Believers, when we are tempted to complain about God's goodness, we need to think about Asaph in this psalm.

Part 1

Today:  Asaph’s Comparison

Asaph, the writer of Psalm 73, was very observant of the lives of people around him.  Through most of his psalm, he is puzzled and questioning why it is that wicked people seem to have fewer problems in life than do God’s people?  It is not until the end of the psalm that he recognizes the folly of his thinking.  What is it that skewed his thinking so?

Guzik[1] points out that the dominant pronouns in Psalm 73 help to explain Asaph’s thinking.

When Asaph is questioning the lives of the ungodly – “they” vv. 1-12.
When Asaph’s frustration finally leads to a solution – “I” vv. 13-17.
When Asaph’s thoughts are resolved, it is about God – “You” vv. 18-22.
When Asaph’s faith is reassured – “You” and “I” vv. 23-28.

Our verses for today are from the last section of Psalm 73, but before we go there, we need to look at what leads up to Asaph’s change of heart.  Let’s take a look at this psalm and see how it can help believers with our thinking.

“For I was envious at the foolish when I saw the prosperity of the wicked” (Psalm 73:3-12).
Believer, have you ever looked around at the people you know and made comparisons between the life you perceive they have and your own?  I suppose that’s human nature, but it’s not a very wise practice.  One of the reasons is that “comparison kills contentment!”[2]  The Word of God tells Christians that, “…godliness with contentment is great gain” (1 Timothy 6:6).  When we compare ourselves, our lives, our circumstances, and our belongings with others, we can always find those who are much better off than we are.  This is what happened to Asaph.

To start with, Asaph was feeling sorry for himself (v. 2).  Then he began to look at others and what they had and became “envious at the foolish when he saw the prosperity of the wicked” (v. 3).  He thought the wicked had it easy when they died, as they experience “no pangs”[3] in their deaths (v. 4).  And he saw the wicked as not having the same kinds of troubles and plagues as other men do, “they seem to be more blessed than the pure in heart” (v. 5).  Since God was not punishing the wicked, their growing pride became their necklace, and their violence was like a warm blanket for them.  They became more vicious and more violent with others, their greed grew more and more (v. 6).

“Together with Asaph, we picture these rich, famous, proud, showy, violent, greedy, foul-speaking gangsters strutting about enjoying their wickedness.  We are as troubled by their prosperity and the seeming indifference of God toward them as he was”[4] (Guzik).

Asaph saw the wicked as having such prosperity, so much their eyes bugged out!  They had far more than any man needed in a lifetime!  Clarke calls them “human hogs”[5] (v. 7).  Their corruption only grows, they often speak of their “wicked oppression” of others, and their words are arrogant! (v. 8).  So arrogant that they talk against heaven, and they strut through the earth with their proud words (v. 9).  However, the wicked find no faults in their evil friends. They “worship success”[6] (Kidner) (v. 10).  In their rant against heaven, they say that God is impotent, He does not know what’s going on, and they do not fear Him (v. 11).  These ungodly people are the prosperous ones.  They only get wealthier and more affluent (v. 12).  Asaph has just about convinced himself that the life of the wicked and ungodly is the “good life!”

Believers, have you ever found yourself thinking these kinds of thoughts?  What will it take to change Asaph’s mind and set his feet back on the stable path of right thinking again?  Tomorrow we will look at his change of heart.  See you then.

Quote:  “Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass” (Psalm 37:7).

[1] Guzik, David.  David Guzik’s Enduring Word Commentary, the electronic version in eSword.  Psalm 73.
[2] Marty Herron quote, in his teaching and preaching.
[3] “Pangs.”  In the KJV, = “bands.”  Asaph’s idea is that the wicked never have brutal deaths.  Spurgeon reminds us that the lost can be so set in their insolence against God that they are “case-hardened” and seemingly secure, and they “glide into eternity without a struggle.”  “We have seen godly men bound with doubts, and fettered with anxieties, which have arisen from their holy jealousy; but the godless know nothing of such bands: they care neither for God nor devil.  ‘Their strength is firm.’  What care they for death?” – Spurgeon, Psalm 73:4.
[4] Guzik, David, ibid. Psalm 73:6.
[5] Adam Clarke, Adam Clarke’s Commentary on the Bible, the electronic version in eSword.  Psalm 73:7.
[6] Kidner’s quote in the Enduring Word Commentary, the electronic version in eSword.  Psalm 73:10.