Devotional Portion: Psalms 14:4-6
Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge, Who eat up my people as they eat bread, And do not call on the Lord? There they are in great fear, For God is with the generation of the righteous. You shame the counsel of the poor, But the Lord is his refuge.
Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge,
In the previous verse, David considered explaining the fallenness of mankInd; now he is speaking about how the children of God are in the fallen world. Denying the existence of God (verse 1), and the corrupted minds of the fallen men (verse 2) motivate persecution towards the people who follow God. People who deny God enslaved themselves as workers of iniquity. “It is hard bondage to be a “worker of iniquity;” a worker at the galleys, or in the mines of Siberia, is not more truly degraded and wretched; the toil is hard and the reward dreadful: those who have no knowledge choose such slavery, but those who are taught of God cry to be rescued from it.” Charles Spurgeon. The ignorance of God makes them act evil towards the believers who are redeemed from this fallen worldliness. And they eat them up “as they eat bread”. This phrase shows that it has become their habit or daily routine to devour the upright or the saints of the LORD.
There they are in great fear, For God is with the generation of the righteous.
God has set an appointed time for everything. The persecution and the oppression end when God rises for His children. And this will bring great fear and tremor in their lives.
For God is in the generation of the righteous.
“This makes the company of godly men so irksome to the wicked because they perceive that God is with them.” Charles Spurgeon. When we analyze the scriptures, we can see the wicked trembling when seeing the children of God. Having God in our side doesn’t mean that we are ruling over others, instead, this attitude must make us humble to let the Lord to influence in the mind of others. Many fail in the Christian journey as they try to rule over/control others by influencing others through their mask of religiosity. This is a dangerous situation in Christian life. Spirituality is not a mask to control others, instead, it must reflect Christ in all walks of our life.
You shame the counsel of the poor, But the Lord is his refuge.
David is proclaiming a reminder to the workers of iniquity- The Lord is the refuge of the poor. They could put the poor to shame by asking questions about their life, delays in breakthroughs, and taunting questions that bring pain and anguish to them. Even though they might not have a proper answer to their questions, God is their greatest reward and they can’t be moved. The one who delights in the Lord does not doubt God even as they go through the uncertain days of life or even if they see no light ahead, because they hold on to God.
Many people hold on to the prophecies they hear from the prophets, but, a true believer must focus only on God. Prophecies are not the guide to lead our lives, the word of God must be. Our counsel must depend on divine intervention and we must discern the prophecies before holding on to them.
Reflection: Hold on to God, discern the spirits, be faithful to the call.
