Week 4, Part 1: Lessons from Psalms and Proverbs
Day 3 – God’s People and the Fatherless: Psalm 82:3,4; Proverbs 23:10,11
Psalm 82:3,4 – “Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy. Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked.”
Defend The Poor and Fatherless
The above passage delves into our personal responsibility for the fatherless as well as the poor and needy. Here we are commanded to do four things.
Defend them. Literally this means to defend their cause.
Do Justice. This has the idea of taking up the case, hearing it, and making things right.
Deliver them. The Hebrew meaning here has the idea of bringing into security.
Rid them out of the hand of the wicked. This is a picturesque phrase. The word “to rid” literally means “to snatch away” and is also translated as: deliver, rescue, save, strip, plunder, among other things. The word translated here as “hand” can also indicate power. Each of these things mirrors God’s relationship to the fatherless and takes us back to Deuteronomy 10:17-19 and the basis for the command to care for the fatherless: God’s character.
Things to Think About
What picture does this paint of how God intends for His people to act toward the fatherless?
How do we apply this today? (I’d love to hear your thoughts! Please share in the comments below.)
Protecting the Inheritance of the Fatherless
Proverbs 23:10,11 – “Remove not the old landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless: For their redeemer is mighty; he shall plead their cause with thee.”
This passage is speaking of the inheritance of the fatherless and those who would take over their land by removing the marks that clearly show both their true ownership and the correct boundaries of the land. God does not take lightly the fact that some would remove these marks and afflict the fatherless in this way. His people are commanded not to do it.
Remember in the story of Ruth, how Boaz became her Kinsman Redeemer? This is the position God is taking for the fatherless. God will stand up as their Redeemer. We are commanded not to remove their inheritance. If we do, God will plead their cause with us.
God also desires to be their Redeemer from a spiritual perspective. When we come to the New Testament portion of this study, we will see that God usually mentions adoption in direct correlation with redemption. Just as He desires to see them redeemed from their fatherless state, he desires to see them redeemed from their sin and hell-bound state.
Some Questions to Ponder:
Is it possible that our current approach to caring for the fatherless allows for certain landmarks, especially spiritual landmarks, to be removed from the lives of these children? In other words, does it allow affliction to continue in their lives?
Do we as God’s people have certain responsibilities toward the fatherless? If so, what are they? What are they not?
How does God’s care and responsibility for the fatherless differ from ours?
(I’d love to hear your thoughts! Please share in the comments.)
Up Next: Week 4 Part 2: Lessons from the Prophets – Day 4: Isaiah: The Backdrop
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