Psalms for Turbulent Times - Part 3

PSALM 58

by Jim Jester

December 13, 2020

Scripture Reading: Psalm 13

1 To the chief Musician. A Psalm of David. “How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? For ever? How long wilt thou hide thy face from me?

2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? How long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?

3 Consider and hear me, O LORD my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death;

4 Lest mine enemy say, I have prevailed against him; and those that trouble me rejoice when I am moved.

5 But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation. 6 I will sing unto the LORD, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.” – Ps. 13

In the News

“Sidney Powell is registered as a MILITARY LAWYER and is the only one who can prosecute TREASON at a TRIBUNAL!”

November 23, 2020 - The Marshall Report

So don’t let spin doctors and fake media tell you lies about the woman who is bringing down the giants in the swamp! And there are a great number of them, more than anyone could have imagined!

Powell stated that the New World Order has “OVERTHROWN the Republican Party” and that the Republican Party sold its soul to the New World Order in return for large cash payments in the form of “enormous bribes.” She warned the GOP risks being “neutered” by “the Great Reset” in 2021 if President Trump’s second term is stolen from him by the “children of darkness.”

These are strong words, from a serious, well-seasoned Military Attorney that won’t roll over and allow the media to drag her reputation through the mud. She is chomping at the bit to get on with real justice, i.e., the days in court. Be it the Supreme Court or before the Military Tribunal.

In an interview Sidney Powell stated, “The Republican elite are not safe hiding behind their propaganda fueled media institutions, making unaccountable decisions in D.C., and silencing patriots who speak out against this insanity.”

“When Trump begins his second term a tidal wave of punishment will be coming their way, the likes of which has never been seen before in this country.” In a news report by Hal Turner, his sources state that Georgia’s Republican Governor Brian Kemp and the Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger both allegedly took money from Communist China, perhaps to intentionally steal the November Election for Biden.

These two sold our votes and constitutional rights to China for a buck! The devil went down to Georgia and indeed he found some to ‘fiddle’ with! [End of article]

What? These two are Republicans? And how many Americans, because of the media, are so pliable and tolerant that they think the election was accurate and legitimate? Far too many. Remember the story earlier this year about one person in a Nascar garage, who was confused about a rope handle on the door? He speaks out; and behold, the media and the FBI, swat teams and all, immediately respond and show up to investigate the situation. But if hundreds of Americans speak out about something they saw while at the polls voting, nothing happens; just silence and unbelief – only the chirping of crickets.

Is Barr a part of the Deep State? What happened the Durham Report we were supposed to get? Where’s the call from Republicans for an investigation and forensics on the voting machines? Why so much inaction from the Supreme Court? In fact, late this week (Dec. 11) the not so Supreme Court “judges” betrayed the president and America by dismissing the case filed by Texas. They said the state had no standing.

The Election fraud was on the scale of another 9-11, and the Court refused to hear the evidence. Thus we are no longer a nation of laws, but of men. The corruption is complete. The judges have unleashed bloodshed upon America. Only Thomas and Alito were on the side of the Constitution. But now, the Constitution is null and void. Trump swore to uphold the Constitution, so now he has no choice but to use a military option to defeat the swamp. This could have been Trump’s “plan B” all along.

If Biden is sworn in, there is no mechanism to remove him; which means, the Deep State has won. If so, there has not been such a victory by the Left since the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia. So goes the continuing, Covid-covered, communist coup. America may never recover, outside of Divine intervention.

Introduction

What if America were a dictatorship, or perhaps a monarchy? A dictatorship usually has a negative connotation; and a monarchy, not as feared; but no matter what the case, it can be good or bad, depending upon the individual in charge. A dictatorship in America may sound preposterous and unthinkable because it is not a part of our constitution; but really, we have seen it before not too far back in our history; the prime example being the jew, Abraham Lincoln and the War Between the States.

President Lincoln chose to reinforce Fort Sumter, South Carolina, after the South had seceded, which meant that Lincoln invaded a sovereign country like a dictator. He made war against his own citizens! That is the definition of a dictator, even in his own dictionary. You see, while the South saw themselves as a separate country, Lincoln did not. He still considered them part of the United States because he did not accept Secession as legal. Thus, by his own definition he made war against his own citizens.

On the other hand, it is possible to have a good “dictator” (ruler, emperor). Take Adolf Hitler for example. Accepted by legal vote and appointed by the Chancellor as Fuhrer of the Empire, he assumed unlimited political power and made Germany the most prosperous nation in a world of economic depression. While America was in economic lockdown, Germans were employed, buying Volkswagens and going on government paid vacations (even in other countries).

So, is it possible that America could come under a dictatorship? We wouldn’t think so; but this week I discovered something I had not previously known. It is a law revealed in the following post:

Trump at the Rubicon

How the Insurrection Act and Militia Act Empower Trump to Cast the Die

By Alexander Macris

In the closing days of 50 BC, the Roman Senate declared that Julius Caesar’s term, as a provincial governor was finished. Roman law afforded its magistrates immunity to prosecution, but this immunity would end with Caesar’s term. As the leader of the populares faction, Caesar had many enemies among the elite optimates, and as soon as he left office, these enemies planned to bury him in litigation. Caesar knew he would lose everything: property, liberty, even his life.

Caesar decided it was better to fight for victory than accept certain defeat. In January 49 BC, he crossed the Rubicon River with his army, in violation of sacred Roman law, and began a civil war. “Alea iacta est,” said Caesar – the die is cast.

In the closing days of 2020 AD, the American media has declared that Donald Trump’s term, as president is finished. As the leader of the deplorables faction, Trump has many enemies among the elite irates, and as soon as he leaves office, these enemies plan to bury him in litigation. Bill Pascrell, the Chairman of the House Ways & Means Subcommittee on Oversight, has officially called for the prosecution of President Trump for “government crimes” following his term in office. In his thirst for vengeance, Pascrell has made it clear there will be no Nixonian escape by pardon: Donald Trump, along with his worst enablers, must be tried for their crimes against our nation and Constitution. Any further abuse of the sacred pardon power to shield criminals would itself be obstruction of justice, and any self-pardons would be illegal.

Like Caesar, Trump now must fight for victory or lose everything. Come January 2021, will Donald Trump decide to cast the die and cross the Rubicon? He might.

The same people who warned us that Trump is worse than Hitler will now scoff: “Donald Trump is no Caesar!” That’s true. Trump is in a much better position than Caesar was.

Unlike Caesar, Trump can cross the Rubicon legally. He need violate no sacred law. He has all the legal power he needs to act and win. Congress has given it to him. All he needs to do is invoke the Insurrection Act.

Invoking the Insurrection Act

During the 2020 summer protests and riots, commentators on both the Left and Right argued about whether Trump would use the so-called Insurrection Act against the crowds. Strangely, no one seems to be considering the fact that Trump could use it now.

The history of the Insurrection Act dates back all the way to 1797, and the legislative record is so long and tortured that it’s woeful to contemplate. Suffice to say that in the 21st century, the Insurrection Act has been pleasantly re-titled “The Enforcement of the Laws to Restore Public Order Act” and codified in four sections of the US Code:

•  
  • 10 USC § 251 Federal Aid for State Governments
  • 10 USC § 252 Use of Militia and Armed Forces to Enforce Federal Authority
  • 10 USC § 253 Interference with State and Federal Law
  • 10 USC § 254 Proclamation to Disperse

Of the four provisions, the most recent and the most powerful is 10 USC § 253, which was written in 2006. This is the one that liberal pundits always forget to mention when they blab about Posse Comitatus and governors. It reads:

“The President, by using the militia or the armed forces, or both, or by any other means, shall take such measures as he considers necessary to suppress, in a State, any insurrection, domestic violence, unlawful combination, or conspiracy, if it: 

1. Hinders the execution of the laws of that State, and of the United States within the State, that any part or class of its people is deprived of a right, privilege, immunity, or protection named in the Constitution and secured by law, and the constituted authorities of that State are unable, fail, or refuse to protect that right, privilege, or immunity, or to give that protection; or
2. Opposes or obstructs the execution of the laws of the United States or impedes the course of justice under those laws.”

That’s powerful language! Consider: 

• The authority is vested solely in the President. He does not need the invitation of state governors to intervene, nor does he need the approval of the Supreme Court. Older provisions of the Insurrection Act required either a governor or a judicial proceeding to authorize its use, but these limits were purposefully removed by Congress in § 253.
• There is no time limit on the President’s activities. Older versions of the Insurrection Act limited the use of force to brief periods of time and then required legislative approval. Those limits, too, are also gone.
• The President is allowed to use any means that he (he needs no one else) considers necessary. This includes using the armed forces (which enables him to bypass the Posse Comitatus Act) and using the militia (more detail below).
• The President’s ability to use force isn’t restricted to actual rebellion or insurgency. He can act against merely unlawful combinations and conspiracies. To be clear: If the President decides that a conspiracy has deprived people of a right and believes that authorities fail or refuse to protect that right, he can send in the troops.

In blunt terms, Congress has given the power to President Trump to proclaim:

“I, President Trump, have determined that a conspiracy has deprived 70 million Americans of their right to vote and that the other authorities are refusing to protect this right. I therefore order the suppression of this conspiracy by any means necessary.”

And with that, Trump will cross the Rubicon.

If you are of libertarian leanings, you are likely to feel horror: “Why on Earth did a free republic vest so much power into one man?”

You should feel horror. The Romans required a Senate vote to appoint a Dictator with emergency powers, and that Dictator served a strict six-month term limit. In America, we’ve given the President the right to decide when he should become a Dictator and for how long he can retain his emergency powers.

This was certainly unwise; but it is done. The power has been given. The power can be used. And it probably will be used if the Democrats continue on their foolish campaign to seek vengeance on Trump.

Calling Up the Militia

The militia is defined by 10 U.S. Code § 246:

“(a) The militia of the United States consists of all able-bodied males at least 17 years of age and… under 45 years of age who are, or who have made a declaration of intention to become, citizens of the United States and of female citizens of the United States who are members of the National Guard.

(b) The classes of the militia are: 

• (1) The organized militia, which consists of the National Guard and the Naval Militia; and
• (2) The unorganized militia, which consists of the members of the militia who are not members of the National Guard or the Naval Militia.”

This is, again, an incredibly powerful piece of legislation. Put into plain English, and ignoring a few minor exemptions (postal workers, etc.), Trump commands an unorganized militia consisting of every able-bodied man between the ages of 17 and 45. The men don’t need to be in the National Guard. They don’t need to be veterans. They don’t need to be anything except 17 to 45 and able-bodied.

Remember that 10 USC § 253 grants the President the power to use the militia to take such measures as he considers necessary to suppress conspiracy. The militia is statutorily defined to include the unorganized militia.

Therefore, when you combine 10 USC § 253 with 10 USC § 246, the President can call on every able-bodied male age 17 to 45 to take any means he deems necessary to suppress the conspiracy to deny Americans their voting rights. How many men is that? With 328M Americans, 50% of them male, and 40% of them between 18 and 45, that’s 65M militia members.

Let’s return to our earlier assumption that Trump has invoked the Insurrection Act and then used it to call up the militia. Let’s continue to assume that the US Armed Forces are either paralyzed with indecision, split in their loyalties, or opting to stay neutral, and just look at the militia. So who is going to fight?

Now, no matter what the law says, not every eligible militiaman would respond to Trump’s call. But it seems likely there’d be a large number who did respond, and an even larger number of noncombatant supporters. Right now, 70% of Republicans don’t think the election was free and fair. If Trump calls on the unorganized militia to save the Republic from voter fraud, a militia will come.

So too would an anti-militia or resistance. In fact, lots of people who are willing to fight are fighting on the streets already. It seems likely that if Trump crosses the Rubicon, he will trigger a civil war, just like Caesar triggered a civil war.

[My comment: Macris gives the math on gun ownership statistics, and concludes.] …This basic math suggests 12.4 million potential Trump gun owners and 12.1 million potential anti-Trump gun owners.

However, it’s likely the odds would stack more favorably to Trump. Although only 39% of Americans are Republicans, gun owners are actually 64% Republican. In other words, those who own guns are disproportionately Republican by a factor of 1.64! If we replace the percentage of Trump voters with the percentage of Republican gun-owners, then the balance of forces changes to 17.6M pro-Trump and 6.9M anti-Trump [over twice as many/a little under 3 times].

3% of Americans fought in the Continental Army during the Revolution. If 3% respond to the call for the militia, that would mean between 450,000 to 700,000 militia and 210,000 to 450,000 resisters. To put that in context, there’s only 60,000 soldiers in the Infantry Branch of the US Army.

Of the militia who do respond, those on Trump’s side will be much better trained. As noted earlier, the military’s combat arms are disproportionately white, with the infantry being 79% white and only 9% black. Since the United States has now been at war for 20 years, there are millions of combat veterans, and the vast majority of those are likely to be on Trump’s side….

The Oathkeepers, a hundred-thousand-strong organization made up of military and law enforcement veterans and personnel, has already stated that it will refuse to recognize a Biden presidency. “We’ll be very much like the founding fathers. We’ll end up nullifying and resisting,” said founder Stewart Rhodes. The founding fathers resisted with guns.

Not a Drill

The nuclear option is the Insurrection Act and the Militia. [Why wouldn’t Trump use it?]

Left-wing media is a parade of ostriches marching heads down in the sand. “Trump will lose in a landslide!” Wrong. “There is no evidence of fraud!” Wrong. “Civil War could never happen!” Wrong. Maybe it won’t happen. The future is unpredictable. But it really could happen.

If I had told you last November that in the next 12 months the US would endure the worst pandemic since Spanish Flu, AND the worst depression since the Great Depression, AND the worst Constitutional crisis since the Civil War, AND the worst civil unrest since the summer of 1968, AND an unprecedented nation-wide lockdowns that led to the end of sports, bars, restaurants, movies, in-class attendance at school, and commuting to work, AND that it would culminate in the World Economic Forum announcing a Great Reset to the global economy to lock in this new normal, would you have believed me? No, you’d have laughed me off as a tinfoil nut job. Yet here we are.

…An enormous machine: liberal media, watchdog groups, and partisan activists, is doing everything it can to silence the dissenters. This same machine is making enemy lists and actively declaring that when it wins, it will be taking vengeance, against Trump, against everyone who helped him, and against everyone who voted for him.

This is not a drill. This is where we are. If Trump is standing on the banks of the Rubicon, it’s because the leftist machine has purposefully widened the Rubicon River until it reaches his feet…. As another great military leader put it, “when on death ground, you must fight.” – [End of article, macris.substack.com]

Psalm 13 – Light at the End of the Tunnel

Our Scripture reading of Psalm 13 is a personal lament of David. He begins with a complaint (v. 1-2), continues with a supplication (v. 3-4), and concludes with confidence (v. 5-6).

You may have noticed the inner struggle, “How long…,” he asks the Lord four times. We do the same thing; we know God will answer, but when? It is normal to be impatient when expecting good news.

Concluding at verse 6, David says, “I will sing unto the Lord, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.” Despite the adversity, this is an expecting faith in advance of the abundance of God’s provisions – both physical and spiritual. Sooner or later, David will be giving public praise to God for His answer. At the end of the darkness, the light approaches. God’s people have always lived in the faith that God has the last word.

Psalm 58 – A God Who Judges

1 To the chief Musician; Altaschith; Michtam of David. “Do ye indeed speak righteousness, O congregation? do ye judge uprightly, O ye sons of men?

2 Yea, in heart ye work wickedness; ye weigh the violence of your hands in the earth.

3 The wicked are estranged from the womb: they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies. 

4 Their poison is like the poison of a serpent: they are like the deaf adder that stoppeth her ear; 

5 Which will not hearken to the voice of charmers, charming ever so wisely.

6 Break their teeth, O God, in their mouth: break out the great teeth of the young lions, O LORD.

7 Let them melt away as waters which run continually: when he bendeth his bow to shoot his arrows, let them be as cut in pieces.

8 As a snail which melteth, let every one of them pass away: like the untimely birth of a woman, that they may not see the sun.

9 Before your pots can feel the thorns, he shall take them away as with a whirlwind, both living, and in his wrath.

10 The righteous shall rejoice when he seeth the vengeance: he shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked.

11 So that a man shall say, Verily there is a reward for the righteous: verily he is a God that judgeth in the earth.” – Ps. 58

Altaschith: means “destroy not.” It was probably the beginning of a song to the tune of which such labeled psalms were to be chanted. Or it could have been what we call today a hymn tune.

Michtam: The marginal reading of our Authorized Version says this means “a golden psalm,” while, in the Geneva version, it is described as “a certain tune.” From the position it occupies in the title, we may infer that michtam is a term applied to these psalms [those labeled such], to denote their musical character, but beyond this, everything is obscure. – Smith Bible Dictionary

This national lament is a compassionate plea for justice. Verses 1-5 describe the wicked; v. 6-9 is an imprecatory prayer against them; and v. 10-11 describes the vindication of the righteous.

David reflects upon the time he fled from the malice of Saul. In these verses, David, not as a king (he had not yet come to the throne), but as a prophet, in God’s name arraigns and convicts his judges with more authority and justice than they showed in prosecuting him. Two things he charges them with: the corruption of their government and the corruption of their nature.

Three cases are given of the corruption of their nature (original sin):

• Falsehood: They soon learn to speak lies, and “bend their tongues, like their bows” for that purpose (Jer. 9:3). How soon will little children tell a lie to excuse a fault, resulting in their own commendation! It is not long that a child will speak in dishonor to God; sins of the tongue are one of the first actual transgressions.
• Malice: “Their poison”, i.e., their ill-will, and the spite they had to goodness and good men, particularly to David, was “like the poison of a serpent” inherent, venomous, and mischievous, and that of which they can never be cured. Such is the enmity in the serpent’s brood against the Lord and His anointed.
• Intractableness: “…Like the deaf adder that stops her ear”, they are impossible to deal with. They are unmanageable, stubborn and inflexible. Nothing will work to appease them and bring them to a better temper: no reason, no compromise, and no kindness.

In America, we have seen no better ultimate example of these than the Democrats’ treatment of President Trump; and they will treat us in the same manner, if they get the chance.

The punishment for the wicked is seen in verses 6-11. They shall be rendered powerless in their designs. All the figures of this imprecatory prayer (v. 6-9) have this meaning. The imprecation is sevenfold (the number of perfection, or completeness):

1. break their teeth
2. tear out their fangs
3. let them vanish like water
4. like grass
5. like a snail that seems to dissolve as it crawls
6. like a miscarriage, and
7. like thorn bushes placed under a pot on the fire and blown away.

They shall become the objects of God’s righteous vengeance. Many commentaries say that the sentiment of “wash his feet in the blood of the wicked” (v. 10) is not something Christians would contemplate or share with the psalmist. But why not, if your family (if your race) is being threatened by wicked usurpers?

We may have to fight as the Vortrekkers did in South Africa. Better to have Martial Law under Trump, than have a civil war under Biden.

The victims of their wickedness (the righteous) shall see their overthrow, and rejoice (v. 10). We are grateful there is a God that judges among men. It is our reward (v. 11)!

Unless the wicked are punished in some unmistakable way, the whole meaning of right and wrong is called into question. “There is a God that judges on Earth” (v. 11).

Conclusion

“Psalm 58” by Isaac Watts; tune: OLD 113TH (Hymn 105 in the Christogenea Hymnal)

Judges, who rule the world by laws, Will ye despise the righteous cause, When th' injured poor before you stands? Dare ye condemn the righteous poor, And let rich sinners 'scape secure, While gold and greatness bribe your hands?

Have ye forgot, or never knew, That God will judge the judges too? High in the heav'ns his justice reigns; Yet you invade the rights of God, And send your bold decrees abroad, To bind the conscience in your chains.

A poisoned arrow is your tongue, The arrow sharp, the poison strong, And death attends where'er it wounds: You hear no counsels, cries, or tears; So the deaf adder stops her ears Against the power of charming sounds.

Break out their teeth, eternal God, Those teeth of lions dyed in blood; And crush the serpents in the dust: As empty chaff when whirlwinds rise Before the sweeping tempest flies, So let their hopes and names be lost.

Th' Almighty thunders from the sky, Their grandeur melts, their titles die, As hills of snow dissolve and run, Or snails that perish in their slime, Or births that come before their time, Vain births, that never see the sun.

Thus shall the vengeance of the Lord Safety and joy to saints afford; And all that hear shall join and say, "Sure there's a God that rules on high, A God that hears his children cry, And will their suff'rings well repay."