Chuck Larsen

The righteous man avoids the wicked ways of the ungodly, and the ultimate end of each is as different as a fruitful tree and chaff. The tree produces much fruit and is tended to, while chaff produces nothing and is blown away. Chaff in the wind is a frequent image in the Old Testament. Futato explains, “This is a prevalent image of divine judgment (see Isa 17:13; 29:5; 40:23–24; Jer 13:24; Hos 13:3). Zephaniah 2:2 makes explicit what is implicit elsewhere: The image of chaff driven before the wind is an image associated with the day of the Lord.”^[1] The Psalmist takes this idea of the wicked being like chaff and says in Psalm 1:5, “Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.”

It may look like the wicked prosper in this life, but their “prosperity” is blown away like chaff when it’s all said and done. We want to classify the wicked as those that do bad things. They are, but there is more to it than that. The righteous are those that do good things, and they are, but there is more to it than that. Sometimes , it’s hard to tell the righteous from the wicked if we base our judgment on appearances in this life. Are the prosperous really righteous? Are the poor really wicked? Very often, it’s just the opposite. Only God knows, and only God can judge. God has entrusted that to Jesus. John 5:22 tells us, “ For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son.” John the Baptist pointed at Jesus and said, “Behold, the lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world.” But notice that In Matthew 3:12, John the Baptist prophecies that the Messiah is at hand and “His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

The truth is evident to all that will see it. We are all sinners and are numbered with the wicked. There is nothing anyone can do to become “righteous” through his own efforts. Faith is the only thing that matters: Faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus told the crowds in John 6:29 that the only work that matters is to believe in the one whom God has sent. Both the wicked and the godly man sin. The one who is righteous in God’s estimation is the one who lives by faith in His son, Jesus Christ. Paul says in Galatians 2:16, “We know that a person is not justified by works of the law, but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.” It is Christ’s righteousness that saves us, and the only way to receive that gift is to trust in Him. “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life” (John 3:36). In the third century, Rabbi Simla noted that Moses gave 365 prohibitions and 248 positive commands. David reduced them to eleven commands in Psalm 15; Isaiah made them six (33:14-15); Micah bound them into three (6:8); and Habakkuk condensed them all to one, namely—“The righteous shall live by faith.”

^[1] Futato, Mark D. 2009. “The Book of Psalms.” In Cornerstone Biblical Commentary, Vol 7: The Book of Psalms, The Book of Proverbs, 32. Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.

The “Man” of Psalm 1:1-3 is the Lord Jesus. He never walks with the wicked, stands with sinners, or sits with the scornful. He delights in the teachings of the Lord and meditates on them all the time. This “Man” prospers in all his ways. As Hengstenberg observes, “…in this life there is no one, who is not conscious of lacking to some extent this delight in the law of the Lord, by reason of the lust and the law in his members, which decidedly and wholly oppose this law of God; as St Paul complains, in Rom. 7:22, 23, saying: ‘I delight in the law of God after the inward man; but I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin, which is in my members.’ Even the regenerate, although delight in the law predominates in them, yet have constantly to struggle with their sinful propensities. Perfect delight in the law presupposes a perfect union of the human with the Divine will, perfect extirpation of sin—for the measure of sin is the measure of dislike to the law—perfect holiness. Christ alone, who was the only righteous one on earth, could have laid claim to such a fulfillment.” He goes on to suggest that the fact that no one prospers in “all his ways” is “…a declaration on the part of God, that there is sin still dwelling even in His saints.”^[1]

But believers have this “righteousness” in their connection with the perfectly righteous one, and that connection works itself out in a practical way in this life bringing changes in their lives that bring prosperity in everything he does. They become fruitful trees in a real sense with the hopes of becoming like Jesus in the resurrection. The next verse, Psalm 1:4. says, “The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.” The Palm tree and Cedar tree or healthy and solid, and prosperous. Chaff is blown away with every breeze that passes by. As McGee says, “Two men, two ways, two destinies. One is a dead–end street; it leads to death. The other leads to life. God says what is right and what is wrong. We are living in a day when folk are not sure what is right or wrong. God is sure. His Word does not change with every philosophy of a new generation.”^[2]

Guzik reminds us that it often looks like the righteous perish while the wicked prosper. But that’s just the appearance. He says, “It may often seem like the ungodly have these things, (The prosperity of verses 1-3), and sometimes it seems they have them more than the righteous. But it is not so! Any of these things are fleeting in the life of the ungodly; it can be said that they don’t really have them at all.”^[3] Much of the wisdom literature deals with the apparent prospering of the wicked alongside the suffering of the righteous. The book of Job is all about that. Kidner points out, “Other psalms will point out that the wicked, rather than the righteous, may seem to be the people of substance (e.g. 37:35f.). But ‘the Day will disclose’ the man of straw as surely as the works of straw.”^[4]

^[1] Hengstenberg, E. W. 1869. Commentary on the Psalms. Vol. 1. Edinburgh: T&T Clark.

^[2] McGee, J. Vernon. 1991. Thru the Bible Commentary: Poetry (Psalms 1-41). Electronic ed. Vol. 17. Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

^[3] Guzik, David. 2013. Psalms. David Guzik’s Commentaries on the Bible. Santa Barbara, CA: David Guzik.

^[4] Kidner, Derek. 1973. Psalms 1–72: An Introduction and Commentary. Vol. 15. Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

Unlike the wicked person, the righteous one doesn’t walk, stand or sit in the ways of sin. His focus is on God’s teachings in which he takes delight. For the believer, the teaching of “Christ,” the Gospel message, inspire us because of the depth of God’s love for us and moves us to want to understand more about the Gospel. When the “word of Christ” dwells in us richly it works its miraculous changes in us from the inside out which produces happiness in many ways in our lives. This is the subject of Psalm 1:3. It says, “He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.” Roy Gingrich identifies these five blessings. He writes of the righteous man, “(1) He is deeply rooted (established in the truths of God). (2) He is constantly nourished (by the water of the Spirit). (3) He is continually fruitful (in good works). (4) He is unfading (always manifesting spiritual life and beauty). (5) He is ever prosperous (in all of his undertakings).”^[1]

“The poet introduces a metaphor at this point to give concrete form to the more abstract concept of being ’ashre. (That’s the Hebrew for blessed.) Whereas a tree in the steppe or desert may live but not thrive, this tree intentionally planted by an irrigation canal will always be productive.”^[2] When we see a metaphor, we need to identify what “likeness” it’s referring to. We ask, “What is it about the tree that corresponds to the righteous person?” Psalm 92 might be understood to say that this is the “Palm” tree. If this is the case the reference is to how it flourishes. Palm trees seem to flourish under the most difficult circumstances. One blogger wrote, “Have you ever seen a palm tree in the midst of a great storm? That tree may be bent so far over that it’s almost touching the ground, but when the wind finally stops, that palm tree bounces right back up. What’s interesting is that while that palm tree is hunched over under the pressure of the storm, it is actually becoming stronger.”[3]

Psalm 92 also says the “righteous” are like the “Cedar” tree. It says that the righteous “grow” like the Cedar of Lebanon.  Ezekiel 31:4-7 tells us some things about the cedar tree that might be relevant to what the Psalmist wants us to understand about the righteous. It says, “The waters nourished it; the deep made it grow tall, making its rivers flow around the place of its planting, sending forth its streams to all the trees of the field.  So it towered high above all the trees of the field; its boughs grew large and its branches long from abundant water in its shoots. All the birds of the heavens made their nests in its boughs; under its branches, all the beasts of the field gave birth to their young, and under its shadow lived all great nations.  It was beautiful in its greatness, in the length of its branches; for its roots went down to abundant waters.”

Not only are the palm tree and the cedar tree pictures of the flourishing and growth of a believer but it also productivity in one’s later years. Psalm 92:12-14 tells us “The righteous flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.  …They still bear fruit in old age.” As someone who just turned 75 on his last birthday, this is an encouraging thought. I believe the “fruit” we bear in our aging is the fruit of stronger faith. Lange says, “The fresh foliage is a figure of faith, which changes the water of life of the divine word into sap and strength, and the fruit is the figure of works which gradually ripen and spread their blessings around.”^[4] We’re never too old to grow!

^[1] Gingrich, Roy E. 2005. The Book of Psalms (Book One). Memphis, TN: Riverside Printing.

^[2] Futato, Mark D. 2009. “The Book of Psalms.” In Cornerstone Biblical Commentary, Vol 7: The Book of Psalms, The Book of Proverbs, 32. Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.

[3] https://shcofbowlinggreen.com/chaplains_corner/devotional-flourish-like-a-palm-tree/

^[4] Lange, John Peter, Philip Schaff, Carl Bernhard Moll, Charles A. Briggs, John Forsyth, James B. Hammond, J. Frederick McCurdy, and Thomas J. Conant. 2008. A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures: Psalms. Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.

Jesus is the man! Many preach Psalm 1:1 as an appeal to all of us to be “the man.” But since we all sin and fall short, we cannot be “the man.” Jesus is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers. But there is another requirement for blessedness (happiness) given to us in the second verse of Psalm 1. It says, “…but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law, he meditates day and night.” Let’s be honest. We might read our bibles. We might memorize passages. We might talk with others about the Bible, but is it a “delight?” Is it a thing on our list to be checked off in the morning? Is it the once-a-week bible study freeing us to watch our favorite TV show thinking we’ve “delighted” in God? But when we are honest, we realize that we’d much rather watch the next episode of “Better Call Saul” than read another chapter of Jeremiah. We do better in delighting in God’s Word than we do at other times. I might just be speaking for myself here, but I confess. I don’t seem to be able to maintain a focused “delight” in God’s word morning and night. I want to, but something in me rebels! If my hope lies in my strength in not sinning or having delight in God’s Word, I’m a lost soul. I need a savior!

Verse 1 tells us part of what is required for blessedness or overflowing happiness in life. Verse 2 adds something else; delighting in God’s Word and meditating on it day and night.” Two things which no one has ever been able to do thoroughly. Only Jesus is this righteous. But this is why Psalm 2 (as we’ll read later) tells us the this “blessedness” or “happiness” comes to us differently. Psalm 2:12 tells us to “kiss the son.” Why? Because “blessed are all who take refuge in him.” Jesus receives two kisses during his ministry on earth. One was from a lowly sinner woman who couldn’t stop kissing his feet. This woman knew and acknowledged her sinfulness and couldn’t stop kissing the one who brought good news to her about her sin. The other kiss was from a man who thought his sinfulness was a secret from others and hid the truth of his horrible heart. I feel better identifying with the sinful than I do with the self-righteous.

One web blogger says, “So who is this righteous man? It is so easy to think that it is you and I. Notice, it is singular. Some like to translate this verse as saying, “Blessed are those people.” They want to use more inclusive language. The Hebrew word is not a generic word that refers to all human beings. There is one particular man in view. Who is he? It is the Lord Jesus! You see, this Psalm is Messianic. Jesus Christ did not walk in counsel with the wicked, stand in the way of sinners, or sit in scorners’ seat. Rather, Jesus said of Himself, “My food is to do the will of him that sent me and to finish his work.”[1]

[1] https://www.prca.org/missions/domestic/item/5947-the-righteous-man

Everyone wants to be happy. It’s the human condition. However, things in life are not always conducive to happiness, and we find ourselves looking forward to things that we expect will make us happy.  We have some temporary spurts of happiness in life, but something always seems to come along to interrupt that experience. Other than some brief encounters, we often think of happiness as something that we’ll experience in the future when some circumstance changes. We will be happy when we graduate. We will be happy when we get married, buy that house, get that job, new car, big screen TV, etc. When we get those things, we always need something else to fulfill our happiness. What if I told you lasting happiness could be yours right now? Most people would say, “yes, I want that.”

Psalm one explains that it’s available to us. The first verse of this Psalm says, “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers.” The Greek and the Hebrew words for “Blessed” may also be translated as “Happy.” One dictionary defines the word this way, “pertaining to being happy, with the implication of enjoying favorable circumstances.”^[1] In his commentary on the Psalms, Futato says, “The first word of the psalm is a key word that runs through the Psalter from beginning to end.” He adds, “The Psalms are about how to experience this profound happiness.”^[2] Jesus seems to echo this when he preaches the beatitudes in Matthew chapter five. Eight times in as many verses, Jesus gives his listeners instructions on how to live a happy life. In this Psalm, we see that there are only three things we need to do. First, don’t take bad advice. Second, don’t commit any sins. Third, don’t have a bad attitude toward the affairs in your life.

The problem is that we’ve all taken lousy advice. We can’t overcome sinful habits in our lives, and when we do, we grow prideful, which is also a sin. We often wake up with bad attitudes in the morning. We can’t do it! But Jesus is “the man.” Contrary to some translations of Psalm 1:1, the verse talks about “the man” singular. There aren’t any righteous people apart from Jesus, no, not one! He has fulfilled the requirements of happiness on our behalf. He is our righteousness. He is our justification, and through faith in Him, we can experience the joys of the life described by the Psalmist. I like the way one web blogger explains this. He writes, “Psalm 1 is about a man. Not people in general, or even a person in general, but a man. A specific man. Although a few recent translations have attempted gender neutral language for this Psalm (either with a singular ‘one’ or a plural ‘they’), the original specifically uses the word for a man. And yet the contrast is with the ungodly, the sinners, and the scornful in the plural. It’s one man by himself on one side, versus all the ungodly on the other side.”[3]

^[1] Louw, Johannes P., and Eugene Albert Nida. 1996. In Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains, electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., 1:301. New York: United Bible Societies.

^[2] Futato, Mark D. 2009. “The Book of Psalms.” In Cornerstone Biblical Commentary, Vol 7: The Book of Psalms, The Book of Proverbs, 31. Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.

[3] https://www.apostolictheology.org/2020/06/psalm-1-blessed-is-jesus-righteous-man.html