Psa 94:9 | KingComments | STEP | The psalmist, the God-fearing, has asked God His questions, questions with which he wrestles. Now he addresses the “senseless among the people” and the “stupid ones” ( ; ). The people to whom the psalmist is speaking are not using their minds; they are “senseless”. The Hebrew word for senseless, ba’ar , means unwise and boorish. The word can also be translated ‘brute’ ( ). In addition, they are foolish, for they say by their way of life that there is no God. These people are not atheists; they do not deny the existence of God, but they have deliberately shut Him out of their lives. They refuse any interference from Him in their lives. How long will it be before they become understanding? They still can if they pay attention to what he is going to say, if they take it to heart (cf. ). What he is about to say has undiminished force for all mankind, even today! They must be well aware that God is present in everything they say, do and think. He leaves no doubt about that (cf. ). He begins with God as the Planter of the ear ( ; cf. ). He planted the ear, reminiscent of digging a hole in the ground to put a plant in it. Thus God made a hole on the side of the head to put in it an ear, that is, the ability to hear. His question: “He who planted the ear, does He not hear?”, concerns all the words they spoke haughtily. The question means that He of course hears all their words. He Who gives man the ability to hear is the all-hearing God. All that man has and can do are attributes of God which He has given him and which He Himself possesses in an infinitely higher degree. The same is true of seeing. The question: “He who formed the eye, does He not see?”, concerns all the injustice they do. Of course He, the Former of the eye, sees that. He has artfully formed the eye as a potter artfully forms a pot. The eye is an artifact of God in which His skill and wisdom are expressed. His eyes see all that all the eyes of all men see. Nothing escapes Him from what they do ( ). God is not only the Planter of the ear and the Former of the eye of individual man. He is also the Chastener of “the nations” ( ). He also controls and checks the nations. He hears their wicked cries and perceives them with His eyes ( ). They are rebuked by Him because of their rebellion against Him. He can do this, for example, through natural disasters or epidemics – such as the current (we write 2020) Covid-19 pandemic – which are at the same time a call to repentance ( ). By doing so, He shows that He is above the nations of the earth. It is His method by which He “teaches man knowledge”. He is the great Teacher Who teaches man about Who He is and who man himself is. He is the Omniscient. The LORD hears all the words of man. He sees all the deeds of man. Words and deeds are externally perceptible. But it goes even deeper. “The LORD knows” also the hidden “thoughts of man” ( ; ). This is connected to the previous verse. He Who teaches man knowledge is the One Who knows all that man thinks, what is in His heart ( ). With His knowledge, He also gives His judgment of all that man devises. “They are a [mere] breath”, that’s all He says about it. What people can be deeply impressed by God sweeps off the table with one swing. That is how little all their intellectual babbling represents. Breath, in Hebrew hebel , means without substance, vain, insignificant, nonsensical. The book of Ecclesiastes describes in detail the meaning of this word through a large number of examples. This verse is quoted by Paul to show the value that man’s wisdom has in God’s sight ( ). He thereby makes it clear to the Corinthians, who are impressed with worldly wisdom, that the deliberations of men, even of the wise, are without substance, volatile.

‏ Psalms 94:9

The LORD Knows Man

The psalmist, the God-fearing, has asked God His questions, questions with which he wrestles. Now he addresses the “senseless among the people” and the “stupid ones” (Psa 94:8; Psa 92:7). The people to whom the psalmist is speaking are not using their minds; they are “senseless”. The Hebrew word for senseless, ba’ar, means unwise and boorish. The word can also be translated ‘brute’ (Eze 21:31). In addition, they are foolish, for they say by their way of life that there is no God. These people are not atheists; they do not deny the existence of God, but they have deliberately shut Him out of their lives. They refuse any interference from Him in their lives.

How long will it be before they become understanding? They still can if they pay attention to what he is going to say, if they take it to heart (cf. Isa 58:1-12). What he is about to say has undiminished force for all mankind, even today!

They must be well aware that God is present in everything they say, do and think. He leaves no doubt about that (cf. Exo 2:24-25). He begins with God as the Planter of the ear (Psa 94:9; cf. Psa 115:3-8). He planted the ear, reminiscent of digging a hole in the ground to put a plant in it. Thus God made a hole on the side of the head to put in it an ear, that is, the ability to hear.

His question: “He who planted the ear, does He not hear?”, concerns all the words they spoke haughtily. The question means that He of course hears all their words. He Who gives man the ability to hear is the all-hearing God. All that man has and can do are attributes of God which He has given him and which He Himself possesses in an infinitely higher degree.

The same is true of seeing. The question: “He who formed the eye, does He not see?”, concerns all the injustice they do. Of course He, the Former of the eye, sees that. He has artfully formed the eye as a potter artfully forms a pot. The eye is an artifact of God in which His skill and wisdom are expressed. His eyes see all that all the eyes of all men see. Nothing escapes Him from what they do (2Chr 16:9).

God is not only the Planter of the ear and the Former of the eye of individual man. He is also the Chastener of “the nations” (Psa 94:10). He also controls and checks the nations. He hears their wicked cries and perceives them with His eyes (Gen 18:20-21). They are rebuked by Him because of their rebellion against Him.

He can do this, for example, through natural disasters or epidemics – such as the current (we write 2020) Covid-19 pandemic – which are at the same time a call to repentance (Isa 55:6-7). By doing so, He shows that He is above the nations of the earth. It is His method by which He “teaches man knowledge”. He is the great Teacher Who teaches man about Who He is and who man himself is. He is the Omniscient.

The LORD hears all the words of man. He sees all the deeds of man. Words and deeds are externally perceptible. But it goes even deeper. “The LORD knows” also the hidden “thoughts of man” (Psa 94:11; Mt 9:3-4). This is connected to the previous verse. He Who teaches man knowledge is the One Who knows all that man thinks, what is in His heart (Acts 1:24).

With His knowledge, He also gives His judgment of all that man devises. “They are a [mere] breath”, that’s all He says about it. What people can be deeply impressed by God sweeps off the table with one swing. That is how little all their intellectual babbling represents. Breath, in Hebrew hebel, means without substance, vain, insignificant, nonsensical. The book of Ecclesiastes describes in detail the meaning of this word through a large number of examples.

This verse is quoted by Paul to show the value that man’s wisdom has in God’s sight (1Cor 3:20). He thereby makes it clear to the Corinthians, who are impressed with worldly wisdom, that the deliberations of men, even of the wise, are without substance, volatile.