Hated Without a Cause – Psalm 35

Open up to Psalm 35. We’re going to begin talking about that today. And it’s going to be the topic, Hated Without a Cause. And just turn to Psalm 35 and verse 19. Real quick, Psalm 35 and verse 19. And let’s read these verses together and we’ll talk about this Psalm for a minute.

Let them not rejoice over me who are wrongfully my enemies, nor let them wink with the eye who hate me without a cause. Now, this is a Psalm of David, and certainly David had those who hated him without a cause in his life, and then there are others who were hated without a cause, and specifically, we’re going to find that Jesus Jesus was hated without a cause. And as we look through the scriptures, we find Jesus talking about that in John chapter 15 and verses 24 through 25, where Jesus said, If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin. But now they have seen and also hated both me and my Father. But this happened, that the word might be fulfilled, which is written in their law, they hated me without a cause. John chapter 15, verses 24 and 25.

Now, when we see Jesus mention this within His life and we turn back to the Psalms, we find that truly in the Psalms, a fulfillment of the life of Jesus. And so, as they get the sermon slides up here this morning that are going to be here and find the right one here pretty quick, it’s going to be Psalm 35, hated without a cause.

We want to type in Psalm 35 there. It might come up. There we go. All right. Get the PowerPoint going. I don’t know what happened to it, but we finally got it going. And this is what the topic is of this Psalm. And it’s mentioned twice in this Psalm. David mentions twice that he’s hated without a cause. And we see this again fulfilled in the life of Jesus.

And as we just read here in John 15, they hated me without a cause. Well, as we look at this Psalm, you know, sometimes within our lives, there are those who hate us without a cause, or maybe they don’t treat us like we think they should, or maybe there’s something going on in our relationship with them that we don’t understand, and there’s information there that we lack, but maybe there is.

There’s dislike or hatred there. What can we do about that? And this Psalm serves as a blueprint, so to speak, about how to respond to others when they hate us without a cause. So let’s study it together. We’re going to read through this Psalm and study through it as we think about this topic this morning.

And first of all, we’re going to begin with this. When we are hated without a cause, we need to pray. That’s the first thing that we find here. And look at what the psalmist says here in Psalm 35, 1 through 3.

Plead my cause, O Lord, with those who strive with me. Fight against those who fight against me. Take hold of shield and buckler and stand up for my help. Also, draw out the spear and stop those who pursue me. Say to my soul, I am your salvation.

So there’s a prayer here for God to fight. And we just sang that song, the battle belongs to the Lord. And it was David who made that statement, you know, that the battle belongs to the Lord. He was praying for God to fight.

We see in Deuteronomy chapter 3, in verse 22, Moses’ exhortation to Joshua when he says, You must not fear them, for the Lord your God Himself fights for you. And God will fight for us today if we will pray to Him and ask for His help.

David made this statement before Goliath in 1 Samuel 17, verse 47, that after he was defeated, Then all this assembly shall know that the Lord does not save with sword and spear, for the battle is the Lord’s, and He will give you into our hands.

So when we’re hated without a cause, we need to pray. Pray for God to fight. But then secondly, pray for the wicked to be undone. Let those be put to shame and brought to dishonor who seek after my life. Let those be turned back and brought to confusion who plot my hurt.

Let them be like chaff before the wind and let the angel of the Lord chase them. Let their way be dark and slippery and let the angel of the Lord pursue them. Without cause, they have hidden their net for me in a pit, which they have dug without cause for my life.

Let destruction come upon Him unexpectedly, and let His net that He has hidden catch Himself. Into that very destruction, let Him fall. And so we pray for the wicked to be undone. You know, sometimes when the wicked set their sights on us and turn against us, it’s difficult to know what to do. We want to react. We want to respond in some way, but we really need to pray.

Think about Jesus in 1 Peter 2, in verse 23, where Peter says, “…who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return. When He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who Judges righteously.” We need to pray and not respond in kind. Paul wrote in Romans 12, verse 19, Beloved, did not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath, where it is written, Vengeance is mine. I will repay, says the Lord. And the Lord will take vengeance on those who do wickedness. We need to pray for the wicked to be undone, but we also need to pray praising God for deliverance.

In verse 9 through 10 of this Psalm, it says, “…and my soul shall be joyful in the Lord. It shall rejoice in His salvation. All my bones shall say, Lord, who is like you, delivering the poor from him who is too strong for him?”

Yes, the poor and the needy from him who plunders him. And the psalmist anticipates, you see, That God will deliver him from his enemy. And so he praises God for that deliverance. We need to think about how God delivers us today as well.

Maybe we turn to Ephesians chapter 6 and verses 10 and 11 and remember that the whole armor of God are spiritual things. You know, we don’t fight with literal swords and shields anymore, but we take up the sword of the Spirit, the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, the shield of faith. These are our weapons that we fight with.

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. In Isaiah 35, verse 4, we have this wonderful prophecy as well regarding the triumph of the Messiah.

Say to those who are fearful-hearted, be strong, do not fear. Behold, your God will come with vengeance. With the recompense of God, He will come and save you. And when Jesus came forth from the dead, that is God’s vengeance on those who hated Him without a cause. And so when we’re hated without a cause, let’s pray.

But then secondly, when we’re hated without a cause, let’s display the proper attitude. We’ve talked about praying for our enemies, and that’s exactly what the psalmist does here in verses 35, 11 through 14. Fierce witnesses rise up. They ask me things that I do not know. They reward me evil for good to the sorrow of my soul.

But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth. I humbled myself with fasting, and my prayer would return to my own heart. I paced about as though He were my friend or brother. I bowed down heavily as one who mourns for his mother. Now, what is the psalmist saying here? He’s saying, we don’t have to have the same attitude toward them as they have toward us.

When someone hates us without a cause, that doesn’t mean we have to hate them back. In fact, just the opposite. We want to pray for them. Jesus said in Matthew 5, verse 44, Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who despitefully use you and persecute you.

And in Proverbs chapter 25, 21 and 22, which is quoted in Romans chapter 12, verses 20 and 21, the Apostle Paul wrote, Therefore, if your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him a drink. For in so doing, you will heap coals of fire on his head. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. Perhaps the Apostle Paul was contemplating this Psalm when he wrote this because David, the psalmist, wrote, they repaid me evil for good. But he wasn’t going to do that in turn.

Just the opposite. And so a proper attitude will pray for our enemies. Proper attitude will endure persecution. Verses 15 and 16 here in Psalm 35, it says, But in my adversity, they rejoiced and gathered together. Attackers gathered against me, and I did not know it. They tore at me and did not cease. With ungodly mockers at feasts, they gnashed at me with their teeth.

And maybe you kind of see some foreshadowing here of what the scribes and the Pharisees did to plot the death of Jesus. And certainly, that’s what Jesus had to deal with, was those who plotted evil against Him. Peter tells us to think about the sufferings of Jesus when we have to deal with people that are unsavory within our lives.

He says, “…for to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth.” We need to endure those persecutions that come upon us because the Bible says that all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution, 2 Timothy 3 and verse 12.

And we need to be faithful unto death, as the Holy Spirit says to the church in Revelation 2 and verse 10, “…do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.”

A proper attitude means that we are going to give thanks to God regardless. Now, this is what the psalmist does here in verses 17 and 18. Lord, how long will you look on? Rescue me from their destructions, my precious life from the lions.

I will give you thanks in the great assembly. I will praise you among many people. This expression of thanks that the psalmist mentions here is one also that the Messiah gives in the midst of His brethren. In fact, in Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 12, we read, I will declare your name to my brethren in the midst of the assembly. I will praise you. Just as the psalmist says, 1 Thessalonians 5 and verse 18 says, In everything, give thanks. But this is the will of God and Christ Jesus for you. We should give thanks to God regardless of what kind of persecution might come our way. Remember Job and his attitude in Job 1 and verse 21 when he said, He said, “‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord is taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.'” And so, in order to have the proper attitude, we must give God thanks. Let’s remember that when we’re hated without a cause, to have a proper attitude.

But then finally, when we are hated without a cause, let’s pursue the truth. Now think about the Psalm in verses 19 through 21. Let them not rejoice over me who are wrongfully my enemies, nor let them wink with the eye who hate me without a cause.

For they do not seek peace or speak peace, but they devise deceitful matters against the quiet ones in the land. They also opened their mouth wide against me and said, Aha! Aha! Our eyes have seen it. The first thing that the psalmist says is that we need to expose the actions of the wicked. Whatever their actions might be that are wicked, they need to be exposed. That’s what truth does. It exposes the wicked.

In Ephesians chapter 5 and verse 11, the Apostle Paul wrote, “…have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them.” And John said in John 3 and verse 24, “…everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.”

The light exposes the darkness and makes it clear what wickedness is. Well, our task, as one who has been hated without a cause, at least in part, is to expose the truth, to pursue the truth in the whole situation.

In verses 22 through 25 of this Psalm, listen to what the psalmist says. This you have seen, O Lord. Do not keep silence, O Lord. Do not be far from me. Stir up yourself and awake to my vindication, to my cause, my God and my Lord. Vindicate me, O Lord, my God, according to your righteousness, and let them not rejoice over me.

Let them not say in their hearts, so we would have it. Let them not say, we have swallowed Him up. Vindication is what the psalmist desired. Think about vindication that came after the resurrection of Christ in Acts chapter 2 and verses 32 through 33, where Peter said, “…that this Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses, therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear.” That was vindication. God vindicated the righteous. And so, when we pursue the truth, the righteous will be vindicated.

In 1 Corinthians 4 and verse 5, Paul wrote about the ultimate vindication when he said, “…therefore judge nothing before the time until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the heart. Then each one’s praise will come from God.”

And so we want the righteous to be vindicated, but then the psalmist talks about bringing the wicked to shame in verse 26. Let them be ashamed and brought to mutual confusion who rejoice at my hurt. Let them be clothed with shame and dishonor who exalt themselves against me.

Maybe you remember how Jesus confronted the Pharisees when He was dealing with the woman taken into adultery and ultimately they were brought to shame because they were doing something unrighteous. Hating Him without a cause, trying to put Him into a trap, and yet their trap turned against them.

The Bible says that God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty. And so we should awake to righteousness and sin not, for some do not have the knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame, 1 Corinthians 15, 34. God will bring the wicked to shame, and God will encourage the supporters of truth.

In Psalm 35, 27 through 28, the psalmist concludes this Psalm by saying, Let them shout for joy and be glad, who favor my righteous cause. And let them say continually, Let the Lord be magnified, who has pleasure in the prosperity of His servant. And my tongue shall speak of your righteousness and of your praise all the day long.

When we are hated without a cause and pursue the truth, let’s remember to encourage those who support the truth. In Zephaniah 3 and verse 17, a prophecy about the Messiah, it says, It says, “…the Lord your God in your midst, the mighty one, will save. He will rejoice over you with gladness. He will quiet you with His love. He will rejoice over you with singing.” God is the greatest encourager of them all. Jesus Christ encourages us as we continue in the truth and pursuing it within our lives. And we need to encourage one another.

Hebrews 3 and verse 13 says, “…but exhort one another daily while it is called today, lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” When we’re hated without a cause, let’s encourage supporters of the truth. How do we respond when we’re hated without a cause? First of all, with prayer. Secondly, with a proper attitude. And third, by pursuing the truth. This is how the psalmist teaches us to respond. And this is how Jesus Christ responded to those who hated Him without a cause.

And this morning, we stand on this side of the cross where God has triumphantly raised Jesus from the dead and vindicated Him. And you can be vindicated from the evil one as well. How do you do that? Jesus tells us in His Word to hear it and believe it, to repent of our sin, confess Him as Lord, and be baptized for the forgiveness of our sins.

And when we’re baptized, we go down to that watery grave of baptism. We’re raised to walk in newness of life. And like Jesus was raised from the dead, so we also are raised from the dead and vindicated before God.

And while there are those who hate us without a cause, that doesn’t mean that our relationship with God has to suffer. We can do the right things through prayer, through the right attitude, and by pursuing the truth so that our relationship with God remains faithful and true and constant, even in the face of opposition.

Maybe you need to have this life, be vindicated with Jesus, and live for God each and every day despite what those around you say and do. Have you been hated without a cause? Then respond by living the Christian life or by becoming a Christian today while we stand and sing.

End of transcript. Thank you for reading along!