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Public-domain commentary
Matthew Henry
From his Commentary on the Whole Bible. Henry comments on passages, not single verses — this entry covers Psalms 73:15–20. His three-level outline is real structure in the source text, so it is rendered as structure.
We have seen what a strong temptation the psalmist was in to envy prospering profaneness; now here we are told how he kept his footing and got the victory.
I.He kept up a respect for God's people, and with that he restrained himself from speaking what he had thought amiss, Psa 73:15.
He got the victory by degrees, and this was the first point he gained; he was ready to say, Verily, I have cleansed my heart in vain, and thought he had reason to say it, but he kept his mouth with this consideration, "If I say, I will speak thus, behold, I should myself revolt and apostatize from, and so give the greatest offence imaginable to, the generation of thy children." Observe here,
1.Though he thought amiss, he took care not to utter that evil thought which he had conceived. Note, It is bad to think ill, but it is worse to speak it, for that is giving the evil thought an imprimatur - a sanction; it is allowing it, giving consent to it, and publishing it for the infection of others. But it is a good sign that we repent of the evil imagination of the heart if we suppress it, and the error remains with ourselves. If therefore thou hast been so foolish as to think evil, be so wise as to lay thy hand upon thy mouth, and let it go no further, Pro 30:32. If I say, I will speak thus. Observe, Though his corrupt heart made this inference from the prosperity of the wicked, yet he did not mention it to those whether it were fit to be mentioned or no. Note, We must think twice before we speak once, both because some things may be thought which yet may not be spoken and because the second thoughts may correct the mistakes of the first.
2.The reason why he would not speak it was for fear of giving offence to those whom God owned for his children. Note,
(1.)There are a people in the world that are the generation of God's children, a set of men that hear and love God as their Father.
(2.)We must be very careful not to say or do any thing which may justly offend any of these little ones (Mat 18:6), especially which may offend the generation of them, may sadden their hearts, or weaken their hands, or shake their interest.
(3.)There is nothing that can give more general offence to the generation of God's children than to say that we have cleansed our heart in vain or that it is vain to serve God; for there is nothing more contrary to their universal sentiment and experience nor any thing that grieves them more than to hear God thus reflected on.
(4.)Those that wish themselves in the condition of the wicked do in effect quit the tents of God's children.
II.He foresaw the ruin of wicked people.
By this he baffled the temptation, as by the former he gave some check to it. Because he durst not speak what he had thought, for fear of giving offence, he began to consider whether he had any good reason for that thought (Psa 73:16): "I endeavoured to understand the meaning of this unaccountable dispensation of Providence; but it was too painful for me. I could not conquer it by the strength of my own reasoning." It is a problem, not to be solved by the mere light of nature, for, if there were not another life after this, we could not fully reconcile the prosperity of the wicked with the justice of God. But (Psa 73:17) he went into the sanctuary of God; he applied to his devotions, meditated upon the attributes of God, and the things revealed, which belong to us and to our children; he consulted the scriptures, and the lips of the priests who attended the sanctuary; he prayed to God to make this matter plain to him and to help him over this difficulty; and, at length, he understood the wretched end of wicked people, which he plainly foresaw to be such that even in the height of their prosperity they were rather to be pitied than envied, for they were but ripening for ruin. Note, There are many great things, and things needful to be known, which will not be known otherwise than by going into the sanctuary of God, by the word and prayer. The sanctuary must therefore be the resort of a tempted soul. Note, further, We must judge of persons and things as they appear by the light of divine revelation, and then we shall judge righteous judgment; particularly we must judge by the end. All is well that ends well, everlastingly well; but nothing well that ends ill, everlastingly ill. The righteous man's afflictions end in peace, and therefore he is happy; the wicked man's enjoyments end in destruction, and therefore he is miserable.
1.The prosperity of the wicked is short and uncertain. The high places in which Providence sets them are slippery places (Psa 73:18), where they cannot long keep footing; but, when they offer to climb higher, that very attempt will be the occasion of their sliding and falling. Their prosperity has no firm ground; it is not built upon God's favour or his promise; and they have not the satisfaction of feeling that it rests on firm ground.
2.Their destruction is sure, and sudden, and very great. This cannot be meant of any temporal destruction; for they were supposed to spend all their days in wealth and their death itself had no bands in it: In a moment they go down to the grace, so that even that could scarcely be called their destruction; it must therefore be meant of eternal destruction on the other side death - hell and destruction. They flourish for a time, but are undone for ever.
(1.)Their ruin is sure and inevitable. He speaks of it as a thing done - They are cast down; for their destruction is as certain as if it were already accomplished. He speaks of it as God's doing, and therefore it cannot be resisted: Thou castest them down. It is destruction from the Almighty (Joe 1:15), from the glory of his power, Th2 1:9. Who can support those whom God will cast down, on whom God will lay burdens?
(2.)It is swift and sudden; their damnation slumbers not; for how are they brought into desolation as in a moment! Psa 73:19. It is easily effected, and will be a great surprise to themselves and all about them.
(3.)It is severe and very dreadful. It is a total and final ruin: They are utterly consumed with terrors, It is the misery of the damned that the terrors of the Almighty, whom they have made their enemy, fasten upon their guilty consciences, which can neither shelter themselves from them nor strengthen themselves under them; and therefore not their being, but their bliss, must needs be utterly consumed by them; not the least degree of comfort or hope remains to them; the higher they were lifted up in their prosperity the sorer will their fall be when they are cast down into destructions (for the word is plural) and suddenly brought into desolation.
3.Their prosperity is therefore not to be envied at all, but despised rather, quod erat demonstrandum - which was the point to be established, Psa 73:20. As a dream when one awaketh, so, O Lord! when thou awakest, or when they awake (as some read it), thou shalt despise their image, their shadow, and make it to vanish. In the day of the great judgment (so the Chaldee paraphrase reads it), when they are awaked out of their graves, thou shalt, in wrath, despise their image; for they shall rise to shame and everlasting contempt. See here,
(1.)What their prosperity now is; it is but an image, a vain show, a fashion of the world that passes away; it is not real, but imaginary, and it is only a corrupt imagination that makes it a happiness; it is not substance, but a mere shadow; it is not what it seems to be, nor will it prove what we promise ourselves from it; it is as a dream, which may please us a little, while we are asleep, yet even then it disturbs our repose; but, how pleasing soever it is, it is all but a cheat, all false; when we awake we find it so. A hungry man dreams that he eats, but he awakes and his soul is empty, Isa 29:8. A man is never the more rich or honourable for dreaming he is so. Who therefore will envy a man the pleasure of a dream?
(2.)What will be the issue of it; God will awake to judgment, to plead his own and his people's injured cause; they shall be made to awake out of the sleep of their carnal security, and then God shall despise their image; he shall make it appear to all the world how despicable it is; so that the righteous shall laugh at them, Psa 52:6, Psa 52:7. How did God despise that rich man's image when he said, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee! Luk 12:19, Luk 12:20. We ought to be of God's mind, for his judgment is according to truth, and not to admire and envy that which he despises and will despise; for, sooner or later, he will bring all the world to be of his mind.
Historical interpretation
Historical Reception
6 surviving comments on this verse. Each one is dated, so this reads as a timeline rather than a list.
Select a marker to jump to its quote. Markers stagger vertically where authors wrote within a few decades of each other.
Subsequent events also go to show how the image of such a person is not found but perishes, since his image is not found in the city of the Lord, that Jerusalem which is above. For the Lord has painted us in his image and likeness, even as he teaches us, saying, “Behold, O Jerusalem, I have painted your walls.” If we have acted well, that heavenly image continues in us; if anyone acts badly, this image is destroyed in him that is the image of him who came down from heaven, and there is in him the image of the earthly. On this account also the apostle says, “Even as we have borne the image of the one that is earthly, let us bear also the image of the other that is heavenly.” Therefore, the images of good continue to shine forth in that city of God. But if anyone has turned aside to graver sins and has not done penance, his image is destroyed or else cast out even as Adam was cast out and excluded from paradise. But whoever has conducted himself in a holy and honorable fashion enters into that city of God15 and brings in his own image so that it may shine in that city of God. “O Lord, in your city you shall reduce their images to nothing,” because those who have clothed themselves with the works of darkness cannot shine in the light. Let us adduce an example from the world. See how the images of good rulers continue in cities, whereas the images of tyrants are destroyed.
Such, then, is the first supposition of true knowledge, that things in the world happen by chance. The second is that “on account of the subterfuges you have placed before them” prodigious success, worldly profits and an abundance of riches. Otherwise, they might plead by way of excuse that they had been less devout by reason of want or of some bitter pain or grief and had been driven to the guilt of robbery and to the desire to plunder under compulsion of poverty. For they were enriched with wealth and exalted with honors, not for tranquility of life or the enjoyment of delight but that complaining might be foreclosed and distress piled up.
Therefore, in regard to the latter, David also says, “They have ceased to be and have perished by reason of their iniquity as the dream of one that wakes up.” This means: The wicked cease to be, and they disappear as a dream does when one first wakes up from sleep, “because they are in darkness and have walked in darkness”;7 not a trace of their good work remains, but they are like those who see a dream. Now one who dreams, dreams at night, whereas night is in darkness. The children of darkness are deprived of the Sun of justice and the splendor of virtue, for they sleep always and do not keep watch, and of them it is appropriately said, “They have slept their sleep and have found nothing.” For indeed, when their souls are separated from the body, and they are, as it were, released from the sleep of the body, they will find nothing, they will possess nothing, and they will lose what they thought they possessed. For although the unwise and foolish person may overflow with riches, he will leave his riches to strangers, and the glory of his house will not descend to hell together with him.
And therefore I conferred with my heart and I said to myself, “if I will speak thus, that I have justified my heart in vain,” and the voice of God replied to me and said, “Behold the generation of your children, to which I have made distribution.” This means: Behold, you find in the Scriptures, O you son of Adam, that I have made distribution to the generation of your children, that wealth may be granted to the wicked simply by chance and not from some merit. Neither are the rewards of virtue the profits of a treasury, just as poverty … is not a punishment for sin. But such things come without distinction, for they roll along on a kind of flow of life that is like a river.
But because the psalmist realized afterward—as he goes on to say in the same psalm, "When I tried to understand this," and he added, "it was a wearisome task," why the wicked have all the luck; "it was a wearisome task," he says, "until I went into the sanctuary of God and understood about their latter end," that for the wicked who are now for a time given good fortune, eternal punishment is being saved up for the last day. So when he realized this he became upright of heart and began to praise God for everything, both for the troubles of decent people and for the good fortune of the wicked. For he observed that God is just in his retributions at the end and that he now gives some people temporal good fortune while keeping in store for them at the end everlasting misfortune, and that in the present life he is subjecting some decent people to the rigors of misfortune while saving up for them eternal good fortune in the next. He remarks that they have to change places, like that rich man who used to feast sumptuously every day and that poor man, full of sores, lying at the rich man's gate and longing to fill himself with the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table. But when they were both dead the first began to be in pain in hell, and the second was at rest in Abraham's bosom. When the rich man thought this was unfair and wanted a drop of water dripped on his tongue from Lazarus's middle finger (changing places, he now longed for a drop from the finger of the man who had longed for a crumb from his table), he heard from Abraham the judgment of the upright God: "Son," he said, "remember that you received good things in your life and Lazarus bad things; but now he is at rest, and you are in torment."
And what follows? That he might not reprobate, he did what? "And I undertook to know" [Psalm 73:16]. May God be with him in order that he may know. Meanwhile, brethren, from a great fall he is being withheld, when he does not presume that he already knows, but has undertaken to know that which he knew not. For but now he was willing to appear as if knowing, and to declare that God has no care of things human. For this has come to be a most naughty and ungodly doctrine of unrighteous men. Know, brethren, that many men dispute and say that God cares not for things human, that by chances all things are ruled, or that our wills have been made subject to the stars, that each one is not dealt with according to his deserts, but by the necessity of his stars—an evil doctrine, an impious doctrine. Unto these thoughts was going that man whose feet were almost moved, and whose steps were all but overthrown, into this error he was going; but because he was not in tune with the generation of the sons of God, he undertook to know, and condemned the knowledge wherein with God's just men he agreed not. And what he says let us hear; how that he undertook to know, and was helped, and learned something, and declared it to us. "And I undertook," he says, "to know." "In this labour is before me." Truly a great labour; to know in what manner both God does care for things human, and it is well with evil men, and good men labour. Great is the importance of the question; therefore, "and this labour is before me." As it were there is standing in my face a sort of wall, but you have the voice of a Psalm, "In my God I shall pass over the wall."
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Summary
Psalms 73:16 captures the zenith of Asaph's profound spiritual and intellectual crisis, articulating the psalmist's deep emotional and mental anguish as he grappled with a perceived injustice in God's governance. His earnest attempt to reconcile the apparent prosperity of the wicked with the suffering of the righteous became an unbearable burden, revealing the utter insufficiency of human reasoning alone to resolve such a weighty theological paradox. This verse marks a critical turning point in Asaph's journey, highlighting the inherent limitations of human understanding and setting the stage for a transformative divine revelation.
Context
Literary Context
Psalms 73:16 serves as the climactic expression of Asaph's intense internal struggle, a crisis of faith that began with his confession of a near spiritual collapse in Psalms 73:2-3. He meticulously details the seemingly untroubled lives, pride, violence, and blasphemous boasts of the wicked, whose wealth and influence appeared to grow unchecked (Psalms 73:4-12). This stark observation is painfully contrasted with Asaph's own experience: he felt his efforts to live righteously were futile, enduring daily affliction and chastisement (Psalms 73:13-14). The preceding verse, Psalms 73:15, reveals his hesitation to voice these doubts publicly, recognizing the potential to undermine the faith of God's children. Thus, verse 16 encapsulates the culmination of this intense, private intellectual and emotional wrestling, immediately preceding his breakthrough moment of divine clarity in the sanctuary (Psalms 73:17).
Historical & Cultural Context
Asaph, a prominent Levite and chief musician during the reigns of David and Solomon, was deeply steeped in the covenantal theology of ancient Israel. The Mosaic Law often presented a clear correlation between obedience and blessing, and disobedience and cursing, implying that righteousness should lead to prosperity and wickedness to suffering. The apparent contradiction of the wicked flourishing while the righteous endured hardship (the enduring problem of theodicy) posed a profound challenge to this foundational understanding within Israelite society. This theological dilemma was not unique to Asaph; it is a recurring and central theme throughout biblical wisdom literature, notably explored in the profound dialogues of the Book of Job and the existential reflections of Ecclesiastes. Asaph's personal struggle reflects a universal human experience, but within his specific cultural and theological framework, witnessing the wicked seemingly escape divine justice led to a significant crisis of faith concerning God's active involvement, righteousness, and providential governance in the world.
Key Themes
Psalms 73:16 contributes significantly to several major theological and narrative themes within the psalm and the broader biblical canon. Firstly, it powerfully articulates the Problem of Theodicy, the age-old and deeply human question of how a good, just, and omnipotent God can permit evil and suffering, especially when the wicked appear to prosper without consequence. Asaph's personal anguish highlights the profound human struggle with perceived cosmic injustice. Secondly, the verse underscores the Limitations of Human Wisdom and Understanding. Despite his earnest intellectual effort ("When I thought to know this"), Asaph found his own human reason utterly incapable of comprehending divine mysteries or reconciling the observed discrepancies, revealing the inherent inadequacy of purely rationalistic approaches to spiritual truths. This intellectual impasse sets the stage for the psalm's ultimate resolution, emphasizing the Necessity of Divine Revelation and Perspective, which Asaph only gains by entering God's sanctuary (Psalms 73:17). Finally, the verse profoundly illustrates the theme of The Journey of Faith and Doubt, portraying an honest, vulnerable, and intense wrestling with God, thereby validating that such struggles are a legitimate, albeit painful, and often necessary part of a genuine relationship with the Divine.
Exposition and Analysis
Key Word Analysis
The Hebrew verb חָשַׁב (châshab) signifies "to plait or interpenetrate, to weave, to fabricate; figuratively, to plot or contrive; hence (from the mental effort) to think, regard, value, compute." In this context, it implies a deliberate, intense, and calculating intellectual process, not a casual reflection. Asaph was not merely wondering; he was actively trying to calculate, understand, and reconcile the apparent inconsistencies he observed. This word highlights the depth of his mental engagement and the earnestness of his quest for knowledge and resolution, indicating a profound intellectual struggle.
The Hebrew verb יָדַע (yâdaʻ) means "to know (properly, to ascertain by seeing); used in a great variety of senses, figuratively, literally, euphemistically and inferentially (including observation, care, recognition; and causatively, instruction, designation, punishment, etc.)." Here, it refers to Asaph's desire for a deep, experiential, and conclusive understanding of the paradox. He sought not just information, but true insight and reconciliation of the observed reality with his theological framework. The pain arose from his inability to truly "know" or comprehend this divine mystery through his own efforts.
The Hebrew noun עָמָל (ʻâmâl) derives from a root meaning "to toil" and denotes "wearing effort; hence, worry, whether of body or mind; grievance(-vousness), iniquity, labour, mischief, miserable(-sery), pain(-ful), perverseness, sorrow, toil, travail, trouble, wearisome, wickedness." It conveys a sense of grievous burden, distress, and oppressive difficulty. It is far more than mere intellectual difficulty; it signifies a deep, soul-wrenching anguish. The KJV's "too painful" aptly captures the overwhelming, unbearable nature of this distress, indicating that the intellectual pursuit had transcended mere mental effort and become a profound spiritual and emotional agony that threatened his very faith.
Verse Breakdown
"When I thought to know this"
This clause vividly portrays Asaph's diligent, earnest, and intense intellectual pursuit to comprehend the perplexing paradox of the wicked's prosperity juxtaposed with the righteous's suffering. "This" refers to the entire unsettling situation he has meticulously described in the preceding verses—the apparent injustice of God's ways as observed from a human, earthly perspective. He applied his mind with great effort, seeking a rational explanation or reconciliation that would align his observations with his understanding of God's character and covenant.
"it [was] too painful for me;"
This second clause expresses the devastating and overwhelming consequence of his intellectual struggle. The attempt to comprehend this profound theological dilemma, rather than bringing clarity or peace, resulted in an unbearable emotional, spiritual, and even physical anguish. The pain was not merely a headache from deep thought, but a profound distress that afflicted his very soul, indicating a severe crisis of faith and an overwhelming burden on his spirit. His finite human capacity for understanding was utterly overwhelmed by the magnitude of the divine mystery and the perceived injustice, leading to a state of unbearable spiritual torment.
Literary Devices
Psalms 73:16 employs several potent literary devices to convey the depth of Asaph's profound internal struggle. The verse functions as a powerful Confession or Lament, a common feature within the Psalms, where the psalmist openly admits his intellectual and emotional distress to God. The phrase "it was too painful for me" is a clear example of Hyperbole, emphasizing the extreme, overwhelming, and unbearable nature of his anguish; the pain was not merely difficult but utterly debilitating. There is also a strong element of Irony present: the very act of seeking knowledge and understanding, which is typically viewed as a beneficial and enlightening pursuit, here leads to greater suffering, confusion, and despair. This intellectual quest, rather than resolving his dilemma, deepens his crisis and highlights the limitations of human reason. Furthermore, the verse implicitly relies on Juxtaposition, by placing Asaph's internal agony and intellectual frustration against the backdrop of the wicked's carefree and prosperous existence (detailed in earlier verses), thereby highlighting the stark contrast that fueled his profound pain and spiritual disorientation.
Theological and Thematic Connections
Psalms 73:16 is a profound theological statement on the inherent limitations of human reason when confronted with divine mysteries and perceived injustices in the world. It teaches that while intellectual inquiry is valuable and necessary, there are ultimate questions about God's ways and purposes that transcend purely rational answers, necessitating a shift from reliance on human understanding to humble reception of divine revelation. Asaph's intense pain underscores the spiritual danger of attempting to judge God's character and governance solely by human observation, experience, or logic. His struggle is a deeply universal human experience, validating the reality of doubt, anguish, and intellectual frustration within the journey of faith, yet also powerfully pointing to the ultimate source of clarity, peace, and resolution found only in God's presence and perspective. This verse thus sets the crucial stage for the truth that genuine wisdom and lasting peace are discovered not through intellectual conquest or solving every paradox, but in humble submission to God's sovereign wisdom, which often profoundly confounds human understanding.
Reflection and Application
Psalms 73:16 offers profound comfort and timeless guidance for believers navigating the complex and often perplexing realities of life. It powerfully validates the human experience of wrestling with difficult questions concerning God's justice, the apparent unfairness of suffering, and the seemingly unpunished prosperity of those who disregard Him. Asaph's raw honesty in articulating his deep pain gives us permission to acknowledge and voice our own doubts, frustrations, and spiritual anguish without shame, recognizing that such struggles are a normal, even integral, part of a genuine faith journey. This verse serves as a potent reminder of the limits of human wisdom; we cannot fully comprehend God's intricate plans, purposes, and timing through our own finite understanding. When intellectual answers prove insufficient, and the weight of unanswered questions becomes "too painful," this verse implicitly directs us beyond mere reasoning. It points us towards the absolute necessity of seeking God's perspective, a theme fully and beautifully developed in the subsequent verses of Psalm 73. Our ultimate peace, clarity, and spiritual resolution are often found not in solving every paradox through human logic, but in drawing near to the Lord and humbly trusting in His sovereign and unfathomable wisdom.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Why did Asaph find this particular thought so painful?
Asaph found the thought "too painful" because it challenged the very foundation of his faith and his deeply ingrained understanding of God's justice and covenantal promises. He observed the wicked living seemingly carefree lives, free from the troubles common to humanity, boasting arrogantly, and accumulating vast wealth and influence (Psalms 73:4-12). Meanwhile, he, who earnestly sought to live righteously and maintain a pure heart, felt his efforts were in vain, experiencing daily suffering and chastisement (Psalms 73:13-14). This stark and persistent contradiction between divine promise (blessings for the righteous) and observed reality (wicked prosperity and righteous suffering) created an unbearable cognitive dissonance and profound emotional and spiritual distress. It was not merely an academic puzzle; it was a deeply personal crisis of faith that threatened to unravel his entire worldview and his trust in God's goodness, righteousness, and active involvement in the world.
Does this verse imply that seeking knowledge or understanding is bad?
No, Psalms 73:16 does not imply that seeking knowledge or understanding is inherently bad or discouraged. Rather, it profoundly highlights the limitations of finite human understanding when confronted with divine mysteries and the unfathomable depths of God's wisdom and sovereign ways. Asaph's "thought to know this" was an earnest, diligent, and commendable intellectual pursuit, reflecting a sincere desire to reconcile his observations with his theology. The pain arose not from the act of seeking, but from the inherent inability of his finite human reason to fully grasp or reconcile the apparent paradox without a divine perspective. The verse serves as a crucial setup for the next verse, Psalms 73:17, where Asaph finds profound clarity and peace by entering the "sanctuary of God." This indicates that true, transformative understanding often comes through spiritual revelation and drawing near to God in worship and communion, rather than solely through human intellectual effort. It teaches humility in the face of divine wisdom, not an abandonment of earnest inquiry.
Christ-Centered Fulfillment
Asaph's agonizing struggle in Psalms 73:16, where human reason proved "too painful" to reconcile the world's pervasive injustices and the prosperity of the wicked, finds its ultimate resolution and profound fulfillment in the person and work of Jesus Christ. The very problem of theodicy—why the righteous suffer and the wicked prosper—is most profoundly addressed and ultimately answered in the cross of Christ. The crucifixion itself is the ultimate paradox: the perfectly righteous Son of God, who knew no sin, became sin for us, enduring unimaginable suffering, humiliation, and apparent abandonment by God, while the forces of wickedness seemed to triumph (2 Corinthians 5:21). Yet, it is precisely in this "painful" and seemingly unjust event that God's perfect justice, boundless love, and sovereign wisdom are fully revealed, confounding all human wisdom and demonstrating God's ultimate power (1 Corinthians 1:23-25). Christ, who experienced the depths of human suffering, temptation, and anguish, yet remained without sin (Hebrews 4:15), is our empathetic High Priest who truly understands our intellectual and emotional pains when faced with life's paradoxes. In Him, the "mystery of God" is unveiled, for "in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Colossians 2:2-3). Through Him, believers receive a peace that transcends all human understanding, guarding their hearts and minds (Philippians 4:7)—a peace that Asaph could only begin to glimpse and receive by entering the sanctuary. Christ is the ultimate "sanctuary" where our intellectual and emotional pains are met with divine wisdom, perfect justice, and the promise of ultimate vindication and eternal glory.