“Thou hast proved mine heart; thou hast visited [me] in the night; thou hast tried me, [and] shalt find nothing; I am purposed [that] my mouth shall not transgress.” (Ps 17:3 AV)
This was a bit interesting to me this morning. I couldn’t make the connection between David’s visitation with the LORD and the vow to keep from sinning with his lips. So, off to the excellent doctors of the scriptures, and they were very helpful. They reminded me that the vow of non-transgression with the lips was in response to God’s examination of the heart. In essence, they believe David’s vow was righteousness in his speech is response to God’s examination. That is all good and well, but this only draws another confused observation. Why would David sin with his lips if God found nothing? I can see a negative response to a guilty verdict. We do this all the time. We offer excuses or try to justify our actions. Humility may not be our first response. But David states that God found nothing. God visited David in the night. God proved his heart and found nothing. As far as God was concerned, David was as right as any person could be. So, what possible sin could follow a verdict of not guilty? I see one of two possibilities. Either he doesn’t wish to respond in pride by taking credit for his blameless condition, or he doesn’t want to presume upon his innocence and relax his standard by slipping with the tongue. Both are legitimate and both can be a real possibility at the same time.
Much can be said for silence. Twice this morning the LORD made a point of it. Solomon had this to say. “Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: [and] he that shutteth his lips [is esteemed] a man of understanding.” (Pr 17:28 AV) Too much harm can be caused by hasty lips. Boy, do I know this! I am from a part of the country that makes faux pas an art form. The most recent came at the expense of most of the ladies in my church. I’ve pastored in the south and as anyone who has ever lived or visited there will attest, southern cooking is legendary. It is flavorful and downright homey. It might be that they have access to fresh ingredients regardless of where they shop. Or perhaps the recipes are all that much more delectable. Anyway, I compared southern cooking to northern cooking, and now that I pastor in the north, I am eating a lot of crow. Trying to be folksy backfired on me. A lot could be said for silence. Saying nothing is always better than saying something if the something said is not what needed to be said. Silence, as they say, is golden.
David knew his heart. He knew there was temptation is absolution. The context of psalm 17 is a prayer regarding his adversaries. I can see how self-righteousness could be a temptation. When found not guilty, David might have been tempted to take a liberty with his speech. If we were absolved and his enemies found guilty, perhaps a bit of freedom from verbal restraint might be in order. David checked his heart and his lips. He knew he was in a delicate place. He knew he could not say anything. It was wiser to remain speechless that to use his favorable verdict as a means to inflict harm. Checking his lips was important here. Walking away without a word is the wiser choice. Like a plaintiff who found a favorable judgement from the court, just walk away and don’t speak a word to your adversary. You’ve won. Let it go. Walk away and walk with God.
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