What emotions do the wicked experience according to Psalm 112:10? Setting the Scene Psalm 112 celebrates the blessings God pours on the righteous. Verse 10 shifts the camera, showing how the ungodly react when they witness those blessings: “The wicked man will see and be grieved; he will gnash his teeth and waste away; the desires of the wicked will perish.” Observing the Wicked’s Emotional State When the wicked watch the righteous flourish, they experience: • Grief – a deep hurt, vexation, inner pain. • Anger – shown by “gnash his teeth,” a physical sign of rage and fury. • Frustration – “waste away” pictures a slow consuming disappointment. • Hopelessness – their cherished “desires” are doomed to “perish.” Key Terms in Psalm 112:10 • “Will see” – exposure to God’s favor on others triggers the response. • “Be grieved” (Hebrew, kāʿas) – connotes indignation mixed with sorrow. • “Gnash his teeth” – same idiom of seething anger in Job 16:9; Acts 7:54. • “Waste away” – draining of vitality, as in Psalm 31:10. • “Desires… perish” – hopes evaporate; cf. Proverbs 10:28 “the hope of the wicked perishes.” Why These Emotions Arise • God’s blessing on the righteous exposes their own rebellion (John 3:20). • They cannot derail God’s plan, producing helpless fury (Psalm 2:1-6). • Their goals are self-centered, so when they fail, despair follows (Proverbs 11:7). Supporting Scriptures • Psalm 37:12-13 – “The wicked plot against the righteous… but the Lord laughs at him.” • Proverbs 24:19-20 – “Do not fret because of evildoers… the lamp of the wicked will be snuffed out.” • Luke 13:28 – “There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” for those shut out of the kingdom. Takeaway for Believers The righteous need not fear the hostility of the ungodly. God guarantees that envy, rage, and frustration—though fierce—ultimately give way to the collapse of every wicked desire, while His promises to the upright stand firm forever (Psalm 112:6). |
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