The Beginning And the End

Psalms begins with a promise from God and ends with a call to praise God. “Blessed is the man!” shouts the author. Any man? Every man? No. Indeed not. Blessed is “the” man who delights in and obeys the Words and the Ways of the Lord.
Psalms ends with a call to “Praise the Lord.” Any man? Every man? Yes. Yes, indeed. “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.”

The first Psalm makes a difference between the godly man and the ungodly man. But the concluding Psalm does not mention the ungodly. Why?

The godly are “like a tree that is planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.” What a beautiful description of the godly: they are happy, have lived a worthwhile life and will live eternal life.

But the ungodly? They are pictured with words that are hopeless. “They are like chaff,” writes the Psalmist, “that the wind blows away. Therefore, the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor will sinners be in the assembly of the righteous.” The ungodly will not be safe on the Judgment Day. Nor will they be invited to stand among the godly. What a tragedy. What an ending to a life that was filled with opportunities to become godly. It is a life that was misspent, misdirected and mistaken.

No matter what we hear from politicians and social scientists, there are only two classes of people: the godly and the ungodly. And two ends: heaven and hell.

Prayer: Lord, may we hear Your Word and Your voice and accept Your invitation to become godly people. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Psalm 1 – Psalm 150