Psalm 12 Continued…
Psalms 12:1-2 says, “Help, Lord, for the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished from among men. Everyone lies to his neighbor; their flattering lips speak with deception.”
Society had become totally corrupt. Worthless and base men were in positions of influence and power, so that wickedness was openly approved of. There seemed to be no trustworthy, honest people on whom the psalmist could trust. Forget God and you get a society in which men cannot trust each other, and which therefore ultimately collapses.
In Psalm 11, the foundations of society were shaking (v. 3), but here David cried out for help (salvation, deliverance) because the godly remnant of faithful believers was getting smaller and smaller. This wasn’t the complaint of a crotchety old man longing for “the good old days.” It was the cry of a faithful servant of God who wanted to see his nation Israel fulfill her divine purposes on earth. The faithfulness of Israel involved bringing the Savior into the world and blessing all the nations (Genesis 12:1-3). David wasn’t alone in his concern. Elijah thought he was the only faithful servant left (1 Kings 18:22; 19:10, 18), and the prophets Isaiah (Isaiah 57:1) and Micah (Micah 7:1-7) expressed their concern at the lack of righteous leaders.
When he wrote 1 Timothy, Paul lamented over what “some” were doing in the church (1:3, 6, 19; 4:1; 5:15; 6:10), but in 2 Timothy that “some” had become “all” (1:15; 4:16). However, God is never without witnesses, and what the godly often need is a reminder of this fact and the power of the faithful and a voice to call them out of their gloom. It is easy to develop an Elijah complex today and say, “I am the only one left. I am the only one standing for God these days.” Many people develop that complex. It is not accurate, but it can happen when you see godlessness on every side. One of the tragedies today is that a new generation of believers doesn’t seem to know what it takes to be a godly leader, so they borrow leadership ideas from secular society and all kinds of unequipped and unqualified people become leaders.
Those who practice deceit on their neighbors whom they should love are said to have a double heart (verse 2 KJV). God’s Word, though, stirs us to do quite the opposite, that is, to put away lying and speak truth to our neighbors— “Therefore, putting away lying, “Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor,” for we are members of one another” (Ephesians 4:25; also Colossians 3:9). Truth is trampled underfoot in a corrupt society, and words are only tools of self-interest. A flatterer gives to the flattered a false opinion of himself, so that a society is formed which degenerates in its standards and output.
PRAY
Heavenly Father, I lift up all those who have rejected the truth of Your Word and are seeking after the humanistic ways of the world. Lord, I know that Satan is the father of lies and his great desire is to lead many away from the path of truth in Christ Jesus, help us hold on to the Truth.