https://esv.literalword.com/?q=Psalm+109;+Job+2
Observations from today’s readings and today’s S-WOD, Sunday, 1 February 2026:
Psalm 109:1-5 — Be not silent, O God of my praise….
Psalm 109 opens with tension rather than tranquility. David addresses God as “the God of my praise,” even as he is surrounded by slander, hatred, and false accusation. Praise is not the result of peace; it is the posture he chooses in conflict. David is not confused about who God is simply because people are unjust. He brings his anguish directly to God rather than managing it privately or retaliating publicly.
David describes betrayal by those he loved and prayed for. The pain is relational and moral, not merely circumstantial. This anticipates the suffering of Christ, who was hated without cause, betrayed by close companions, and accused falsely despite perfect obedience. The psalm teaches that faith does not require pretending injustice is acceptable; it requires bringing injustice into the presence of a righteous God.
Psalm 109:4 — In return for my love they accuse me, but I give myself to prayer.
When God called you to minister to a sinful world, He knew that sinners would treat you sinfully. When you love imperfect people as God commanded, they will treat you imperfectly. Taking a beating for the sake of that love is how you “take up our cross” and follow Jesus.
Don’t focus on your enemies, focus on God. Don’t worry about your enemies – pray.
Psalm 109:6-20 — Appoint a wicked man against him….
These verses are among the most difficult in the Psalms. David calls for judgment, not because he loves vengeance, but because he entrusts justice to God rather than seizing it himself. This is not personal retaliation; it is covenant appeal. David asks God to act righteously where human systems have failed.
The New Testament does not erase the impulse to seek justice; it reframes it. Jesus does not deny justice, He absorbs it. At the cross, judgment falls not on enemies but on Himself, satisfying justice so mercy can flow. Psalm 109 reminds us that unresolved injustice cannot be ignored; it must either be judged or redeemed. In Christ, both occur.
Psalm 109:21 — But you, O God my Lord, deal on my behalf for your name’s sake; because your steadfast love is good, deliver me!
The tone shifts decisively. David appeals to God’s steadfast love, not his own righteousness. He is weak, needy, and surrounded, yet confident that God will stand at the right hand of the poor. Deliverance is not self-generated; it is received.
This closing section anticipates the gospel posture. Salvation belongs to the Lord. The afflicted are not saved by their strength but by God’s mercy. Praise returns not because circumstances have changed, but because David knows who defends him. Christ fulfills this perfectly, standing condemned so the needy may be justified, mocked so the accused may be vindicated.
The psalmist understood that God would act for Himself, not merely for the psalmist. God’s goal is to reveal Himself and to bring glory to Himself, not merely to the delivered one. Live a life that will reveal God’s love and faithfulness. You are glorified as you glorify Him.
- John 17:22 — The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one,
Psalm 109:27, 28 — Let them know that this is your hand; you, O Lord, have done it! Let them curse, but you will bless! They arise and are put to shame, but your servant will be glad!
Your faith grows when you see God work in your life. God’s work in your life is your testimony to others. Walk in the faith that you have so that God can strengthen your faith every time you see Him act in your life. If you only trust in your own understanding and walk in your own strength, you will never see God do what only He can do, and your faith will not grow.
“Let them curse, but you will bless!” There is nothing anyone else can do to you that God will not use to bring about the very best for you. Trust Him. Be patient. Don’t just endure whatever you are going through, make the most of it to draw closer to God, to glorify God, and to receive the blessings in the moment you would otherwise miss had you not been anticipating them and looking for them. Our hope, joy, and fate rests with the LORD, not men.
- Romans 8:28-39 — 2And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died — more than that, who was raised — who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Psalm 109:30 — With my mouth I will give great thanks to the Lord; I will praise him in the midst of the throng.
As our readings have taught several times today, God’s goal is to reveal Himself. When you proclaim God, you become an agent of His purpose. When you walk with Jesus and reveal the blessings of Jesus in your life, you will grow in spiritual strength, and God will use your life more and more in accordance with His purpose. If you are faithful with little, you will be given much.
Psalm 109:30 — With my mouth I will give great thanks to the Lord; I will praise him in the midst of the throng.
Mature faith is able to “give great thanks” to the LORD in the midst of suffering, crisis, and chaos.
Job 2:1-6 — Then Satan answered the LORD and said, “Skin for skin! All that a man has he will give for his life. But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face.”
Integrity chooses what is right over selfishness (what I want for me). You cannot have integrity and also be selfish. Job held on to his integrity, but Satan believed that with enough discomfort, Job would start being selfish (what about me). How much discomfort does it take for you to start being self-centered?
The scene returns to heaven, underscoring that Job’s suffering is not random or meaningless. Satan again challenges Job’s integrity, escalating the accusation: physical pain will succeed where loss failed. Satan insists that devotion collapses when suffering becomes personal. What does it take for you to lose your love, joy, peace, contentment, and gratitude, subsequently failing to rightly represent Christ before others as His appointed ambassador?
God permits the test but sets boundaries once more. Satan may afflict Job’s body, but not take his life. Evil operates freely yet never autonomously. This reinforces a crucial truth: suffering is real, but it is never sovereign. God remains Lord over the limits.
- 1 Corinthians 10:13 — No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.
- Luke 22:31-32 — “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.”
Job 2:7-10 — So Satan went out… and struck Job with loathsome sores….
Job’s suffering intensifies dramatically. Physical agony replaces material loss. Isolation compounds pain. His wife, sharing the devastation, urges him to curse God and die — not out of malice, but despair. She voices the temptation many feel silently: if God allows this, what is the point of faith?
Job’s response is remarkable. He does not deny pain or silence grief, but he refuses to redefine God based on suffering. “Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” This is not cynicism; it is humility. Job recognizes that God’s worth is not contingent on comfort.
Here again, Job foreshadows Christ, who accepts suffering without sin, entrusting Himself to the Father even when obedience leads to agony.
Job 2:10 — But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.
What we say can be as sinful as what we do.
Job 2:11-13 — Now when Job’s three friends heard….
Job’s friends arrive with good intentions. For seven days they sit in silence, sharing his grief. This is the last moment they get everything right. The passage teaches that the most faithful response to suffering is often quiet companionship, not correction or analysis. God does not rebuke Job’s friends for silence; He later rebukes them for speaking wrongly about Him. During a time of pain and sorrow, sometimes the best thing a friend can do is just be there. At a time like this, words may not be helpful. Just share the load of the sorrow, and comfort with solidarity.
“Cross” Fit S-WOD (Spiritual Workout of the Day) — 1 February 2026: Examine how you respond when suffering deepens rather than resolves. Ask honestly: Do I measure God’s goodness by relief, or by His character? Where might I be tempted to redefine God when obedience becomes costly? Choose one act today that affirms trust without explanation — remain faithful, worship honestly, or sit quietly with someone who is suffering.
Pray: “Father, You are righteous even when I do not understand Your ways. Guard my heart from reshaping You in the image of my pain. Teach me to trust You when comfort is stripped away and answers feel distant. Help me receive both joy and sorrow without losing my confidence in Your goodness. Thank You for Christ, who bore suffering without sin and secured hope beyond pain. Anchor my faith in who You are, not in what You allow. In Jesus’ name, amen.”
Defenders Bible Reading Plan 