The Lord knows the thoughts of man;
he knows that they are futile
Blessed is the man you discipline O Lord
the man you teach from your law

Ps 94:11-12

This psalm is about the proud and their ends.

The psalmist’s indictment is against those whose arrogance elevates themselves above the reproof of others, and ultimately, above the counsel of God.

He addresses the inherent rebellious nature of humanity. It is more evident in the rich and the powerful in our world (which is most certainly the majority of Americans), but it is true of all.

It is this rebelious nature which turns man and woman away from the allegiance and obedience to God’s will and law. And it exactly this rebellious nature which the Psalmist reveals that God finds futile. C.S. Lewis said it best said that you can make no dimmer the glory of God as you would make the world darker by writing “darkness” all over your walls. It is because His glory is evident and his majesty pervasive.

So in this case, it is the supremacy of God’s ways which we cannot diminish. It is the rightness in his ways, it is the finality of his judgment. Although humanity’s arrogance can deceive us in thinking that we rise above his ways, we are ultimately fools in thinking so.

It is for this reason that the Psalmist proposes that the best possible position is one of submission–unreserved holistic surrender.

Yes, blessed is the man who falls in line with the discipline of God. It will be wisdom for him; his arrogance will only lead him astray.