Psalm 7

“If a man does not repent, God will whet his sword;
he has bent and readied his bow;
he has prepared for him his deadly
weapons,
making his arrows fiery shafts.”
Verses 12-13

A couple of years ago I taught a student who was absolutely unique among our school’s population, for he always told the truth and never transgressed any of our rules. At least that was his story every time he got in trouble! His loud and repeated claims of innocence were always accompanied by finger-pointing and accusations against classmates.

Psalm Seven is attributed to David from a time when he was being unjustly persecuted by a man identified as “Cush.” In ancient Israel this prayer would have been used frequently by those who believed themselves to be the victims of injustice. When the courts and judges of the nation failed to see false accusations for what they were the wrongly accused and persecuted could appeal to the LORD who could be relied upon to judge all people in righteousness. (Verse 11)

In our modern world, where false accusations and persecutions are yet rampant, and hardly a day passes without spurious lawsuits being instituted, and many parts of the world innocent people arrested and beaten for no other offense than their faith, the encouragement and hope of this psalm of David is as needful as ever.

But, in verses 3-4 and 12-13, there is a caveat of sorts, a warning to the unrepentant and deceitful, who when justly accused often put up a vigorous defense of denial and claims of righteousness—God perceives their heart as well. Courts and judges can be as easily taken in by false pleas of innocence, as they can by false claims of guilt. But God is no more moved by the unrepentant who deny their guilt, than he is persuaded by the wicked who institute false claims.

It has been observed that one rarely talks to a guilty man in prison, as very few indeed are ever willing to acknowledge their fault, either persisting in denial or attempting to place blame for their actions on others, “It wasn’t my fault, I am the victim!” Admittedly, there are undoubtedly some innocent men and women who are unjustly punished; they can be certain of God’s vindication one day. Just as certain will be God’s condemnation and punishment of all who, by virtue of skillful deceit and prevarication, successfully dupe the law.

Some faith traditions, recognizing how pervasive are the practices of falsely accusing a brother, and falsely claiming innocence, along with all other sins that beset humanity, include a corporate Prayer of Confession as part of their service of worship for the Lord’s Day. Even if that is not the practice where we worship, we all do well on the Lord’s Day, and every day, to search our own heart and repent of our transgressions before God. And doing so in the name of Jesus Christ, who died paying the penalty for our sins, permits us to confess freely our faults, knowing that in Christ God has already forgiven us.