Psalms and Proverbs

Introduction

I think they are giving me a signal to start.

That is a definite signal. Recognize that. But thank you. Thank you so much for being here. It’s a blessing to be with all of you today. It’s a blessing to see a couple of friends that I wasn’t expecting to see and haven’t seen in several years, Brother Guy. I appreciate him being here and good to see him and God bless you. And good to see. I was in school with Teresa Frost years ago, and good to see, good to see her after just a few years. It’s hard to believe it’s been a decade or so since I was in college. But um, but it’s good good to see, good to see you all. God bless all of you.

As we’re talking about how all the Bible points to Jesus, one of the questions was asked was how were the Jews expected to know that certain prophecies like Psalm 110 were messianic? How were they to know that a psalm like Psalm 110 was messianic? One valid uh suggestion that was given last night is soon as we covered so many passages that it was hard to focus on any of them. And so let’s read Psalm 110 as we start. Psalm 110. If we’re going to ask, how do we know this is Messianic, or how were the Jewish people expected to know this was Messianic, it always does good to read it, to familiarize ourselves with the content. Now I’m reading from the New American Standard Bible in Psalm 110.

Psalm 110, it is listed as a Psalm of David. In verse 1, the Lord says to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet. The Lord will stretch forth your strong scepter from Zion, saying, Rule in the midst of your enemies. Your people will volunteer freely in the day of your power, in holy array, from the womb of the dawn. Your youth are to you as the dawn. The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind. You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek. The Lord is at my right hand, he will shatter kings in the day of his wrath.

1. Psalm 110 Is Based on Two Decrees

Therefore he will lift up his head. Now, Psalm 110 is the psalm, and some of you will see, you will see this statement of several Psalms. This is a psalm quoted most frequently in the New Testament. But if you include all the New Testament references to Jesus at the right hand of God, Psalm 110 is the Psalm that is most frequently quoted or alluded to in the New Testament. Because this is really the only passage in the Old Testament that speaks of the Christ at the right hand. The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand till I make your enemies a footstool for your feet. So the New Testament quotes it frequently, and we will look at some of those passages in a moment.

But Psalm 110 is based on two decrees. Two decrees. One is this decree in verse 1. The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.

You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. You’re a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. Now, Melchizedek is a character that we would all forget, were it not for this passage and Hebrews 7 mention of Melchizedek. You only read about Melchizedek in one historical passage of the Old Testament. In Genesis chapter 14, Genesis 14, verses 18 through 20. And in that text in Genesis 14, verses 18 through 20, Melchizedek, Melchizedek is king of Salem. He is priest of the Most High God. He is king and he is priest. And the Bible tells us that he blessed Abraham. He blessed Abram. And Abram paid him a tithe. Paid him a tenth. Now Hebrews 7 builds upon all of those things. It even finds significance in Melchizedek’s name.

Melchizedek’s name means king of righteousness. The place where he is king, king of Salem, and the word Salem is similar to the Hebrew term shalom, which means peace. He is king of righteousness. He is king of peace. And the Bible tells us he blessed Abram, and without any dispute, it is the greater party who blesses the latter party. And so Melchizedek blesses Abraham when they meet each other. Melchizedek is the superior character. And Abram pays a tenth. He pays a tithe to Melchizedek. Now, all of those details which may seem insignificant in the context of Genesis are filled with significance according to Psalm 10 and according to Hebrews chapter 7. That Melchizedek is Melchizedek is a very important character, and he foreshadows Jesus. Now the question was asked, what how were the Jewish people expected to recognize that Jesus was the Messiah?

2. What Do You Think About the Christ?

Or excuse me, that that prophecy dealt with the Messiah. That was the question. Let me first of all state that that doesn’t seem to have been a matter of dispute. It doesn’t seem to be a matter of dispute. Look at Matthew 22. Matthew 22, verses 41 through 46. The Pharisees and Sadducees have been asking Jesus a series of questions. Now it is Jesus asking them a question. In verse 41, while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question. What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he? They said to him, the son of David. He said to them, then how does David in the Spirit call him Lord? The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I put your enemies beneath your feet.

If David then calls him Lord, how is he his son? No one was able to answer him a word, nor did anyone dare from that day on to ask him another question. Jesus asked them a question. What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he? They give the answer, the son of David. I want you to understand that that answer is not wrong as far as it goes. I have read some people who comment on this passage and say, Jesus is questioning whether the Messiah is David’s son. No, he’s not. They all agree on that. That the Messiah is going to be the son of David. From the first verse of the New Testament, the Bible tells us that. Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

In Romans chapter 1, verses 3 and 4, he was the son of David according to the flesh, but raised the Son of God. In 2 Timothy chapter 2, verse 8, he is referred to as a son of David, the seed of David. So Jesus and the Pharisees agree that the Messiah is David’s son. They apparently agree. Jesus quotes here from Psalm 110, verse 1. This first decree.

They agree, apparently, that that psalm was messianic. For when Jesus quotes it and applies it to the Messiah, there’s no dispute about it. They’re not saying that wasn’t messianic. That wasn’t about the Messiah. They don’t say that. They agreed it was about the Messiah. But he says, if he’s David’s son, how did David in spirit call him Lord? Saying, the Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet. The matter of dispute is not whether the Messiah is David’s son, but whether that is the full picture.

He is a descendant of David according to the flesh. But he is the son of God, as Romans 1, 3 and 4 again stated. What these readers and Pharisees failed to understand was the Messiah is going to be more than a man. He’s going to be God come in the flesh. There are other Old Testament prophecies that hint at that. For example, in Daniel 7, verses 13 and 14, the Son of Man will ascend to the ancient of days, riding on clouds and be given authority and dominion in a kingdom. I want you to examine something that I’ve only learned relatively recently. Look in the Old Testament. Who rides on the clouds? It is only God who rides on the cloud. And the Son of Man is ascending to the ancient of days on clouds.

3. No King of Israel Lived Up to These Psalms

So what I would suggest, there doesn’t seem to be a dispute among Jesus or the Jewish people that these passages were messianic. Even though he questions them about the fact they haven’t thought carefully enough about that psalm, he doesn’t, they don’t, he doesn’t question them in their messianic interpretation. But how did they know that? How were they supposed to apply that to the Messiah? And how are we supposed to know certain passages applied to the Messiah? There are a group of Psalms that are called royal psalms. They’re royal Psalms. Now, some that fall into this category are Psalms 132, Psalm 45, Psalm 2, Psalm 72, Psalm 89, and Psalm 110. Now, 110 is in a different category because I think this is more exclusive of the Messiah.

Now, but I what I’m trying to hint at here, what I’m trying to state here, is that I think these Psalms, one of the reasons they came to be viewed as Messianic. And Psalm 2 is quoted continuously in the New Testament. One of the reasons they came to be viewed as Messianic is because no king of Israel lived up to these passages. Psalm 132 says the king is to be a descendant of David. Okay, there were kings that sat upon the throne who were descendants of David, and Psalm 132 is basically a poetic retelling of 1 Chronicles 17 that we looked at last night. Psalm 75 presents an ideal picture of the king. The king is the best looking of men. The king is the strongest of men, and the king is the most noble of men.

He fights for noble causes. He fights for truth and justice, and he fights against wickedness and evil. In Psalm 2, Psalm 22, that Psalm tells us of the king’s special, God’s special relationship with the king. You are my son. Today I have begotten you. But listen to this part. Right after that. You are my son. Today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I shall give the nations as an inheritance and the ends of the earth as your possession. Now, if you’re brave enough to answer this question, you can answer it out loud. But understand this is a trap. Okay. You’ve been warned beforehand. This is a trap. At what point in Israel’s history did those kings of Israel, those kings descended from David experience what Psalm 2, 8 and 9 says.

That they ruled over the ends of the earth, that they had possession of all the nations, that they ruled the nations with a rod of iron. At what point in the history of Judah did that, was that true? Whose time? When? Never. I shouldn’t have warned you it was a trap. Because you got it right. But if a lot of times people will say, the time of David, the time of Solomon. David and Solomon were as close as you could come to that, or as close as they would come in Israel’s history. But there was never a point in Israel’s history where their kings were the kings in all the earth. Where their kings ruled over all the earth and had dominion from sea to sea.

It wasn’t the case. It wasn’t the case.

Psalm 72. Psalm 72 not only mentions the universal dominion of the king in verses 8 through 11. It mentions his universal dominion. But even more importantly, what Psalm 72 demonstrates is that the king would do righteousness and justice. I have written in my Bible that there’s some form of the word justice in the original language, there’s some form of that word justice in Psalm 72 failed 25 times. It stresses the universal dominion of the king, but it stresses the justice and the righteousness of the king. Okay, let me ask you a couple of questions. These are not traps. Okay? But you remember in the history of Israel, Saul, David, and Solomon were kings over a united kingdom. After the death of Solomon, in the days of Rehboam, the kingdom divided.

Rehoboam became king in the south. Jeroboam became king in the north. Jeroboam set up Golden Cavs, and Dan in the north, and Bethel in the south of his kingdom. And said, These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you out of the land of Egypt. Now, in this divided kingdom period, Jeroboam was the first king of Israel. How many of the kings of Israel were good? How many kings of Israel were good? None. None. You think you might accidentally back into a good king, but none of them were good. Kings of Judah. Were more of those kings good or bad? More of them were bad. More of them were bad. You find early, Asa and Jehosaphat were pretty good. You find four in the middle that are okay, that are described as being good.

You have two real good ones near the end in Hezekiah and Josiah. You have two real good ones. But even the kings of Judah who had the Jerusalem temple, most of them were evil and not good. Are Israel’s kings? Let me say it this way. Let me make it as a statement, not as a question. When you read things that are said about Israel’s king in Psalm 132, Psalm 45, Psalm 2, and Psalm 72, when you read those Psalms, and then you turn over and read the history of those kings in the book of Samuel and the book of Kings, you’re going to say, these pictures don’t match.

Those kings of Judah who were told, ask of me, and I will give you the nations as your inheritance, and the ends of the earth as your possession. Do you know what happened to the last king of Judah? Zedekiah. Zedekiah’s name means the Lord is righteous. But Zedekiah is captured by the Babylonians. He is forced to watch helplessly as his sons are killed in front of his eyes. And then his eyes are put out. Can you imagine what it would be like for the last thing that you ever saw was your sons killed? And then you’re blinded the rest of your life. But what I’m trying to stress, that was the last king that Judah ever has around 587 BC. These kings are going to rule from sea to sea, from the rivers to the end of the earth.

They’re going to rule all nations with a rod of iron. If the kings of Assyria and the kings of Babylon would have heard that about these kings, they would have laughed. They would have mocked. They don’t exercise that kind of authority. And Psalm 89 reviews those promises that God made to David in verses 19 through 37. But at the end of Psalm 89, the writer says, What happened, O God, to your loving kindness and to your faithfulness to David? What happened to it? This is what I’m trying to stress. Because their history does not match up with what these Psalms said. These people who knew God always is faithful. And God’s words always come true. That led them to expect one who would fulfill all those promises.

4. He Must Reign Until All Enemies Are Under His Feet

And would fulfill all those passages. Who would exercise truth and righteousness? Who would fulfill the ideal that God is stated of kings from one who would rule over all the earth. And you remember when he was crucified and raised from the dead that in Matthew’s gospel, in Matthew 28, in verse 18, the Bible says, all authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and teach all nations.

He has dominion over all the peoples. And he says, go and teach and preach to all nations. Jesus is king right now. And we get to share in his kingdom right now. But also want to tell you this. I want to tell you this that kingdom right now is not all that it is going to be. Because there is, look at 1 Corinthians 15. 1 Corinthians 15 makes an allusion to Psalm 110. It makes an allusion to the Psalm that we’re talking about. 1 Corinthians 15 is the great chapter on the resurrection. Oh, what a powerful chapter. Oh, how it gives us hope. And the Bible tells us in verse 25 that he must reign until he has put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that will be abolished is death.

He must reign until he’s put all enemies under his feet. That ties back to the Lord’s decree. The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet. Do you remember a case in Joshua chapter 10 where several kings have fought against Israel when Israel is trying to take the land of Canaan? And the text tells us that Joshua, Joshua brings out these kings that they defeated and makes them sit, and has the people of Israel put their feet on their necks? And he says, there the Lord is going to give you dominion over all these kings and all these people. To put your feet on their neck was a sign that you have utterly defeated them, and they are totally subject to you.

And Jesus is going to reign till he has put all he reigns now, and he will reign till he’s put all enemies under his feet. And the last enemy that will be put under his feet is death. What I’m saying.

But his kingdom in all its fullness will be manifest when he returns to receive us home to heaven when there will be no death, no dying, no sickness, no announcements of people in the hospital, no visiting the funeral home for people who have passed away, and no bad news when you go to the doctor. I cannot imagine what that resurrection will be like. I cannot imagine how that will be.

And he’s told, Joseph is alive. He’s ruler of Egypt. When he’s convinced of this, he says, it is enough. I will go down and see him before I die. Oh, how his heart must have been beating out of his chest to know that he would see this son that he has not seen in twenty two years. And the Bible says when he saw him, they weep, they embrace each other, but it was weeping of joy, not of sadness. But I want to tell you, friend, that does not compare with what will happen on resurrection day. As parents will be reunited with children, and children will be reunited with parent, and husbands and wives will be reunited in a world where we never die. So what I’m saying is I think that the belief, the understanding that these things were never completely fulfilled in this world led them to expect, in the Old Testament, led them to expect a greater fulfillment in the Messiah.

Now, I apologize that I’m having difficulty with these questions as far as time. I’m enjoying these questions. I hope you are.

5. Are Proverbs Binding on Christians Today?

Are proverbs and other pieces of advice from wisdom literature binding on Christians today. Are proverbs and other pieces of advice from wisdom literature, are they binding on Christians today? Some of them, I don’t know, and I’m not trying to be too, I’m not trying to be too picky here. But I don’t know sometimes if the best word to apply to all the Proverbs is binding. Because when you have a statement like Proverbs 25, Proverbs 25, and Ken was pointing this out the other day to me. Conversation. Proverbs 25, verses 17, verse 17. Let your foot rarely be in your neighbor’s house, or he will become weary of you and hate you. Now, okay, that’s just good advice. Is that a sin necessarily if you stay a little bit longer when somebody invites you over their house?

Is that absolutely a sin? That’s just telling us this is a wise way to live your life. The other one we referred to the other day is Proverbs 27, 14. Proverbs 27, 14. He who blesses his friend with a loud voice early in the morning, it will be reckoned a curse to him. So these are just pieces of instruction and pieces of advice that are going to make life better for us and for those we associate with. It’s going, if we’re going to conduct our lives wisely, and we define, we defined wisdom the other night, is navigating through the minefields of life. Wisely, skillfully navigating through the minefields of life. Then, in that particular case, then we have to see this is going to help us.

Now, not everything that Proverbs says falls in that category. For example, there are warnings against adultery very strongly in Proverbs. In Proverbs 2, 16 through 22, in Proverbs 5, particularly verses 3 through 23, in Proverbs 6, verses 20 through 35. In Proverbs 7, verses 6 through 27. In Proverbs chapter 9, verses 13 through 18, the Bible tells us that adultery will destroy us. Now it is interesting how Proverbs approaches this, verse how the law said it. The law says, you shall not, and gives us some instructions about people you could not have sexual relations with. In Leviticus 18, Leviticus 20, and the penalty for those sins, those crimes, were death. So God took that, took that very seriously. Proverbs doesn’t say it that same way. It teaches the same message, but goes about it a different way.

For example, in Proverbs chapter 6, verses 20 through 35, the Bible talks about one who goes to his neighbor’s wife lacks understanding. And it uses this illustration. If a man steals to satisfy his hunger, if a man is starving to death and he is looking for bread, and maybe he breaks into your house and takes some food. You don’t despise a person like that. You feel sympathy for a person like that. Yet still there’s a penalty to be paid by law. Proverbs 6 says, he will repay sevenfold. He’s going to repay that. Now, if that’s true, even when someone commits a sin for which we do not despise him, for which we do not abhor him, what is going to be the penalty with one who takes another man’s wife and commits adultery.

The sense of violation, the sense of wrongdoing is a lot more personal than it is when you simply take someone’s bread. This is what I would ask you. Are these warnings about adultery less needed in our culture than they were in Israel in the time of Solomon? About a thousand BC. I don’t think so. I don’t think so. I was blessed several years ago, the local congregation in which I preach to teach through Proverbs on Sunday morning. And they agreed that we would just take as long as it took to adequately cover this. And so for a year and a half, we studied the Proverbs on Sunday morning, starting with Proverbs 1 and ending with the virtuous woman in Proverbs chapter 31. We studied all of it.

You will never hear anybody say to a study on Proverbs. That wasn’t very practical. That didn’t have much to do with my life. It has everything to do with our life. It is everything. Do we as Christians need to pay the utmost attention to these type of warnings? Yes. There are also, when a preacher teaches about parents disciplining their children. Do you imagine parents disciplining their children? Do you imagine our culture needs any instruction on that? Oh, we’ve all we’ve got that message, don’t we? No, not quite. And Proverbs over and over deals with this subject. The Bible says in Proverbs 13, verse 24, he who spares his rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him diligently. In Proverbs chapter 19 and verse 18, the Bible says here that Proverbs 19 and verse 18, discipline your son while there is hope, and do not desire his death.

You are disciplining your son, not because you hate him, but because you love him. And you’re trying to teach him lessons that you would rather him learn from your loving but firm hands than you would him learn these things from people who don’t care about him. In Proverbs 23, verses 14, Proverbs 23, verses 13 and 14, the Bible says to not hold back discipline from your child, although you beat him with the rod. And I know that could be misunderstood in our day. And there are always people who want to misunderstand the Bible and want to try to criticize the Bible. If you beat him with a rod, he will not die. You shall beat him with the rod and deliver his soul from Sheol. As I was growing up, I was good friends with the son of our high school principal.

He was in my same class all those years. And he asked me, I remember when we were in a younger grade, he says, if you get a spanking at school, would you get one at home? And I said, if I was foolish enough to tell my parents I got a spanking at school, I would get one at home. Yes. And he told me an interesting story. Of course, he lived under the same restrictions. But I got to be about seventh and eighth grade. And if a child ever got a spanking, their parents came to school and got on to the teacher.

Now, I’m not saying that teachers are completely right. I’ve got a couple of spankings in school that I didn’t deserve. And I’m still in touch with those teachers and occasionally torment them over that fact. But a lot of times I did deserve it. I did deserve it. And there has to be respect for authority in our society, or it will completely implode. It will completely. But the point is, do we know those warnings against, do we need those statements about parents disciplining their children less than they needed them? We could talk about other subjects. Evil companionship. We need those warnings. And Proverbs 1 through 9 are full of those warnings, particularly chapter 1, verses 8 through 19 is a good example. Where else in the Bible do you find as many warnings about controlling our tongue?

You find a lot in James 3 on that subject, but you find so much everywhere throughout the book of Proverbs. Where do you find the importance of controlling our temper, like we do in the book of Proverbs? Or about the importance of a work ethic, a deal a work ethic. I know 2 Thessalonians 3 says, if a man doesn’t work, neither let him eat. But in Proverbs, we see the virtue of that work ethic and how the one who works with a diligent hand. This is an example. Proverbs 12, verse 11. Proverbs 12, verse 11. He who tills his land will have plenty of bread, but he who pursues vain things lacks since. Young people, your future does not lie in video games. Your future lies.

Wearing yourself out in a good purpose to work for. So what I would say are these statements and the underlying principle of Proverbs is the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. And we would be foolish not to heed that. Now let me also give you here.

6. They Draw From the Instruction of Proverbs

Proverbs 334 says God, it says God scoffs at scoffers. It’s quoted in the New Testament or referred to in the New Testament as God exalts the humble. God brings down the proud and God exalts the humble. In 1 Peter chapter 5, verse 5, and James 4 and verse 6. The Bible says that love covers a multitude of sins in Proverbs chapter 10 and verse 12, and that is quoted in the New Testament in Proverbs chapter, Proverbs chapter, excuse me, it’s quoted in the New Testament in 1 Peter chapter 4 and verse 19. 1 Peter 4 verse 8. Excuse me. 1 Peter 4 verse 8 quotes that statement. Love will cover a multitude of sins. And then Proverbs 16 and 26, verse 11 says that the sow returns to its vomit.

The dog returns to its vomit, and the sow that was washed according to its wallowing in the mire. That’s quoted in 2 Peter 2, verse 22. So they draw from the instruction of the book of Proverbs, and they provide direction and advice to Christians. Okay. Now I apologize. That leaves one question unanswered. And I will try to write something and send that to one of you all to send out if if you will want to if you if you were the one who asked that question. But thank you so much for your attention. I know we’ve pulled a lot together. And I hope that this helps you a little bit.

Is this the time to quit? Is this okay? God bless and thank you.