Oh, that You would slay the wicked, O God! Depart from me, therefore, you bloodthirsty men. 20 For they speak against You wickedly; Your enemies take Your name in vain. —Psalm 139:19-20

David is asking God to slay those who slander the Lord and take His name in vain. The third commandment states, “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.” David is crying out to the Lord that his enemies are doing exactly that.

Are we likewise guilty? Do we use God’s name as a curse word or claim that we know Him but live like we don’t?

Now, we need to do some heavy thinking here. In Matthew 5, Jesus references the Old Testament, saying, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse, you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; . . . For if you love those who love you, what reward have you?. . . . And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? . . . Therefore you shall be perfect just as your Father in heaven in perfect” (Matthew 5:43-48).

There’s something we need to consider in order to correct the concept of the “God of the Old Testament vs. the God of the New Testament,” or the “angry God” vs. “gentle Jesus.” In Matthew’s words above, was Jesus introducing a new way of thinking? On the contrary! He was actually correcting a wrong way of thinking. “Love your neighbor” was part of the Law! Leviticus 19:18 states: “You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.”

“Hate your enemy” wasn’t a part of the Law, and in fact Jesus himself was teaching the Jews from the original Old Law, because the New Covenant age couldn’t begin until the final Passover Lamb was offered as the perfect sacrifice, fulfilling the righteous requirements of the Law. Nor had Jesus yet risen from the dead, conquering the second death for us.

In the book of Leviticus we read, “You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord” (19:18). Of course, some might wonder, “If the law said to love your neighbor, then why would God command His people to go out and destroy the nations and occupy their land?” For one thing, Leviticus and the Sermon on the Mount are addressing interpersonal relationships, not national or international ones. In many places in the Old Testament, God instructed the Israelites to drive out or destroy the people of the land lest the Jews might be tempted to worship their pagan gods. God even called for the complete destruction of those who killed infants as sacrifices and employed other abominable practices.

For those who say, “Well, Jesus would never do that,” may I suggest that you read the end of the Book? Jesus does exactly that when He returns in glory! In Matthew, He dealt with the way people are to treat one another as individuals. Vengeance was reserved for the Lord both in the Old and in the New Covenants. (See Romans 12:19 and Hebrews 10:30.) Loving one’s neighbor was nothing new, nor was loving one’s enemy, in the realm of interpersonal relationships. So what was David saying in verses 19 and 20 under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit?

David was defending God, not himself. He said, “They speak wickedly against You and take Your name in vain.” As we begin to fit all of these pieces together, here is what we see: Righteous indignation is not only our right; it’s our responsibility. David took a courageous stand in speaking out against these people. Do we ever waffle in similar situations, asking, “Is it safe?” or “What will people think?” If so, we’ve moved away from what the Bible really says. Take a few minutes to examine your own heart along these lines.

Excerpt from “Beside Still Waters” now available on Amazon.

BARRY STAGNER