Joyce Meyer (April-29-2024) Daily Devotion: Do What You Can Do!
Psalm 53:1–6
For the director of music. According to mahalath. A maskil of David.
1 The fool says in his heart,
“There is no God.”
They are corrupt, and their ways are vile;
there is no one who does good.
2 God looks down from heaven
on all mankind
to see if there are any who understand,
any who seek God.
3 Everyone has turned away, all have become corrupt;
there is no one who does good,
not even one.
4 Do all these evildoers know nothing?
They devour my people as though eating bread;
they never call on God.
5 But there they are, overwhelmed with dread,
where there was nothing to dread.
God scattered the bones of those who attacked you;
you put them to shame, for God despised them.
6 Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
When God restores his people,
let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!
Commentary
There is no one like Jesus
Napoleon Bonaparte said, ‘I know men and I tell you that Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison.’ Jesus is different from every other human being who has ever lived.
David says, ‘There is no one who does good’ (v.1). As God looks down from heaven on the human race, he sees that ‘there is no one who does good, not even one’ (v.3).
David looks in hope for a saviour: ‘Is there anyone around to save Israel?’ (v.6a, MSG). His longing was, of course, fulfilled in Jesus. Jesus was unique in his complete goodness. The apostle Paul quotes from this psalm to show the need of every human being for a saviour (Romans 3:10–12).
As Paul examines different people in this world – Jew and Gentile, moral and immoral – he comes to the conclusion that there is no one whom God can classify as good and righteous. He writes, ‘Therefore no one will be declared righteous in [God’s] sight...’ (v.20).
The wonder of the gospel is that we, who are not righteous, can be declared righteous through Jesus’ perfect righteousness. ‘This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe’ (v.22).
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