“Fools because of their transgression, and because of their iniquities, are afflicted. Their soul abhorreth all manner of meat; and they draw near unto the gates of death. Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saveth them out of their distresses. He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions. Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!” — Psalm 107:17-21
The words of the Lord Jesus in Matthew 5:22 would give us caution in denominating any man a “fool,” but the fool is defined for us by God Himself in Psalm 14:1, reiterated in Ps. 53:1. “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.” As it stands in the authorized version the verse defines a fool as one who denies the existence of God, an atheist. But, it may be observed that two words in the rendering are in italics, indicating that they are conjectural. If those two words are omitted, the verse reads not as an opinion, but as an attitude: “The fool hath said in his heart, no God,” suggesting not a denial of the existence of God, but a disregard for His authority.
There may be, then, two kinds of fools: the atheist who denies that God exists, and the theist who believes there is a God, but refuses to obey Him. It may be legitimate to question which is the bigger fool! In either case, the result in the life of the individual will inevitably be “transgression” and “iniquity,” because there is no moral restraint in those who disregard God, whether philosophically or ethically. And our text assigns this as the cause of their “affliction,” which here appears to be some kind of illness which destroys all appetite and threatens to be fatal.
Certain it is that not all “affliction” is the direct result of personal sin or transgression, but here it is clear that some is. And the objective of the text, and indeed of the whole Psalm, is to indicate the source as God and the objective as merciful. It is not God’s hatred of the fool, but His compassion that stimulates His disciplinary action. It is a great mercy, as any converted soul will testify, when God uses His rod of affliction to gain our attention and bring us to our senses spiritually. “Then,” and not until then, in the case of so many, “they cry unto the Lord in their trouble.”
If the cry of the afflicted sinner is sincere, there is mercy in the offing, for “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved [Rom. 10:13].” And the avenue of His mercy is ever the same; “He sent His Word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.” The written word affords the prescription, directing us to the Living Word, which is Christ. When by faith we appropriate Christ as Savior and Lord, there is ofttimes temporal deliverance and always eternal salvation.
The central message of this Psalm is that God employs life’s trials to get the sinner’s attention, whether the unconverted sinner or the sinning believer. Among other things, He may use hunger and thirst (v.5), oppression (v.12), sickness (v.18) and calamities of nature (v.25). That accomplished, it His delight to deliver us and give us through Christ a future and a hope, “That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life [Titus 3:7].”
God’s ultimate aim in all this, however, is not merely the transgressor’s good, but His own legitimate glory. The Psalm is thematic. “Oh that men would praise the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men (v. 8, 15, 21, 31). And the point here is that the Lord’s goodness is evident not only in His deliverance, but in the circumstances He may employ to bring us to repentance. We are (hopefully) quick to praise Him for mercies experienced, but ofttimes slow to praise Him for the trials that brought us to our knees. When we understand the principles revealed through this psalm, we will praise Him for both, seeing even His judgments as associated with His grace, and thus be better able to fulfill the exhortation of I Thess. 5:18, “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” It is a formula for perennial praise!
“Whoso is wise, and will observe these things, even they shall understand the lovingkindness of the LORD.” –PS. 107:43
For His praise and our prosperity,
"Pastor" Frasier
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