What does Psalm 1:4 mean?
Scripture states emphatically that the wicked are unlike the blessed persons who relish God's Word and are fruitful (Psalm 1:1–3). By contrast, the wicked resemble chaff that is blown away in the wind. Chaff refers to the husks of grain that are tossed into the wind and blown away in the winnowing process. Just as chaff is worthless, the ungodly lifestyle is worthless in God's sight.The Hebrew word for "wicked" describes people who do not belong to God and are controlled by their passions. They are totally depraved: every part of their being is tainted by sin. Because of this, they are incapable of doing anything that has eternal value in God's sight.
This is the natural condition of all people, until they submit to Christ. Romans 3:10 declares, "None is righteous, no, not one," and Romans 3:12 says, "All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one." According to Romans 3:18, "There is no fear of God before their eyes," and Romans 3:23 says categorically that "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Fortunately, God provides a way for sinners to be redeemed, as given in Romans 6:23: "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Although a wicked person may perform kind deeds occasionally, God does not consider those deeds to be eternally worthwhile.
Psalm 1:4–6 presents a striking contrast between wicked and blessed people. The blessed person leads a life anchored in the Word of God, which is therefore spiritually productive in God's sight. The lives of the wicked are unproductive in God's sight. The lifestyle of the wicked is as unstable and valueless as chaff. The destiny of the wicked is damnation. This contrast is reinforced by Jesus' words about the narrow way and the broad way (Matthew 7:13–14). The narrow way leads to eternal life, but the broad way that many choose leads to eternal death. Revelation 20:1–15 discloses what is involved in this destruction.
This psalm begins by describing the man who is blessed. He doesn't keep company with a bad crowd. Furthermore, the Word of God governs his thought life. Both day and night he thinks about what God has disclosed in His Word. He thoroughly enjoys spending time in reading and pondering God's Word. His devotion to Scripture produces fruit in his life. In a spiritual sense, he is like a tree whose roots are nourished by a stream. He enjoys vitality and success. His life of blessing and productivity stands in stark contrast to the lives of the wicked. What their lives produce is as worthless as the chaff that the wind blows away. When God separates His people from the wicked, the wicked will fall in the judgment. The Lord is fully aware of the lifestyle of His righteous people as well as the lifestyle of the wicked, so His judgment will be just. The Lord will sentence the wicked to eternal perdition.
