Where Have All the Decent People Gone? - Psalm 12

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Psalm 12

To the choirmaster: according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.

 1 Save, O Lord, for the godly one is gone;
    for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.
2 Everyone utters lies to his neighbor;
    with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.
3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
    the tongue that makes great boasts,
4 those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
    our lips are with us; who is master over us?”
5 “Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
    I will now arise,” says the Lord;
    “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”
6 The words of the Lord are pure words,
    like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
    purified seven times.
7 You, O Lord, will keep them;
    you will guard us from this generation forever.
8 On every side the wicked prowl,
    as vileness is exalted among the children of man.

 
 

“Where have all the decent people gone?” That’s the question David is asking as Psalm 12 opens, and the rest of the psalm is his way of dealing with the problem.

To the choirmaster: according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.

Remember, though many of the psalms were clearly used in Israelite worship, there are many musical terms we do not understand, and “The Sheminith” is one such example.

1 Save, O Lord, for the godly one is gone;
    for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.

Where are all the decent people? That’s what the psalmist is asking here. This psalm is 3,000 years old, and as current as this morning’s headlines. Some things never change.

2 Everyone utters lies to his neighbor;
    with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.

Part of the problem is just a general dishonesty between people, says the psalmist.

3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
    the tongue that makes great boasts,
4 those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
    our lips are with us; who is master over us?”

People are also arrogant and believe that they will never be held accountable for their lies. The psalmist wants the Lord to cut off their lips! See, the psalms give us language for every emotion! Remember—we pray through our emotions when we read the psalms.

5 “Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
    I will now arise,” says the Lord;
    “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”

But, the psalmist knows that the sufferings of the vulnerable are not being ignored by the Lord. God will act on their behalf!

6 The words of the Lord are pure words,
    like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
    purified seven times.

The psalmist has confidence because of what the Lord has said, and compares the Lord’s words to purified silver—both beautiful and 100% genuine. I love this verse, and underlined it in my Psalms book this morning.

7 You, O Lord, will keep them;
    you will guard us from this generation forever.
8 On every side the wicked prowl,
    as vileness is exalted among the children of man.

Despite the wickedness that prowls around the decent people, the Lord will keep them safe.

 

Where Have All the Decent People Gone? - Psalm 12

in
 

Psalm 12

To the choirmaster: according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.

 1 Save, O Lord, for the godly one is gone;
    for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.
2 Everyone utters lies to his neighbor;
    with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.
3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
    the tongue that makes great boasts,
4 those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
    our lips are with us; who is master over us?”
5 “Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
    I will now arise,” says the Lord;
    “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”
6 The words of the Lord are pure words,
    like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
    purified seven times.
7 You, O Lord, will keep them;
    you will guard us from this generation forever.
8 On every side the wicked prowl,
    as vileness is exalted among the children of man.

 
 

“Where have all the decent people gone?” That’s the question David is asking as Psalm 12 opens, and the rest of the psalm is his way of dealing with the problem.

To the choirmaster: according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.

Remember, though many of the psalms were clearly used in Israelite worship, there are many musical terms we do not understand, and “The Sheminith” is one such example.

1 Save, O Lord, for the godly one is gone;
    for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.

Where are all the decent people? That’s what the psalmist is asking here. This psalm is 3,000 years old, and as current as this morning’s headlines. Some things never change.

2 Everyone utters lies to his neighbor;
    with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.

Part of the problem is just a general dishonesty between people, says the psalmist.

3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
    the tongue that makes great boasts,
4 those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
    our lips are with us; who is master over us?”

People are also arrogant and believe that they will never be held accountable for their lies. The psalmist wants the Lord to cut off their lips! See, the psalms give us language for every emotion! Remember—we pray through our emotions when we read the psalms.

5 “Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
    I will now arise,” says the Lord;
    “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”

But, the psalmist knows that the sufferings of the vulnerable are not being ignored by the Lord. God will act on their behalf!

6 The words of the Lord are pure words,
    like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
    purified seven times.

The psalmist has confidence because of what the Lord has said, and compares the Lord’s words to purified silver—both beautiful and 100% genuine. I love this verse, and underlined it in my Psalms book this morning.

7 You, O Lord, will keep them;
    you will guard us from this generation forever.
8 On every side the wicked prowl,
    as vileness is exalted among the children of man.

Despite the wickedness that prowls around the decent people, the Lord will keep them safe.

 

Pray This When You Are In a Bad Way

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Remember that one of the purposes of the psalms is to teach us how to pray through our emotions to God. Psalm 102 is a bitter, desperate psalm for times when the only faith you can muster is a bitter, desperate faith. I wish it could be the case that you would never need to pray a psalm like this, but unfortunately life contains bitter moments, too.

 
 
“For my days vanish like smoke;
my bones burn like glowing embers.
My heart is blighted and withered like grass;
I forget to eat my food.
In my distress I groan aloud
and am reduced to skin and bones.
I am like a desert owl,
like an owl among the ruins.
I lie awake; I have become
like a bird alone on a roof.
All day long my enemies taunt me;
those who rail against me use my name as a curse.
For I eat ashes as my food
and mingle my drink with tears
because of your great wrath,
for you have taken me up and thrown me aside.
My days are like the evening shadow;
I wither away like grass.”
— Psalm 102:3-11
 
 

Psalm 102

A prayer of an afflicted person who has grown weak and pours out a lament before the Lord.

1 Hear my prayer, Lord;
    let my cry for help come to you.
2 Do not hide your face from me
    when I am in distress.
Turn your ear to me;
    when I call, answer me quickly.

3 For my days vanish like smoke;
    my bones burn like glowing embers.
4 My heart is blighted and withered like grass;
    I forget to eat my food.
5 In my distress I groan aloud
    and am reduced to skin and bones.
6 I am like a desert owl,
    like an owl among the ruins.
7 I lie awake; I have become
    like a bird alone on a roof.
8 All day long my enemies taunt me;
    those who rail against me use my name as a curse.
9 For I eat ashes as my food
    and mingle my drink with tears
10 because of your great wrath,
    for you have taken me up and thrown me aside.
11 My days are like the evening shadow;
    I wither away like grass.

12 But you, Lord, sit enthroned forever;
    your renown endures through all generations.
13 You will arise and have compassion on Zion,
    for it is time to show favor to her;
    the appointed time has come.
14 For her stones are dear to your servants;
    her very dust moves them to pity.
15 The nations will fear the name of the Lord,
    all the kings of the earth will revere your glory.
16 For the Lord will rebuild Zion
    and appear in his glory.
17 He will respond to the prayer of the destitute;
    he will not despise their plea.

18 Let this be written for a future generation,
    that a people not yet created may praise the Lord:
19 “The Lord looked down from his sanctuary on high,
    from heaven he viewed the earth,
20 to hear the groans of the prisoners
    and release those condemned to death.”
21 So the name of the Lord will be declared in Zion
    and his praise in Jerusalem
22 when the peoples and the kingdoms
    assemble to worship the Lord.

23 In the course of my life he broke my strength;
    he cut short my days.
24 So I said:
“Do not take me away, my God, in the midst of my days;
    your years go on through all generations.
25 In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth,
    and the heavens are the work of your hands.
26 They will perish, but you remain;
    they will all wear out like a garment.
Like clothing you will change them
    and they will be discarded.
27 But you remain the same,
    and your years will never end.
28 The children of your servants will live in your presence;
    their descendants will be established before you.”

The Trees Sing

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This is a song of praise to the Lord, and the psalmist even imagines the trees themselves joining in the choir.

 
 
“Let all the trees of the forest sing for joy.”
— Psalm 96:12
 
 

Psalm 96

1 Sing to the Lord a new song;
    sing to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Sing to the Lord, praise his name;
    proclaim his salvation day after day.
3 Declare his glory among the nations,
    his marvelous deeds among all peoples.

4 For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise;
    he is to be feared above all gods.
5 For all the gods of the nations are idols,
    but the Lord made the heavens.
6 Splendor and majesty are before him;
    strength and glory are in his sanctuary.

7 Ascribe to the Lord, all you families of nations,
    ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
8 Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;
    bring an offering and come into his courts.
9 Worship the Lord in the splendor of his[a] holiness;
    tremble before him, all the earth.
10 Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.”
    The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved;
    he will judge the peoples with equity.

11 Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad;
    let the sea resound, and all that is in it.
12 Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them;
    let all the trees of the forest sing for joy.
13 Let all creation rejoice before the Lord, for he comes,
    he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
    and the peoples in his faithfulness.

Where Have All the Decent People Gone? [Psalm 12]

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“Where have all the decent people gone?” That’s the question David is asking as Psalm 12 opens, and the rest of the psalm is his way of dealing with the problem.

 
 

To the choirmaster: according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.

Remember, though many of the psalms were clearly used in Israelite worship, there are many musical terms we do not understand, and “The Sheminith” is one such example.

 
 

1 Save, O Lord, for the godly one is gone;
    for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.

Where are all the decent people? That’s what the psalmist is asking here. This psalm is 3,000 years old, and as current as this morning’s headlines. Some things never change.

 
 

2 Everyone utters lies to his neighbor;
    with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.

Part of the problem is just a general dishonesty between people, says the psalmist.

 
 

3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
    the tongue that makes great boasts,
4 those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
    our lips are with us; who is master over us?”

People are also arrogant and believe that they will never be held accountable for their lies. The psalmist wants the Lord to cut off their lips! See, the psalms give us language for every emotion! Remember—we pray through our emotions when we read the psalms.

 
 

5 “Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
    I will now arise,” says the Lord;
    “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”

But, the psalmist knows that the sufferings of the vulnerable are not being ignored by the Lord. God will act on their behalf!

 
 

6 The words of the Lord are pure words,
    like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
    purified seven times.

The psalmist has confidence because of what the Lord has said, and compares the Lord’s words to purified silver—both beautiful and 100% genuine. I love this verse, and underlined it in my Psalms book this morning.

 
 

7 You, O Lord, will keep them;
    you will guard us from this generation forever.
8 On every side the wicked prowl,
    as vileness is exalted among the children of man.

Despite the wickedness that prowls around the decent people, the Lord will keep them safe.