WHY DO YOU WANT YOUR ENEMIES TO STOP?

READ PSLM 83

DO YOU HAVE ETERNAL PURPOSES IN MIND, OR QUICK RELIEF?

Psalm 83:1-4

O God, do not keep silence;

do not hold your peace or be still, O God!

For behold, your enemies make an uproar;

those who hate you have raised their heads.

They lay crafty plans against your people;

they consult together against your treasured ones.

They say, “Come, let us wipe them out as a nation;

let the name of Israel be remembered no more!”

Here again, the psalmist is asking God to intervene in the lives of the children of Israel. Their enemies, in their hatred of God’s people, are plotting to wipe Israel out completely.

Psalm 83:5-8

For they conspire with one accord;

against you they make a covenant—

the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites,

Moab and the Hagrites,

Gebal and Ammon and Amalek,

Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;

Asshur also has joined them;

they are the strong arm of the children of Lot. Selah

The psalmist is not necessarily speaking of one single event, but he is naming all the nations that were enemies of the Israelites. He goes on to recount how God has come to their rescue in the past.

Psalm 83:9-12

Do to them as you did to Midian,

as to Sisera and Jabin at the river Kishon,

who were destroyed at En-dor,

who became dung for the ground.

Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb,

all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna,

who said, “Let us take possession for ourselves

of the pastures of God.”

He goes on to request their destruction.

Psalm 83:13-15

O my God, make them like whirling dust,

like chaff before the wind.

As fire consumes the forest,

as the flame sets the mountains ablaze,

so may you pursue them with your tempest

and terrify them with your hurricane!

His request may seem harsh, but I want you to notice the motivation behind it.

Psalm 83:16-18

Fill their faces with shame,

that they may seek your name, O LORD.

Let them be put to shame and dismayed forever;

let them perish in disgrace,

that they may know that you alone,

whose name is the LORD,

are the Most High over all the earth.

His desire is that they may seek the name of the LORD, and that they would come to know that He is the Most High all over the earth.

Reading this convicted me to consider the motivation of my own requests to God when I am going through difficult times. When people are hurting me, what is my driving desire? Overall, when I am going through trials where does my heart go?

Am I just looking for reprieve? Do I want God to do justice for my own sake or comfort?

I should be asking God for eternal results. Do I desire that those who are in contact with me would come to know God, even though they are evil and they are hurting me? Am I driven by a desire that all people would recognize God as the Most High?

I need to be sincere and admit that far too often, these eternal purposes do not cross my mind. I just want the trials to end and my enemies to stop!

God knows what to do; may my desires be in tune with His. When this will be true in my heart, then my reactions will certainly bring glory to God!