Psalm 15 video:
This psalm is simply titledA Psalm of David.In it, David meditates on the character of man assimilated into the presence of God. We don't have an exact reason for this psalm, but it may well have been the bringing of the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem (2 Samuel 6). At that time David was very concerned about the questions asked and answered in this psalm.
A. The Question Asked: Who can appear before God?
1. (1a) Who can come to the tabernacle of God?
Lord, who will live in your tabernacle?
A.Lord, who will live in your tabernacle?In a way, David's question here is figurative. Although, like the sons of Korah, he might have wanted to live in the house of God (Psalm 84:2-4; 84:10), it was impossible because David was not a priest.
Yo the translated wordto reachcould be better than thoughtLife; it describes a visit where one receives the hospitality of a host living in a tent. This openness is understood in the light of ancient Middle Eastern hospitality customs.
ii. “In the gracious hospitality of antiquity a guest was protected from harm; his person was untouchable, every wish was granted to him. Thus the guest of Jehovah is secure, he can take shelter from every enemy, and he can partake of all the bounty of provisions in his tabernacle.” (Maclaren)
B.dwell in your tabernacle: IsTabernacleGod's was the great tent of meeting that God had Moses and Israel build for him during the Exodus (Exodus 25-31). This tabernacle has survived for several centuries and appears to have been in Gibeon in David's day (1 Chronicles 16:39-40).
I. from orTabernaclewas the place where man met God through the work of the priests and the practice of sacrifice, David's longingdwell in your tabernacleit was actually a wishto reachin the presence of God.
ii. David thinks of the life that lives in the presence of God, that walks in close fellowship with God because the heart, mind and life are in harmony with the heart, mind and life of God.
2. (1b) Who can climb the mountain of God's temple?
Who can dwell on your holy mountain?
A.Who can dwell on your holy mountain?In a way, David is simply using the Hebrew technique of repetition here to ask the same question as in the first part of the verse.
I. Wordlingerhere has a more permanent meaning than the wordto reachin the previous line. It is as if David wrote: "Who can be received as a guest in the tent of God, and enjoy all the protection of his hospitality? Who can live as a citizen on your holy mountain?
B.your holy mountain: But in a different sense, David asked a second, more intense question. At this point theTabernacleGod was in Gibeon (1 Chronicles 16:39 and 21:29). Depending on when David wrote this psalm, it is entirely possible that theArk of the Covenantwas in Jerusalem (2 Samuel 6:17) and even in itholy hillMoriah, where God commanded David to build the temple (2 Samuel 24:18-21; 1 Chronicles 21:28-22:5, 2 Chronicles 3:1).
Yo Since the tabernacle was not under God's commandholy hillin David's time (although the Ark of the Covenant existed) David had two different but similar places in mind.
B. The character of one who can stand before God.
1. (2-3) His character among his friends and neighbors.
the one who walks upright
and be fair
and speak the truth in your heart;
IsOMSdo not slander with your tongue,
you do not harm your neighbor either,
He also does not accept allegations against his friend;
A.the one who walks upright: In describing the character of the man who can live in the presence of God, David begins with two general descriptions (walk in integrity and practice justice).
Yo In a way, David is speaking from the perspective of the old covenant. While the Old Covenant gave an important place to sacrifice and atonement through blood, it also based blessing and cursing on obedience (Leviticus 26, Deuteronomy 28). The disobedient could expect no blessing, including the blessing of God's presence.
ii. The New Covenant gives us a different basis for blessing and relationship with God: the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross. Under the New Covenant, the basis of blessing is faith, not achievement.
iii. However, the Davidic principle is also applicable under the New Covenant in this sense: a person's behavior in life is a reflection of his fellowship with God. As John wrote:When we say that we have fellowship with Him and walk in darkness, we lie and are not practicing the truth(1 John 1:6). We could say that under the old covenant, walking upright was thatPre-conditionhaving fellowship with God; under the new covenant, a straight line is thatResultFellowship with God based on faith.
4. "The Christian answer to the psalmist's question is deeper than his, but it is fatally incomplete unless it includes his own and lays the same emphasis on duties to men." (Maclaren)
v. David answers the question in verse 1 withRepresentativeAnswer This means that the points listed in verses 2 through 5 are not complete.” (Boice) We also see this in passages similar to Psalm 24:3-4 and Isaiah 33:14-17 that are not in the points listed are identical.
B.Speak the truth in your heart; one who does not slander with his tongue: David understood here that one knows a fair and just life on the sidehe speaks. As Jesus said in Matthew 12:34:The mouth speaks from the fullness of the heart.
Yo “I believe that gossip, criticism and slander have done more damage to the Church and its work than any other sin. That's why I say don't do it. Bite your tongue before you criticize another Christian." (boice)
ii. Clarke wrote this about the wordmumble: "He is avillain, who would steal yoursgood name; he is acowardwho would talk about you in yourabsencewhat he dared not do in hisPresent; and just bad conditionpuppywould fly to andbitethey arereturnif youFaceErastransformed. Estesthree ideasare included in the term; and they are all indefamerjdefamer. Their language is the language of avillain, Acoward, It is apuppy.“
C.He does not harm his neighbor and does not accept any blame against his friend.: David also knew that justice is expressed in thehow we treat each other. We might have thought that David would have given greater priority to religious commitments such as sacrifice or purification ceremonies, which certainly have their place but are useless without the practical piety of being good, honest, and honorable to neighbors and friends.
Yo In these words of David we also see the deeper work of Jesus Christ, who commanded us not only to love our ownNeighborjFreund, but also to love our enemies and those who mistreat us (Matthew 5:44).
2. (4-5a) His character among difficult people.
In whose eyes evil is despised,
But he honors those who fear the Lord;
IsOMShe swears by his own harm and does not change;
IsOMSdon't give your money to usury
She also does not take bribes from innocent people.
A.In whose eyes a despicable person is despised: David knew that we cannot love good unless we also resist evil. As Proverbs 8:13 says:The fear of the Lord is to hate evil. However, also this fairHonor those who fear Jehovah; he judges men on the basis of piety, not favoritism, flattery, or corruption.
Yo “Who rejected the wicked, however rich and honorable they were; and he chose the well-meaning, however poor and contemptible they may be in the world. (Horn)
ii. “He neither admires your person, nor envies your condition, nor courts you with flatteries, nor appreciates your company and conversation, nor approves or defers your conduct; but think ill of him; He thinks him a wretched man and a great object of pity; he abhors their evil practices and strives to make such ways despicable and hateful to all men as far as is in his power. (Swimming pool)
iii.Honor those who fear Jehovah:: “We must be as honest with respect as we are with paying our bills. Honor where credit is due. We owe all good men a debt of honour, and we have no right to give despicable men in high office their due." (Spurgeons)
B.Who swears to his own detriment and does not change: The idea behind it is that people keep their promises even if it is no longer in their interest.
Yo "Joshua and the elders kept their oath to the Gibeonites, albeit to their discomfort." (catch)
ii. “The law forbade substituting another animal for the promised sacrifice (Leviticus 27:10); and the psalm uses the same word for "change," with obvious allusion to prohibition, which the psalmist must therefore have been aware of. (maclaren)
C.Who does not spend his money on usury or accept bribes against innocent people: David was describing the man who wants to live a righteous life when it comes to itMoney. Many people who would be considered godly in other areas of their lives have yet to choose to use their money in ways that honor God and show love and concern for others.
EU.usury"is condemned in the Bible, not generally (see. Deuteronomy 23:20; Matthew 25:27), but in connection with the misfortune of a brother, as a comparison between Deuteronomy 23:19 and Leviticus 25:35-38 makes clear. (Children)
ii. “I am convinced that this verse is not about receiving interest on borrowed money, although it seems so, but from whom the interest is coming. In other words, the verse refers to covetousness overshadowing righteousness... The best OT illustration of the abuse spoken of in verse 5 is in Nehemiah 5, where all the rich take advantage of the poor among the exiles, when all should have helped one another.” (Bock)
iii. It's easy and appropriate to look through this list and see where we've fallen short. However, seeing our sin in this Psalm should lead us to Jesus. We see this whole psalm through the New Covenant grid; We see Jesus fulfilling the requirements of the law and the norms of this psalm perfectly. We see that by faith his obedience is counted as ours and that we are being transformed into his image, so that the fulfillment of this psalm should shape our lives more and more.
3. (5b) The blessings emanating from this character.
the one who does thisThingshe will never move.
A.the one who does these things: David has the basic merit-based system of the old covenant in mind. One who has pleased God with this kind of achievement can expect God's blessing.
Yo “To continue in sin is to thwart God's own plan in grace. To do so is to be locked out of his tent, to be locked out of the holy mountain.” (Morgan)
B.will never move: In the old covenant system, this stability of life is a blessing from God given to the obedient. Under the New Covenant, those who remain in the faith are given the promise of stability and security, that faith being manifested in a life lived in universal obedience.
Yo The idea behind itwill never moveit is that this righteous one will forever be a guest in God's tent (as in Psalm 61:4). In the words of the New Testament we could put it this way:And the world passes away and its desires; but whoever does God's will abides forever(1 João 2:17).
c) 2020enduring wordBible Commentary by David Guzik– ewm@palabraduradera.com
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