Treasury of David

Charles Spurgeon

PSALM 125
 

Title. A Song of Degrees. Another step is taken in the ascent, another station in the pilgrimage is reached: certainly a rise in the sense is here perceptible, since full assurance concerning years to come is a higher form of faith than the ascription of former escapes to the Lord. Faith has praised Jehovah for past deliverances, and here she rises to a confident joy in the present and future safety of believers. She asserts that they shall forever be secure who trust themselves with the Lord. We can imagine the pilgrims chanting this song when perambulating the city walls.

We do not assert that David wrote this Psalm, but we have as much ground for doing so as others have for declaring that it was written after the captivity. It would seem probable that all the Pilgrim Psalms were composed, or, at least, compiled by the same writer, and as some of them are certainly by David, there is no conclusive reason for taking away the rest from him.

Division.
First we have a song of holy confidence (Psalm 125:1, 19 125:2);
then a promise, Psalm 125:3;
followed by a prayer, Psalm 125:4;
and a note of warning.

1 They that trust in the Lord shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abides forever.

2 As the mountains are round about Jerusalem, so the Lord is round about his people from henceforth even forever.

3 For the rod of the wicked shall not rest upon the lot of the righteous; lest the righteous put forth their hands unto iniquity.

4 Do good, O Lord, unto those that are good, and to those who are upright in their hearts.

5 As for such as turn aside unto their crooked ways, the Lord shall lead them forth with the workers of iniquity—but peace shall be upon Israel.


EXPOSITION

Psalm 125:1
"They that trust in the Lord shall be as mount Zion." The emphasis lies upon the object of their trust, namely, Jehovah the Lord. What a privilege to be allowed to repose in God! How condescending is Jehovah to become the confidence of his people! To trust elsewhere is vanity; and the more implicit such misplaced trust becomes the more bitter will be the ensuing disappointment; but to trust in the living God is sanctified common sense which needs no excuse, its result shall be its best vindication. There is no conceivable reason why we should not trust in Jehovah, and there is every possible argument for so doing; but, apart from all argument, the end will prove the wisdom of the confidence.

The result of faith is not occasional and accidental; its blessing comes, not to some who trust, but to all who trust in the Lord. Trusters in Jehovah shall be as fixed, firm, and stable as the mount where David dwelt; and where the ark abode. To move mount Zion was impossible, the mere supposition was absurd.

"Which cannot be removed, but abides forever." Zion was the image of eternal steadfastness—this hill which, according to the Hebrew, "sits to eternity," neither bowing down nor moving to and fro. Thus does the trusting worshiper of Jehovah enjoy a restfulness which is the mirror of tranquility; and this not without cause, for his hope is sure, and of his confidence he can never be ashamed.

As the Lord sits King forever, so do his people sit enthroned in perfect peace when their trust in him is firm. This is, and is to be our portion; we are, we have been, we shall be as steadfast as the hill of God. Zion cannot be removed, and does not remove; so the people of God can neither be moved passively nor actively, by force from without or fickleness from within. Faith in God is a settling and establishing virtue; he who by his strength sets fast the mountains, by that same power stays the hearts of them that trust in him. This steadfastness will endure "forever," and we may be assured therefore that no true believer shall perish either in life or in death, in time or in eternity. We trust in an eternal God, and our safety shall be eternal.

Psalm 125:2
"As the mountains are round about Jerusalem, so the Lord is round about his people from hence forth even forever." The hill of Zion is the type of the believer's constancy, and the surrounding mountains are made emblems of the all-surrounding presence of the Lord. The mountains around the holy city, though they do not make a circular wall, are, nevertheless, set like sentinels to guard her gates. God does not enclose his people within ramparts and bulwarks, making their city to be a prison; but yet he so orders the arrangements of his providence that his saints are as safe as if they dwelt behind the strongest fortifications.

What a double security are verses 1-2! First, we are established, and then entrenched: settled, and then sentineled: made like a mount, and then protected as if by mountains. This is no matter of poetry, it is so in fact; and it is no matter of temporary privilege, but it shall be so forever.

Date when we please, "from henceforth" Jehovah encircles his people: look on us as far as we please, the protection extends "even forever."

Note, it is not said that Jehovah's power or wisdom defends believers, but he himself is round about them: they have his person for their protection, his Godhead for their guard. We are here taught that the Lord's people are those who trust him, for they are thus described in the first verses: the line of faith is the line of grace, those who trust in the Lord are chosen of the Lord. Verses 1-2 together prove the eternal safety of the saints: they must abide where God has placed them, and God must forever protect them from all evil. It would be difficult to imagine greater safety than is here set forth.

Psalm 125:3
"For the rod of the wicked shall not rest upon the lot of the righteous." The people of God are not to expect immunity from trial because the Lord surrounds them, for they may feel the power and persecution of the ungodly. Isaac, even in Abraham's family, was mocked by Ishmael. Assyria laid its scepter even upon Zion itself.

The graceless often bear rule and wield the rod; and when they do so they are pretty sure to make it fall heavily upon the Lord's believing people, so that the godly cry out by reason of their oppressors. Egypt's rod was exceeding heavy upon Israel, but the time came for it to be broken. God has set a limit to the woes of his chosen people, the rod may light on their portion, but it shall not rest upon it. The righteous have a lot which none can take from them, for God has appointed them heirs of it by gracious entail: on that lot the rod of the wicked may fall, but over that lot it cannot have lasting sway. The saints abide forever, but their troubles will not. Here is a good argument in prayer for all righteous ones who are in the hands of the wicked.

"Lest the righteous put forth their hands unto iniquity." The tendency of oppression is to drive the best of men into some hasty deed for self-deliverance or vengeance. If the rack be too long used the patient sufferer may at last give way; and therefore the Lord puts a limit to the tyranny of the wicked.

He ordained that an Israelite who deserved punishment should not be beaten without measure—forty stripes save one was the appointed limit. We may therefore expect that he will set a bound to the suffering of the innocent, and will not allow them to be pushed to the uttermost extreme. Especially in point of time he will limit the domination of the persecutor, for length adds strength to oppression, and makes it intolerable. Hence the Lord himself said of a certain tribulation, "except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved; but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened."

It seems that even righteous men are in peril of sinning in evil days, and that it is not the will of the Lord that they should yield to the stress of the times in order to escape from suffering. The power and influence of wicked men when they are uppermost are used to lead or drive the righteous astray; but the godly must not accept this as an excuse, and yield to the evil pressure; far rather must they resist with all their might until it shall please God to stay the violence of the persecutor, and give his children rest. This the Lord here promises to do in due time.

Psalm 125:4
"Do good, O Lord, unto those that be good, and to them that are upright in their hearts." Men to be good at all, must be good at heart. Those who trust in the Lord are good; for faith is the root of righteousness, and the evidence of uprightness. Faith in God is a good and upright thing, and its influence makes the rest of the man good and upright. To such God will do good: the prayer of the text is but another form of promise, for that which the Lord prompts us to ask, he virtually promises to give. Jehovah will take off evil from his people, and in the place thereof will enrich them with all manner of good. When the rod of the wicked is gone his own rod and staff shall comfort us. Meanwhile it is for us to pray that it may be well with all the upright who are now among men. God bless them, and do them good in every possible form. We wish well to those who do well. We are so plagued by the crooked that we would pour blessings upon the upright.

Psalm 125:5
"As for such as turn aside unto their crooked ways, the Lord shall lead them forth with the workers of iniquity." Two kinds of men are always to be found, the upright and the men of crooked ways. Alas, there are some who pass from one class to another, not by a happy conversion, turning from the twisting lanes of deceit into the highway of truth—but by an unhappy declension leaving the main road of honesty and holiness for the bypaths of wickedness. Such apostates have been seen in all ages, and David knew enough of them; he could never forget Saul, and Ahithophel, and others. How sad that men who once walked in the right way should turn aside from it!

Observe the course of the false-hearted: first, they look out for crooked ways; next, they choose them and make them "their crooked ways"; and then they turn aside into them. They never intend to go back unto perdition, but only to make a curve and drop into the right road again. The straight way becomes a little difficult, and so they make a circumnavigation, which all along aims at coming out right, though it may a little deviate from precision.

These people are neither upright in heart, nor good, nor trusters in Jehovah, and therefore the Lord will deal otherwise with them than with his own people: when execution day comes these hypocrites and time-servers shall be led out to the same gallows as the openly wicked. All sin will one day be expelled from the universe, even as criminals condemned to die are led out of the city; then shall secret traitors find themselves rejected with open rebels. Divine truth will unveil their hidden pursuits, and lead them forth, and to the surprise of many they shall be set in the same rank with those who avowedly wrought iniquity.

"But peace shall be upon Israel." In fact the execution of the deceivers shall tend to give the true Israel peace. When God is smiting the unfaithful, not a blow shall fall upon the faithful. The chosen of the Lord shall not only be like Salem, but they shall have salem, or peace. Like a prince, Israel has prevailed with God, and therefore he need not fear the face of man; his wrestlings are over, the blessing of peace has been pronounced upon him. He who has peace with God, may enjoy peace concerning all things.

Bind the first and last verses together: Israel trusts in the Lord (verse 1), and Israel has peace (verse 5).