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I have been mulling
over this Psalm for at least 2 weeks as found it really difficult to
understand. Last night I attended a
lecture by Pastor Rich Holdeman on Living with Cancer. He mentioned that the first book of Psalms
(there are 3 Books in the Psalms that we read today) contain many laments which
actually those who are being treated for cancer find resonates with them. This has been my experience too! I can almost picture David enduring some of
the most awful situations and crying out to God as a result. This was the man who was hounded by Saul and
although chosen by God to be the next king of Israel had to wait many years for
God’s plan to be fulfilled in his life. His
brutal honesty at times is what I can relate to and I am sure you have found
this too. This Psalm is a plea from the
heart of a man under terrible persecution and yet although it begins with a cry
to be saved it finishes with thankfulness.
Is it possible to turn our situations into times of gratitude? Can we really look beyond our presence
circumstances and see God’s hand at work?
Psalm 7
Shigglalon (a meditation)
of David, which he sang unto the Lord, concerning the words of Cush the
Benjamite (in other words a lament!)
"O Lord my
God, in thee do I put my trust save me from all them that persecute me and
deliver me. Lest he tear my soul like a lion rending it in pieces while
there is none to deliver."
There is one word
that is repeated in this Psalm and is the key to understanding - it is the word
"persecute." Did you notice how David starts this Psalm -
"O Lord my God" and these words are repeated again in verse 3.
It is a heartfelt plea. He is being pursued by a group of people -
"all them that persecute me". It is a pursuit which holds the
prospect of death. The image David uses is one that he is familiar with
as a shepherd looking after his flocks in the open countryside. That of
animals coming to take one of the lambs and maul it to pieces. David is
worried that this might be his ending and he is in dire straits. Later in
Psalm 119 verse 161 David refers to "Princes have persecuted me without a
cause." It is an unjustifiable experience. And this is a truth
we as Christians need to come to realise and should not be surprised at - when
we are doing everything right and we are in the will of God, we will be
persecuted. For many reading these words, myself included, we do not know
the reality of these words, not in the physical sense at least. But our
history records incidents where even today many are persecuted for their faith
in God. I am quoting from John D Gillespie's book Following Jesus in an
Age of Quitters:
"The 20th
century was the bloodiest century for Christians ever, with more dying for
Christ in that century than in the previous nineteen together. The
Gordon-Conwell Seminary Centre for the Study of Global Christianity estimates
that about 90,000 believers in Jesus are martyred every year. That is one
every 6 minutes."
We need to realise that
for many, even today, their life of faith is not marked by ease and tranquillity. This is not an unusual encounter for the
child of God. God’s word shows us this
time and time again. Jesus himself
warned this would be so – Matthew 5 verse 10 and John 15 verse 20. Paul continued that with that same thought in
Romans 12 verse 14 and to Timothy in 2 Timothy 3 verse 12. Hebrews 11, that great hallway of fame of
those believers in Christ named and unnamed reminds us of how many were persecuted
and what they had to endure – verses 36 to 38.
Today the most
powerful weapon of persecution is the tongue and many cruel words are spoken
against those who profess Christ. We can
be scorned and be misrepresented in how we live our lives but as David the
simple prayer to be saved and delivered should be committed to God.
This is the
persecution David experienced.
“O Lord my God, if
I have done this; if there be iniquity in my hands; If I have rewarded evil
unto him that was at peace with me; (yea I have delivered him that without
cause is mine enemy). Let the enemy persecute my soul, and take it; yea, let
him tread down my life upon the earth and lay mine honour in the dust. Selah.”
David is submitting
himself to the events before him. He
repeats that little word “if” 3 times.
There is a recognition by David that God actually allows things to
happen and therefore he needs to know God’s direction in all the circumstances
he faces. David is actually very
confident in his assertion as he knows he is innocent. His conscience is clear. How very challenging! I recall many times when in similar
situations that I was perhaps more guilty and in fact deserved what has
happened – have you not?
“Arise, O Lord, in
thine anger, lift up thyself because of the rage of mine enemies; and awake for
me to the judgment that thou hast commanded.
So shall the congregation of the people compass thee about; for their
sakes therefore return thou on high. The
Lord shall judge the people; judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness,
and according to mine integrity that is in me. Oh let the wickedness of the
wicked come to an end; but establish the just; for the righteous God trieth the
hearts and reins.”
Again David asserts
that he is in the clear. He asks God to
shine his light on him because he knows that he has a clear conscience. There is a challenge in these words – would we
be as quick to call on God to act if we knew that things were not 100%? Perhaps we could be numbered among those who
are actually in the wrong. In these
verses you notice that it is not for his own personal reward that he is asking
God to act but rather for the people. He
wants justice for everyone. Did you
notice the phrase “oh let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end”? Surely this is a prayer we all pray every day
when we hear of violence, murder, war and atrocities throughout our world. It is a sentiment expressed by Habakkuk in
chapter 1 verse 13 “Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil and canst not
look on iniquity wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously and
holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous
than he.” We too need this cry on our
lips today – God hates sin and so should we!
“My defence is of
God, which saveth the upright in heart.
God judgeth the righteous and God is angry with the wicked every
day. If he turn not, he will whet his
sword: he hath bent his bow and made it ready.
He hath also prepared for him the instruments of death; he ordaineth his
arrows against the persecutors.”
When life becomes
unbearable it is good to remember the sentiments of these verses. Firstly that God protects us – verse 10. We are the “upright in heart” if we have
trusted in God for salvation. God is
righteous and he will judge the world – one day! For now we need patience. Did you notice that God actually is angry
with the wicked every day – verse 11?
Have you ever thought of God in the way it is described in verses 12 and
13? Imagine God has a flaming sword
aimed at those who do not repent of their sin and turn to God for salvation. Here we have the message of the gospel hidden
in this Psalm. There is a choice to be
made by every person and God, whilst he is loving, will one day call a halt to
all the wickedness that is so evident in this world. But we can know forgiveness and freedom today
through his Son Jesus who died on Calvary’s cross for our sins. The wicked must turn or perish. Whilst God tarries salvation is available to
every person in the world. God is the
cure for the terminal condition that faces the heart of every man or woman, boy
or girl. The condition – sin. What hope is expressed even here.
“Behold, he
travaileth with iniquity and hath conceived mischief and brought forth
falsehood. He made a pit and digged it
and is fallen into the ditch which he made.
His mischief shall return upon his own head and his violent dealing shall
come down upon his own pate.”
To understand these words
I turned to the example of Haman in the book of Esther. Haman did not like Mordecai and he was
determined to exterminate him along with all the Jews. He built a gallows to hang Mordecai on but
the tables were turned one day when Esther explained to the king what he
planned and she begged for pardon. Haman
was hanged on his own gallows. In these
verses we see a similar prediction of what will happen to those who do not turn
to Christ for salvation. David himself
saw something similar happening in his lifetime – Saul who was so opposed to
David attempted to bring the Philistines on his side but in the end it was the
Philistines who killed Saul. These
verses talk about retribution.
“I will praise the
Lord according to his righteousness and will sing praise to the name of the
Lord most high.”
In the darkest of
hours it is good to praise God! Despite
all David has come through in the words of this Psalm he is determined to
praise God. Another example of a similar
situation is found in Acts of the Apostles.
Paul and Silas were put in prison because they preached the gospel in
Philippi and the magistrates ordered they were beaten. In verse 25 of Acts 16 we read “And at
midnight Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises unto God and the prisoners
heard them.”
If we were in a
similar situation would we be able to praise God? This is the challenge from these verses.
What can we learn from
this Psalm? God knows and understands
what we face in life. He understands but
we must learn to lean on him to bring his justice in his own time. We have an opportunity today to place our
trust and faith in Christ while there is still time and we are commissioned to
tell others as well. God will protect us
when the situation becomes difficult and he will provide our defence. God is not ignorant of all that is going on
in this world and has a plan and purpose that is being worked out daily. Lastly we should learn to praise God in all
our situations and thank him for allowing us to be part of his plan and purpose
on this earth.
I am so grateful to
Alistair Begg and his ministry Truth for Life which helped me in getting to grips
with this Psalm. He entitled his sermon From
Prison to Praise which I though was such an appropriate title! He broke the Psalm up into the following points in his sermon and I have tried to follow them too!
verses 1 and 2 - the persecution he experiences
verses 3 to 5 - the submission he expresses
verses 6 to 9 - the intervention he entreats
verses 10 to 13 - the affirmation he exudes
verses 14 to 16 - the retribution he explains
verse 17 - the celebration he enjoys
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