"The nations fall into the pitfalls they have dug for others; the trap they set has snapped on them. The Lord is famous for the way He punishes the wicked in their own snares!" (Psalm 9:15,16 TLB)
I say.. Go for it, Lord, and deliver Your fitting, swift, sweet justice, protecting the citizens even in the Western countries! Have your way, do your own thing and we will praise You. In Jesus' name.
Again slowly, "And, now, O Lord, have mercy on me; see how I suffer at the hands of those who hate me. Lord, snatch me back from the jaws of death. Save me, so that I can praise you publicly before all the people at Jerusalem's gates and rejoice that you have rescued me. The nations fall into the pitfalls they have dug for others; the trap they set has snapped on them. The Lord is famous for the way he punishes the wicked in their own snares!" (Psalm 9:13-16)
Have you ever looked at a beautiful orchid and watched it slowly, O so slowly, blossom day after day? Have you ever tried to help it open up?
Listen, if you try, you might ruin it. God makes everything beautiful in His time.
My wife Liney has been nurturing some orchids.. yeah, just sticks for 4 months now, and they're now just slowly day after day (just 4 flowers) starting to blossom.
She's actually getting good at it (she's been good with all other plants). I don't have what's called a green thumb, but all the trees I've planted here are doing well. Grateful!
He (God) causes everything to straighten out and line up according to His own schedule and will.
May I encourage and challenge you some?
If you have a problem in your life with a mean person or a tough circumstance, just pray and rely on God to resolve it all. "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, says the Lord" (Rom 12:19).
One of the worst things we can do is to take judgment into our own hands.
Sure, we can evaluate with His wisdom and should. Please do. Sure, we should be fruit inspectors (starting at home in these two shoes), and stick with the facts, but not be judgmental with others.
The Lord knows where each one will eventually go, and he alone casts the final judgment. That's what "Judge not lest you be judged" means (with this favorite verse to quote of lost people in this era).
You want to make your reservations in advance right!? We never want to hear "Depart from me.."
IN HIS OWN SWEET TIME
The psalmist basically teaches us, Let God be the judge, the jury, and the prosecuting attorney. He knows more about all this than you and I do. The psalmist assures us that, in His time, God will catch those who are doing wrong. The nations will fall into the pit they have made. Sinners who have laid nets in the pathway will indeed get caught in those nets. "The wicked is snared in the work of his (or her) own hands" (vs 16) #emph.mine
"The nations have fallen into the pit they dug for others. Their own feet have been caught in the trap they set. The LORD is known by His acts of justice; the wicked are ensnared by the work of their own hands."
— Psalm 9:15-16
There is a holy pattern woven throughout Scripture: those who scheme against God and others often become trapped by their own devices. Pharaoh drowned in the sea he pursued Israel through. Haman was hanged on the gallows he built for Mordecai. Daniel's accusers were thrown into the very lions' den they intended for him. God's justice is never confused, never late, and never unjust.
King David cried:
"O LORD, have mercy on me. Consider my trouble from those who hate me.. that I may tell of all Your praise."
(Psalm 9:13-14)
Like David, we sometimes long for God to act immediately. We see evil prosper. We watch injustice flourish. We wonder why the Lord seems silent.
There's a time when we need to just jump in there and wisely protect people when we can. Our world today is filled with too many passive onlookers who pull out their phones when they need to simply rescue. There's a time for filming a crime in progress when you can pull someone to safety.
Yet God is never passive, lazy, or inactive. He is never pacing heaven all frusterated, wringing His hands. He is ruling without rival.
Q: Have you ever watched a rosebud slowly unfold? Day after day, petal by petal, it opens according to the Creator's design. Try forcing it open, and you destroy the very beauty you hoped to accelerate.
My wife Liney recently nurtured several orchids for months. At first they looked like little more than sticks. Then, almost imperceptibly, tiny buds appeared. Slowly, one blossom opened, then another. What seemed dormant was actually developing according to God's timetable.
So it is with God's providence.
"He has made everything beautiful in its time."
— Ecclesiastes 3:11
The Lord untangles knots we cannot untie. He aligns circumstances we cannot control. He sees motives we cannot see. He knows every hidden detail, every secret thought, every act of injustice, and every wound His children carry.
That is why Scripture says:
"Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, 'Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,' says the Lord."
(Romans 12:19)
Christians are called to exercise discernment, not personal vengeance. We are to evaluate actions according to truth, not sit on God's throne as final judge. We can recognize evil without becoming consumed by bitterness. We can pursue justice without usurping God's authority.
God alone knows every fact.
God alone knows every motive.
God alone renders perfect judgment.
As A. W. Tozer wisely observed:
"God never hurries. There are no deadlines against which He must work."
And Charles Spurgeon wrote:
"God is too good to be unkind and too wise to be mistaken."
When evil seems unchecked, remember: God's delays are not God's denials. His clock keeps perfect time.
The Judgments of God
The Bible reveals a God who is infinitely loving and perfectly just.
"Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne."
— Psalm 89:14
Scripture records several major judgments:
What Were Some Past Judgments?
Adam and Eve expelled from Eden (Genesis 3)
The worldwide Flood in Noah's day (Genesis 6-9)
The Tower of Babel (Genesis 11)
Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19)
Egypt and the Ten Plagues (Exodus 7-12)
Satan and the fallen angels were cast from their position of glory (Isaiah 14; Ezekiel 28; Revelation 12:4,9)
Present Judgments?
Self-examination by believers (1 Corinthians 11:28. True repentance and saving faith needed?)
God's loving discipline of His children (Hebrews 12:5-11)
Soon Coming Future Judgments?
The Tribulation judgments (Revelation 6-16)
The Judgment Seat of Christ for believers' rewards (2 Corinthians 5:10)
The Sheep and Goat Judgment of the Nations (Matthew 25:31-46)
The judgment of fallen angels (1 Corinthians 6:2-3; Jude 6)
The Great White Throne Judgment (Revelation 20:11-15)
Nations and Individuals
God judges both nations and individuals, but not always in the same way..even though He's totally just.
Throughout Scripture, nations experience temporal judgment within history. Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Tyre, Nineveh, and Israel all faced consequences for collective rebellion, injustice, violence, idolatry, and national sin.
Individuals, however, ultimately stand before God personally.
"Each of us shall give account of himself to God."
— Romans 14:12
A nation may prosper temporarily while individuals within it suffer. Likewise, a nation may be judged while righteous believers within it are preserved, as Noah was in the Flood, Lot in Sodom, and Daniel in Babylon.
God sees both the forest and every individual tree.
Will Christians Really Judge Angels?
Paul wrote:
"Do you not know that we shall judge angels?"
(1 Corinthians 6:3)
The exact details are not fully explained. Most evangelical scholars understand this to refer to redeemed believers participating with Christ in the future judgment of fallen angels.
God has already pronounced judgment upon Satan and his rebellious hosts. Their final sentencing awaits the appointed day.
Jude says certain fallen angels are already:
"kept in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day."
(Jude 6)
The One who cast them down will also complete His judgment of them.
When evil appears victorious, remember Psalm 9.
The trap-setter is not always the winner.
The schemer is not always the victor.
The oppressor is not always the one who gets the final word.
God does.
The Judge of all the earth will do right.
The Lord sees every tear, every betrayal, every injustice, every hidden act of righteousness, and every faithful saint who wonders when deliverance will come.
Wait on Him.
Trust Him.
Obey Him.
Praise Him before the answer arrives from Christ.
For in His own perfect time, God has a way of turning the enemy's snare into the enemy's downfall and transforming His people's trials into testimonies.
"He is the Rock, His work is perfect; for all His ways are justice."
— Deuteronomy 32:4
And because Christ bore judgment at the cross for all who believe, the Christian can rest in this glorious promise:
"There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."
(Romans 8:1)
Justice belongs to God.
Mercy is found in Christ.
And both meet perfectly at the cross.
"Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence,
He hides a smiling face." ~ William Cowper hymn
"Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?" (Genesis 18:25)
The Bible's answer is clear: Yes. Always. He's totally just and fair. God has never not been.
"All the earth bows down to You; they sing praise to You; they sing praise to Your name. Selah Come and see the works of God; how awesome are His deeds toward mankind. He turned the sea into dry land; they passed through the waters on foot; there we rejoiced in Him. He rules forever by His power; His eyes watch the nations. Do not let the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah." Psalm 66:4-6
"Here on earth, God's work must surely be our own." ~ John F. Kennedy
We each choose. Every person is either walking in and led by the Spirit or is walking according to the desires of their fleshly nature.
"Your life will prove what leads you." ~ J.C. Ryle
It might sound kinda audacious, but it's so true.. "Only those with God's Spirit can understand spiritual truth. To others it seems foolish and makes no sense" (1Cor.2:14
We each'll choose. Every person is either walking in and led by the Spirit or they are walking according to the desires of their fleshly nature. Can't do both at once. @kurtWvS
"Your life will prove what leads you." ~ J.C. Ryle
"Being entirely honest with oneself is a good exercise." ~ Sigmund Freud
"Whoever speaks the truth gives honest evidence, but a false witness utters deceit" Proverbs 12:17 esv
There is a hope for you that is not dead and buried. During perilous times, why look to your self-generated hope level when you can focus on the Source of lasting hope? #aLivingHopeChrist
There's nothin' you can ask God for that is too big or too difficult for Him to pull off for His glory. But He wants you to look to Him to meet all your needs (not greeds), and simply ask in faith! He's a kind Father.
Man, whoever said you had to murder your brain to become a real believer? Hey Buckeroo, never do that!
"Faith is a response to evidence, not a rejoicing in the absence of evidence." ~ John Lennox, 2 Tim. 2:15
"The righteous is delivered out of trouble.."
Every fire I've ever encountered starts pretty small (I used to camp a lot), and every fire here eventually goes out, but in between those two facts are a whole lot of possible outcomes. KnowGod.org
