Article 3 of 4 | When You Live Like a Fool
By Dr. Timothy Mann
Psalm 53 doesn't only describe the fool who denies God quietly. It describes the fool who actively persecutes God's people, and it promises those persecutors will one day be gripped by a terror they never saw coming. That reversal isn't wishful thinking; David watched God deliver it in real history.
Evildoers Who Never Learn
"Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge, who eat up my people as they eat bread: they have not called upon God" (Psalm 53:4).
David wrote this verse out of the specific iniquity that prompted the psalm: the continual persecution of God's people by those who refuse to acknowledge Him. Micah pictures it graphically, evildoers who devour God's people the way they eat their daily bread, feeding on the suffering of the righteous (Micah 3:1-3).
That evil is just as prevalent today as it was in David's day, arguably more so. Governments imprison believers for their faith. False religions and hostile cultures pressure Christians into silence or compromise. The human sin cycle repeats itself generation after generation, and it will keep repeating until Christ returns.
Notice the phrase David uses: they have not called upon God. That's the root of it. Persecutors of God's people aren't simply cruel by temperament. They are fools by definition, people who have written God out of the picture entirely and therefore see no reason to restrain their cruelty toward the people who still call on His name.
The Sudden Reversal
Here Psalm 53 differs sharply from its earlier twin, Psalm 14. In Psalm 14, David wrote of a future judgment yet to come. In Psalm 53, he speaks of a victory already granted.
"There were they in great fear, where no fear was" (Psalm 53:5).
The Hebrew literally reads "fear, fear," a double intensity of dread.
Most commentators connect this to a specific historical moment: God's destruction of the Assyrian army under Sennacherib during Hezekiah's reign. Sennacherib blasphemed the living God and mocked His people. Then, in a single night, God struck down 185,000 soldiers as they slept, scattering their bones across the camp (2 Kings 19:35; Isaiah 37:36). The fool who said "there is no God" learned otherwise, suddenly and terribly.
Think about the arrogance that preceded that night. Sennacherib had every reason, by worldly measures, to feel invincible. His army was massive. His conquests were many. He mocked the God of Israel openly, certain no deity could stop him. And then, without so much as a battle, his army simply ceased to exist by morning. That's the reversal Psalm 53 promises for every fool who persecutes God's people: confidence one moment, terror the next.
You Never Suffer Alone
The message David wants his readers to carry away is simple and steady: the oppressed people of God never suffer alone, because the Lord is always in their midst. Though evildoers act as though God doesn't exist, He is there nonetheless. That's a precious promise to any believer facing persecution, whether it comes as martyrdom overseas or quiet mockery at the office.
The ungodly feel no fear of the Lord right now (Romans 3:13-18). That will not last. Without warning, they will be seized by an intense, tormenting fear when God rises up in judgment. Sennacherib's army is a preview, not the final word. The final word belongs to Christ at His return.
That should shape how we carry ourselves in the meantime. We don't respond to persecution with despair, as though God has lost track of what's happening to His people. Nor do we respond with vengeance, taking matters into our own hands. We wait, the way David waited, confident that the God who scattered Sennacherib's army has not grown weaker or less attentive since.
A Word for the Persecutor, Too
Before we move on, one more thing needs saying plainly. If you recognize yourself in this article's description of the persecutor rather than the persecuted, hear this: the fear coming for you doesn't have to be your final chapter. Sennacherib's army had no opportunity to repent before judgment fell. You still do. The same God who scattered his troops has already provided a way to escape His righteous wrath through the very Christ this series is building toward.
Application & Reflection
If you're facing opposition for your faith right now, whether it's a coworker who rolls their eyes at your beliefs or something far more costly, hold on to this truth: you are not forgotten, and you are not fighting alone. God sees exactly what you're enduring, and He has never once let it go unanswered.
This week, resist the temptation to fight persecution with bitterness. Instead, pray for the courage David modeled and trust the reversal God has already promised. Ask God to give you His perspective on whoever is opposing you, remembering that apart from grace you were once a fool yourself. Find a church family that will stand with you in that fight rather than leaving you to face it alone.
The final article in this series turns from judgment to hope, the promise David could only point toward and we now see fulfilled in Christ.
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If you missed the beginning of our series “When You Live Like a Fool” find the article links below:
Article 1: What Does the Bible Mean When It Calls Someone a Fool?
Article 2: Why Every One of Us Is Born a Fool
Frequently Asked Questions
What historical event does Psalm 53:5 describe?
Most commentators connect Psalm 53:5 to God's destruction of Sennacherib's Assyrian army during Hezekiah's reign, when 185,000 soldiers died in a single night (2 Kings 19:35; Isaiah 37:36).
Why do Christians still face persecution today?
Persecution continues because the same rejection of God described in Psalm 53 persists across every generation. Scripture promises it will increase as history nears Christ's return, but also promises God's presence with His people throughout it.