A Psalm of Thanksgiving for God’s Justice.
For the choir director; on [a]Muth-labben. A Psalm of David.
9 I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart;
I will tell of all Your [b]wonders.
2 I will be glad and exult in You;
I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High.3 When my enemies turn back,
They stumble and perish before You.
4 For You have maintained [c]my just cause;
You have sat on the throne [d]judging righteously.
5 You have rebuked the nations, You have destroyed the wicked;
You have blotted out their name forever and ever.
6 [e]The enemy has come to an end in perpetual ruins,
And You have uprooted the cities;
The very memory of them has perished.7 But the Lord [f]abides forever;
He has established His throne for judgment,
8 And He will judge the world in righteousness;
He will execute judgment for the peoples with equity.
9 [g]The Lord also will be a stronghold for the oppressed,
A stronghold in times of trouble;
10 And [h]those who know Your name will put their trust in You,
For You, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You.
Towards the end of this passage, we have a statement that could be quite scary, but in which we can also find great comfort. “He has established His throne for judgment, and He will judge the world in righteousness;” The thought of judgment seems at odds with comfort, and if you are not following Jesus, you should rightly fear it.
Yet for “those who know His name”, the statement is followed in verses 9-10 with a reminder of the comfort we do have. First and foremost, we need to remember that our righteousness is not enough, and what we think is “equitable” pales in comparison to God’s equity. We’ve all sinned, all of us would be doomed, except for the fact that God sent his Son to die and pay the penalty for all mankind.
So for those who know His name and put their trust in Him, there is great comfort. Jesus has already taken care of your punishment, and His righteousness becomes your own and on Christ’s merit He judges you, not on your own “filthy rags”. He is indeed a stronghold, a sure foundation, because His love is unending, and His grace is more than enough for you.