The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, and have done abominable iniquity; there is none who does good. (Psalm 53:1)
There is a long standing tradition regarding this psalm which says, David was speaking prophetically of the destruction of the Second Temple and the people responsible for it. Specifically, Titus is believed to be the primary “fool” because, according to tradition, he performed many despicable and degenerate acts in the Temple. This includes taking a sword to the veil that separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place, slashing it piece by piece. It is said that, when he had finished desecrating the veil in this manner, he declared that “God is dead.”
Whether this account is accurate or not, the point is that men who deny God’s existence have no fear of God — how could they if they don’t believe there is a God? When there is no fear of God, there is no fear of consequences when they act in a reprehensible way. It should be noted that the Hebrew word translated as “fool” actually means someone who is vile and degenerate. It’s not clear to me which comes first: in other words, are they regarded a fool because they refuse to believe in God? Or is it that a degenerate person will eventually conclude there is no God. Regardless, they will end up committing “abominable iniquity” (lawless deeds).
The remedy for this, of course, is to be one of humble spirit; one who is insightful enough to realize that the vastness of Creation did not come into being by a cosmic accident. Because His Creation testifies, not only of His existence, but His Supreme sovereignty over everything and everyone within His creation, we should fear the Almighty. In comparison to Him, what are we? We are no more than a speck of dust into which He breathed the breath of life. We are like grass that springs up and then withers away. That being so, is it not wise to acknowledge our own inferiority and to submit to His will in all things? It is written that a fool is right in his own eyes, is self confident and will turn to rage; but a wise mean fears God, heeds His counsel and departs from evil (Proverbs 12:15, 14:16). So then, let us be wise men and women who fear the Lord and who choose to serve Him every day for the rest of our days.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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