How are the steps of a man ordered by the Lord (Psalm 37:23)?
In Psalm 37, David writes that the righteous can trust God to sustain them (Psalm 37:17) and that the inheritance of righteousness will never end (Psalm 37:18). The righteous are given righteousness and salvation from the Lord (Psalm 37:39). It is a psalm that reminds us of God’s faithfulness, and it encourages us that we can trust Him and that He is worthy of our trust. In Psalm 37:23 the psalmist observes that “the steps of a man are ordered by the Lord” (BSB). Earlier in the psalm, David explains that, when we commit our way to the Lord, He will bring about our righteousness. In Psalm 37:23 David proclaims that God orders or directs even the individual steps of the person, and God takes delight in that person.
The term translated as “ordered” or “established” in Psalm 37:23 is from a Hebrew verb that can also mean “to guide, direct, or make reliable.” In other words, the person who has committed his way to God will have his steps made sure by God. He will guard them and ensure that they are solid steps. How encouraging to know that even our small, seemingly inconsequential steps are not too insignificant for God! He loves and cares for us so much that He actually takes pleasure in guiding our steps. When we fall, we won’t fall to destruction because the Lord holds our hand (Psalm 37:24). Because the law of God is in our hearts, our steps or our path won’t be slippery (Psalm 37:31). What an incredible truth to know that God is right there, ready to establish our walk if we will simply commit our walk to Him! Even more incredible, perhaps, is that He delights in doing that. To think that God—the almighty Creator—takes pleasure in walking with each of His people in that way!
David knew better than most that there would be dark days in this life—it was David who wrote that, even though he walked through the valley of the shadow of death, he didn’t need to fear evil because His heavenly Shepherd was with Him (Psalm 23:4). From psalms like Psalm 23 and Psalm 37 we learn that God is with us, that He delights in fellowship with us, and that we can trust Him with our very lives. Even a simple observation that the steps of a man are ordered by the Lord represents an amazing truth that we matter to God. When we are encountering hardship or difficulty, or if we simply feel alone as if no one cares about our well-being, we can have confidence in knowing that He loves us and wants to walk with us and guide us through those difficulties we face.
What does it mean that God will give you the desires of your heart (Psalm 37:4)?
Psalm 37:4 contains a great promise: “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” This verse invites us to have a deeply intimate relationship with God. As we delight in Him, He will give us the desires of our heart. To fully appreciate this promise, we must review the immediate context, unpack its meaning, and apply it to our lives.
Psalm 37, penned by King David, is a poetic meditation on the righteousness of God and the fulfillment of His promises. This psalm specifically addresses the struggles faced by the righteous in a world that is dominated by the wicked (verses 1–2). Despite these struggles, David encourages his readers to “trust in the Lord and do good” (verse 3). It is within this context that we find the promise of verse 4 that God will “give you the desires of your heart.”
To understand the promise in Psalm 37:4, we must first examine the meaning of delighting in the Lord. The word delight encompasses a profound sense of joy, satisfaction, and contentment. When we delight in the Lord, we seek His presence (Psalm 27:4), meditate on His Word day and night (Joshua 1:8 and Psalm 1:2), and align our will with His (Romans 12:2). This involves the heart, mind, and soul (Matthew 22:37).
When we delight in the Lord, we will experience a radical shift in our desires. In other words, we will no longer desire selfish and sinful things (Galatians 5:17–21). Instead, we will desire the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (verses 22–23). And, when we desire the same things God desires for us, our requests will be granted (Matthew 6:33 and John 14:14).
The promise in Psalm 37:4 does not imply that God is a cosmic genie who grants every fleeting whim or selfish request. On the contrary, the promise points to a definitive transformation within our heart as we draw closer to Him.
God’s response to our delight in Him is twofold. First, He shapes and molds our hearts to align our will with His. Through the work of the Holy Spirit, we are purged of selfishness, pride, and unrighteous desires. As we draw closer to Him, our desires will begin to mirror His desires for us, reflecting His goodness and righteousness.
Second, God will grant desires that accord with His will and glory (Romans 11:36). This does not mean that every request will be granted; rather, the desires of our heart will be fulfilled in ways that accomplish His purpose for our lives (Romans 8:28).
God’s response to our delight in Him may not always meet our expectations or occur immediately. His ways are higher than our ways (Isaiah 55:8–9), and His timing is beyond our comprehension. He may even use delays or redirections to refine our desires and strengthen our faith in Him. As we wait for God to answer our requests, we can trust that His timing is always perfect (Isaiah 40:31).
Psalm 37:4 prompts us to delight in the Lord and align our desires with His perfect will. As we cultivate a heart that finds joy, satisfaction, and contentment in Him, He will transform our desires to reflect His purposes. While the fulfillment of our desires may not always align with our expectations, we can trust in the faithfulness of God. By embracing the promise in Psalm 37:4, our lives become characterized by the fulfillment of desires that bring glory to Him.
What does it mean to commit your way to the Lord (Psalm 37:5)?
In the 37th Psalm, David writes that God sustains the righteous (Psalm 37:17) and that their inheritance will be everlasting (Psalm 37:18). The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord (Psalm 37:39). It is a psalm of God’s faithfulness and an encouragement that the righteous do not trust Him in vain. Psalm 37:5 challenges the reader or listener to “commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him.”
In a perfect world, we wouldn’t need God to be our refuge, because there would be no threats. But in this fallen and broken world, we desperately need Him to be our refuge. The psalmist instructs that we not fret or be envious because of those who do evil (Psalm 37:1) because they will fade away quickly like the grass (Psalm 37:2). Evil has no staying power. Even though evil gains a foothold in the short term and may even appear to win the day, the reality is that it will not last. Because of that truth, we are encouraged to put our trust in the Lord and to do what He prescribes, which includes living faithfully (Psalm 37:3).
Our delight should not be in our circumstances; rather, our delight should be in the Lord. We should take pleasure in Him, and when we do that—when our desire is for Him—He provides that our desires are met (Psalm 37:4). The closer we get to Him, the more our desires begin to change from our own selfish wants to wanting what He wants for us. After presenting these thoughts, the psalmist exhorts that we commit our way to the Lord and trust in Him (Psalm 37:5). That commitment and trust does not come without reward, as God is faithful, “and He will do it” (NASB)—but what is it that He will do?
When we commit our way to the Lord and trust in Him, God is faithful to “bring forth [our] righteousness” (Psalm 37:6, ESV). When our way is committed to Him, He shapes us and grows us in His righteousness. Paul explained many years after the psalmist wrote that a person who is walking in the Spirit of God will see the fruit of the Holy Spirit in his life (Galatians 5:22–23). God will accomplish His work in our lives—He will transform us by the renewing of our minds (Romans 12:1–2) if we will simply be committed to allowing Him to do that.
Elsewhere, Paul reminds believers to set their minds on things above (Colossians 3:1–4). The mindset of the believer is important, and it involves commitment to allowing God to do His work in us. Paul provides another example in Ephesians 5:18. He says we should not be drunk with wine, but, instead, we should be filled with the Holy Spirit. When a person drinks wine excessively, that person is submitting to a process that will end in his having little or no control over his body. Instead of submitting our bodies to wine in that way, we should be submitting ourselves to the Holy Spirit of God—immersing ourselves in His Word so that we are controlled by Him and our desires are shaped by Him. When we are doing that, we are filled with His Spirit or are walking in His Spirit, and He is faithful to bear His fruit in us. When we commit our way to the Lord (Psalm 37:5), He will make sure that way is fruitful.
What is the significance of the statement “God is within her; she will not fall” in Psalm 46:5?
The book of Psalms—a collection of 150 poems intended to be sung—is packed with encouraging statements in times of trouble. Individual verses in the Psalms, however, are frequently subject to misinterpretation when taken out of context. This is particularly true of Psalm 46:5.
The statement “God is within her, she will not fall” is often used to encourage and uplift women facing challenging situations. When this verse shows up on social media, it is often taken as a direct message to women in adversity: “You will not fall, despite the hardship you endure, because God is in you, giving you power.” It is essential, however, to unpack the true meaning of Psalm 46:5.
The her in Psalm 46:5 is commonly assumed to refer to women in general, offering them a comforting message of resilience during troubling times. But we need to review the surrounding verses. In verse 4, the psalmist acknowledges that “there is a river whose streams make glad the city of God” (ESV). The her refers to the city of God. So, while it is appropriate to draw inspiration and encouragement from verse 5, we must not interpret that verse as a direct reference to women. Rather, we must see it as Israel’s collective praise for God’s deliverance, as depicted in Psalm 46:1–3 (cf. Psalm 48:1–3).
The heart of Psalm 46:5 is that the all-present God guarantees Jerusalem’s unshakable stability. God is always by her side, ensuring that she remains secure, even in tumultuous times. Because of God’s protection, the people of God have nothing and no one to fear: “The Lord is my light and salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1, ESV).
There are important parallels between Psalm 46 and the book of Kings. When the Assyrians besieged the city of God, the pagan field commander unleashed a series of taunts and threats upon the people of God. In doing so, he sought to prove that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob was just as powerless as other gods in the lands conquered by the Assyrians (2 Kings 18:28–35).
During the siege, King Hezekiah sought the Lord. After receiving a menacing letter from the Assyrian king Sennacherib, Hezekiah took the letter to the house of Lord and fervently prayed for deliverance (2 Kings 19:14–19). As dawn broke, the Assyrian army found that they had lost 185,000 soldiers. During the night, an angel of the Lord had descended upon the Assyrians, putting a swift and decisive end to their terror (2 Kings 19:35). Jerusalem was saved.
God had predicted the defeat of the Assyrians through the prophet Isaiah: “This is what the Lord says concerning the king of Assyria: ‘He will not enter this city or shoot an arrow here. . . . I will defend this city and save it’” (2 Kings 19:32, 34). In other words, God is within her, she will not fall.
The Assyrian invasion of Israel provides the historical backdrop for Psalm 46:5. Amid perilous circumstances, the psalmist’s words take on new significance. The vindicated faith of Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem is a testament to the almighty power of God. God is an impenetrable fortress, a divine shield against evil forces:
I love you, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies. (Psalm 18:1–3)
Psalm 46:5 is a powerful reminder that God’s power and protection are not confined to a specific gender or individual. He is with His children. Psalm 46:5 refers to the city of Jerusalem, and today we can trust that God has the same protective love for the church of God, redeemed by the blood of Jesus. When we are besieged by various trials and tribulations, we can remain hopeful, knowing that God will never leave or forsake us (Romans 8:31; Hebrews 13:5).
What does “he makes me lie down in green pastures” mean (Psalm 23:2)?
Psalm 23 offers comfort with its soothing words and assurance in the Shepherd. Its poetic allure attracts even unbelievers, while its pastoral imagery draws from David’s own shepherding background, aiming to evoke a sense of tranquility. Throughout Psalm 23, the timeless truth about God and His relationship with His people unfolds. An example is the second verse, “He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters.”
To delve into David’s imagery in Psalm 23:2, consider how shepherds took care of their sheep in biblical times. Rather than “drive” them with a stick from behind as is commonly imagined, shepherds guided the sheep, going before them to suitable pasture. Without a shepherd, sheep would either starve or become prey. Similarly, the shepherd directed the sheep to water sources. By invoking this analogy, David expresses his complete reliance on God to fulfill all his needs, conveying deep adoration for God as the Ultimate Provider.
It’s interesting that Jesus refers to Himself as the Good Shepherd multiple times in the Gospels, paralleling the Psalms (John 10:11, 14–15; Matthew 18:12–14; Luke 15:3–7). No doubt, His listeners were familiar enough with the Old Testament to pick up on the reference. That might explain why some thought of Him as insane (John 10:19–20). Nevertheless, the resonant truth remains that Jesus is God—the Good Shepherd whom we faithfully follow.
The green pastures and still waters symbolize both spiritual and physical needs. As the Good Shepherd, Christ initially tended to our spiritual needs by “sacrificing his life for the sheep” (John 10:14). Isaiah employs similar imagery, proclaiming, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6). Christians lie in the green pasture of God’s grace and beside the still water of salvation, recognizing that these blessings stem from a Good Shepherd’s guidance.
Beyond spiritual needs, the Good Shepherd also attends to our other requirements. This raises an obvious objection: why do certain Christians still lack? David’s confidence in God’s provision doesn’t negate other passages highlighting the persistence of poverty in this fallen world until God renews His creation (Matthew 26:11; Mark 14:7; John 12:8). Various factors can lead to poverty, and God’s commitment to meet our needs does not necessarily entail a life of constant abundance or freedom from challenges, at least not in this world. Numerous psalms mirror the angst of the psalmist, who felt that God had abandoned him in critical moments, and it is human that we react likewise. However, God’s power shines through both in times of plenty and scarcity.
As the psalmist did, we can confidently declare that God makes us lie down in green pastures, secure, satisfied, and unafraid. Christ, our Good Shepherd, provides for our needs in profound ways.
What does the Bible mean when it says not to touch God’s anointed?
The command to touch not God’s anointed is found in two places in Scripture: “Do not touch my anointed ones; do my prophets no harm” (1 Chronicles 16:22; Psalm 105:15). These passages are sometimes used in Pentecostal and Charismatic circles to defend certain preachers from criticism. Preachers who promote themselves or their ministries as “anointed” warn their would-be critics, “Do not touch God’s anointed!” Of course, this helps to insulate them from scrutiny and allows them to spread falsehood and bad theology unrestrained.
Others take God’s command “Do not touch my anointed ones; do my prophets no harm” to mean that Christians are promised protection from all bad things.
Both of the above interpretations of “Do not touch my anointed ones” ignore the context of the passages in question. The “anointed ones” in these passages are not modern-day Pentecostal preachers. And the Bible never promises that God’s prophets, anointed ones, children, or other faithful believers will never suffer harm from evil people. As Jesus explained to the Pharisees, “God in his wisdom said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and others they will persecute’” (Luke 11:49).
Here is the context of 1 Chronicles 16:22: David is publicly praising God by giving a condensed review of the miraculous history of Israel. He cites some of the miracles God performed to fulfill His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (1 Chronicles 16:15–18, referencing Genesis 50:24 and Exodus 2:24). Through these miracles, God created a nation of Abraham’s descendants that would bless the entire world (see Genesis 12:1–3). No one and nothing could prevent God’s promise from being fulfilled, even against all odds.
In the verses leading up to God’s command “Do not touch my anointed ones,” we read this: “When they were but few in number, few indeed, and strangers in it, they wandered from nation to nation, from one kingdom to another. He allowed no one to oppress them; for their sake he rebuked kings” (1 Chronicles 16:19–21). This passage refers to the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. When “they” (the patriarchs) were few in number, they lived as wandering strangers in a strange land (see Hebrews 11:9). Through all their travels and travails, God protected them, increased their number, and prevented the powerful rulers of the lands where they stayed from harming them.
For example, God protected Abraham twice while staying in hostile nations whose kings lusted after his wife. Neither king laid a finger on Abraham or Sarah but instead sent the couple away unharmed and even enriched them (Genesis 12 and 20). The same happened to Isaac (Genesis 26). Jacob arrived in Paddan Aram with nothing, but he left with vast riches (Genesis 31); after all his dealings with his unscrupulous Uncle Laban, Jacob said, “God has not allowed him to harm me” (verse 7).
So the point of 1 Chronicles 16:22 (and Psalm 105:15) is that nothing and no one can derail God’s will; God had a plan for Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and He refused to let the kings of Canaan and Egypt injure them: “For their sake he rebuked kings: ‘Do not touch my anointed ones’” (1 Chronicles 16:21–22). The patriarchs were His prophets. They were His “anointed ones”; that is, God chose them to accomplish a specific work in the world.
David, who orchestrated the praise of 1 Chronicles 16, applied God’s command not to injure God’s anointed to his own situation. King Saul was trying to kill David at one time, and David and his men were on the run. One night, David’s men came upon Saul and his army while they were sleeping. Abishai rejoiced that they had the advantage over their enemies and suggested they kill Saul then and there. But David said to Abishai, “Do not destroy him, for who can lift a hand against the LORD’s anointed and be guiltless? . . . As surely as the LORD lives, the LORD Himself will strike him down. . . . But the LORD forbid that I should stretch out my hand against the LORD’s anointed” (1 Samuel 26:9–11). It is God who takes vengeance, not we (Deuteronomy 32:35; Romans 12:19).
The command from God “Do not touch my anointed ones; do my prophets no harm” was for a specific group of people for a specific time: God preserved the patriarchs from physical harm. The prophets of the Old Testament have given way to teachers in the New (see 2 Peter 2:1). No one today can properly quote 1 Chronicles 16:22 to deflect criticism or silence challengers. No apostle in the New Testament ever told anyone “Do not touch God’s anointed” as a means of insulating himself from critique.
The fact is that all believers today are God’s anointed. We are all set apart for the work God is accomplishing in this world (1 John 2:20). “Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God, who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee” (2 Corinthians 1:21–22).
Since all believers are God’s anointed, does this mean that His command “Do not touch my anointed ones” keeps us from all harm? No, believers still suffer the effects of living in a fallen world. But, at the same time, believers know that God is 100 percent in control, and He can easily protect His children. Whatever happens to them is allowed by Him. Satan himself can’t lay a finger on God’s children without God’s explicit permission (see Job 1:12; 2:6). So we trust God in everything. No matter what happens in our lives, we trust that God is in control and will equip, empower, and protect us to complete His plan for us: “I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6, ESV).
Who was the Asaph mentioned in the Book of Psalms?
There were a number of Levites that King David assigned as worship leaders in the tabernacle choir, according to 1 Chronicles 6:31–32. Asaph was one of these men (1 Chronicles 6:39). Asaph’s duties are described in detail in 1 Chronicles 16. According to 2 Chronicles 29:30, both Asaph and David were skilled singers and poets. Asaph is also mentioned as a “seer” or prophet. The “sons of Asaph” are mentioned in 1 Chronicles 25:1, 2 Chronicles 20:14, and Ezra 2:41. The sons of Asaph were likely a guild of skilled poets and singers, modeling themselves musically after Asaph, their master. The church musicians of our day can be considered spiritual “children of Asaph.”
Psalms 50 and 73—83 are called the “Psalms of Asaph” because his name appears in the superscription at the head of those psalms. Regarding Asaph’s role as a prophet, of particular interest is the imprecatory Psalm 83, which deals with God’s judgment of Israel’s enemies: Edom, the Ishmaelites, Moab, the Hagarites, Gebal, Ammon, the Amalekites, Philistia, Tyre, and Assyria. If we examine the psalms written by Asaph, we can see that all of them have to do with the judgment of God, and many involve the prayers of the people at the prospect or moment of a particular event.
Asaph was a gifted individual. He understood where the gift came from, and he used his music to praise the Lord and communicate His Word to a needy world.
Psalm 22 is a messianic psalm in which King David suffers great pain and distress as a type of Christ. He cries out to God for help, just as Jesus would later call out on the cross (see Psalm 22:1, cited in Matthew 27:46 and Mark 15:34). Like Christ, who pleaded with the Father to rescue Him from death (Hebrews 5:7), David implores God to save him from his enemies: “Deliver my soul from the sword, my precious life from the power of the dog!” (Psalm 22:20, ESV).
In most parts of the world today, dogs are viewed as beloved pets. But in ancient times dogs were primarily feral, scavenging animals considered unclean in Israel. In a couple of passages, dogs were used for guarding houses and herding flocks (Isaiah 56:10; Job 30:1), but, more frequently, dogs were wild creatures that roamed the streets devouring refuse and dead bodies (1 Kings 14:11; 16:4; 21:19, 23; 22:38).
A person’s enemies were identified as “dogs” in Scripture (Psalm 59:6). In Jeremiah 15:3, the Lord appointed four kinds of destroyers: “The sword to kill, the dogs to drag away, the vultures to devour, and the wild animals to finish up what is left.” The apostle Paul warned believers to watch out for false apostles, calling them dogs: “Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh” (Philippians 3:2). Those who were excluded from the kingdom of heaven were called dogs in Revelation 22:15: “Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.”
In Psalm 22, David refers to his enemies as “bulls” or “wild oxen” (verses 12 and 21), “lions” (verses 13 and 21), and “dogs” (verses 16 and 20). These are metaphors and not literal animals. In verse 16, he reports, “Dogs surround me, a pack of villains encircles me; they pierce my hands and my feet.”
The power of the dog speaks of the creature’s ability to surround its prey like a pack of wolves, to bite, tear, inflict wounds, do evil, and destroy. Both a sword and a dog can kill. When David prayed to God to deliver his soul “from the sword” and his “precious life from the power of the dog,” he feared losing his life in a cruel and violent manner.
The terminology power of the dog may also invoke the might of the Roman Empire in Psalm 22’s prophetic portrayal of Christ’s suffering and death. It was Roman soldiers who carried out the crucifixion of Christ, surrounding Jesus, stripping off His clothing, nailing Him to the cross, and even gambling for His clothing (Matthew 27:35; Mark 15:24; Luke 23:34; John 19:24; cf. Psalm 22:18). A dog was the Jewish derogatory term for the Gentiles (Matthew 7:6; 15:26; Revelation 22:15). The Romans, the Jewish High Council, and Satan himself rallied together to put Jesus to death.
For the most part, dogs are presented in the Bible in an offensive light (1 Samuel 17:43; 2 Samuel 16:9; 2 Kings 8:13; Proverbs 26:11). They symbolize despicable, hostile, or evil people who group together like dogs to prey on the vulnerable. Our great enemy, the devil, operates like a dog or a lion, prowling around in search of someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8). Thus, the power of the dog is the lethal influence of one’s enemies who band together to inflict harm, injury, or death.
