FEBRUARY 28, 2023
“Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him.” (Psalm 103:13)
Psalm 103, “A Psalm of David.” Of this, there can be no doubt, for it is in his own style when at its best, and we should attribute it to his later years. He is looking back over a long and full life that was blessed throughout with mercies rich and abundant (Verses 1-5). He blesses God for mercies shown, not to himself alone, but to all of His oppressed people (Verses 6-14). The Psalmist praises God for His unfailing and constant mercies to the righteous who fear the Lord and walk in His ways (Verses 15-18). He closes the Psalm with a call for heaven and earth and all of creation to join in universal praise to the sovereign and gracious Lord of all (Verses 19-22).
Verse 13, which we will be considering today, is dealing with the mercy He shows everyone, generally, and fatherly compassion, specifically. It is important to note that the word “fear” is not a negative word here, or in any of the other instances it is used. Fear does not mean being scared, instead, it means respect. Essentially this verse is saying, like a father has compassion on his children, so also God has compassion on those who respect or revere Him. We respect God’s power. We respect God’s judgments. We respect God’s wisdom. We respect that God is in control. God will have compassion on those who respect Him.
A favorite seminary professor of mine, Pastor Nichols, says that if you want to know the will of God (or as much as we can understand of it), we need to look back at what God has done in history. Based on that, I have gathered three examples of fatherly compassion shown by God to His children who fear Him. The first of these is Noah in Genesis chapters 6-9. Of Noah, we read that he was a just man, perfect in his generations, and he walked with God. As well, we see that God saved Noah from the flood because he found grace in the eyes of the Lord, and that he was a preacher of righteousness. Noah’s obedient faith was his defining characteristic, and God showed him compassion because of that. We also have the story of Lot in Sodom, where because of his faith; God spared him from the destruction of the city. Finally, we have the example of Rahab from Jericho. Because of her great respect for God and her reverence for what He did to deliver Israel from Egypt, she hid the spies from the officials of the city and was thus spared when it was destroyed. Rahab’s faith was her defining characteristic as well, and she was shown God’s compassion because of it.
Of the many examples that might be given, perhaps chief among them is the penman of this Psalm. This is the same David that fought Goliath, survived countless attempts on his life, and was even hunted by his father-in-law. But he had experienced God’s compassion himself. The assurance with which David writes this Psalm should be the same for all of us. As David wrote in this psalm, God has compassion on those who fear him. Just like Lot, or Rahab, or Noah, we also live in a place that deserves judgment; righteous judgment. But, because of God’s fatherly compassion, He sent His Son to live a perfect life and die for us. All we need to do is to place our faith in the Son of God, Who loved us and gave Himself for us.
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