3. The Terrible Justice of God! Psalm 76:11-12

Text: “Vow, and pay unto the Lord your God: let all that be round about Him bring presents unto Him that ought to be feared. He shall cut off the spirit of princes: He is terrible to the kings of the earth.”

Psalm 76:11-12.

Good morning, fair-minded Christian!  Since the day of your Eternal Salvation in Christ Jesus, that wonderful day when the Spirit of God brought us to our knees in full repentance from our sins, to follow hard after the Lord Jesus; that life-imparting day, when God the Spirit breathed upon you and I as we lay in the dry-bone valley of our vile sins, and opened our eyes to the Gospel of Christ and Him Crucified for to pay our just penalty – we have been given an entirely new perspective on true justice, fair-play, and equality of discernment.  Hallelujah!  (Ezekiel 37:1-10)

While once we saw things from a selfish, self-centred perspective, we now seek to evaluate all things in a just and unselfish manner.  Only Christ’s Salvation could ever change that selfishness to a sense of real justice.  That sense of fair-mindedness is mirrored on the justice of Almighty Lord God Jehovah, a trait of the Divine nature of the Lord Who has elected us to partake in the Body of Christ, the true and genuine, Spiritually regenerated church. Praise God for His wonderful grace to us!

Dictionary Definition: Justice – (noun) the quality of being just; integrity; impartiality; rightness; the awarding of what is due; the administration of law; a judge; a magistrate. (The Chambers Dictionary, page 873)

Divine Justice: Divine justice is the sole prerogative of Almighty God, Who alone, is righteous, Holy, and infinitely just in all His attributes – He is, in fact, the “…Judge of  all the earth…” which He alone Created; and “…Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Genesis 18:25)

“The soul that sinneth, it shall surely die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.  But if the wicked will turn (repent) from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statues, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die (Eternal death, not mortal death).” (Ezekiel 18:20-21) “Ye MUST be born again!” (John 3:3-8)

“…I will publish the Name of the Lord: ascribe ye greatness unto our God.  He is the Rock (capital R), His work is perfect: for all His ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is He.”  (Deuteronomy 32:3-4)   Amen, we worship Thee, O Lord!

God’s Divine justice was enough to banish you and I and every unregenerate soul born of woman since Adam/Eve’s fall from grace in Eden, to a sinner’s Hell. Biblical fact!

God’s Divine and Sovereign grace is applied to every sinner to whom God grants repentance from sin and faith in the finished work of Atonement made by Jesus Christ, God’s Son. Fact.

“For whosoever shall call upon the Name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Romans 10:13)

Only a Lord God of pure and righteous justice could offer sinners Eternal life in Christ.

Look for a moment at how the great Puritan, Thomas Watson, views God’s justice:

“I. What is God's justice?

'Justice is to give everyone his due.' God's justice is the rectitude of his nature, whereby he is carried to the doing of that which is righteous and equal. Proverbs 24:12. Shall not he render to every man according to his works?' God is an impartial judge. He judgeth the cause. Men often judge the person, but not the cause; which is not justice, but malice. Genesis 18:21. ‘I will go down and see whether they have done according to the cry which is come up unto me.' When the Lord is upon a punitive act, he weighs things in the balance, he does not punish rashly; he does not go in the way of a riot, but a circuit, against offenders.

“Concerning God's justice, I shall lay down these six positions: -

[1] God cannot but be just. His holiness is the cause of his justice. Holiness will not suffer him to do anything but what is righteous. He can no more be unjust than he can be unholy.

[2] God's will is the supreme rule of justice; it is the standard of equity. His will is wise and good. God wills nothing but what is just; and therefore, it is just because he wills it.

[3] God does justice voluntarily. Justice flows from his nature. Men may act unjustly, because they are bribed or forced: God will not be bribed, because of his justice; he cannot be forced, because of his power. He does justice out of love to justice. Psalm 45:7. ‘Thou lovest righteousness.'

[4] Justice is the perfection of the divine nature. Aristotle says, ‘Justice comprehends in it all virtues.' To say God is just, is to say, he is all that is excellent: perfections meet in Him, as lines in a centre. He is not only just, but justice itself.

[5] God never did nor can do the least wrong to his creatures. God's justice has been wronged, but never did any wrong. God does not go according to the summum jus, or rigour of the law; he abates something of his severity. He might inflict heavier penalties than he does. Thou hast punished us less than our iniquities deserve.' Ezra 9:13. Our mercies are more than we deserve, and our punishments less.

[6] God's justice is such that it is not fit for any man or angel to expostulate with Him, or demand a reason of his actions. God has not only authority on his side, but equity. ‘He lays judgement to the line, and righteousness to the plummet.' Isaiah 28:17. It is below him to give an account to us of his proceedings. Which of these two is more fit to take place, God's justice or man's reason? Romans 9:20. ‘Who art thou, O man, that replies against God?' The plumb line of our reason is too short to fathom the depth of God's justice. Romans 11:33. ‘How unsearchable are his judgements!' We are to adore God's justice, where we cannot see a reason of it.” (A Body of Divinity, by Thomas Watson, 1620-1686)

Thought: Verse 12. “He is terrible to the kings of the earth. While they are terrible to others, He is terrible to them. If they oppose themselves to His people, He will make short work of them; they shall perish before the terror of His arm, “…for the Lord is a man of war, the Lord is His Name.”  Rejoice before Him, all ye who adore the God of Jacob.” (C.H. Spurgeon, Treasury of David, page 327) God’s justification from sin is grace indeed. Amen!

2. The Glory of God’s Powerful Victories! Psalm 76:4-10

Text: “Thou art more glorious and excellent than the mountains of prey. The stout-hearted are spoiled, they have slept their sleep; and none of the men of might have found their hands.  At Thy rebuke, O God of Jacob, both the chariot and the horse are cast into a dead sleep.”

Psalm 76:4-6.

Good morning, Christian resting in Christ’s Victories!  Christ’s Holy victories are what holds us, ‘His people’, up, amidst all that would seek, vehemently, to pull us down, and mar our public witness for Him.  Of ourselves, we are weak, and foolish, and too often found wanting in the midst of the daily Spiritual Battle – but, in Christ Jesus, we are always fully assured of the eventual and total victory.  All glory to the Name of all names, King Jesus Christ!  Hallelujah! 

“Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom He hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy…”  (Psalm 107:1-3)

Verse 4. “Thou art more glorious and excellent than the mountains of prey.  What are the honours of war but brags of murder?  What the fame of conquerors but the reek of manslaughter?  But the Lord is glorious in Holiness, and His terrible deeds are done in justice for the defence of the weak and the deliverance of the enslaved.  Mere power may be glorious, but it is not excellent: when we behold the mighty acts of the Lord, we see a perfect blending of the two qualities.”  (C.H. Spurgeon, Treasury of David, page 325)

Because we that are redeemed by Christ’ sinless Blood have been permitted to see Christ Jesus with the eyes of God-given faith – we more fully understand the Lord’s motivations in every act of Spiritual war He engages daily.  All just, all merciful, all gracious, all loving, and all and impeccably Holy, is our Lord God Jehovah – Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Knowing this by faith through His amazing grace, we see that everything that our Lord God does is done in perfect righteousness and grace.  Therefore, ALL that God Almighty is and does, we applaud and give thanks to Him for it.  What a privilege to belong to the Lord God and to be permitted to have a portion in all His most powerful victories.  Glory to the Lamb!

“Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.”    (Romans 8:37)

When the Living Lord God subdues enemies, they immediately wither and fade into insignificance.  Tyrants and oppressors who show no mercy towards those less powerful than themselves, and especially towards Christian witnesses, are reduced to trembling cowards at the rebuke of the Lord God.

Verse 5. “The stout-hearted are spoiled. Daring men, who fear nothing, are turned into Magor-missabibs (definition: terror on every side), the name given by Jeremiah to Pashur the priest when he smote him and put him in the stocks for prophesying against the idolatry of Jerusalem. ( Jeremiah 20:3 ) – fear round about; their stout hearts are taken from them, and then they are so far from being a terror to other men, that they run from the shadow of a man; their courage is down; they cannot give a child a confident look, much less look dangers or enemies in the face.”  (Joseph Caryl, 1602-1673)

Check out what the Lord did to Pashur the priest, for playing the tyrant with His servant Jeremiah: “For thus saith the Lord, Behold (look, and fully understand), I will make thee a terror to thyself, and to all they friends: and they shall fall by the sword of their enemies, and thine eyes shall behold it: and I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall carry them captive into Babylon, and shall slay them with the sword. And thou, Pashur, and all that dwell in thine house shall go into captivity: and thou shalt come to Babylon, and there thou shalt die, and shalt be buried there, thou, and all thy friends to whom thou hast prophesied lies.” (Jeremiah 20:1-6)

It is wise to remember that the Lord God is a God of Holiness, wrath against all sin, and a strict upholder of justice – as well as a Lord God of grace, mercy, and matchless love.  He will not be mocked by infidels or Christ-rejecting reprobates.  Take heed!

“Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” (Galatians 6:7)

For the angel of death spread his wings on the blast,

And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed;

And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill,

And their hearts but once heaved, and forever were still!

And there lay the steed with his nostril all wide,

But through it there rolled not the breath of his pride:

And the foam of his gasping lay white on the turf,

And cold as the spray of the rock-beating surf.

And there lay the rider distorted and pale,

With the dew on his brow and the rust on his mail;

And the tents were all silent, the banners alone,

The lances unlifted, the trumpet unblown.

George Gordon, Lord Byron (1788-1824)

Verse 7. “Thou, even Thou, art to be feared. Not Sennacherib, nor Nisroch his god, but Jehovah alone, Who with a silent rebuke had withered all the monarch’s host. The fear of man is a snare, but the fear of God is a great virtue and has great power for good over the human mind. God is to be feared profoundly, continually, and alone.” (C.H. Spurgeon, Treasury of David, pages 325-236)

Verse 10. “Surely the wrath of man shall praise Thee: the remainder of wrath shalt Thou restrain. …The Devil blows the fire and melts the iron, and then the Lord fashions it for His own purposes.  Let men and devils rage as they may; they cannot do otherwise than subserve the Divine purposes.”  (C.H. Spurgeon, Treasury of David, page 326)

Thought: Contemplate for a moment, all the powerful victories of our great Lord God! Give heart-felt thanks to Him, for His mercies endure forever for 'His people'.

Psalm 76: God’s Terrible Power! 1. The Power of Christ’s Name Psalm 76:1-4

Text: "In Judah is God known: His Name is great in Israel"

                                                                                            Psalm 76:1.

          “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a Name which is above every name: that, at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow…and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.”

Philippians 2:9-11.

Good morning, Christ-honouring Christian!  Having been Spiritually regenerated, made Spiritually alive from being a dry-bone natural sinner – you and I have learned the privilege of exalting the Name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus, the risen Christ.  What a truly marvellous privilege this is today.  Hallelujah!  We honour and praise you, Lord Jesus!

“Again, He said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the Word of the Lord.”  (Ezekiel 37:1-10)

“And you hath He quickened (made alive), who were dead (Spiritually dead) in trespasses and sins…even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved).”  (Ephesians 2:1-10)

The Sovereign Lord God has blessed you and I and granted us His gift of genuine FAITH to believe His Word, the Gospel of Christ Crucified for to save natural sinners – and we have been graciously saved; redeemed by the sinless shed Blood of God the Son, Christ Jesus.  Wow!  Now, there’s a thought that should cause our redeemed souls to sing with joy!  Hallelujah!  What a Saviour we have in Christ Jesus!  Thanks be to Thee, great Lord God.

“Here faith sings of triumphs achieved. The present Psalm is a most jubilant war song a paean to the King of kings, the hymn of a theocratic nation to its Divine Ruler.  We have no need to mark divisions in a song where the unity is so well preserved.” (C.H. Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, page 325)

What great theme is being song here in Psalm 76?  What is the cause of Israel’s triumphant rejoicing?  Why, it’s the fact that the nation has received God’s enlightenment and come to worship the true Creator Lord God Jehovah; and, furthermore, the acknowledgement that the Lord God has made Himself known to this nation, and hidden Himself from many others!

Verse 1. “In Judah is God known: His Name is great in Israel. Dark is the outer world, but within the favoured circle Jehovah is revealed and is the adoration of all who behold Him.  The world knows Him not, and therefore blasphemes Him, but His church is full of ardour to proclaim His fame unto the ends of the earth.” (C.H. Spurgeon, Treasury of David, page 325)

For me, this mirrors the Spiritual mystery of Christ’s Eternal Salvation: He saves some, and does not save others.  Fact! Those whom God the Spirit ‘quickens’ (makes Spiritually alive) are Eternally saved and shall go to be with Christ in Heaven.  Those to whom God the Spirit does not ‘quicken’, never get Eternally saved, and go to Hell when they die.  Fact!

Both groups are privileged to hear the glorious Gospel message of Eternal Salvation in Christ’s Atonement at Calvary’s Cross for sinners – but only a portion of those hearers get Eternally saved.  The Gospel message means EVERYTHING to those who are ordained to be saved; the Gospel message means NOTHING to those who are ordained to remain lost. This is an easily observable FACT we can see taking place day by day. God gives the Gospel message out loud and clear to all souls, but only those ordained by Him to ‘…receive power to become the sons of God’; that wonderful Divine gift of faith, ever get Eternally saved.  God’s Sovereign will is, at all times, fully done.

“But as many as received Him (Christ Jesus), gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His Name: which were born, not of blood (human conception), nor of the will of the flesh (humanism and self-will), nor of the will of man (decisionism), but of God.” (John 1:12-13)

“For unto us was the Gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the Word did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.”  (Hebrews 4:2)

“But the natural man (unregenerate, unquickened) receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them because they are Spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14)

This is the power of Christ’s Holy Name!  His Name is GREAT indeed, in Spiritual Israel (the born again, Bible-believing Church).  Others outside Christ’s Kingdom may well seek to blaspheme His Holy Name; use it as a curse word on television dramas, movies, and worldly shows, etc.  But ‘His people’ know and fully reverence the blessed Name of Christ Jesus.  Glory and praise to Him Who sits on the right hand of our Father God!  Amen.

“Thou shalt not take the Name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh His Name in vain.”  (Exodus 20:7)

“And she (Mary) shall bring forth a son, and thou (Joseph) shall call His Name JESUS: for He shall save HIS PEOPLE from their sins.”  (Matthew 1:21)

Verse 2. “…His dwelling place in Zion. In God’s awesome power, He deems it fit to dwell continually in the hearts of redeemed sinners. What Divine humility!  What Divine grace!

Today’s Zion: Today’s Zion, in Spiritual Christian terms, is the hearts of ‘His people’; we who are privileged to be Spiritually regenerated Christians, are the dwelling place of God the Holy Spirit. He condescends to live within the hearts of those He has quickened, and for whom Christ shed His own sinless Blood on that cruel Calvary Cross.  We are God’s Zion.

“So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.  But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit (capital S.), if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you.  Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His.  And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.  But if the Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, He that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by His Spirit that dwelleth in you.”            (Romans 8:8-11)

Thought:  Verse 3. “There break He the arrows of the bow, the shield, and the sword, and the battle. Over the past 46 years, since the Lord in His Sovereign grace saved a Hell-deserving wretch like me – there have been many ‘arrows’, ‘bows’, ‘shields’, and ‘battles’ raging within my heart.  But the Sovereign Lord God has broken every weapon, and granted me His Victory. All praise, and honour, and glory to His Holy and loving Name! (Isaiah 54:17)