Response:
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The verses you mention read as follows:

"Let his children be continually vagabonds, and beg: let them seek their bread also out of their desolate places... Let there be none to extend mercy unto him: neither let there be any to favour his fatherless children."

I believe that David was correct in asking for this, for it was recorded under inspiration and God never rebuked him for saying it. David seems to be calling on God to punish this wrongdoer in the most severe way possible, which would included leaving his children destitute. In Exodus 34:7 God said that He would "by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation." This is also stated in Exodus 20:5, Numbers 14:18 and Deuteronomy 5:9, so it must be an established, Biblical principle. There is no evidence that this only applies to adult children.

I don't believe that the verses that you gave contradict this. Psalm 113:7 states that the Lord cares for the poor, which He does. However, the Lord is the One Who makes the choice who will receive His assistance and who will not. These verses are an encouragement to those who are suffering, but they do not supercede God's right to judge. I see a parallel in I Peter 4:14-15. There is written,

"If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified. But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men's matters."

God will provide for the one who is suffering for His sake, but makes no such promise to those who are suffering because of sin.

In the New Testament the Christian is commanded to visit the fatherless (James 1:27). I believe that David is calling upon God, not upon me, to see to it that the children are left without mercy. I am to extend love to those I come in contact with, and it is not my place to meet out judgement to them. However, it may be that God's righteousness demands that a man's children suffer because of his decisions. If that be the case, then God will either see to it that you and I do not have the opportunity to minister to them, or He will make it abundantly clear through His Word and the Holy Spirit that we are not to involve ourselves in a particular case. The Bible tells us not to avenge ourselves (Rom. 12:19), so the Lord will make that call, not us. At the same time, He promises that He will repay, which indicates that He may indeed measure out whatever form of judgment He sees fit.

Actually, many commentators believe that this could have been written by David concerning Saul. If that be the case, isn't it interesting that David took in Saul's grandson Mephibosheth. He was not a child, but he was still the offspring of David's enemy. Apparently David decided to let God handle who would be left merciless and who would not. Other commentators believe that the man in question was Absalom. If it was, the Bible says that he had four children, three of whom were sons (II Samuel 14:27), but at the end of his life he had no sons to carry on his name (II Sam 18:18). Could this be a fulfillment of David's prayer, but without causing David to have to see his own grandchildren destitute? Something to think about.

I would encourage you to minister to orphans as much as God will allow you to. Just a thought - why did you wind up with the adopted children you have, and not one of the countless thousands of others? It is possible that God did not allow you to adopt another because of something that child's parents did to harm the cause of Christ? I think it is at least a possibility.

By Pastor Dr. Mark Montgomery Email: Ask the Pastor Ambassador Baptist Church 1926 Babcock Blvd Pittsburgh, PA 15209 (412)477-3210