Psalms 50:7 - Meaning and Application

God is dealing here with people who thought religion was only about outward ceremonies. They kept the ceremonial law and assumed that was enough. But God reminds them of the original agreement between him and Israel, where they had accepted him as their God and he had accepted them as his people. So he says, “Hear, my people, and I will speak” (Psalm 50:7).

It is right that when God speaks, his people should listen. If they will not hear him, who will? We can also expect God to speak to us kindly when we are ready to listen. Even when he warns or rebukes us through his word or through events in our lives, we should be eager to hear what he says. We should listen even to the rod, meaning the discipline that he has appointed.

God then shows how little value the legal sacrifices have when people trust in them instead of obeying him (Psalm 50:8). We can look back at this in two ways. First, under the law, God was not arguing with the Jews because they had failed to bring sacrifices. They had in fact been very careful about them. Their burnt offerings were always before him, and they even took pride in them. They hoped these offerings would excuse their sinful lives, much like the adulterous woman who uses religious talk to cover her lust (Proverbs 7:14). They thought their constant sacrifices would both cover and excuse their neglect of the more important matters of God’s law.

Even if they had failed somewhat in these outward acts, that would still not have been the main reason for God’s quarrel with them. Their greater sin was their immoral conduct. Yet they acted as if God owed them something for all the animals they had brought to his altar, as if they had made him their debtor. But God shows the opposite. He did not need their sacrifices. He already owns the cattle on a thousand hills, all the animals in the forest, and the whole world with everything in it (Psalm 50:9-12). He has full right over them, sees them all, and can use them however he chooses. His complete self-sufficiency shows how unable we are to add anything to him.

He also could not be helped or improved by their offerings. Their goodness in this matter could not reach him. If they were righteous in this, he was not made any better by it (Psalm 50:13). “Do I eat the flesh of bulls?” he asks. It is just as foolish to think that sacrifices, by any worth in themselves, could give God pleasure, as it would be to think that an infinite Spirit needs food and drink like our bodies do. The Gentiles believed their false gods fed on the fat and wine of sacrifices (Deuteronomy 32:38), but will the great Lord be entertained that way? No. Obedience is better than sacrifice, and love for God and neighbor is better than all burnt offerings. In fact, God often told them through his prophets that their sacrifices were not acceptable, but hateful, while they kept living in sin. Instead of pleasing him, those offerings became a mockery and an insult to him (Proverbs 15:8; Isaiah 1:11; Isaiah 66:3; Jeremiah 6:20; Amos 5:21).

So they are warned not to rest in these outward acts. They must live toward God as his true people in every part of life. We can also look forward and see the ending of these sacrifices in the gospel of Christ, as Dr. Hammond explains. When God establishes the kingdom of the Messiah, he will set aside the old worship of sacrifices and offerings. He will no longer require bullocks and goats to be brought continually before him (Psalm 50:8-9). He never asked for them because he needed them or took pleasure in them. All that already belongs to him, and he has far more creatures than we know of, far beyond what we keep in our own flocks.

He appointed these sacrifices to point ahead to the great sacrifice his own Son would offer on the cross in the fullness of time, making atonement for sin. They also pointed to the spiritual sacrifices of praise and devotion that God will accept through Christ. In that light, God directs us to the better sacrifices of prayer and praise, which were always valued above burnt offerings and animal sacrifices, and which now replace those outward rituals under the gospel (Psalm 50:14-15). He shows what is good and what the Lord our God requires when sacrifices are set aside.

We must first make a repentant confession of our sins. Some read the verse as, “Offer to God confession,” meaning we should admit our sins, give glory to God, and take shame to ourselves so that we do not go back to the same sins. A broken and sorrowful heart is the sacrifice God will not turn away (Psalm 51:17). If the sin was not abandoned, the sin offering was not truly accepted.

Second, we must thank God for his mercies. We should offer thanksgiving every day, often each day, and especially on special occasions. If it comes from a humble, thankful heart full of love and joy in God, that praise pleases him more than an ox or a bull with horns and hoofs (Psalm 69:30-31).

Third, we must be careful to keep our promises to him. “Pay your vows to the Most High” means we should turn from our sins and do our duty better, in line with the solemn promises we have made to God. When we thank God for a mercy we have received, we must also be sure to keep the vows we made while seeking that mercy. Otherwise, our thanks will not be accepted. Dr. Hammond applies this to the Lord’s Supper, the Christian meal of remembrance and thanksgiving, where we thank God for his great love in sending his Son to save us, and we renew our vows of love, duty, and generosity. Instead of the Old Testament shadows pointing to a Christ yet to come, we now have the blessed memorial of Christ already come.

Fourth, in trouble we must turn to God in faithful, earnest prayer (Psalm 50:15). “Call on me in the day of trouble,” he says, and not on any other god. Even when our troubles come from God’s hand, they should drive us to him, not away from him.

We must acknowledge him in all our ways, depend on his wisdom, power, and goodness, and give ourselves fully to him. In this way we give him glory. This is a simpler, easier, and more ready way to seek his favor than bringing a peace offering, and it is more pleasing to him.

When he answers our prayers and delivers us, as he has promised to do in the way and time he sees fit, we must glorify him. We do this not only by speaking gratefully about his kindness, but by living in a way that praises him. In this way we keep close fellowship with God, meeting him with our prayers when he afflicts us and with our praise when he delivers us.