Psalm 73:4 - Endow the King with Your Justice

Audio Bible

Context

Endow the King with Your Justice
…3For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. 4 They have no struggle in their death; their bodies are well-fed. 5They are free of the burdens others carry; they are not afflicted like other men.…

Cross References

Job 21:7-13
Why do the wicked live on, growing old and increasing in power? / Their descendants are established around them, and their offspring before their eyes. / Their homes are safe from fear; no rod of punishment from God is upon them. ...Jeremiah 12:1-2
Righteous are You, O LORD, when I plead before You. Yet about Your judgments I wish to contend with You: Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all the faithless live at ease? / You planted them, and they have taken root. They have grown and produced fruit. You are ever on their lips, but far from their hearts.Psalm 37:35-36
I have seen a wicked, ruthless man flourishing like a well-rooted native tree, / yet he passed away and was no more; though I searched, he could not be found.Psalm 49:16-19
Do not be afraid when a man grows rich, when the splendor of his house increases. / For when he dies, he will carry nothing away; his abundance will not follow him down. / Though in his lifetime he blesses his soul—and men praise you when you prosper— ...Ecclesiastes 8:14
There is a futility that is done on the earth: There are righteous men who get what the actions of the wicked deserve, and there are wicked men who get what the actions of the righteous deserve. I say that this too is futile.Ecclesiastes 7:15
In my futile life I have seen both of these: A righteous man perishing in his righteousness, and a wicked man living long in his wickedness.Malachi 3:15
So now we call the arrogant blessed. Not only do evildoers prosper, they even test God and escape.’”Isaiah 57:1-2
The righteous perish, and no one takes it to heart; devout men are taken away, while no one considers that the righteous are taken away from the presence of evil. / Those who walk uprightly enter into peace; they find rest, lying down in death.Proverbs 3:33
The curse of the LORD is on the house of the wicked, but He blesses the home of the righteous.Proverbs 14:32
The wicked man is thrown down by his own sin, but the righteous man has a refuge even in death.Luke 16:19-25
Now there was a rich man dressed in purple and fine linen, who lived each day in joyous splendor. / And a beggar named Lazarus lay at his gate, covered with sores / and longing to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. ...James 5:5
You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in the day of slaughter.1 Timothy 6:9-10
Those who want to be rich, however, fall into temptation and become ensnared by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. / For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. By craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.Revelation 3:17
You say, ‘I am rich; I have grown wealthy and need nothing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked.Matthew 5:45
that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

Psalm 17:14
From men which are thy hand, O LORD, from men of the world, which have their portion in this life, and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure: they are full of children, and leave the rest of their substance to their babes.

Job 21:23,24
One dieth in his full strength, being wholly at ease and quiet…

Job 24:20
The womb shall forget him; the worm shall feed sweetly on him; he shall be no more remembered; and wickedness shall be broken as a tree.

firm.

Psalm 17:10
They are inclosed in their own fat: with their mouth they speak proudly.

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Psalm 73

They have no struggle in their death;
This phrase reflects the psalmist's observation of the apparent ease with which the wicked face death. In biblical context, this can be seen as a lament over the prosperity of the wicked, a common theme in wisdom literature such as Job and Ecclesiastes. The psalmist is perplexed by the lack of suffering in the death of those who live unrighteously, contrasting with the struggles often faced by the righteous. This observation challenges the retributive justice principle, where good is rewarded and evil is punished, a theme also explored in Psalm 37 and Jeremiah 12:1. Theologically, it raises questions about divine justice and the prosperity of the wicked, which are addressed later in the psalm.

their bodies are well-fed.
This phrase suggests that the wicked enjoy physical prosperity and health, which is often seen as a sign of divine blessing in the Old Testament. The imagery of being "well-fed" indicates abundance and a life of ease, contrasting with the struggles of the righteous who may suffer despite their faithfulness. This prosperity can be linked to the cultural context of the Ancient Near East, where wealth and health were often viewed as indicators of favor from the gods. The psalmist's observation is a critique of this worldview, highlighting the temporary nature of such prosperity. In a broader biblical context, this can be connected to the parable of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16:19-31, where earthly wealth does not equate to eternal security. The phrase challenges readers to consider the true source of blessing and the ultimate justice of God.

Persons / Places / Events

1. Asaph
The author of Psalm 73, Asaph was a prominent Levite singer and seer in David's court. He is known for his honest and heartfelt psalms that often explore the tension between the prosperity of the wicked and the suffering of the righteous.

2. The Wicked
In this context, the "they" refers to the wicked or ungodly people who seem to live prosperous and carefree lives, even in death.

3. Israel
The nation of Israel, where Asaph lived and served, often struggled with understanding the prosperity of the wicked in contrast to the suffering of the righteous.

Teaching Points

The Illusion of Prosperity
The prosperity of the wicked is temporary and deceptive. While they may appear to live without struggle, their end is not one of peace. Believers should focus on eternal rewards rather than temporary gains.

God's Justice
Trust in God's ultimate justice. Though the wicked may seem to escape consequences now, God will judge all people righteously in His time.

Contentment in God
Find contentment and satisfaction in God rather than envying the prosperity of others. True peace and fulfillment come from a relationship with God, not from material wealth or ease.

Eternal Perspective
Maintain an eternal perspective. The struggles and injustices of this life are temporary, and believers are called to live with the hope of eternal life with God.

(4) For there are no bands in their death.--This is quite unintelligible, and does not fairly render the Hebrew, which gives, For there are no bands to their death. And by analogy of the derivation of tormenta from tor queo, we might give the Hebrew word bands the sense of pangs, rendering, "they have a painless death," if such a statement about the wicked were not quite out of keeping with the psalm. The ancient versions give us no help. Some emendation of the text is absolutely necessary. In the only other place it occurs (Isaiah 58:6) the word means specially the bands of a yoke; hence a most ingenious conjecture, which, by only a change of one letter, gives there are no bands to their yoke, i.e., they are "chartered libertines," men of libido effrenata et indomita, a description admirably in keeping with that of the animal grossness in the next clause, "fat is their belly." (Comp. the image of an animal restive from over-feeding, Deuteronomy 32:15; Burgess, Notes on the Hebrew Psalms.)

Strength.--The word is curious, but explained by Arabic cognates to mean belly, possibly from its roundness ("a fair round belly with good capon lined"); from root meaning roll.

Verse 4. - For there are no bands in their death; or, no sufferings (δυσπάθειαι, Aquila; "torments," Cheyne); comp. Job 21:13, "They spend their days in wealth, and in a moment go down to the grave;" and ver. 23, "One dieth in his full strength, being wholly at ease and quiet." Such deaths often happen, and are a severe trial of faith to those who have no firm conviction of the reality of a hereafter. But their strength is firm; literally, their body is plump (Cheyne). But the Authorized Version probably gives the true meaning. They drop into the grave while their strength is still undiminished. Parallel Commentaries ...

Hebrew

They have no
אֵ֖ין (’ên)
Adverb
Strong's 369: A non-entity, a negative particle

struggle
חַרְצֻבּ֥וֹת (ḥar·ṣub·bō·wṯ)
Noun - feminine plural
Strong's 2784: Bond, fetter, pang

in their death;
לְמוֹתָ֗ם (lə·mō·w·ṯām)
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine plural
Strong's 4194: Death, the dead, their place, state, pestilence, ruin

their bodies
אוּלָֽם׃ (’ū·lām)
Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine plural
Strong's 193: The body, powerful

are well-fed.
וּבָרִ֥יא (ū·ḇā·rî)
Conjunctive waw | Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 1277: Fatted, plump

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