A Prayer of David
1 Hear the right, O LORD, attend unto my cry, give ear unto my prayer, that goeth not out of feigned lips.
2 Let my sentence come forth from Thy presence: let Thine eyes behold the things that are equal.
3 Thou hast proved mine heart: Thou hast visited me in the night: Thou hast tried me, and shalt find nothing: I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress.
4 Concerning the works of men, by the word of Thy lips I have kept me from the paths of the destroyer.
5 Hold up my goings in Thy paths, that my footsteps slip not.
6 I have called upon Thee, for Thou wilt hear me, O God: incline Thine ear unto me, and hear my speech.
7 Shew Thy marvelous lovingkindness, O Thou that savest by Thy right hand them which put their trust in Thee from those that rise up against them.
8 Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of Thy wings,
9 From the wicked that oppress me, from my deadly enemies, who compass me about.
10 They are inclosed in their own fat: with their mouth they speak proudly.
11 They have now compassed us in our steps: they have set their eyes bowing down to the earth:
12 Liked as a lion that is greedy of his prey, and as it were a young lion lurking in secret places.
13 Arise, O LORD, disappoint him, cast him down: deliver my soul from the wicked, which is Thy sword:
14 From men which are Thy hand, O LORD, from men of the world, which have their portion in this life, and whose belly Thou fillest with Thy hid treasure: they are full of children, and leave the rest of their substance to their babes.
15 As for me, I will behold Thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Thy likeness.
We seek refuge from the enemies of our souls at the right hand of God.
As believers in a hostile world, we are always subject to internal accusations and external attacks. We feel the hot breath of the enemy. Our knees begin to shake and we wonder for a moment if God will be there for us in the height of the battle. In such hostile territory we learn to trust in God. We trust that He cares for us as the apple of His eye and we learn to bring God into the foreground and remand our enemies to the background of our mind’s eye.
Verse 1. The psalm begins with a cry for help that resounds throughout the celestial courtroom of the most High. David approaches God on the basis of God’s love for righteousness. Yahweh is the faithful and just judge of the universe. Earthly judges may take bribes and pervert justice, but not this Judge. He judges by an absolute standard of righteousness and He will never compromise that standard. Such an approach is bold, yet it is not pretentious or frivolous. Indeed, David tells God that his prayer emanates from unfeigned lips. This worship is deadly serious.
Verses 2–3. Man’s relationship with God is partly judicial. Even as men occasionally stand before the bar of human justice, we will all stand before the bar of God’s courtroom to hear the charges and make our case. Here David loudly protests his innocence. Be careful to note that David is not claiming “sinless perfection.” He does confess the purpose of his heart to be that which is righteous. His heart is bent towards righteousness. But what of this statement that God has visited him, tested and tried him, and found nothing? This can be nothing less than a testimony to God’s justifying grace. How else could a sinner truthfully and boldly claim innocence at the bar of God’s justice? It is God who justifies us. Elsewhere David acknowledges his sin (Ps. 51) and professes to believe in the forgiving grace of God. So we must conclude that David does not find his innocence in his own works, but only in God’s justifying grace.
Verses 4–7. This is the thrust of the next few verses, as David confesses his faith in God. First, he speaks of his faith in the words of God which keep him from falling into the paths of sin. From this we learn that God’s words are the guard rails on the dangerous mountain passes of our lives. Without guard rails we could easily drive off the cliff into the deep chasms of destruction. Thus, the Christian must trust in the guard rails of God’s Word and never live a day without reading it for guidance and strength.
David also trusts that God will hear him when he prays to Him. Here is a mark of true faith, for what kind of relationship would it be if you prayed to God without any assurance that He would hear you? In verse 7, David clearly affirms that God only saves those who put their trust in Him. Thus, we see that it is not our sinless perfection that brings about salvation, for then why would we need salvation? If anybody is going to be saved, they will be saved by faith.
Verses 8–12. It’s a dangerous world out there and the Psalmist asks God to hide him under the shadow of His wings. It is critical that the family of God sees the Christian life as a battle between those that fear God and those that hate Him. We are surrounded by enemies. Deadly enemies. They are primarily marked by proud words. When they bring us the six o’clock news, their tongues refuse to acknowledge that God is sovereign over every event that occurred today. But that is because they are proud and they refuse to acknowledge God to be God. When they teach us science, they refuse to acknowledge God as the Creator and worship Him as such. These people are everywhere and they are deadly enemies. Often they destroy children from Christian homes and take them down to hell with them. They are like lions greedy for prey. As wily cats who lie low in the brush, their victims cannot see them until they feel their sharp claws sinking into their flesh.
Verses 13–15. David asks God to disappoint these men in their aggressive attacks upon us. One must face his opposition realistically and David does this in the final verses of the psalm. These are men with power, money, and some generational strength. Some of the most formidable enemies to the faith in this country are supported by foundations left by very rich men like Andrew Carnegie, Henry Ford, and John D. Rockefeller. In fact, one would have a hard time identifying any billionaire of the past century who has been a friend to Christ. But this power and money is not our focus. While the wicked flex their muscles and exercise overwhelming power against us, we will gaze upon the face of our God. It is our relationship with God that is far more important than all of the great empires of this world. God’s kingdom is not, in essence, a kingdom built with bricks, power, and money. It is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. It is the hope that one day we will be resurrected, we will be transformed into the image of the Son of God, and we will awake in a glorified state!
1. Are we taken by the proud words of men that deny God’s existence and His sovereignty over this world? When you are around people who perpetually deny God it is easy to live for a while at work, at home, or at the movie theater as if God does not exist. We need to remember that everything standing in opposition to God and His Word is our enemy. They do aggressively seek out the godly and the battleground is primarily found in news, entertainment, music, and the theater.
2. Let us trust in God’s preserving grace and not fear the enemy. As long as we trust in God, as long as we study God’s face in righteousness, we will be satisfied and we will not fear what men can do to us.
Worship helps us to ignore our enemies and focus in upon God. Although our tendency is to dwell upon the enemy that threatens our well being, worship forces our attention back on God, who is the sovereign Lord over all things and will save us out of all of our troubles. All of the nuclear weapons around this world may be aimed at our house and a few warheads may already be flying, but we are too focused upon God to pay much attention to all of that.
1. Name several Deliverance psalms.
2. On what basis can David say that he is righteous?
3. According to this psalm, in what ways does David trust in God?
4. What is the primary characteristic that marks David’s enemies?
5. What is the hope that David refers to in the final verse of this psalm?
1. When you pray, how confident are you that God will hear you? What if He doesn’t answer your prayers? Are you still confident that He hears you and cares about your heart’s desires? Why or why not?
2. Do we trust in God or do we fear the enemy? Is it possible to trust in God and fear the enemy at the same time? Is it possible to trust in our own strength rather than trusting in God?