Only a fool says there is no God
The concept of atheism, as we know it and talk about it in the Twenty First Century, is not what the Psalmist has in mind when he says “Only fools think there is no God.”1
The culture of the Ancient Near East (ANE) had nothing akin to today’s atheistic conception that there is no spiritual realm, that no God or
different territorial gods, that are not part of the thinking of most people in the scientifically dominated Western World of today.
The ‘atheism’ the psalmist has in mind is one where people live as though God could not care, and is not interested in what they do or what is going on in the world. They are, by their actions saying ‘God’s not involved, so why bother? Nothing happens when we lie, deceive or manipulate to our advantage. We have been getting away with it, so why change? Other people may not be so consciously cynical but they are so caught up in life, that they lack an of awareness of the suffering and needs of those around them. They are also living as though God does not exist. It is a ‘practical atheism’.
The Hebrew word used in Psalm 14 for fool is ‘nabal‘. It is also the name of a man the psalmist David encountered before he became king of Israel. Nabal’s story is told in 1 Samuel 25. He was a wealthy, selfish man, who took for granted the support that David and his men had given his shepherds. Nabal, in Hebrew, also carries the meaning of ‘lack of self control’. And it is possibly Nabal’s drunkenness during a party to celebrate sheep shearing, that caused him to send David’s men away with insults.
Maybe Nabal’s foolishness sparked the poetic reflection of the psalmist but whatever the case, the writer of the psalm wants to emphasise that God is not unconcerned; on the contrary ‘The Lord looks down from heaven to see if there is anyone who is wise, anyone who looks to him for help.’3
What should we make of the next part of the psalm? ‘But everyone has gone the wrong way. Everyone has turned bad. No one does anything good. No, not one person!’4
This verse, has in my experience, been often quoted by people who want to accentuate the doctrine of ‘total depravity’ of humanity. Please do not misunderstand, I am not suggesting that we do not all sin. It is clear that none of us is perfect. However what I do want to suggest is that this verse is poetic hyperbole! Psalm 13 began with the cry ‘How long Lord’ so at least one person is looking to the Lord for help; to the psalmist one could add Job, who God said was righteous, the same was said of Noah and David himself is described as a man after God’s heart, so there are people looking to God!
The point of verses 2&3 is that God is concerned about his world and what is happening. The good news, the Gospel, is that God is at work in Christ reconciling the world to Himself5. And the plight of the vulnerable, including widows, orphans and strangers have been central to his agenda since at least the exodus6.
Being wise, in this context, means living life in a way that recognises that God is involved with, and concerned about, His creation. We are to be active in praying ‘Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.’ God is looking for people he can work in, and through, to get his will done in the world he made.
Psalm 14 Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)
To the director: A song of David.
14 Only
fools think there is no God.
People like
that are evil and do terrible things.
They
never do what is right.
2 The Lord looks
down from heaven
to see if there is anyone
who is wise,
anyone who looks to him for
help.
3 But
everyone has gone the wrong way.
Everyone
has turned bad.
No one does anything good.
No,
not one person!
4 Those
who are evil treat my people like bread to be eaten.
And
they never ask for the Lord’s help.
Don’t
they know what they are doing?
5 They
will have plenty to fear,
because God is
with those who do what is right.
6 You
wicked people want to spoil the hopes of the poor,
but
the Lord will protect them.
7 I
wish the one who lives on Mount Zion
would
bring victory to Israel!
When the Lord makes his people
successful again,
the people of Jacob will
be happy;
the people of Israel will be
glad.
Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International
Prayer
Father please help me to be aware of your concerns for the for the people around me and the world in which I live.
Help me to treat the environment responsibly as a steward of something entrusted to me, to be aware of the needs of others and to stand up for justice where ever possible.
In Jesus name
Amen
1Ps 14:1 ERV
2NICOT, The Book of Psalms p166
3Ps 14:2 ERV
4Ps14:3
52 Cor 5:19
6Ex 22:21-23