We have been working our way down a very short psalm, Psalm 1. Easy to memorize. Only six verses. Just like Psalm 23. Today we look at the fifth verse.
Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
Psalm 1:5 (ESV)
The first three were about blessing, wisdom, and fruitfulness.
These last three are about poor choices and their results.
The first three verses were about how to live the abundant life starting today.
The last three verses are not about today, but what is to come.
You see, the wicked, those who reject goodness for evil, regardless their understanding of God, believe they can have everything they want and won’t have to pay a price. In fact they figure death will be okay because they do not believe in an afterlife.
If someone’s calculation is that they will win by dying, perhaps they should rethink their plans. Why strive for temporary pleasures when so much more is being offered? Furthermore, we are told that there comes a judgment, where everything wrong will be set right.
Unfortunately, this is the nature of many who, for whatever reason, are stuck in their thinking, not able to consider other possibilities. They believe they only believe what they see, or that what they see has more weight than what they can’t see. This isn’t even true in science.
The inability to stand in the judgment, as this verse states, is a way of saying they will not be able to mount a defense. Their guilt, unlike right now, through effective hyping and spinning, will be exposed and obvious. And who will see it? The congregation of the righteousness will be in attendance.