What Have We to Fret About?
Psalm 37:1-11
The words "fret not" appear three times in these eleven verses. The Hebrew seems to make out this word to be more emphatic - something like "heat oneself in vexation." (Reader's Greek and Hebrew Bible lexicon entry). Thrice this word is put into contrast with attitudes and behaviors such as "Trust in the LORD" (v3), "Delight yourself in the LORD" (v4), "Commit your way to the LORD" (v5), and "Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him" (v7). Fretting is the opposite of trusting in, delighting in, committing in, being still, and waiting patiently for the Lord.
What are we not to fret about?
Specifically, we are not to fret about unbelievers who seem to have it good, though they commit rampant evil (vv 1, 7), nor our exacting retribution upon them in anger and wrath (v8).
What are we to do?
Those who are the Lord's are called to something better than fretting, than driving ourselves crazy in an unrelenting emotional downpour on a person or situation. We are called to trust, delight, commit, be still, and wait for the Lord.
Why is this better than fretting?
Verse 5 says, "Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday."
We, left to ourselves, do not possess the power to exact righteousness in any given situation on any given person. We, left to ourselves, have the power to fret. Fretting, as the passage states, leads to envy, anger, and wrath. These traits imply also attitudes of anxiety, fear, and worry. But when we "commit [our] way to the Lord" - when we are in the midst of fretting and the Lord leads us to realize our folly and we give over our ill-conceived fantasies and plans and commit ourselves wholly unto God, then we are freed to watch him act.
Fretting "tends only to evil" (v8). But for those who wait patiently for God, it says, "But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace" (v11). Fretting leads only to evil, but God leads only to peace. Albeit, peace may not mean everything goes the way you think it ought to, but rather a peace that passes all understanding, so that when things aren't as they should be (like here in this Psalm), the peace of God will captivate your soul and lead you to gentle reflection of his unlimited mercies and fatherly tenderness to his children.
Today, this peace has a name, Jesus of Nazareth, Immanuel, the Christ, the Messiah. All who exalt Him as both Christ and Lord have been granted access into this peace. While fretting can captivate the believer's mind for a time, the Lord Jesus Christ has fully captivated it for all time. While the sweeping tide of emotions can let loose a barrage of thoughts, fixating our eyes upon our Savior can stifle those tormenting waves. While our trust can sway when difficulties arise, our Christ has rescued us from jettisoning trust altogether and has instead planted us in his redeeming love. And one day, even after we have fretted too much, he shall come and take us home, where we will trust, delight, commit, be still, and wait for the Lord without hindrance.
"For the evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait for the LORD shall inherit the land. In just a little while, the wicked will be no more; though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there. But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace."
What have we to fret about?
The words "fret not" appear three times in these eleven verses. The Hebrew seems to make out this word to be more emphatic - something like "heat oneself in vexation." (Reader's Greek and Hebrew Bible lexicon entry). Thrice this word is put into contrast with attitudes and behaviors such as "Trust in the LORD" (v3), "Delight yourself in the LORD" (v4), "Commit your way to the LORD" (v5), and "Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him" (v7). Fretting is the opposite of trusting in, delighting in, committing in, being still, and waiting patiently for the Lord.
What are we not to fret about?
Specifically, we are not to fret about unbelievers who seem to have it good, though they commit rampant evil (vv 1, 7), nor our exacting retribution upon them in anger and wrath (v8).
What are we to do?
Those who are the Lord's are called to something better than fretting, than driving ourselves crazy in an unrelenting emotional downpour on a person or situation. We are called to trust, delight, commit, be still, and wait for the Lord.
Why is this better than fretting?
Verse 5 says, "Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday."
We, left to ourselves, do not possess the power to exact righteousness in any given situation on any given person. We, left to ourselves, have the power to fret. Fretting, as the passage states, leads to envy, anger, and wrath. These traits imply also attitudes of anxiety, fear, and worry. But when we "commit [our] way to the Lord" - when we are in the midst of fretting and the Lord leads us to realize our folly and we give over our ill-conceived fantasies and plans and commit ourselves wholly unto God, then we are freed to watch him act.
Fretting "tends only to evil" (v8). But for those who wait patiently for God, it says, "But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace" (v11). Fretting leads only to evil, but God leads only to peace. Albeit, peace may not mean everything goes the way you think it ought to, but rather a peace that passes all understanding, so that when things aren't as they should be (like here in this Psalm), the peace of God will captivate your soul and lead you to gentle reflection of his unlimited mercies and fatherly tenderness to his children.
Today, this peace has a name, Jesus of Nazareth, Immanuel, the Christ, the Messiah. All who exalt Him as both Christ and Lord have been granted access into this peace. While fretting can captivate the believer's mind for a time, the Lord Jesus Christ has fully captivated it for all time. While the sweeping tide of emotions can let loose a barrage of thoughts, fixating our eyes upon our Savior can stifle those tormenting waves. While our trust can sway when difficulties arise, our Christ has rescued us from jettisoning trust altogether and has instead planted us in his redeeming love. And one day, even after we have fretted too much, he shall come and take us home, where we will trust, delight, commit, be still, and wait for the Lord without hindrance.
"For the evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait for the LORD shall inherit the land. In just a little while, the wicked will be no more; though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there. But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace."
What have we to fret about?
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