Sonic, the Groomers & Fun Finds😊A Verse Often Taken Out of Context

Psalm 37: 4

⁴ Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.

We often hear this verse quoted…

It sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? By itself, that one statement seemingly holds great promise. That, “if we delight in, love God, and find joy in Him, He will fill our lives with all the things we enjoy and value.”

There’s just one problem. That “interpretation” is taken out of context and is totally self-focused.

In order to better understand, let’s step back and consider the greater context of the verse…

In this psalm, David – contemplates an age-old dilemma… that evil people seem to prosper while those who faithfully follow God struggle to even their pay the bills and provide for their families.

And things really haven’t changed all that much throughout history.

Since the fall, people have acquired wealth through schemes and deception, while many people go without.

Where evil people enjoy luxury while righteous people suffer with need.

It appears that the wicked gain at the expense of the godly.

And David saw this plight in his own day. He knew life wasn’t fair.

And as horrible as his situation was, David knew it was temporary.

He wrote Psalm 37 to encourage God’s people to see things through an eternal lens. With an eternal perspective… To realize that the spiritual far outweighs the physical.

If we continued reading Psalm 37 you see that it says:

In verse 20: The wicked and their wealth will one day perish.

And in verse 18: But the spiritual inheritance of the godly will “endure forever”.

The things of this world are fleeting and temporary. The things that only God can give will remain for eternity.

So, let’s reevaluate today’s verse... The word “Delight” means to be “soft, flexible, and workable” and “To gain great pleasure, and satisfaction.”

We’re often tempted to “delight” ourselves in the world, and at everything it has to offer.                                                                       

But God calls us to yield ourselves to Him… to be soft and pliable in His hand to find great pleasure and satisfaction in Him, so that He can shape us into His image.

In today's Psalm, David helps us understand what it means to “delight yourself in the Lord.”

1^st we must trust in God through active obedience  

2^nd we are to “Commit” our way to Him by living under submission to His will.

3^rd we are to be still and wait patiently for God and stop fretting.

When we look at the correct context of today’s verse, it helps us to understand that the purpose of this Psalm is to encourage those who trust in God that the wicked will not win and if God’s people will continue to “trust in, submit to, and wait on” God… their “desires” will be satisfied.

When we patiently trust in God and submit ourselves to His care and protection, He will be faithful to sustain, protect, and provide. And we will see His justice carried out in His time. The wicked will not prevail.

I want to encourage you to read Psalm 37 today… I can guarantee that you will be blessed.

 ³⁹ The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; he is their stronghold in the time of trouble.
⁴⁰ The Lord helps them and delivers them; he delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in him.

And here is 5 Ways the LORD Will Fulfill the Desires of the Righteous

    *Justice will be done and the wicked will be punished (Psalm 37:2, 13, 17, 35-36, 38).

    *The Lord will protect His children and give them strength in times of difficulty (Psalm 37:15-17, 24, 39-40).

    *The righteous will receive an eternal inheritance (Psalm 37:18, 29, 37).

    *The Lord will sustain them in times of need (Psalm 37:19).

    *The righteous will experience the Lord’s love and faithfulness (Psalm 37:28).