Ethics in the Book of Psalms

One of the most basic messages throughout the book of psalms is that those who follow the Lord will be protected and taken care of, and those who oppose God's followers will be punished. A few examples of this idea are:

"Life he asked You - You gave him,
length of days for time without end."...
"Your hand will find out your enemies,
your right hand find out your foes."
-Psalm 21-

"My steadfast God will come to meet me,
God will grant me sight of my foes' defeat."
-Psalm 59-

"Only good to Israel is God,
to the pure of heart."...
"Though my flesh and my heart waste away,
God is my heart's rock and my portion forever.
For, look, those far from You perish,
You demolish all who go whoring from You."
-Psalm 73-

In order to be saved, one must simply trust in God despite whatever hardships they may be going through. As long as people do this, God will not abandon them.

But what of the psalms which speak of God's abandonment? They feel as though they have been abandoned because of the struggles they endure, but in the end they know God is with them and will condemn those who oppose Him.

When it comes down to it, this is the same ethic that Christianity relies upon. While there are many other aspects to Christianity, this is the one belief which gets Christians through both thick and thin. Being a Christian myself, I do believe this is a livable ethic. If you have faith that God will be with you when it really matters, there is nothing to worry about. Yes, there will be hardships, but that does not mean that God has completely forsaken you. Knowing that this is true makes the rest of life more bearable.