Merciful to the Merciful - Psalms 18:25

In Psalms chapter eighteen David said, “I have kept the ways of the LORD, and have not wickedly departed from my God. For all his judgments were before me, and I did not put away his statutes from me. I was also upright before him, and I kept myself from my iniquity. Therefore has the LORD recompensed me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in his eyesight”, and in chapter eighteen and verse twenty-five of Psalms David said, “with the merciful you will show yourself merciful” where we read,

With the merciful you will show yourself merciful; with an upright man you will show yourself upright;

The verse begins, “With the merciful you will show yourself merciful;” David began with the words, “With the merciful” which means “toward people who are faithful, kind, godly, holy and pious” “you will show yourself merciful” or “you, Jehovah God, will demonstrate kindness and goodness”. David said people who are faithful, kind and godly to others will receive kindness and goodness from Jehovah God.

The verse continues, “with an upright man you will show yourself upright;” David added the words, “with an upright man” or “toward a person whether male or female that is complete, whole, entire, wholesome, unimpaired and innocent” “you will show yourself upright” which means “you, Jehovah God, will demonstrate completeness, wholeness, soundness and innocent ways”. David wrote how Jehovah God would reciprocate the behavior of a “complete and innocent” person with the same “complete and innocent” response to them.

When we think through the words in this verse, we learn through David the law of reciprocation. What is done is what is rewarded. Others might say, you reap what you sow. However, God is a righteous and Holy God, and no one measures up to His standards and ways. (See Romans 3:10; 3:23 and 6:23). God desires to have a personal relationship with everyone through His Son Jesus, and when they submit to Him, He will forgive their sins, their shortcomings and failures, and put them on a path to becoming “righteous” even as He has commanded. God loves us, and He knows not only how we are, but also how He wants us to be. Only a relationship with Jesus will keep a person in line with God's ways and commands, and then, and only then will we be truly “merciful” and “upright” even as Jehovah God desires.

Next time David says, “with the pure you will show yourself pure”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".