Scripture for Christian living in the power of the Holy Spirit.