Psalm 109:1-3
"Hold not thy peace, O God of my praise; For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me: They have spoken against me with a lying tongue. They compassed me about also with words of hatred; And fought against me without a cause."
Looking at this from the perspective of our LORD and His suffering—being hated without cause—we read in verse 1: “Hold not thy peace, O God of my praise." Some might ask, "If these are Christ's words, why does He refer to God as His God?" The answer lies in Scripture, which shows that Christ, as a man, came to satisfy the law and justice of God the Father. He came to fulfill them so that God might be both Just and Justifier. a Just God and Savior. Thus, these words reflect Christ speaking in His humanity.
In Hebrews, 5:8, our LORD is described as having learned obedience: "Though He were a Son, yet learned He obedience by the things which He suffered." Righteousness, to be imputed, had to be worked out, which is why Christ had to earn it as a man. The law required that righteousness be established through perfect obedience. God could not just look the other way. As our Substitute, Christ had to satisfy His Father as God, though He Himself is God. While He never ceased being Divine, He had to fulfill the requirements of the law as a man, "A body hast thou prepared me" (Hebrews 10:5).
In verse 2, it says: "The mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me." This has accurately been interpreted as referring to Christ. The Pharisees spoke many things against Him: they called Him Beelzebub; evil, the son of the devil, a blasphemer, and a Samaritan. These accusations are well documented throughout the God-inspired Scriptures.
However, Paul writes in Romans 3:9 : "What then? are we better than they?" This calls for reflection whenever we read about the Pharisees. Jesus Himself declared, "Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 5:20). He was not speaking about outward actions—like tithing down to the last detail of parsley and herbs—but rather having a Righteousness that equals that of God Himself, which could only be through the work of the Lord Jesus Christ as the Substitute for His people. Mere outward acts of religion hold no value before a Holy God. As Isaiah wrote long before their time: “All of our righteousnesses, are as filthy rags” [Isaiah 64:6].
The psalm continues: "They compassed me about also with words of hatred; and fought against me without a cause." Many might say, “That’s not me—I don’t hate God.” Yet, Scripture reveals that our very nature is one of enmity toward God. Unless the LORD, by His Spirit, shows us the truth of our lost condition—that I am that sinner—we remain in darkness and blindness. And yet, there is hope. The Scriptures also tell us that when Christ died, He died for sinners. When He reconciled, He reconciled enemies—not friends.
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