1 Surely God is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart.
2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped;
I had nearly lost my foothold.
3 For I envied the arrogant
when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
4 They have no struggles;
their bodies are healthy and strong.
5 They are free from common human burdens;
they are not plagued by human ills.
6 Therefore pride is their necklace;
they clothe themselves with violence.
7 From their callous hearts comes iniquity;
their evil imaginations have no limits.
8 They scoff, and speak with malice;
with arrogance they threaten oppression.
9 Their mouths lay claim to heaven,
and their tongues take possession of the earth.
10 Therefore their people turn to them
and drink up waters in abundance.
11 They say, “How would God know?
Does the Most High know anything?”
12 This is what the wicked are like—
always free of care, they go on amassing wealth.
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What is striking in this section is the self-admitted envy on the part of Asaph. The wicked, in Asaph’s observation, have it pretty good. They seem not only to get away with their wickedness, but actually to prosper in spite of it.
Now, I must admit it’s a little hard to reflect just on these verses, because I know this psalm very well, and I know where it’s going. But I will save those thoughts for tomorrow. Limiting my reflection only to these verses, what strikes me in particular about Asaph’s envy is that it has led him into a distorted view of reality.
Do the wicked really have it as good as Asaph seems to think? Are they getting away with wickedness and only amassing wealth? When envy and jealousy get a hold on our hearts, they can also get a hold on our perceptions. The old adage about the grass being greener is only true in our perceptions and imaginations. When we envy others, not only are we setting our hearts on the wrong things, it is also very likely that we have given in to a distorted view of those wrong things as well.
Envy is not healthy. Envy in fact is sin. The “covet” commandments make that quite clear. The envy we experience is an echo of the envy that Satan led Adam and Eve into, leading them to be envious of God’s power and prerogatives. Similarly, envy is our lives is built on a lie. At the root of it is discontent with God’s provision and blessing.
When envy rears its ugly head in my heart, I need the Holy Spirit to lead me to contemplate God’s wisdom, God’s promises, God’s provision. In His love for me, He has promised to provide all that is good for me. I have no need to envy, for my God is good.
So my prayer today is for grace to be content with God’s provision. I pray that the sin of envy would be rooted out of me, and instead that God would work thankfulness and generosity into all that I do.
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