“Oh, I wish I hadn’t said that!” So many times I have said or thought that, after I opened my mouth and blurted out something stupid! Perhaps you have thought that, too. As I read through the psalm selection from this week’s lectionary, one verse jumped out at me, that of verse 3. In this verse King David said “I have purposed that my mouth shall not transgress”. Several verses, in addition to this one, speak of the mouth, and what we speak. Verse 1 mentions deceitful lips, verse 4 speaks of God’s lips, verse 6 about our speech, and verse 10 speaks of mouths that speak proudly. Let’s look into this psalm together, and see what we can learn from God’s Word.
Scriptures call King David a man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22), however that didn’t mean that David never made mistakes now and then. Every one of us will sometimes say some things that we shouldn’t, things that God doesn’t approve of, and that disappoint Him. It is so easy for us to speak before we really think through what we should say. We just open our mouth and out tumbles words that we shouldn’t have said, words that often we wish we could take back. David knew that he needed to make a concerted, conscious effort to watch his mouth and his speech (vs. 3). He did not want to offend God or to offend others by what he said.
All through his life, David turned to the Lord in prayer. With all of the trials and turmoil in his life, he depended on that prayer connection with God. David also knew that if his life was filled with unconfessed sin, the Lord would not hear his prayers (Psalm 66:18). As this psalm opens, David comes to God in prayer, and he knows his prayer will be heard, as it does not come “from deceitful lips” (vs. 1). He was careful not to be guilty of lying, either maliciously, or just being insincere to others. He did not want to be guilty of craftiness, falsehood, or especially treachery. When David prayed to God, he wanted the words he spoke to the Almighty to be truthful and forthright, and not coming from one whose words could not be trusted.
David also knew that God sees and hears everything in our life. Nothing we say or do is hid from Him (Psalm 139:1-4). He knows every word on our tongue, and as David says here, He hears our speech (vs. 6). When we lose our temper with others and lash out with hard words, when we lie to our boss or our spouse, when we tell that off-color joke, the Lord God hears it all. David wanted to be sure that when he needed to call out to God, there was nothing in his speech he needed to be ashamed of.
As David thought of those who do not follow God and His Word, the wicked, and those who were his enemies, one thing that came to his mind was that they speak proudly (vs. 10). A proud person doesn’t feel that they have to abide by the same standards or rules that everyone else has to. They feel that they are special, and that, if there is a God, He will make exceptions for them, because they are better than others. They might even challenge God. Their lives certainly don’t follow His ways, and the words they speak are proud and haughty. Even though he was the king, David did not want to be like them, or to speak like them. Instead, he wanted to follow the words from God’s lips (vs. 4). He follows and trusts in God’s Word, the Holy Scriptures.
As the psalm continues, we see that God delights in those who place their trust in Him. Just as we protect the pupils of our eyes, the “apple”, so God protects us (vs. 8). God considers each one of His children as the apple of His eye, the objects of His special devotion. He guards us just like a mother bird protects her chicks, by covering them with her wings (Deuteronomy 32:9-12).
One problem with the wicked is that they believe their reward is in this life (vs. 13-14). They don’t think God will hold them accountable, or that there even is a judgment after death. David lived as a man who knew that one day he will give an account to God. One day we all will see Jesus, and we will give an account of our life to Him (vs. 15). For those who have placed their faith and trust in Him, we will then be transformed into His glorious image (I John 3:2).
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