BIBLICAL STUDY | PSALM 50

By Timothy Kitchen Jr

Brotherly Love, Returning to God, and His Promise of Deliverance

Key Scripture: Psalm 50:5

“Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”

There is a remarkable message contained in Psalm 50. It is a message of gathering, correction, brotherly love, repentance, and ultimately, deliverance.

But to understand this message, we must first recognize something important: God is not calling His people to gather outside of Him, but unto Him.

He is not calling them to establish their own righteousness, their own authority, or their own way of worship. He is calling those who have entered into a covenant with Him to return their attention to the One with whom that covenant was made.

And within this same Psalm, God reveals something that should cause every one of us to examine ourselves: how we regard our brother is directly connected to how we regard God.

Finally, God concludes with a promise. To those who consider their ways, offer thanksgiving, and order their conduct rightly, He will show His salvation.

1. Gather My Saints Together Unto Me

Psalm 50:1–5 begins with God Himself calling His people.

“The mighty God, even the LORD, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof.

Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined.

Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him.

He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people.

Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”

Notice the direction of the gathering.

God does not say, Gather My saints together unto an organization, unto a personality, or unto a new religious movement.

He says, “Gather my saints together unto me.”

The gathering belongs to God. The people belong to God. The covenant belongs to God.

For those who understand the Church as the spiritual Body of Christ, this is especially significant.

Jesus Christ is the Head of the Church (Colossians 1:18). The Church is not an independent body directing itself. It is a spiritual organism, joined together under its living Head.

Paul writes in Ephesians 1:22–23:

“And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,

Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.”

Therefore, the gathering of God’s people must be understood in relation to Christ.

We are not gathered merely because we occupy the same building, attend the same services, or identify with the same religious name.

We are gathered because we belong to God through Jesus Christ.

And when God’s people become scattered, spiritually wandering, or divided from one another, the answer is not to establish another center of loyalty apart from Christ.

The answer is to return to the Head.

This does not eliminate the government, ministry, or order God has established within His Church. Rather, it places all of these in their proper relationship to Christ, from whom their authority must come.

2. The Covenant Is More Than an Outward Association

God identifies those whom He calls His saints:

“Those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”

This is not merely a gathering of people who share religious beliefs.

These are people who have entered into a covenant relationship with God.

Under the New Covenant, that relationship is made possible through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 9:15 explains that Christ is the mediator of the New Testament through His death.

When we repent, are baptized, and receive God’s Holy Spirit, we enter into a relationship that requires more than outward religious observance.

We surrender our own ways to walk in God’s ways.

And yet, Psalm 50 reveals that people who acknowledge God’s covenant can begin to lose sight of its meaning.

They may continue speaking God’s words. They may continue observing religious practices. They may continue claiming His promises.

But what happens when the heart begins moving away from the very God those practices are intended to honor?

This is the question Psalm 50 places before us.

3. God Does Not Need Our Offerings—He Wants Our Hearts

In Psalm 50:7–15, God corrects the perspective of His people concerning sacrifice.

He explains that every beast of the forest belongs to Him. The cattle upon a thousand hills are His. The world and its fullness already belong to Him.

What, then, can man give to God that God does not already possess?

Psalm 50:14–15 answers:

“Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most High:

And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.”

Consider the progression.

First, thanksgiving.

Second, faithfulness to the covenant.

Third, calling upon God in trouble.

Fourth, God’s promise of deliverance.

And finally, God receiving the glory.

This is not a picture of man rescuing himself through his own wisdom, strength, or religious accomplishments.

It is a picture of man returning his confidence to God.

How easily can we become occupied with the outward things of religion while neglecting the inward relationship those things were intended to strengthen?

God is not condemning the sacrifices He commanded. He is correcting the attitude that treats outward observance as sufficient without a right relationship with Him.

The same lesson applies spiritually today.

We may attend services, observe the Sabbath, keep the Holy Days, and speak of God’s government.

But are we offering thanksgiving?

Are we keeping our covenant?

Are we calling upon God, or depending upon ourselves?

And are we giving Him the glory?

4. What Have We Done to Our Brother?

Here Psalm 50 takes a particularly serious turn.

God begins addressing those who speak His statutes while rejecting His instruction.

Psalm 50:16–17:

“But unto the wicked God saith, What hast thou to do to declare my statutes, or that thou shouldest take my covenant in thy mouth?

Seeing thou hatest instruction, and castest my words behind thee.”

Notice that these are people familiar with God’s words.

They can declare His statutes.

They can speak of His covenant.

Yet God asks what right they have to speak these things while casting His instruction behind them.

The problem is not ignorance alone.

It is the contradiction between what is professed and what is practiced.

And then God identifies conduct involving one’s own brother.

Psalm 50:19–20:

“Thou givest thy mouth to evil, and thy tongue frameth deceit.

Thou sittest and speakest against thy brother; thou slanderest thine own mother’s son.”

Consider the significance.

God has just called His saints together unto Himself.

He has reminded them of their covenant.

He has corrected their understanding of worship and sacrifice.

And now He confronts how they treat their brother.

Why?

Because we cannot separate our relationship with God from our responsibility toward one another.

Jesus Christ taught in John 13:34–35:

“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”

Brotherly love is not an optional addition to the Christian life.

It is one of the identifying characteristics of Christ’s disciples.

A person may know doctrine, understand prophecy, and speak eloquently about God’s government.

But if he speaks evil of his brother, tears him down, or refuses to regard him with the love Christ commanded, something is out of order.

And God tells us to consider it.

5. Philadelphia and the Meaning of Brotherly Love

Within the teaching concerning the Church eras, as taught by Herbert W. Armstrong and the Worldwide Church of God, Philadelphia holds particular significance.

The name Philadelphia means brotherly love.

Revelation 3:7–8 describes Christ addressing this Church:

“And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth;

I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name.”

Notice the relationship between keeping God’s Word and the very name Philadelphia.

If we are to hold fast to what God restored through the Philadelphia era, then we must also consider the brotherly love associated with that name.

It would be a contradiction to defend the teachings of Philadelphia while neglecting the love that should characterize brethren.

And it would be equally mistaken to speak of love while abandoning God’s truth.

Truth and love are not enemies.

Ephesians 4:15 instructs us to speak the truth in love, growing up into Christ, who is the Head.

Therefore, a return to Philadelphia cannot merely mean returning to a name, a history, or a collection of doctrines.

It must include returning to the Head of the Church, keeping His Word, and practicing brotherly love.

We cannot claim to be gathering unto Christ while willingly tearing apart those who belong to Him.

6. God Has Been Silent, but He Has Not Approved

Psalm 50:21 contains a sobering warning:

“These things hast thou done, and I kept silence; thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thyself: but I will reprove thee, and set them in order before thine eyes.”

God’s silence must never be mistaken for His approval.

Because correction does not always come immediately, man can begin assuming that his conduct is acceptable.

He may believe his judgments are God’s judgments.

He may begin attributing his own opinions, suspicions, or preferences to God.

But God says He will set these things in order before his eyes.

That statement is important.

God does not merely announce judgment. He declares that He will expose what is out of order.

He will bring the matter into view.

And when God shows us something that is wrong, what should our response be?

To defend ourselves?

To justify our conduct?

To point toward another person’s faults?

Or to receive His correction and repent?

Hebrews 12:6 reminds us:

“For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.”

Correction from God is not necessarily evidence that He has abandoned someone.

It may be evidence that He is calling that person back.

7. Consider This, Ye That Forget God

Psalm 50:22 says:

“Now consider this, ye that forget God, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver.”

This is a warning, but notice the word consider.

God is calling attention to the danger before the final consequence.

He is telling those who have forgotten Him to examine what they are doing.

And what has He just addressed?

Their rejection of instruction.

Their misuse of His covenant.

Their deceitful speech.

Their treatment of their brother.

Their assumption that God’s silence means agreement.

God is not merely telling them that they have done wrong.

He is directing their attention toward the things that must be corrected.

This is mercy within a warning.

Consider your ways.

Consider your words.

Consider your brother.

Consider whether your worship is truly directed toward God.

Consider whether you are following Christ or merely defending a position you have taken.

The warning is severe because the consequences are severe.

But the warning itself provides an opportunity to change direction.

That is the remarkable thing about God’s correction.

He does not leave man without instruction concerning the way back.

8. God Will Show His Salvation to Those Who Order Their Way Aright

Psalm 50 concludes with a promise.

Psalm 50:23:

“Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me: and to him that ordereth his conversation aright will I shew the salvation of God.”

The word translated conversation in the King James Version refers here to one’s way or course of life, not merely spoken conversation.

The Hebrew expression points toward setting one’s way in order.

This gives us a powerful conclusion to the entire Psalm.

God has called His saints together unto Himself.

He has reminded them of their covenant.

He has shown them that outward worship without obedience is insufficient.

He has confronted the mistreatment of their brother.

He has warned those who have forgotten Him.

And then He declares that the one who orders his way rightly will be shown His salvation.

In other words, the Psalm does not end merely with condemnation.

It ends with a way forward.

God is showing His people what must be corrected, and He promises to show His salvation to those who respond rightly.

This does not mean that human conduct earns salvation. Salvation is God’s gift. But repentance, faith, and obedience are part of the response God requires of those whom He calls.

Consider also Psalm 50:15:

“And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.”

There is a beautiful relationship between these two verses.

In verse 15, God promises deliverance to those who call upon Him in the context of thanksgiving and covenant faithfulness.

In verse 23, He promises to show His salvation to those who glorify Him and order their ways rightly.

Both promises direct our attention back to God.

Not to man’s power.

Not to man’s position.

Not to man’s ability to rescue himself.

But to God.

9. The Way Back Is Not Through Condemning Our Brother

There is another lesson we should consider.

When we see a brother struggling, wandering, or becoming spiritually weak, what is our responsibility?

Is it to speak against him?

To isolate him?

To assume the worst concerning his intentions?

Or is it to seek his restoration?

Galatians 6:1–2 instructs:

“Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.

Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.”

Notice the word restore.

The objective is not to win a dispute or demonstrate superiority.

It is to help bring a brother back into a right relationship with God.

And the one helping must also consider himself.

This is brotherly love in practice.

James 5:19–20 adds:

“Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him;

Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.”

There is an important distinction between correcting a brother and condemning him.

Correction seeks restoration.

Condemnation, when rooted in pride or hostility, can seek only to establish another person’s guilt.

We must be careful not to confuse the two.

God’s people have a responsibility to uphold truth, but that responsibility must be exercised according to God’s instructions, with humility, patience, and love.

Matthew 18:15–17 provides an orderly process for addressing a brother’s trespass, beginning privately.

The purpose is expressed in Christ’s own words:

“Thou hast gained thy brother.”

Not defeated him.

Not humiliated him.

Gained him.

That should cause us to examine the purpose behind our own words and actions.

10. Gathering Together Means Returning to the Same Head

Ephesians 4:15–16 describes the Body of Christ growing together under its Head.

Every member has a place.

Every joint supplies something.

And the Body is to build itself up in love.

If one member suffers, the other members should not be indifferent.

First Corinthians 12:26 says:

“And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it.”

How different would our gatherings be if we truly considered this?

What if we looked upon the quiet brother sitting alone and considered that he might be carrying a burden we cannot see?

What if we considered that the family who appears distant may be exhausted, struggling, or barely holding on?

What if we stopped interpreting every silence as rejection and every difference as hostility?

What if, instead, we prayed for one another and sought God’s perspective?

The gathering God desires is not simply people assembled in one physical location.

It is His people joined to Christ, walking in His truth, and learning to regard one another as members of the same Body.

This is not an argument against assembling together. Hebrews 10:25 plainly instructs Christians not to forsake assembling.

Rather, it is a reminder of why we assemble.

We gather to worship God, receive His instruction, encourage one another, and grow together under Jesus Christ.

A gathering without brotherly love has lost something essential to its purpose.

11. God’s Promise of Deliverance

Let us return to the promise in Psalm 50:15:

“I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.”

God does not promise that His people will never experience trouble.

He tells them to call upon Him in the day of trouble.

That means trouble is already present.

The difficulty is real.

The suffering is real.

The need for deliverance is real.

But so is the promise.

And what is especially significant is that this promise appears in a Psalm where God is calling His people to examine their relationship with Him.

He is teaching them where their confidence must be placed.

We cannot always determine how or when God will deliver us. Sometimes He removes the difficulty. Sometimes He provides strength to endure it. And ultimately, His promise of salvation reaches beyond the troubles of this present physical life.

But His people are not instructed to abandon hope.

They are instructed to call upon Him.

Romans 10:13 declares:

“For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

And Revelation 3:10 contains Christ’s promise to Philadelphia:

“Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.”

Within the understanding of the Church eras taught by Herbert W. Armstrong, this promise carries particular significance concerning the faithful Philadelphia Church and God’s protection.

Yet the emphasis remains upon Christ and His Word.

The promise is not a license for complacency.

It is an encouragement to remain faithful.

Conclusion: Consider Your Brother, Return to Christ, and Call Upon God

Psalm 50 begins with God calling His saints together unto Himself.

It ends with God promising to show His salvation to the one who orders his way rightly.

Between those two statements, He teaches us what must be considered.

Our covenant.

Our worship.

Our obedience.

Our words.

Our treatment of our brother.

Our willingness to receive correction.

And our confidence in God.

For those who have wandered, the message is to consider the way back.

For those who have become spiritually weak, the message is to call upon God.

For those who have spoken against their brethren, the message is to consider their words and restore what can be restored.

For those who have been hurt, the message is not to surrender their relationship with God because of what another person has done.

And for those who are gathering, the message is to remember unto whom we are gathered.

We are gathered unto Jesus Christ, the living Head of the Church.

Not outside of Him.

Not independently of Him.

Not in competition with His authority.

But unto Him.

And when we truly begin to consider our brother, we begin to see more clearly what God is teaching us about His own love.

The path forward is not merely to recognize what has gone wrong.

It is to allow God to show us how to make our ways right.

Psalm 50 does not promise that every person will accept correction. It does not say that every broken relationship will immediately be restored.

But it does tell us that God calls His people to consider their ways, and it directs them toward His deliverance and salvation.

That is where our hope must remain.

Let us therefore gather unto Christ.

Let us consider our brethren.

Let us receive God’s correction.

Let us order our ways according to His Word.

And let us call upon Him in the day of trouble.

For He has promised:

“Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me: and to him that ordereth his conversation aright will I shew the salvation of God.”

— Psalm 50:23

The gathering is unto Christ. The way is through repentance and obedience. The evidence is brotherly love. And the deliverance belongs to God.