Psalm 95:8-9 NKJV
“Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion,
As in the day of trial in the wilderness,
9
When your fathers tested Me;
They tried Me, though they saw My work.
Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion: The rebellion and the day of trial refer primarily to the trial at Meribah (Numbers 20:1-13). But more generally, they speak of Israel’s refusal to trust and enter the Promised Land during the Exodus (Numbers 13:30-14:10). God did not accept their unbelief and condemned that generation of unbelief to die in the wilderness (Numbers 14:22-23 and 14:28-32).
The appeal do not harden your hearts means there is some aspect of the will involved when it comes to the hardness (or softness) of heart. Many regard a hard or soft heart as something that just happens to someone and is beyond his ability to control. Here the Holy Spirit indicates differently. (Guzik)
The strong words in the second half of this psalm are connected to the sweet, stirring words of the first half. Humble worship of Yahweh and the recognition of Him as Creator and God should lead to a listening ear and a soft, surrendered heart toward Him. There is something wrong when the worshipper does not obey and trust God. (Guzik)
Charles Spurgeon suggested several ways that we may harden our hearts.
· Some harden their hearts by resolving not to demonstrate emotion in regard to spiritual things.
· Some harden their hearts by delaying a real relationship with God.
· Some harden their hearts by pretending doubts and foolish criticism.
· Some harden their hearts by getting into evil company.
· Some harden their hearts by focusing on silly amusements “all intended to kill time and prevent thought upon divine things.”
· Some harden their hearts by indulging in a favorite sin.
When your fathers tested Me: We test God by our unbelief. Israel saw the work of God, yet would not trust Him at Meribah or in the wilderness in general. We are warned not to do the same. (Guzik)
To reject God’s invitation today surely means to test Him. “Is God to wait as a lackey upon you? You deserve his wrath, will you slight his love? He speaks in amazing tenderness, will you exhibit astounding hardness?” (Spurgeon)
Though they saw My work means that God gives us reason to trust Him. To ignore those reasons is to provoke and to test God. (Guzik)
“Every one comes in the Christian life, once at least, to Kadesh-barnea [Numbers 13:26]. On the one hand the land of rest and victory; on the other the desert wastes. The balance, quivering between the two, is turned this way by faith; that by unbelief. Trust God, and rest. Mistrust Him, and the door closes on rest, to open to wanderings, failure, and defeat.” (Meyer)
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So often did they provoke God by their distrusts and murmurings that the whole time of their continuance in the wilderness might be called a day of temptation, or Massah, the other name given to that place (Ex. 17:7), because they tempted the Lord, saying, Is the Lord among us or is he not? This was in the wilderness, where they could not help themselves, but lay at God’s mercy, and where God wonderfully helped them and gave them such sensible proofs of his power and tokens of his favor as never any people had before or since. Note,
(1.) Days of temptation are days of provocation. Nothing is more offensive to God than disbelief of his promise and despair of the performance of it because of some difficulties that seem to lie in the way.
(2.) The more experience we have had of the power and goodness of God the greater is our sin if we distrust him. What, to tempt him in the wilderness, where we live upon him! This is as ungrateful as it is absurd and unreasonable.
(3.) Hardness of heart is at the bottom of all our distrusts of God and quarrels with him. That is a hard heart which receives not the impressions of divine discoveries and conforms not to the intentions of the divine will, which will not melt, which will not bend.
(4.) The sins of others ought to be warnings to us not to tread in their steps. The murmurings of Israel were written for our admonition, 1 Co. 10:11.
(Henry)
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Psalm 95:8-9 1599 Geneva Bible
8 [a]Harden not your heart, as in [b]Meribah, and as in the day of [c]Massah in the wilderness,
9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, though they had seen my work.
Footnotes
- Psalm 95:8 By the condemning of God’s word.
- Psalm 95:8 Or, in strife: whereof the place was so called.
- Psalm 95:8 Or, temptation, read Exod. 17:7.
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