In The Pits With Jeremiah

Psalm 58

For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be sung to the tune “Do Not Destroy!”

1Justice—do you rulers know the meaning of the word?

Do you judge the people fairly?

2No, all your dealings are crooked;

you hand out violence instead of justice.

3These wicked people are born sinners;

even from birth they have lied and gone their own way.

4They spit poison like deadly snakes;

they are like cobras that refuse to listen,

5ignoring the tunes of the snake charmers,

no matter how skillfully they play.

6Break off their fangs, O God!

Smash the jaws of these lions, O LORD!

7May they disappear like water into thirsty ground.

Make their weapons useless in their hands.

8May they be like snails that dissolve into slime,

like a stillborn child who will never see the sun.

9God will sweep them away, both young and old,

faster than a pot heats on an open flame.

10The godly will rejoice when they see injustice avenged.

They will wash their feet in the blood of the wicked.

11Then at last everyone will say,

“There truly is a reward for those who live for God;

surely there is a God who judges justly here on earth.”

The prophet Jeremiah knew all about corruption in high places. His messages angered the leaders of Jerusalem, so four government officials complained to the king, who told them, “Do as you like. I will do nothing to stop you” (Jeremiah 38:5). So they lowered Jeremiah by ropes into a cistern. There was no water in it, and he sank down into the mud at the bottom.

We don’t know whether Jeremiah was meditating on Psalm 58 at the time, but it certainly would have been appropriate. This psalm denounces the injustice of the very people who are supposed to rule with justice. David calls for them to “disappear like water into thirsty ground!” (verse 7). No doubt Jeremiah was afraid he would disappear into the thirsty ground, too.

There’s an interesting pun in the Hebrew of Psalm 58:1. The word translated “rulers” can also be read as “silent ones.” Perhaps that was the problem—the rulers remained silent as injustice swept over the nation. That was why Jeremiah was suffering. The king had turned a blind eye to the actions of the four officials.

Fortunately for the prophet, one government official would not stay silent. Ebed-melech, an Ethiopian, ran to the king and told him that he had to get Jeremiah out of there or else he would die. When this one man spoke up for justice, Jeremiah was saved. We, too, need to stand up for what’s right whenever we see injustice occurring in our society.

Satan tells us we’re weak; our hope is in vain.

The good that we seek we’ll never obtain.

But he can’t take from us (though often he’s tried)

The heart-cheering promise—The Lord will provide.

JOHN NEWTON

Bible Networking

After rereading verses 10-11, see how the New Testament speaks of the day of reckoning in Revelation 14:19 and 19:11.

Notable Quotable

“The principles of the wicked are even worse than their practices; premeditated violence is doubly guilty.”

GEORGE ROGERS