Psalm 92

November 9, 2014
Well take a short break from John this morning, but well stay on the theme of fruit and
spiritual life in the vine. Id like to flip back a little into the Old Testament and have a look at
Psalm 92 which is introduced as a song for the Sabbath day. The Sabbath was an important
part of Jewish life, and it was a legal requirement under the Law of Moses. Anyone who
failed to rest on that day was subject to death by stoning, and that actually happened to one
certain man who was caught carrying a load of sticks (Num. 15:32-36). That certainly
seems excessive, and we might shrug and say, Well, it was just disobedience, but what if
theres more to it than that?
What if the Sabbath foreshadows a greater spiritual purpose? If youll think back to
Genesis, youll remember that the LORD created everything in six days, and then he rested:
And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all
his work which God created and made (Gen. 2:3). So, God works six days and then rests on
the seventh because there was nothing left to add.
He then commands Israel to do the same: they labor throughout the week, and then they
spend the final day at rest contemplating what it means to have rest and be finished with
work. Look at Deuteronomy 5:14-15 and see that the Israelites were to observe the
Sabbath because they had been freed from slavery. God ties their bondage to the Sabbath
day because slaves dont get a day off to rest, but God broke their shackles and brought
them into a good land where they were no longer slaves. Now they work six days and rest
on the seventh to remember that the work is done!
In John 15 we read that Jesus is the vine, and that we bear good fruit in him. He says, I have
chosen you, and ordained you, that you should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit
should remain (v. 16). He also promises his disciples that theyll suffer persecution, but be
of good cheer; I have overcome the world (16:33). Were guaranteed righteousness and
victory over our enemies, and this is our hope in Christ.
Now, lets read this Psalm and see how it fits in with John 15. First, lets read the whole
thing and take a quick look at its three main points:
It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O
most High: 2To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness
every night, 3Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp
with a solemn sound. 4For thou, LORD, hast made me glad through thy work: I will
triumph in the works of thy hands. 5O LORD, how great are thy works! and thy
thoughts are very deep. 6A brutish man knoweth not; neither doth a fool understand
this. 7When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do
flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever: 8But thou, LORD, art most high for
evermore.9For, lo, thine enemies, O LORD, for, lo, thine enemies shall perish; all the
workers of iniquity shall be scattered. 10But my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an

unicorn: I shall be anointed with fresh oil. 11Mine eye also shall see my desire on mine
enemies, and mine ears shall hear my desire of the wicked that rise up against
me.12The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in
Lebanon. 13Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of
our God. 14They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing;
15
To shew that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in
him.
If we had to summarize this into one sentence I think we could say the Lord is worthy of
praise for his works in defeating his enemies and nourishing the righteous. This man sits
in his home on Saturday with a weeks worth of work behind him contemplating the
meaning of the required day of rest: God has worked, and that gives me hope; praise the
Lord!
Now, lets go over each verse again and look a little more thoroughly:
It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O
most High: 2To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness
every night, 3Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp
with a solemn sound.
Its good to worship God, and the writer takes his time in doing so on musical instruments.
He meditates as he plucks the strings, and worships God through each note. He thinks
about the favor God has shown in the daytime and about his faithfulness every night. What
a mighty God we serve, and hes so worthy of praise for his work in our lives. Hes called us
out of idolatry, shown us the right way to worship, and given us everything we need to do
it. He makes us shine like stars in this world, and glory all goes to his name:
4

For thou, LORD, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in the works of thy
hands.
The gladness that he has is because of what God had done for him. We see that in the New
Testament with Christ. He has made us happy through his work of salvation; he finished
salvation for us and now we have hearts full of faith and worship, and we see that its good
to praise his name. He triumphs even now because he knows the Lords work is finished
and the victory is secure. We rejoice and praise in Gods promises because we know his
work is finished.
5

O LORD, how great are thy works! and thy thoughts are very deep. 6A brutish man
knoweth not; neither doth a fool understand this.
A brutish man is a senseless man. There are people who look at nature and deny a creator.
There are some who look at Gods people and deny the work of God. They cannot
comprehend; theyre like those at Pentecost who called the Spirits work drunkenness.
They cant see or discern spiritual things. The result of this is that they seek a righteousness

of their own and reject Gods finished work for them. They reject that salvation is of the
Lord and that his work is finished!
7

When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish;
it is that they shall be destroyed for ever: 8But thou, LORD, art most high for evermore.
God appears weak to them, and they think the wicked truly flourish, but the Psalmist
understands their end: they are to be destroyed. Consider Asaphs Psalm (73) where he
becomes jealous of the wicked and thinks he may have cleansed his heart in vain. Then he
goes to the sanctuary and realizes that they are set on slippery places and are doomed, and
he confesses that he had been like a beast before thee. He was foolish to not see Gods
finished work in overcoming them.
The Lord, however, is forevermore. This is a Sabbath day Psalm about Gods work and his
rest. The wicked know nothing of it, but the saint knows and he praises God for it.
9

For, lo, thine enemies, O LORD, for, lo, thine enemies shall perish; all the workers of
iniquity shall be scattered. 10But my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn: I
shall be anointed with fresh oil.
No one is really sure what the unicorn is, but we find it mentioned in several places. In
Numbers 23:22 we see that its an animal of great strength, like maybe an ox, and thats the
point: the enemies perish, but the horn of the righteous is strong and immovable. This is
because our strength is the strength of the vine! The most High lives forevermore, and my
life is in him, I abide in him, so Im strong.
He says he will be anointed with fresh oil, and that makes us think of the 23rd Psalm where
he is comforted and blessed in the presence of his enemies. They will fall, but we will live:
11

Mine eye also shall see my desire on mine enemies, and mine ears shall hear my
desire of the wicked that rise up against me.
The words my desire arent in the Hebrew, and basically hes just saying what he expects
to see and hear. My eyes shall see what happens to my enemies. My ears shall hear what
happens to the wicked. Hes talking about the justice he knows will be served. Hes talking
about the work of God as he rests on the Sabbath day knowing that the Lord is worthy of
praise because he has finished his work. Whats supposed to happen in the end is going to
happen!
It makes me think of the first Psalm: Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of
the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. 2But his
delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. 3And he shall
be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf
also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. 4The ungodly are not so: but are
like the chaff which the wind driveth away. 5Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the

judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. 6For the LORD knoweth the way of
the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.
This is the work of God: to establish and nurture the righteous and to destroy the wicked.
12

The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God.

13

The righteous dont just survive; they flourish. The Hebrew word means to sparkle or
shine. The righteous are like palm trees which can grow in places like the desert because
theyre nourished. Theyre like the strong cedar trees of Lebanon. They arent just left in the
wild either; these trees are in the courts and in the house of God. He personally tends to
them and prunes them. This is all Gods doing and work, and the writer rejoices in it on his
Sabbath rest.
14

They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing; 15To shew
that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.
Trees dont live forever, but our strength is in the Lord, so we bear fruit into old age. Well
continue as long as he continues! This is Gods finished work that never stops. This is to
show that he is upright! He made a promise that he will keep because there is no
unrighteousness in him.
Abide in him in confidence and be strong in your faith!
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