I. The Delusion Of Not Fearing God(Psalm 36:1–4)

    A. The Oracle of Transgression(Psalm 36:1)

    B. The Evidences of the Absence of the Fear of God(Psalm 36:2-4)
        1. Flattering the self so much that you can’t see your own sin to hate it(Psalm 36:2)
        2. Result(Psalms 36:3a, 4)
            i. The words of his mouth are trouble and deceit(Psalms 36:3a)
           ii. He continually plot trouble, set himself in a way that is not good, and does not reject evil(Psalm 36:4)
        3. Ground: He has ceased to act wisely and do good(Psalm 36:3b, see Proverbs 9:10, 16:6)

This is] the very place where one should meditate on the truth. For in bed we should weep bitterly for our sins—lament sin rather than commit it. As the prophet says, “The things you say in your hearts, be sorry for them on your own beds.”

– Ambrose, COMMENTARY ON TWELVE PSALMS 35.16.

II. The Delight In God’s Steadfast Love( Psalm 36:5–9)

    A. Characteristics of the LORD’s Steadfast Love(Psalm 36:5-6)

Whenever our faith is shaken by the confusion and disorder of human affairs, and we cannot explain what is going on, let us remember that the judgments of God in the government of the world are best compared to a great depth that fills heaven and earth. By considering its infinite greatness we may excite our minds with admiration, swallow up our cares, and dispel our sorrows.

– John Calvin, Commentary on the Psalms

    B. Delight in the Precious Steadfast Love of God(Psalm 36:7-9)
        1. The declaration of the preciousness of the steadfast love of God(Psalm 36:7a)
        2. Conclusion: The children of mankind takes refuge in him to be satisfied in his presence(Psalm 36:7b-8)
        3. Ground: With God is fountain of life, and in his light we see light(Psalm 36:9)

The word for drunkenness, dearly beloved, is not always used in sacred Scripture for that failing only, but also for satiety.… Listen, after all, to David’s words: “They will become intoxicated from the richness of your house,” that is, they will be filled. [By contrast], those who give themselves up to drunkenness never have their fill; the more wine they imbibe, the more they burn with thirst, and indulgence proves to be a constant fueling of their thirst; by the time all that remains of the pleasure has disappeared, the thirst proves to be unquenchable and leads the victims of drunkenness to the very precipice.

Chrysostom, HOMILIES ON PSALMS 29.12.

III. The Desire For More Of The Same(Psalm 36:10–12)

    A. David’s Petition to Have More of God’s Steadfast Love and Righteousness(Psalm 36:10)

    B. David’s Petition to Not Be Swept Away with the Wicked(Psalm 36:11-12)
        1. Ground: The end of the wicked is sure: fallen, thrust down, and unable to rise(Psalm 36:12)

IV. Christ Connection and Application

    Christ Connections:

    A. Christ, the Opposite of the Wicked
        1. Jesus is the perfect Son of God who delights in obeying the Father, without sin, neither in speech nor in action
        2. We are wicked(Romans 3:10-18)

    B. Cross of Christ as the Climatic Display of Love and Righteousness of God(Romans 5:8, 3:21-26)

    C. Christ, The Source of Everlasting Delight(John 6:35, 4:13-14, 8:12)

    D. Christ Purchased The Ability To Fear God(Jeremiah 31:31-34, 32:40, Matthew 26:28)

    Applications:

    A. Feast and drink from Christ
        1. Eating and drinking Christ are metaphors for believing in him, taking refuge in him, depending on him wholly for your salvation and satisfaction

    B. Cultivate a fear of the LORD
        1. By exposing ourselves in the revelation of the terrifying justice and wrath of God against sin
        2. By confessing our sin immediately whenever we sin, rather than hiding it or just forgetting about it
        3. By immersing ourselves not only in the terror of judgment, but in the unmatched delight of knowing Christ

    C. Be a river of delight(John 7:38)
        1. If you drank from Christ, then you are conduits/channels of delight in God to others

Water rushing with a mighty force is called a torrent. God’s mercy will flow with a mighty force to water and inebriate those who in this present life fix their hope beneath the shadow of his wings. What is that delight? It is like a torrent that inebriates the thirsty. Let any who are thirsty now fix their hopes there; let the thirsty have hope, because one day, inebriated, they will have the reality. Until they have the reality, let them thirstily hope.

Augustine, EXPOSITIONS OF THE PSALMS 36.14.