JESUS CHRIST IN THE BOOK OF PSALMS (52-59) THE WHIRLWIND.
JESUS CHRIST IN THE BOOK OF PSALMS (52-59)
THE WHIRLWIND
Tuesday Morning Bible Study
September 23, 2025, the Year of Our Lord
Pastor Carolyn Sissom
Though we are covering Psalms 52-59, I am going to begin with Psalm 58, because it describes the judgment of the whirlwind on the wicked.
As most of you remember, the Lord spoke to me during worship this past Sunday, the following scripture:
Hos.8:7: … they shall reap the whirlwind.
I understood it to be judgment on the spirits of darkness which assassinated Charlie Kirk.
PSALM 58:1 Do you indeed speak righteousness, O congregation? Do you judge uprightly. O ye sons of men?
Psalms 58 and 59 are imprecatory Psalms. It is my persuasion that David is prophesying of the judgment of God on the wicked. We have studied David’s prayers and praise unto God. God answers those prayers giving David authority to decree God’s judgment over his enemies. David was a Psalmist, Prophet, Warrior, and King. There is teaching from a Christian standpoint, that these imprecatory psalms express self-justification and the intention to call down vengeance. I believe just as other Old Testament prophets prophesied judgment into the “latter days,” so do the imprecatory Psalms.
It is my persuasion the LORD gave Christians’ authority to decree these Psalms over wickedness and evil. Now, certainly, it should not be done in soulical vengeance, but by the leading of the Holy Spirit, under the Office of Prophet as decreed by David.
In David’s intercession of Psalm 56:12-13, David had experienced overcoming the death of the carnal soul. The danger is past – You have delivered my soul from death… that I may walk before God in the light of the living. The place of “No more Night, no more pain, never crying again, because we are living in the light of the Risen Lamb.”
Kings have authority to bear the sword in war and judgment, to declare war and institute justice over a nation. This is why Donald J. Trump’s message at the Memorial Service was different from the other eulogies. He spoke not as a Priest, but as a ruler of a nation.
Jer. 30:23-24: Behold, the whirlwind of the LORD goes forth with fury, a continuing whirlwind. It shall fall with pain upon the head of the wicked. The fierce anger of the LORD shall not return, until he has done it, and until he has performed the intents of his heart; in the latter days you shall consider it.
Psalm 58 decrees the whirlwind of God’s judgment. This is the Psalm of the destruction of the wicked.
Psa. 58:9: Before your pots can feel the thorns, he shall take them away as with a whirlwind, both living, and in his wrath.
Michtam of David not only means the Golden Secret, but also To engrave. David may have written some of these Psalms upon the rocks as he fled from Saul.
It is a setting forth of the certainty of the judgment of God upon and against wickedness. The psalmist declares its reason, its process, and its effect.
The Song of tyrants on trial:
58:2 – The challenge - Yea, in heart you work wickedness, you weigh the violence of your hands in the earth.
58:3-5 - The Charge - The wicked are estranged from the womb… Their poison is like the poison of a serpent. They are like the deaf cobra that stops her ear, which will not hearken to the voice of charmers, charming ever so wisely.
58:6-9 – The Curse – Break their teeth in their mouth, O God! Break out the fangs of the young lions, O LORD! Let them flow away as waters which run continually when he bends his bow. Let his arrows be as if cut in pieces. Let them be like a snail which melts away as it goes, like a stillborn child of a woman, that they may not see the sun. Before your pots can feel the burning thorns, He shall take them away as with a whirlwind, as in His living and burning wrath.
58:10-11: The Victory over evil - The righteous shall rejoice when he sees the vengeance… So that men will say, Surely there is a reward for the righteous. Surely, He is God who judges in the earth.
Prov. 1:27-33: When your terror comes like a storm, and your destruction comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you, then they will call on me, but I will not answer. They will seek me diligently, but they will not find me. Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD. They would have none of my counsel and despised my every rebuke. Therefore, they shall eat the fruit of their own way and be filled to the full of their own fancies. For the turning away of the simple will slay them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them. But whoever listens to me will dwell safely, and will be secure, without fear of evil.
Psalm 59 describes the hatred of the wicked toward the righteous. We have seen this manifest around the Memorial Service of Charlie Kirk. The wicked are seething with anger. They are exposed, afraid, and fighting with a vengeance. I believe Psalm 59 is an apt description of what we are seeing happen on our TV screens as they scorn and mock Christians and our Faith. We are in a war and the Memorial Service was a Christian battle cry in response to the attack. It was a phenomenon that cannot be denied or hated away. The Christians made no deposits of hate. They worshipped Jesus Christ.
God is My High Tower.
59:1-5 - The ring of foes - To the chief Musician, Altaschith, Michtam of David; when Saul sent, and they watched the house to kill him. Deliver me from my enemies, O MY GOD. Defend me from them that rise up against me. Deliver me from the workers of iniquity and save me from bloody men. For, lo, they lie in wait for my soul; the mighty are gathered against me; not for my transgression, nor for my sin, O LORD. They run and prepare themselves without my fault; awake to help me and behold. You, O LORD God of hosts, the God of Israel, awake to visit all the heathen; be not merciful to any wicked transgressors. SELAH.
59:6-7 – The prowling pack –
59:8-10 – Triumphant Trust – But you, O LORD, shall laugh at them, you shall have all the heathen in derision. Because of his strength will I wait upon you, for God is my defense. The God of my mercy shall preserve me. God shall let me see my desire upon my enemies.
59: 11-13 – Slow decline.
59:14-15 – the hungry pack.
59: 16-17 – But I will sing of your power; yea, I will sing aloud of your mercy in the morning; for you have been my defense and refuge in the day of my trouble. Unto you, O my strength will I sing; for God is my defense, and the God of my mercy.
PSALMS 52-55
Psalms 52-55 reveal principles of the Day of Trouble.
It is my persuasion, these prayers, praise, and faith in David’s days of trouble resulted in God hearing and releasing judgment on David’s enemies. We can align these Psalms with the prayers of the saints as we have sought the LORD these past 50 years for the deliverance of our nation, our children, our universities, our institutions, and our churches.
PSALM 52:1-3: Why do you boast in evil, O mighty man? The goodness of God endures continually. Your tongue devises destruction, like a sharp razor working deceitfully. You love evil more than good, Lying rather than speaking righteousness. SELAH.
The evil man has a destructive tongue. They call evil good and good evil. They twist truth to create a narrative of deception.
The mighty man who boasts himself in mischief is first put in striking contrast to God whose mercy endures continually.
This Psalm of the wicked tyrant and his destruction reveals the man of sin and the son of perdition of 2 Th. 2: 1-8. It shows David’s trust in God and the doom of the wicked. The occasion for this song is in 1 Sam. 21:7; 22:9-23 and the slaying of the priesthood by Saul with the help of Doeg, the Edomite.
The key here between the righteous and the evil is attitude.
Vs. 6: The righteous shall see and fear.
The end of the wicked man of sin (vs 5) God shall likewise destroy you forever… He shall uproot you from the land of the living. Selah.
52:8-9: But I am a green olive tree in the house of God. I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever. I will praise You forever because You have done it. In the presence of Your saints, I will wait on Your name, for it is good.
PSALM 53:1: The fool has said in his heart, there is no God.
This Psalm is almost identical with Psalm 14:1-7 except for verse 5: There were they in great fear, where no fear was: for God has scattered the bones of him that encamped against you. You have put them to shame because God has despised them.
No fear was = The lie is not real (vanity).
Put them to shame = disgrace.
PSALM 54:1-2: Save me, O God, by your name, and judge me by your strength. Hear my prayer, O God, give ear to the words of my mouth.
This song reveals the principle of betrayal, which is the portion of every son on his way to the throne. Ask Donald J. Trump. The occasion is when the Ziphims came and said to Saul, “does not David hide himself with us?” (1 Sa. 23;19; 26:1).
David brought us a lovely melody out of discord.
Verses 1-3, his prayer. Verses 4-5 – Behold, God is my helper, the LORD is with them that uphold my soul. Verses 6-7 – Thank offering – I will freely sacrifice unto you. I will praise your name, O LORD, for it is good.
PSALM 55:1-2: Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not from my supplication. Attend unto me, and hear me: I mourn in my complaint, and make a noise.
This is another song of betrayal. In Psalm 54, David was betrayed by strangers. Here he is betrayed by friends. This is the prayer of a man in trouble. It pertains to the Day of the Lord. The man of sin is described in verses 12-21. Verse 21 is an apt description of Putin: The words of his mouth were smoother than butter but was war in his heart. His words were softer than oil, yet were they drawn swords.
Like many today, David has leaving on his mind. He wants to “fly away!” The fruit of this kind of thinking is “wandering in the wilderness. He wants to escape.
55:6-9: Oh, that I had wings like a dove! For then I would fly away and be at rest. Lo, then I would wander far off, and remain in the wilderness. Selah. I would hasten my escape from the windy storm and tempest.
55:1-3: The intolerable strain of a familiar friend who has conspired against him.
55:4-8: The urge to escape.
55:9-11: The forces of anarchy – wickedness is in the midst thereof; deceit and guile depart not from her streets. This we are seeing in the streets of blue cities.
55:12-15: The false friend – A man my equal, my guide my acquaintance…
55: 16-19 – The God who hears – God shall hear, and afflict them…
55: 20-21: The smooth talker. The words of his mouth were smother than butter.
55:22-23: The long view – Cast your burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain you. He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.
PSALM 56:1: Be merciful unto me, O God, for man would swallow me up; fighting daily, he oppressed me. My enemies would daily swallow me up; for there are many who fight against me, O thou Most High.
“If the Lord had not been on our side, the enemy could have swallowed us alive. Raging torrents could have swept us away. Angry waters overwhelmed us… If the Lord had not been on our side.” (Stephen J. Pearson).
We can compare this Psalm to 34 and 124.
The keynote of this Psalm is the concluding declaration of Psalm 55, “I will trust in Thee.” It is the faith of anticipated deliverance. The song opens and closes with praise unto the LORD. It was praise that brought David out of danger.
The song of the wanderer:
56:3-4: What time I am afraid, I will trust in you. In God I will praise his word. In God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.
56:5-7: The oppressor’s deception, zeal, and manipulation. …all their thoughts are against me for evil…they mark my steps, when they wait for my soul…
56:8-11: The protection of God – You number my wanderings; put my tears into your bottle; are they not in Your book?
56:12-13: The danger is past – You have delivered my soul from death. You have kept my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living.
After these Psalms of deep trouble and intense warfare, then we break through to Psalm 57. David is still in distress. This prayer is from the cave. The cry is the same, but the reason is different. This Psalm is born of the vision of God, not focused on his circumstances or trouble.
PSALM 57:1-2: Be merciful unto me O God. Be merciful unto me; for my soul trusts in you. Yea, in the shadow of your wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities have passed by.
Instead of wanting to “fly away” escapism, the wings of the sufficiency of God is enough,.
In the shadow of Your wings, I will make my refuge.
In Psalm 56, fear and flight pained David’s heart. In this psalm the heart is fixed, issuing in PRAISE.
57:3: The refuge – He shall send from heaven and save me. He reproaches the one who would swallow me up. SELAH. God shall send forth His mercy and His truth.
57:4-6 the ring of enemies – My soul is among lions. I lie among the sons of men who are set on fire, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword…They have prepared a net for my steps. My soul is bowed down. They have dug a pit before me; into the midst of it, they themselves have fallen. SELAH.
57:7-10: The triumph of praise – My heart is steadfast, O God my heart is steadfast. I will sing and give praise. Awake, my glory! Awake, lute and harp! I will awaken the dawn.
“We sing the songs that awaken the dawn. God of creation we praise you. You are the LORD the Savior of all. God of creation we praise you.” (Stuart Gerrard
57:10-11: Above All Else – Your mercy is great unto the heavens, and your truth unto the clouds. Be exalted O God, above the heavens. Let your glory be above all the earth.
Carolyn Sissom, Pastor
Eastgate Ministries Church, 10115 West Hidden Lakes Lane, Richmond, TX
I entered into the labors of Principles of Present Truth by Kelly Varner. Comments and conclusions are my own and not meant to reflect the views of Brother Varner.