The Tree and the Chaff Psalm 1

The book of Psalms begin with an introduction, giving one of the main themes of the book immediately—the difference between the righteous and the wicked.

Blessed is the one who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked
Or who stands with sinners in their path
Or who sits in the company of mockers
But his delight is in the teaching of Yahweh
And he recites his instruction day and night.
He is like a tree transplanted near running water
Which yields its fruit in its season
And its leaf does not wither
And all that it grows is prosperous.
Not so the wicked;
They are like the chaff the wind drives away.
Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
Nor will sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
For Yahweh watches the way of the righteous
But the way of the wicked is destroyed.

Who are the wicked?
There are three words that are used to describe the “wicked”. First, there is the word “wicked”, which means those who seek to do immoral, evil things. Second is the term “sinner” who are those who do that which makes them wrong before God and so unable to pray to God or receive anything from Him. The third term is “mocker” or “scoffer.” This is the one who makes fun of others, especially when they are doing poorly or trying to help another—even the one who is mocking them.

Who is the righteous one?
The righteous is not necessarily the one who is perfect, and certainly not the one who is holier-than-thou. To be “righteous” rather means that he is one who makes it a priority to be able to pray to God, and so remain right before God. The righteous is the one who knows his weaknesses enough that he will spend time focusing on God and on His word. His focus is not perfection, but in wanting a good relationship with God, every day, at least twice a day. So he reads God’s instructions and he tries to live by them, and repents when he has broken God’s word.

What does the righteous have to do with the wicked?
Part of maintaining his right standing before God is in the company he keeps. He recognizes that we are all influenced by and see our reality by the company we keep. So he avoids the company of the wicked, so that he wouldn’t participate in his actions. This doesn’t mean that he avoids the wicked or that he turns his nose up at them. But he doesn’t “hang out” with them, try to have fun with them or base his decisions around their counsel. Often the wicked will try to establish themselves as authorities over him, and he won’t have anything to do with that.
Often the wicked in our lives is not even people, but an atmosphere, or anything that would cause us to be separated from God. The Psalmist is warning us to remain away from whatever would cause us to separate from God.

What is the end of the righteous?
The righteous is to have much joy—perhaps not right away, though. It implies in the psalm that the wicked might be in authority and so the righteous might get a hard time from them if he doesn’t hang with them. But the fate of the righteous is described as a tree that has been planted for a long time by a stream—constantly getting nourishment and growing strong. The life of the righteous, the psalm says, is watched over by the Lord, and the Lord always is ready to hear from him.

What is the end of the wicked?
However, the wicked has a very different result of his life. For a while, perhaps, they will be able to mock and laugh and have fun at the expense of others. But their end, it says, is that of chaff.
Chaff is the inedible part of grain that is light. If one throws grain in a light breeze, the chaff flies away, as trash, yet the grain remains. Chaff is useless, and is thrown away, or used to be stepped on.
What exactly does this mean? Well, the psalm is very specific about that. We will all stand before the Lord in judgment, the psalm says. And the wicked will be sentenced harshly by God himself. The righteous will stand as a group, blessed by God, but the wicked will not be allowed in their company.

Jesus says…
This Psalm is very much like the blessings that Jesus pronounced: “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy; Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. But woe to those who laugh now, for they shall weep.” (Matthew 5:8; Luke 6:21, 25). Jesus recognized, like the Psalmist, that the righteous would not be able to hang with the wicked, if there was any chance that they would participate in their sin, which keeps them away from God. (Matthew 18:7-9) The important thing is that we have to protect our relationship with God—nurture it and then it will thrive. And one of the important ways for us to do that, Jesus said, is to Listen and do what God says. If we do that, then we will be successful with God. If we have success in Him, then we our future is secure.