Psalms 52:5

⁵ God shall likewise destroy you forever;
He shall take you away, and pluck you out of your dwelling place,
And uproot you from the land of the living. Selah

For those that love evil more than good, “God shall likewise destroy you forever”.  That is, in the same way that you devise destruction and work deceitfully against others, you will be destroyed.  Jesus seems to speak on these terms in Matthew 7 when He says, “Judge not, that you be not judged.  For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.”  This would be in keeping with the Jewish law concerning false witnesses.  In Deuteronomy 19:21 it says the penalty for a confirmed false witness is “Your eye shall not pity: life shall be for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.”

Jesus addresses this in Matthew 5:38-39 saying, “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’  But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.”  Jesus continues in verses 44-48 to say, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.  For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?  And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others?  Do not even the tax collectors do so?  Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”

Jesus is saying that everyone will be given the chance to see God and experience His grace, mercy, and forgiveness, even if the only person they see it in happens to be you - the person they are doing evil towards.  He is saying, “I love them, so you should love them.” 

I find that most people want to live in these verses and never get out.  These are wrongly used by Christians living in sin as the ‘I can do whatever I want and no one can say anything about it’ verses.  They forget that everything has a season, including sin.  They forget that there is only one righteousness, one good, and that is only in God.  They oppose Him, not other men. 

While it is easy to get confused in these seemingly opposing concepts, it is easier to miss David’s actual words.  The words “God shall” should not be missed.  How is it that David, who undoubtedly knew the law, would not quote the law about what should happen to these false witnesses, but instead writes about what God would do to them who “love evil more than good”?  I find this to be extended proof of the Spirit of God working in David’s life and how the Spirit of God is the same here as when Jesus speaks much later.  

David accepts that these men oppose God, not him.  This is the main reason that David would not kill Saul when he had the many opportunities to do so, he would not oppose God who had allowed Saul to be king.  He knew that the Lord has said “Vengeance is mine, I will repay”.  So he writes that “God shall destroy”.  And this is better as the Lord will repay justly.

I think it is very important to be subject to the rule of the Holy Spirit in our lives in this area.  We are to show mercy, grace, forgiveness, kindness, and love to those who oppose us so that they might see the works of God.  But there are times when I believe the Holy Spirit says that the season for that sin has ended and we can be lead to be the instruments of God's justice.  David had also experienced this as well.