David prayed that the Lord would watch over his safety but also prayed that the Lord would hinder the efforts of the wicked. He asked God to refuse to grant the desires of the wicked and return their mischief upon their own heads. Within this context, he also prayed that the evil conceived by the wicked might “hunt the violent man to overthrow him.” He spoke of a similar theme when he sang of the wicked, “His mischief shall return upon his own head, and his violent dealing shall come down upon his own pate” (Psalm 7:16) or crown of his head. David knew the reward eventually yielded by violence was the return of violence upon the offender.
It may appear at times as though the wicked have all the advantage over the righteous, but it is important to note that the LORD has never lost His control of this world. The Bible says of God that His soul hateth “him that loveth violence.” Yet, “The LORD trieth the righteous” and often accomplishes this through the wickedness of the wicked. According to the psalms, the wicked “bend their bow, they make ready their arrow upon the string, that they may privily shoot at the upright in heart” (Psalm 11:2), and the Lord allows this to happen. Why? Because He wants to reveal the hearts of those who claim to fear Him. In the end, the Lord will take care of His own but will “rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest” upon the wicked (Psalm 11:6).
The world is increasingly becoming more filled with violence. At times, it may seem like judgment and justice are silent while the wicked continue to thrive. Throughout the years, this has caused many to question the Lord’s existence or, in the least, His presence and love. The seeming absence of God during these violent times is nothing more than proof He is longsuffering with mankind. King Solomon suggested the same when he said, “If thou seest . . . violent perverting of judgment and justice in a province, marvel not at the matter: for he that is higher than the highest regardeth; and there be higher than they.” It was likewise Solomon who said, “The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good” (Proverbs 15:3). God’s longsuffering does not indicate indifference or apathy.
The focus of people’s speech generally revolves around things they find most important. This is why the Bible says, “The mouth of a righteous man is a well of life.” How is that so? Because righteous things are important to him; they tend to dominate much of his conversation and focus. To the contrary, the wicked enjoy violence and tend to focus upon it, sometimes even unintentionally. They stir up controversy in the hopes that it yields the violence they crave. They view violent material in order to analyze the various aspects of violence ever needing new forms to entertain. It tends to dominate their discussions whether amongst friends or strangers. They pay money to view various events containing violence and leave disappointed if the violence does not reach their level of satisfaction. As a generation becomes enamored by violence, it consumes their thought life and their speech.
When men follow after vanity, they themselves become vain. An individual must make a conscious decision to turn from walking after the Lord to pursue vanity (Jeremiah 2:5). Those who follow after vanity are void of understanding (Proverbs 12:11) and end up in poverty (Proverbs 28:19), sometimes both spiritually and physically. David expressed his concern in this area when he said, “I have not sat with vain persons” (Psalm 26:4). He knew the danger of following vanity and declared that he refused even to sit with vain persons. In Psalm 119:37, the penman pleaded with the Lord for help in turning away his eyes from beholding vanity. God desires and wills for the saints of God to cease from following after vanity.
The book of Ecclesiastes contains documentation of Solomon’s life experiment apart from God. He examined the worth of subjects involving happiness, wealth, labour, and death. Ultimately, he concluded that life “under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:14) was vanity. The word vanity means empty or meaningless. Though Solomon wrote extensively concerning vanity, he was not the only person in the Bible to declare the vanity of life. In fact, Solomon’s father David declared that “every man at his best state is altogether vanity” (Psalm 39:5). King David added that if both men of high and low degree were laid in a balance together, they would be “lighter than vanity” (Psalm 62:9). Thus, regardless of worldly accomplishments and accolades, a life void of God remains meaningless.
