Regarding Iniquity (Psa. 66:18) (Part 2)

THERE IS A PROGRESSION IN PSALM 66.

• The emphasis in the first section is global.
• The writer calls the people of earth to rejoice in God.
• The emphasis in the second section is national.
• The writer calls the nation of Israel to rejoice in God.
• The emphasis in the third section is personal.
• The writer calls his readers to rejoice in what God has done individually for him.

VERSES 18 & 19 COULD EASILY HAVE BEEN OMITTED.

• The thought flow would not have been interrupted, and it would seem as if nothing significant had been left out.
• The writer did insert these verses, so he must have included them to provide a teachable moment.
• What was his big idea, his lesson, his point?
• The writer wanted his readers to understand that, when it comes to prayer, surety follows purity.
• A polluted heart will never have blessed assurance.
• A clean heart facilitates answers to prayer.
• The assurance that you've been heard and that God is “working on it” comes to those who have pursued purity of heart.