Psalms 1
1 Blessed is the man who has not walked in the counsel of the ungodly, and has not stood in the way of sinners, and has not sat in the seat of the scornful.
2 But his delight is only in the Law of Jehovah; and in His Law he meditates day and night.
3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivulets of water that brings forth its fruit in its seasons, and its leaf shall not wither, and all which he does shall be blessed.
4 The wicked are not so, but are like chaff which the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
6 For Jehovah knows the way of the righteous; but the way of the ungodly shall perish.
I remember so distinctly how, as a schoolboy, I joined in with the group at Maphumulo praying for revival. We prayed for the fire of God to come down. Often, we sang the Zulu hymn which says: “thy church is reduced to dying embers among the ashes – Lord send the fire!”. When God convicted us of sin we didn’t see ourselves as “dying embers” but as dead ashes. Oh! How we cried to God for mercy and Oh! How we humbled we were when we saw our sin in the light of God’s righteousness. Little did we know what the “fire” meant. God firstly poured out His Spirit of deep repentance and restitution. We made right with each other; travelled far distances to say “sorry”. We turned from the “way of sinners”. Revival set us on the path of righteousness, towards Jesus Christ. When the fire of God comes down it burns up the chaff, our own sin, and it causes the separation of the chaff and wheat. There were those who instantly resisted the outpouring of God’s Holy Spirit. They became the “seat of the scornful”.
Our text refers to two types of counsel: that of the godly and that of the ungodly. This theme is repeated in many other Psalms as well. The question is, whose counsel do you heed? If you listen to the whisper of the ungodly, perhaps a little exaggeration about somebody else, you will find life drying up inside you and soon you will be in the same boat as the gossipers who “are like the chaff which the wind drives away”.
Psalm 26:4-5 – Psalm 26 also speaks about the righteous and the unrighteous. In the mirror of God’s Word you can now see whether you are righteous or not. A righteous person hates to be with those who speak evil things. He doesn’t want to be together with them and listen to what they speak. “I don’t sit with deceitful men.” There are people who are gifted in deceit. When they tell you something, they add either sugar or salt. Psalm 24 says those who tell lies, will not be able to ascend the hill of the Lord.
The one who is a true believer refuses to listen to the counsel of the ungodly and will avoid the places of sin. By the grace of God, that person will be “like a tree planted by the rivers of water”. He has a constant supply of nourishment. His roots go deep into Jesus Christ.