Read Psalm 92 at Bible Gateway.
The chiastic structure for Psa 92 (Hebrew paragraph divisions marked in the structure):
introduction) Psa 92:1-5, Thanksgiving and praise to the Lord:
1 It is good to give thanks to the Lord, And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High;
2 To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning, And Your faithfulness every night;
3 On an instrument of ten strings, On the lute, And on the harp, With harmonious sound;
4 For You, Lord, have made me glad through Your work; I will triumph in the works of Your hands;
5 O Lord, how great are Your works! Your thoughts are very deep;
1a) Psa 92:6-7a, When the wicked flourish:
6 A senseless man does not know, Nor does a fool understand this;
7a When the wicked spring up like grass, And when all the workers of iniquity flourish;
1b) Psa 92:7a, When all the workers of iniquity flourish;
1c) Psa 92:7b, It is that they may be destroyed forever;
central axis) Psa 92:8, But You, Lord, are on high forevermore;
2c) Psa 92:9a, For behold, Your enemies, O Lord, For behold, Your enemies shall perish; {n}
2b) Psa 92:9b, All the workers of iniquity shall be scattered;
2a) Psa 92:10-15, When the righteous flourish:
1a) Psa 92:10a, But my horn You have exalted like a wild ox;
1b) Psa 92:10b, I have been anointed with fresh oil;
1c) Psa 92:11a, My eye also has seen my desire on my enemies; {n}
2c) Psa 92:11b, My ears hear my desire on the wicked Who rise up against me;
2b) Psa 92:12-14, The righteous fresh and flourishing:
12 The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree, He shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon;
13 Those who are planted in the house of the Lord Shall flourish in the courts of our God;
14 They shall still bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and flourishing;
2a) Psa 92:15, To declare that the Lord is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him. {p}
Let’s just think about what a wise man knows, that a fool does not know: when the workers of iniquity flourish, it is so that they may be destroyed forever. The end of their temporary prosperity is their permanent loss of ability, influence, and existence! May Israel realize this the next time they are bombarded with demands for ceasefires against their enemies!
But when the righteous flourish, it is also for a particular reason. It is not just so that they may have the most comfortable life possible. When the Lord exalts the righteous and increases their ability, influence, and existence (1a element of 2a pair), it is so that they may declare that YHVH is upright, that His judgments are just and true; that He is the steadfast, faithful, and trustworthy Rock, and that there is no unrighteousness in Him! In other words – bear witness to the truth, righteous witnesses!
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