Psalm 53 – There Is No God

 December 10, 2024

In Psalm 53 – there is no God, some proclaim. The psalmist calls these people fools. And so, the argument continues over the centuries. We still haven’t resolved the question of the existence of God.

Psalm 53

Psalm 53 – there is no God, begins with the accusation:

“The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, and their ways are vile; there is no one who does good.” (1)

In response, God looks down from heaven, searching for even one who still believes, much like God searched Sodom and Gomorra before destroying that city.

^“God looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.
Everyone has turned away, all have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.” (2-3)

The psalmist seems to shake his head as he asks: “Do all these evildoers know nothing?” (4a)

He goes on to attack them for how they treat people: “They devour my people as though eating bread; they never call on God.” (4b)

And so, they receive their just reward:

“But there they are, overwhelmed with dread, where there was nothing to dread.
God scattered the bones of those who attacked you; you put them to shame, for God despised them.” (5)

The psalm ends by expressing his longing for the day when God would appear.

^“Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
When God restores his people, let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!” (6)

Worth Repeating

This psalm is a repeat of Psalm 14. That means that not only have I blogged about this 3 times before this, I have done so 6 times. What more can I say? Plenty it appears. Such is the beauty of the Psalms, ever evolving, ever relevant.

In previous posts I focused on “practical atheism”- where people who believed in God acted as if there was no God. At the time the psalm was written and throughout much of history, the majority of people believed in God.

This time I’m focusing on the phrase, “there is no God,” in light of the growing number of people who no longer believe in God. It’s been estimated that close to one third of the population of America click none when asked their religious affiliation. This is up from sixteen percent in 2007. Among this group are, atheists, agnostics, and those who click “nothing in particular.” (Religious ‘Nones’ are now the largest single group in the U.S. : NPR)

“There Is No God”

I’m old enough now to have a significant amount of life to look back on. Never did I imagine as a young adult that there would come a day when so many people did not believe in God. As a child I used to dream about being a missionary and traveling to far off lands to spread God’s love. Now I see there is no need to travel. I am living in mission territory.

One commentator, writing in the 1950’s, states, “Time was when the greatest heresy was a denial of the fact of God. This feeling still lingers, and in some quarters is very powerful. Statutes prohibiting one from holding office in some parts of the Unites States if he is an atheist are still on the books though they are increasingly winked at. There is reasonable logic for this proscription. If God is the creator and sustainer of the universe, the source of our being and the proper object of devotion and service, a denial of him is very sweeping and sometimes demoralizing thing.” (The Interpreter’s Bible, vol. IV, p. 278) How the times have changed in seventy years.

The same commentator goes on to say, “This reflects, of course, how grave a matter denial of God was in the eyes of the writer, and presumably in the common judgment of all men of his day. Starting with one man—real or imaginary—who was a fool, he arrived at a race of men who are unimaginably corrupt.” (The Interpreter’s Bible, vol. IV, p 278)

Modern Atheism

If only it were as simple as the writer of Psalm 53 indicates. “But atheism in our time is not so simple a matter as our poet made it out. If it were the prating of a fool, it could either be discredited or instructed.” (The Interpreter’s Bible, vol. IV, p. 280)

Those who no longer believe in God are not necessarily fools, blindly believing something without any proof, but often intelligent individuals who have thought about this and found no compelling reason to believe. They may claim that believers are the fools, accepting an outdated, no longer relevant religion of superstition and fear.

God doesn’t always help with this. Far too often these people look at the world and how good people suffer and decide that there is no God. If this is how God is, allowing evil to prevail, then that God is not worth believing in.

The Case for God

Hard to argue with this. Yet, I do believe. I believe in a God who suffers with us; who is powerless before our own free will and the poor choices of some people. I believe in a God of mystery; who knows so much more than I can begin to comprehend.

There aren’t enough words or pages to convincingly argue the case for God here. Far more astute scholars and theologians than I have done this. Still, there is no amount of logic or science to prove that which can only be known in the deepest recesses of the heart.

That there is a God requires a leap of faith. And if that leap leads others to call me a fool, I’m okay with that. I’d rather stand with the fools than the world’s elite. Call me a fool for Christ. I trust God more than I trust humans. If that is foolish, then so be it.

(Featured picture shows me in white face, clowning for God.)

Psalm 53 – There Is No God

The mood of Psalm 53 – there is no God, is not difficult to detect. It is morose to an extreme degree. Understandable. When a society stops believing in God, or acts as if there is no God, no judgement for misdeeds, it can be discouraging.

Where are the normal safeguards? What is to keep the powerful from running over the vulnerable? Only the morals of others. I do belief in the goodness of the majority, yet far too often that pales in the face of greed, power, and corruption. Fear, human nature, leads people to look the other way. I much rather rely on God.

So, I ask you, are you a fool for God? Do you believe even when the world tells you there is no God and ridicules those who believe? I would love to hear from you.

(For another take on this psalm, see Psalm 53: Rinse and Repeat – Patricia M Robertson)

(For story of one man’s journey from atheist to believer, An atheist’s return to the Catholic Church: a story of death, love and meaning | America Magazine)

This post is part of a series on the Psalm. Sign up to follow this blog and receive a free copy of Still Dancing, the second book in my Dancing through Life Series.

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