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Speaker 1: walk with Christ, please visit us at Bible Studyheadquarters dot com.
Speaker 1: You're listening to the Chapter a Day Audio Bible. I'm
Speaker 1: John Stangi, and today we're in Psalms seventy three and
Speaker 1: seventy four, and we'll be reading from the New Living Translation.
Speaker 1: Psalm seventy three, a psalm of Asath. Truly, God is
Speaker 1: good to Israel, to those whose hearts are pure. But
Speaker 1: as for me, I almost lost my footing. My feet
Speaker 1: were slipping, and I was almost gone. For I envied
Speaker 1: the proud when I saw them prosper despite their wickedness.
Speaker 1: They seem to live such painless lives. Their bodies are
Speaker 1: so healthy and strong. They don't have troubles like other people.
Speaker 1: They're not plagued with problems like everyone else. They wear
Speaker 1: pride like a jeweled necklace and clothe themselves with cruelty.
Speaker 1: These fat cats have everything their hearts could ever wish for.
Speaker 1: They scoff and speak only evil. In their pride, they
Speaker 1: seek to crush others. They boast against the very heavens,
Speaker 1: and their words strut throughout the earth. And so the
Speaker 1: people are dismayed and confused, drinking in all their words.
Speaker 1: What does God know? They ask? Does the most high
Speaker 1: even know what's happening? Look at these wicked people enjoying
Speaker 1: a life of ease while their riches multiply. Did I
Speaker 1: keep my heart pure for nothing? Did I keep myself
Speaker 1: innocent for no reason? I get nothing but trouble all
Speaker 1: day long. Every morning brings me pain. If I had
Speaker 1: really spoken this way to others, I would have been
Speaker 1: a traitor to your people. I tried to understand why
Speaker 1: the wicked prosper, but what a difficult task it is.
Speaker 1: Then I went into your sanctuary, Oh God, and I
Speaker 1: finally understood the destiny of the wicked. Truly, you put
Speaker 1: them on a slippery path and send them sliding over
Speaker 1: the cliff to destruction. In an instant, they are destroyed,
Speaker 1: completely swept away by terrors. When you arise, oh Lord,
Speaker 1: you will laugh at their silly ideas, as a person
Speaker 1: laughs at dreams in the morning. Then I realized that
Speaker 1: my heart was bitter and I was all torn up inside.
Speaker 1: I was so foolish and ignorant. I must have seemed
Speaker 1: like a senseless animal to you. Yet I still belong
Speaker 1: to you. You hold my right hand. You guide me
Speaker 1: with your counsel, leading me to a glorious destiny. Whom
Speaker 1: have I in heaven? But you I desire you more
Speaker 1: than anything on earth. My health may fail and my
Speaker 1: spirit may grow weak. But God remains the strength of
Speaker 1: my heart. He is mine forever. Those who desert him
Speaker 1: will perish for you destroy those who abandon you. But
Speaker 1: as for me, how good it is to be near God.
Speaker 1: I have made the sovereign Lord my shelter, and I
Speaker 1: will tell everyone about the wonderful things you do. Psalm
Speaker 1: seventy four a psalm of asaf O God, Why have
Speaker 1: you rejected us so long? Why is your anger so
Speaker 1: intense against the sheep of your own pasture? Remember that
Speaker 1: we are the people you chose long ago. The tribe
Speaker 1: you redeemed is your own special possession. And remember Jerusalem,
Speaker 1: your home here on earth. Walk through the awful ruins
Speaker 1: of the city. See how the enemy has destroyed your sanctuary.
Speaker 1: There your enemies shouted their victorious battle cries. There they
Speaker 1: set up their battle standards. They swung their axes like
Speaker 1: woodcutters in a forest. With axes and picks, they smashed
Speaker 1: the carved paneling. They burned your sanctuary to the ground.
Speaker 1: They defiled the place that bears your name. Then they thought,
Speaker 1: let's destroy everything, so they burned down all the places
Speaker 1: where God was worshiped. We no longer see your miraculous signs.
Speaker 1: All the prophets are gone, and no one can tell
Speaker 1: us when it will end. How long, oh God, will
Speaker 1: you allow our enemies to insult you? Will you let
Speaker 1: them dishonor your name forever? Why do you hold back
Speaker 1: your strong right hand. Unleash your powerful fist and destroy them. You,
Speaker 1: o God, are my king from ages past, bringing salvation
Speaker 1: to the earth. You split the sea by your strength
Speaker 1: and smash the heads of the sea monsters. You crush
Speaker 1: the heads of Leviathan and let the desert animals eat him.
Speaker 1: You cause the springs and streams to gush forth, and
Speaker 1: you dried up rivers that never run dry. Both day
Speaker 1: and night belong to you. You made the starlight and
Speaker 1: the sun. You set the boundaries of the earth, and
Speaker 1: you made both summer and winter. See how these enemies
Speaker 1: insult you, Lord. A foolish nation has dishonored your name.
Speaker 1: Don't let these wild beasts destroy your turtle doves. Don't
Speaker 1: forget your suffering people forever. Remember your covenant promises, for
Speaker 1: the land is full of darkness and violence. Don't let
Speaker 1: the downtrodden be humiliated again. Instead, let the poor and
Speaker 1: needy praise your name. Arise, oh God, and defend your cause.
Speaker 1: Remember how these fools insult you all day long. Don't
Speaker 1: overlook what your enemies have said, or they're growing uproar.
Speaker 1: Let's pray. Lord. We thank you for your word, and
Speaker 1: we thank you for the privilege to be able to
Speaker 1: look at it together today. And Lord, we're grateful for
Speaker 1: these Psalms that you've allowed us to read together today.
Speaker 1: And Lord, we're grateful that, just as the Psalmist implores
Speaker 1: you to do that, you remember your covenant promises. And Lord,
Speaker 1: when we look in the Book of Jeremiah, just a
Speaker 1: few books away from the Book of Psalms, we see
Speaker 1: that you promised you were going to usher in a
Speaker 1: new covenant, and you've done that through your son Jesus Christ.
Speaker 1: You remember your covenant promises, You keep your covenant promises.
Speaker 1: And now, as believers in your son Jesus Christ, under
Speaker 1: this new covenant, we know, Lord that we've received the
Speaker 1: gift of your salvation and we have the promise of
Speaker 1: your presence in our lives for us. So Lord, we're
Speaker 1: grateful for these things. We're grateful for your love, and
Speaker 1: we're grateful Lord that you're right here with us today.
Speaker 1: We commit this day to your care, and we thank
Speaker 1: you for all of these things, and pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.