Psalm 36 Continued…
Psalm 36:1-4 An oracle is within my heart concerning the sinfulness of the wicked: There is no fear of God before his eyes. For in his own eyes he flatters himself too much to detect or hate his sin. The words of his mouth are wicked and deceitful; he has ceased to be wise and to do good. Even on his bed he plots evil; he commits himself to a sinful course and does not reject what is wrong.
David had an “oracle within” his heart regarding the sinfulness of the wicked. This oracle is a message, a vision (if you will) that God laid on his heart regarding the sinfulness of the wicked. I confess I try not to think about such things very often.
Sometimes, we simply cannot help it. When confronted with zero boundaries regarding sexual behavior and increasing violence and bloodlust and abortion…sometimes we can’t avoid thinking about such things. So, let’s consider what David says about the sinfulness of the wicked.
First off, to be wicked is to be sinful. Not in the sense that “all have sinned” but in the sense of being quite literally full of sin. That condition is exhibited by the wicked person having “no fear of God before his eyes.” The wicked has no fear of God as Judge. There simply is a flippant dismissal of such matters because there is no God. He does not exist. Why fear that which doesn’t exist?
And, because of that removal of the guidance of the conscience, then conscience, then, loses its ability to prick the heart. As a result, there is no guilt over wrongdoings. In fact, the wicked person would never deem himself to be wicked. He sees himself in a state of comparison. He is much better than the religious hypocrite. He mostly does good. And that counterbalances an wrongs he may have been perceived to have done.
The wicked person has no true sense of self. In fact, his general assessment of his current condition would come with glowing remarks. But in reality, not only is his speech utterly corrupt, but he is ultimately a liar (1 John 1:8) and he has become a fool. His thoughts are only centered on himself and he is always scheming how to better his own situation even at the expense of others.
We need to be careful on these four verses David shares with us in this Psalm. How much of this is a description of our life at certain times? We can waft in and out of this pattern all too easily. Our nature is always trying to pull us toward this old way of life. We are attracted to the wicked life like flies are attracted to a rotting corpse.
PRAY
Father God help me to be relentless and ruthless in fighting against my sinful nature. Help me examine my life regularly to see if there be in wicked way in me.