Psalms 53

Psalms 53:1

Psalm 53: The Folly of AtheismThe main difference between Psalms 14 and this one is that the name of God is changed from Jehovah (or Yahweh) to Elohim. In Psalms 14 the fool denies the existence of the covenant-keeping God (Jehovah, LORD) who is deeply interested and involved in the welfare of His people. Here the fool denies the existence of an almighty, sovereign God (Elohim) who sustains and governs the universe. God can be denied in both senses: some deny that the Creator has any special interest in any particular race or group of men; others repudiate any possibility of there being a God at all (Daily Notes of the Scripture Union). 53:1 The fool is not necessarily a dunce or stupid. He may be intellectually brilliant as far as contemporary education is concerned, but he does not want to face the evidence as to the person, power and providence of God. He is willfully ignorant. “The Hebrew word has in it the idea of a malicious refusal to acknowledge the truth.” Atheism is linked with depravity and degradation, sometimes as cause, sometimes as effect. Therefore it is not surprising that those who say “There is no Elohim” are corrupt, doing abominable iniquity. There is none of them who does good. 53:2 Now the subject seems to glide from atheists in particular to mankind in general. Paul quotes snatches from these verses in Romans 3 to establish the total depravity of all mankind. The indictment is true, of course. As God looks down from heaven upon the race of men, He cannot find one who, left to himself, would have the wisdom to fear the Lord. Apart from the prior ministry of the Holy Spirit, no one would seek God. 53:3 They have all turned aside from the living God. They have all become depraved. Not one does good in the sense of something that can gain favor or merit with the Lord. 53:4, 5 Again, there seems to be a switch to a particular class of sinners, namely, those apostates who persecute God’s people. How can they be so short-sighted? They are cruel and prayerless. They think no more of destroying the faithful remnant than of eating bread. And they never feel the need of speaking to God in prayer. They seem completely insensible to the fact that one day they will be seized with unprecedented terror. God will scatter the bones of those who wage war against His loyal followers. 53:6 In the last verse, David prays for the coming of the Messiah. He is the Deliverer who will come out of Zion (Rom_11:26) and save all believing Israel. In that day Israel will be restored, Jacob will rejoice and Israel will be glad.