The LORD Cuts Asunder the Cords of Tyranny

When the psalmist declares, "The LORD is righteous: he hath cut asunder the cords of the wicked," he invokes a vivid image drawn from agricultural labor. The Hebrew word for "cords" refers to the thick, twisted harness by which oxen are bound to the plough—yoked and controlled by their master's hand. Spurgeon recognized that these cords represent far more than mere rope: they symbolize the intertwined machinations, cruelties, and violence by which the wicked exercise dominion over the innocent.

Consider the enslaved person, the oppressed believer, the soul gripped by tyranny's iron fist. The enemy's power is not a single strand easily snapped, but twisted cords—layer upon layer of wickedness, manipulation, and brute force. Yet Yahweh, the Righteous One, does not merely loosen these bonds or stretch them thin. He cuts them asunder, severing them completely and permanently. Hermann Venema noted the profound implications: God does not simply end oppression for a season; He cuts the cords "for ever, so that they should never be reunited."

This is no temporary reprieve. When the LORD moves in righteousness and justice, He does not compromise. The dominion of the wicked—their power, their tyranny, their violence—is utterly dismantled. The oxen are released from the plough.