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a watched pot

Psalm 58:9-11 (JDV)

Psalm 58:9 Before your pots can feel the heat of the thorns – whether green or burning – he will sweep them away.
Psalm 58:10 The righteous one will rejoice when he sees the retribution; he will wash his feet in the blood of the wicked.
Psalm 58:11 Then people will say, “Yes, there is a reward for the righteous! There is a God who judges in the land!”

a watched pot

The saying goes “a watched pot never boils” suggesting that if you are anticipating or waiting for something it will not happen.  Apparently the psalmist does not subscribe to that proverb. He anticipates the retribution of God against his enemies. He is waiting to see what God does in response to his prayer. Now, we might say that the prayer sounds vindictive and cruel. Who really wants to wash his feet in his enemies’ blood? But, the fact is, when our enemies are God’s enemies, seeking not only our death but the downfall of the gospel, their fate is already sealed. Waiting for the destruction of God’s enemies is part of waiting for God’s ultimate will to happen.

In the mean time, some of those enemies are marked for forgiveness and restoration. We need the courage to keep preaching the gospel to them.

Lord, we trust you to right all wrongs, and to punish all your enemies with the wages of their sin: death. But give us the courage to keep preaching the gospel to bring even them to salvation.