Verse 3:
"The words of his mouth are wicked and deceitful; he has ceased to be wise and to do good."
Now we come to the words that he speaks and they are characterized in 2 ways as being: (1) "wicked" and (2) "deceitful." A change has taken place in his life. "He has ceased" 2 things: (1) "to be wise" and (2) "to do good."
When you read 1 Samuel 25 and the story of Nabal and Abigail and their relationship to David, you can see why the words that characterize Nabal especially are some of the same characteristics that are seen in the opening verses of this Psalm.
The wicked person is totally focused upon himself. I am reminded of the little poem "The Tea Party":
I had a little party
One afternoon at three;
'Twas very small, three guests in all,
Just I, myself, and me.
Myself ate up the sandwiches,
While I drank up the tea,
'Twas also I who ate the pie
And passed the cake to me.
C. S. Lewis said: "One almost hears the incessant whispering, tattling, lying, scolding, flattery, and circulation of rumors."
Verse
4:
"Even on his bed he plots evil; he commits himself to a sinful course and does not reject what is wrong."
Even when he is going to bed at night, his mind is involved and he is making decisions. There are 3 things he does: (1) "he plots evil"; (2) he says yes to sin; and (3)"he...does not reject what is wrong."
Hosea 7:15: "I trained them and strengthened them, but they plot evil against me" (NIV).
Genesis 6:5 - 6: "The Lord saw how great man's wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. The Lord was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain"(NIV).
Someone said: "Sin deceives, then defiles, then deadens."
Of course we can say with this "Satan and his plan for destruction of the sinner."
"What is hurting America today is the high cost of low living." (unknown)
Here in verse 4 we see the wicked man doing 3 things: (1) "he plots evil"; (2) he says yes to sin; and (3) "he...does not reject what is wrong."
If we were summarizing the first 4 verses of this Psalm, we would focus on 10 things that describe the wicked: (1)"There is no fear of God"; (2) he is focused on himself; (3) he does not "detect or hate his sin"; (4) "[his] words...are wicked"; (5) "[his] words...are deceitful"; (6) he is no longer wise; (7) he no longer does good; (8) he plans and "plots evil"; (9) he makes a decision to sin; and (10) conformity rather than conviction is the characteristic of his life.
Proverbs 14:12: "There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death"(NIV).
Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 7:13, 14 tells us the truth about the way to life: "Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide, and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter by it. For the gate is small, and the way is narrow that leads to life, and few are those who find it" (NASB).
