Psalm 39 — Injustice, Vanity, and the Futility of Complaining
39 I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue: I will keep my mouth with a bridle, while the wicked is before me.
2 I was dumb with silence, I held my peace, even from good; and my sorrow was stirred.
3 My heart was hot within me, while I was musing the fire burned: then spake I with my tongue,
4 Lord, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is: that I may know how frail I am.
5 Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee: verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Selah.
6 Surely every man walketh in a vain shew: surely they are disquieted in vain: he heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them.
7 And now, Lord, what wait I for? my hope is in thee.
8 Deliver me from all my transgressions: make me not the reproach of the foolish.
9 I was dumb, I opened not my mouth; because thou didst it.
10 Remove thy stroke away from me: I am consumed by the blow of thine hand.
11 When thou with rebukes dost correct man for iniquity, thou makest his beauty to consume away like a moth: surely every man is vanity. Selah.
12 Hear my prayer, O Lord, and give ear unto my cry; hold not thy peace at my tears: for I am a stranger with thee, and a sojourner, as all my fathers were.
13 O spare me, that I may recover strength, before I go hence, and be no more.
Man finds his fellow man the culprit behind injustice. Daily, he consumes media to gather an incessant flow of bad news coming from the four corners of the earth. Still, this man thinks he and most others are good, while some are evil. The Christian is informed that he and his fellow man are not good. The problem with everyone is sin. Therefore, injustice is normative but particularly painful for the followers of Jesus Christ. Knowing right from wrong makes believers want to complain to God about the injustice all around us.
Psalm 39 is an individual lament from David, who is plagued with a malady that causes him to compare his life circumstances to the wicked. The final four Psalms of Book One (Psalms 1–41) all share the theme of personal sin. Psalm 37 reads like a proverb. Psalm 38, which shares many terms with this Psalm, reminds us of Job’s laments from his sick bed. Psalm 39 echoes Job, but even more so the Book of Ecclesiastes. Solomon seems to have joined his father in reflecting on the wreckage of their lives.
The structure is progressive: I. (vv. 1–3) David vowed silence for himself, to avoid sinning with complaints against (God’s?) injustice; II. (vv. 4–7) David asked for the Lord to help him meditate on the vanity of life; III. (vv. 8–13) David confessed his sins and prayed for a reprieve from God’s heavy handedness against him. Likewise, Job inquired about his suffering under YHWH’s scrutiny (Job 7), and Jeremiah attempted to leave the ministry because it was so difficult for him. Psalm 73 has a similar structure and content, and Hebrews 12:4–11 gives us a New Testament reference for God’s fatherly discipline of His children.
The voluminous use of first person pronouns gives Psalm 39 an autobiographical feel to it. David handed his work to Jeduthun (1 Chron 16:37–43), who along with Heman and Asaph were David’s choir directors (c/f Ps. 62, 77).
David took a personal vow of silence in the presence of his enemies (v. 1). We are unsure of the injustice he endured, but the whole context of the Psalm suggests the suppliant is suffering disease while the wicked prosper in health and wealth. The temptation is to sin with my tongue. So the noble attempt is to guard my ways. The sin of the tongue is elucidated in James 3, where it is identified as a small, yet potent fire-starter. There is a particular concern about the wicked in my presence, so David opted to muzzle himself. Christians should be very wary of speaking complaints, especially heavenward. A complaint against injustice may suggest that God’s sovereign rule and providence are somehow not effective. Be quiet and know that I am God?
David spoke nothing, neither good nor bad (v. 2). Being dumb and silent, good is squelched from one’s witness, testimony, and proclamation. We boast in the Lord, as children of God. My sorrow grew worse because the very purpose of man is to glorify God by proclaiming Christ and Him, crucified. It is not good for Christians to be silent. It should trouble us, like David, to be tongue-tied.
David suffered in silence, then released the pressure by speaking (v. 3). Jeremiah attempted to be silent, but God’s Word burned like a fire in his bones (Jer 20:9). Musing, the feeling of burning indignation in my heart, like a hot fire burned, posits an image of an erupting volcano. The release of his tongue to speak alleviated the pressure and found its right audience. Christians are encouraged not to harbor a root of bitterness, for it will blossom with anger in seasons of unrighteous harvest. Talk to God in prayer.
David inquired of the Lord about his personal tenure on the earth (v. 4). The covenant name of God, “YHWH” redirects David’s testimony to a prayer request. In each man’s prosperity or adversity, we must admit that brevity is the real issue. Our quest for meaning spans seventy years, or possibly eighty if one is strong (Ps 90:12). To know my end and my days and how transient I am should comfort the Christian caught in the lament of injustice. However, the comparison reveals ephemerality for everyone, but angst comes in viewing the prosperity of the wicked from one’s sick bed. The complaint might be, “Why if all are living vaporous lives does the fool live his in seeming ease with health and riches?”
David reflected on the briefness of life given to him, and all men, by God (v. 5). YHWH, to whom a thousand years is as one day, examines the life of man He made to exist for a mere handbreath. Four fingers pressed together, a handbreath, was one of the smallest measurements employed by the Jews. Surely, is emphatic, like Jesus’ repetitive use of “Truly, truly.” Man at his best in sports, business, war, art, literature, philosophy, music, religion, education, etc. is futile. Thrice-repeated (vv. 5, 6, 11), the Hebrew hebel means, “vanity, meaningless, futility, phantom, vaporous, a mere breath.” Man works on his longevity projects and searches for the fountain of youth, but actually, he orbits as the frantic moth flapping before the light. The moth finds in its demise that fire produces light. Selah demands we pause to contemplate all of the activity and its outcome throughout history.
David lamented the vanity of time, activity, and wealth accumulated by men (v. 6). Why are the nations in an uproar (Ps. 2:1)? They make an uproar for nothing. No kingdom or empire has proven sustainable. Surely, is twice repeated here as statements of indisputable proof. Every man walks through life…meaningless. Their names, if not their deeds, are forgotten. What do we know or even care of Nero, Attila, Goethe, or Sarte. Slowly, these wispy phantoms walk into an oblivious history. Christians have Solomon to remind us of these tragic existences and disappearances. He, like so many, was prone to ignore his own wisdom and accumulate wealth like the Rich Fool in Jesus’ parable in Luke 12:13–21. His lust for women made him an idolater; and his life proved that the wisdom of God, misapplied, is vanity.
David moved his attention from circumstances and vanities to God Himself (v. 7). He asked a question of Adonai. The use of the title suggests submission from this point forward. Jesus Christ is Lord. Faith in Him makes us wait. We have the promises of God, but we see only as if through a darkened glass. My hope is in You makes this the key verse in the Psalm. The solution, may we say, “the salvation” is the Lord Himself (38:22). Salvation is the “what” we wait for in every generation. Christians have Jesus Christ as their supreme focus. He is our only hope. We wait for Him to bring justice to the earth. He will. He promised.
David submitted his request for salvation from sin and sinners (v. 8). Transgressions are decisions to cross over the line from good to evil, right to wrong. Deliver me is a humble request because man has no way of dealing with his sins and their hellish consequences. It is personal, and it demands a complete redemption from all my transgressions. David is a target, a reproach of the foolish. Who is the fool? The faithless chasers of vanity are cretins. They mock God and all who witness to His amazing grace. Our sins hinder our witness. To be delivered from sin is to be delivered from being a reproach.
David gave God’s sovereignty as the reason for his going mute (v. 9). Because You have done it all. God’s providence does it. God’s sovereignty does it. God works in the midst of the evil. God works it altogether for good. For all of this I have become dumb, I do not open my mouth. Here the author begins to parallel vv. 1–8. If fully grasped, the person and work of Jesus Christ should leave us speechless. No complaints, no judgments, and no blasphemies are acceptable.
David argued that God’s discipline was leading from disease to death (v. 10). Deliverance from sin means the consequences of sin are dealt with, too. Remove Your plague from me is again identifying the source of our trouble. Surprisingly, it is the Lord. The Hebrew word indicates leprosy, literally or figuratively (38:11). God’s hand is heavy in creating resistance for His wayward children. David sinned, and YHWH pressed His hand down on him. David’s assessment, “I am perishing” shows the degree with which God will chasten those He loves. Was that an “Amen!” from Job? Christians have much to learn from Hebrews 12:4–11 in these matters.
David explained the extent of God’s discipline in executing judgment for sins (v. 11). Again, man is a vapor. The mighty moth is chosen as a simile for God. In secret, the stealthy destroyer consumes our clothing. What is precious to man? His vanities and injustices provide the answer. These iniquities, that miss the mark and twist the truth, invite the chastening of the Lord. The Word of God is powerful, a double-edged sword used for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness (1 Tim 3:16). God’s Word reveals God’s work in crafting us into the image of His Son using a refiner’s fire.
David asked for God’s ear, as a repentant alien in the world (v. 12). YHWH promised Israel He would hear and answer their prayers (38:15). Prayer can intensify from petition to cry to tears. From his vow of silence, David spoke in prayer to God. Do not be silent is a petition for God’s will to come from God’s Word. The emphasis on being a stranger and sojourner in the land proves David’s humility. In Israel, these were outsiders working as servants with very few rights. Like my fathers identifies him with the tenting household of faith (Heb 11). Peter also warned the churches to view themselves as aliens in this world (1 Pet 2:11). Christians need lifestyles and ministries that demonstrate their transient nature. This place is not our home, and we need to live like it.
David asked for a final reprieve from YHWH’s scrutiny (v. 13). At times, David beckoned God for His attention, but here, His scrutinizing eyes are a judgment by themselves, “Turn Your gaze away from me.” Life is vaporous and time is running out, so before I depart allow me to smile again. David’s humble submission, in the quest for a relationship with YHWH through forgiveness of sins, brings meaning and significance. God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. Christians need to recognize the discipline of the Lord in their lives and request relief from oppressions by way of confession and intimate prayer.
In sum, we have seen David’s attempt to deal with seeming injustice through silence. He meditated on the brevity and futility of life, but he did not find relief until he sought forgiveness for his own sins.
In conclusion, we should focus on Jesus Christ for two reasons: He forgives our sins and He is God’s target for conforming us into restored image bearers. We will be like Him when we see Him as He is. He is authoring and perfecting the faith we need to see Him as the only Way to the end, being our all in all. He is God in heaven, so let our words be few. Let us not be entangled with this fleeting world. Put off the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life; but let us put on Christ…for my hope is in You.
David Norczyk
Spokane Valley, Washington
June 28, 2021
