1 The fool says in his heart,
“There is no God.”
They are corrupt, and their ways are vile;
there is no one who does good.
Tricky question to consider: What reasons might a fool have for saying, "There is no God"?
In the midst of a difficult time, how do you think David keeps from becomming a "fool" himself?
2 God looks down from heaven
on all mankind
to see if there are any who understand,
any who seek God.
3 Everyone has turned away, all have become corrupt;
there is no one who does good,
not even one.
This is another dark psalm from David. These types of psalms are called a "lament", which means a deep expression of mourning or grief. What is David mourning in this psalm?
Considering the fact that Scripture includes many laments (including a whole book called Lamentations), what can you learn about the nature of the Bible?
To what degree can you resonate with verses 2-3?
4 Do all these evildoers know nothing?
They devour my people as though eating bread;
they never call on God.
5 But there they are, overwhelmed with dread,
where there was nothing to dread.
God scattered the bones of those who attacked you;
you put them to shame, for God despised them.
What is the outcome of pursing corruption in a person's soul?
Who put the evildoers to shame in verse 5? What does this tell you about the way God often works in our world?
6 Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
When God restores his people,
let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad! NIV
David ends this psalm with a passionate plea. Using verse 6 as an example, personalize this prayer in your own words for your own context today.
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