Letters to the Faithful - Psalm 1:4
Berean Standard Bible
Not so the wicked! For they are like chaff driven off by the wind.
King James Bible
The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.
Hebrew:
לֹא־כֵ֥ן הָרְשָׁעִ֑ים כִּ֥י אִם־כַּמֹּ֖ץ אֲשֶׁ֥ר תִּדְּפֶ֥נּוּ רֽוּחַ׃
Transliteration:
Lo-khen haresha'im ki im-kamots asher tiddefenu ruach.
Not so the wicked!
This phrase contrasts the fate of the wicked with that of the righteous, as described in the preceding verses. The righteous are like a tree planted by streams of water, symbolizing stability and prosperity. In contrast, the wicked do not enjoy such blessings. The term "wicked" refers to those who live in opposition to God's law and righteousness. Throughout the Bible, the wicked are often depicted as those who reject God's commandments and pursue their own desires (Proverbs 4:14-19). This distinction between the righteous and the wicked is a recurring theme in Scripture, emphasizing the moral and spiritual divide between those who follow God and those who do not.
For they are like chaff
Chaff is the husk or outer shell of grain that is separated from the edible part during the threshing process. In ancient agricultural practices, chaff was considered worthless and was discarded. This imagery is used to describe the wicked as being without substance or value in the eyes of God. The metaphor of chaff is also found in other biblical passages, such as Job 21:18 and Isaiah 17:13, where it symbolizes the fleeting and insubstantial nature of the wicked. The use of agricultural imagery would have been familiar to the original audience, who lived in an agrarian society and understood the process of winnowing and the insignificance of chaff.
driven off by the wind.
The wind represents the forces that scatter and disperse the chaff, illustrating the instability and impermanence of the wicked. Unlike the righteous, who are firmly rooted and nourished, the wicked are easily swept away by the trials and judgments of life. This imagery is echoed in other parts of Scripture, such as Hosea 13:3 and Matthew 3:12, where the wind or fire is used to depict divine judgment. The idea of being driven away by the wind also suggests a lack of direction and purpose, as the wicked are not anchored in God's truth. This phrase underscores the ultimate futility of a life lived apart from God, as the wicked will not stand in the judgment or have a place among the righteous (Psalm 1:5).
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Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who has called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. I write to you, dear brethren, scattered across the fields of this world yet united in the one hope of our calling, that you may be strengthened in faith, steadfast in love, and resolute in the truth of God’s holy Word. Blessed be the name of the Lord, who has given us the Scriptures, a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path, that we might not stumble but walk uprightly before Him.
I turn your hearts today to the wisdom of the Psalmist, who, inspired by the Spirit of God, declares in the first of his songs a truth both solemn and sure: “The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away” (Psalm 1:4). Consider these words, beloved, for they are not spoken lightly, nor are they a mere poetic flourish. They are a divine pronouncement, a mirror held before the soul, that we might discern the way of the righteous from the way of the wicked, the enduring from the fleeting, the wheat from the chaff.
You who have tasted the goodness of God, who have been washed in the blood of the Lamb and sealed by the Spirit of promise, know well the contrast of which the Psalmist speaks. For in the verses before, he has painted the blessed man—firmly planted by rivers of water, fruitful in season, unwavering in faith. But now he turns our gaze to the ungodly, and what do we behold? Not a tree, not a root, not a foundation, but chaff—dry, brittle, weightless, carried off by the slightest breeze. Such is the state of those who reject the counsel of God, who scoff at His mercy, who build their lives upon the sand of their own devising. They are not so, says the Psalmist. They cannot stand, they cannot endure, for they have no anchor in the storm.
O beloved, let this word pierce your hearts as it has mine! For though we are justified by faith alone, through grace alone, in Christ alone, we are not unaware of the tempter’s schemes nor the frailty of our own flesh. The ungodly are not far off, a distant foe; their ways whisper to us in moments of weakness, in the clamor of the world, in the pride that lurks within. But thanks be to God, who has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and called us to a higher path! The chaff is driven away, but you, dear saints, are called to be wheat, gathered into the storehouse of the Lord, preserved for the day of harvest.
Consider, then, the wind that drives the chaff. Is it not the breath of God’s justice, the stirring of His righteous judgment? For the Scriptures testify that “the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish” (Psalm 1:6). The wind comes not as a random gust, but as the hand of the Almighty, separating what is worthless from what is precious. So it was in the days of Gideon, when the threshing floor sifted the grain from the husk; so it was in the preaching of John, who declared of Christ, “His fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly purge His floor” (Matthew 3:12). And so it shall be at the end of the age, when the Son of Man returns in glory to gather His elect and cast away all that offends.
Yet let us not read these words with haughty eyes, as though we by our own strength stand apart from the chaff. No, brethren, it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not of yourselves, it is the gift of God (Ephesians 2:8). The ungodly are not so, because they have spurned the gift; they have chosen the husks of this world over the bread of life. But you, who have heard the voice of the Shepherd, who have clung to the cross, you are made righteous not by your works, but by His. Therefore, stand fast! Let not the wind of temptation, nor the wind of affliction, nor the wind of worldly philosophy drive you from the root of your salvation.
I beseech you, then, as fellow partakers of the promise, to examine yourselves in the light of this truth. Are you rooted in the Word, delighting in the law of the Lord, as the blessed man of Psalm 1? Or do the cares of this life, the deceitfulness of riches, the fleeting pleasures of sin threaten to make you as chaff? Repent, if you must; rejoice, if you stand; but in all things, cling to Christ, who is our righteousness, our refuge, our redeemer. For the day is coming when the wind will blow, and only that which is built on the Rock will remain.
To you who shepherd the flock—elders, pastors, teachers of the Word—I charge you before God and the saints: preach this truth with boldness. Warn the flock of the fleeting nature of ungodliness, yet lift high the hope of the gospel. Let not your message be one of despair, but of triumph, for the Lord has overcome the world. And to you who labor in prayer, who wrestle in the Spirit for the souls of men, faint not! The chaff may scatter, but the seed of the Word, sown in faith, will bring forth a harvest unto eternal life.
Now may the God of peace, who raised our Lord Jesus from the dead, equip you with every good thing to do His will, working in you that which is pleasing in His sight. May you be as trees planted by the water, unshaken by the wind, bearing fruit for His glory. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
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O Eternal and Sovereign Lord, Creator of heaven and earth, whose Spirit moves as a mighty wind across the face of the deep, we bow before Your throne of grace, lifting our hearts in fervent supplication. You, O God, are the righteous Judge, the One who discerns the ways of the upright and scatters the fleeting schemes of the wicked, as Your Word declares in Psalm 1:4, that the wicked are like chaff which the wind drives away. We stand in awe of Your holy majesty, for You alone establish the foundations of justice and truth, and Your decrees endure forever.
Father of mercy, we come before You on behalf of all Your people—saints and seekers, the steadfast and the wandering, those who dwell in the light of Your truth and those yet to know the fullness of Your love. Grant us, we pray, the grace to walk in the way of the righteous, to be rooted like trees by streams of living water, drawing life from Your eternal Word. Let not our hearts be swayed by the fleeting allure of sin, nor our steps falter in the counsel of the ungodly. But as the chaff is driven by the wind, so scatter far from us every temptation, every falsehood, every shadow that seeks to dim the radiance of Your glory within us.
O Spirit of God, who breathes life into dry bones and kindles flames of holy zeal, blow mightily upon Your Church. Purge from our midst all that is transient, all that is unworthy of Your calling. As the wind separates the chaff from the wheat, refine us, O Lord, that we may shine as pure gold in Your sight. Raise up a people bold in faith, unwavering in hope, and fervent in love, who will proclaim Your gospel to the ends of the earth. Let the nations behold Your power, not in the pomp of human strength, but in the quiet beauty of lives transformed by Your grace.
We lift before You, O compassionate Savior, those ensnared by the ways of the wicked, those who stumble in darkness, chasing shadows that vanish like chaff. You, who came to seek and save the lost, pursue them with Your relentless love. Break the chains of pride, shatter the illusions of self-sufficiency, and awaken their hearts to the enduring joy of Your salvation. May they turn from fleeting pleasures and find in You the fountain of life, the rock that never fails.
Lord of all nations, we intercede for a world groaning under the weight of sin and strife. From the halls of power to the humblest homes, let Your justice roll down like waters and Your righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. Scatter the schemes of those who delight in oppression, who sow discord and division. Raise up leaders who fear Your name, who govern with wisdom and humility, that peace may flourish and the poor find refuge. Let Your kingdom come, O God, as a mighty wind that sweeps away all that opposes Your holy will.
O Christ, our great High Priest, who ever lives to intercede for us, we commend to You the weary, the broken, and the heavy-laden. To those burdened by guilt, grant the freedom of Your forgiveness. To those crushed by sorrow, bestow the comfort of Your presence. To those who wander, be the Shepherd who leads them home. May all who call upon Your name know the strength of Your right hand, upholding them as they walk the path of righteousness for Your name’s sake.
Now, O God of glory, unite Your people as one body, one flock under one Shepherd. May we, in every tongue and tribe, reflect the beauty of Your holiness, standing firm against the winds of this age, anchored in the truth of Your Word. Let our lives be a testimony to Your redeeming power, that the world may see and know that You are God, and there is no other. We offer this prayer in the matchless name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit reigns forever, one God, world without end. Amen.
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