As I re-read this psalm this week, several thoughts, word pictures, and phrases intrigue me…
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| Photo By Greg K Dueker |
In you my soul takes refuge (v.1) —David was in a cave hiding from Saul and those who pursued him. He expressed
how his trust in God could picture the nature of God working on his behalf as a
refuge. David also understood that refuge in the Lord’s presence is tied to
“mercy” and not to merit. I think it is not hard for us to think of refuge in
terms of shelters—in America, we think of storm shelters, evacuation shelters,
domestic abuse shelters, tax shelters, and even animal shelters. Nations at war
know about and often use bomb shelters. But what is taking shelter in this
psalm? What is finding refuge in God? The soul of the psalmist. This
turn of phrase causes me to wonder if I am as quick to ask God to shelter my
soul as I am to take practical steps to shelter my body and other assets in
times of danger.
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| Photo by Greg K Dueker |
In the shadow of your wings (v.1) —The safety of the cave is likened to that of a chick beneath its
mother’s wings, which may not adequately translate into our culture, where we don’t
think highly of chickens as protectors. We can’t win and be on offense all the
time. Sometimes we need to find shelter and ride the storm out, and once it passes, we can get back to the work God has for us. In the meantime, we get to simply be
in the refuge of God’s love for us. This imagery may also allude to the
Passover when the people of Israel were sheltered from the destroyer by the
blood of the lamb (Ex. 12:22-24). What is the storm of destruction we are
facing today? Whether we face natural disasters or the man-made kind, we
can rest in the fact that God will fulfill his purpose for us! What will we
face this week? Where will we take refuge?
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Photo by Milada Vigerova on Unsplash
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God who fulfills his purpose for me (v.2) —Despite God having anointed David to replace Saul as king, David did
not take matters into his own hands. He stubbornly refused to strike down the
increasingly unbalanced King Saul despite being anointed as a replacement king.
It was God’s plan, and God would bring it to pass at the right time. David was
content to trust that God would bring it to pass at just the right time.
It is so
comforting to know that God is the one who" fulfills his purpose for
me"! There are at least three things I can hold onto from this verse:
- My
life has purpose.
- My
life is part of his great plan, and
- He
will fulfill that purpose by saving me!
During hard times, we may not understand why, know how, or when, but we can be confident that God is with us in the midst and
will be faithful to lead us home at the right time.
Though David had unjustly been driven from his
home and family, he knew that he was part of something larger than himself. He
was included in what God had purposed and would see it come to pass. For David,
this included finally becoming the king of Israel, for which God had anointed him
by the hand of Samuel. We are not anointed to be kings and queens of Israel, yet
in Christ, we are adopted as children of God (Rom. 8:15; Eph. 1:4-6) and are a royal priesthood and a
holy nation (1 Peter 2:9). What the Lord has begun, he will bring to completion
(Phil. 1:6).
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Photo by Jeff Lemond on Unsplash
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In the midst of lions (v.4, 6)—Have you noticed how David’s metaphoric
description of his circumstances is later literally lived out by Daniel in
exile when he refused to stop praying to the Lord despite a law to the contrary
(Dan. 6)? The Lord delivered Daniel that night. His accusers were then
thrown into the lions’ pit and devoured in the way they had desired that Daniel
would perish. David’s accusers, pursuers, and oppressors would also suffer the
death they sought to inflict upon David.
V.6 "They set a net for my steps; my soul was bowed
down.
They dug a pit in my way, but they have fallen into it
themselves. Selah"
God
has a wonderful way of working things out when we trust in him. Our soul may at
times be bowed down, but it will not be destroyed!
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St Anne's Church, Jerusalem
Photo by Greg K Dueker |
Cave Refuge
acoustics? Is it just me, or do you see (or hear) it too? For
a guy hiding in a cave from his pursuers, David is sure loud! I don’t have much
experience with caves, but St. Anne’s Church in Jerusalem is known for nearly
perfect acoustics, and having sung there when touring, I can say it made us sound
amazing! The outside looks plain, but the richness of sound on the inside was
remarkable!
David writes
in v.2, “I cry out to God Most High” as he makes his lament (request). In
v.5, his praise is exuberant, “Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth!” Then he does not let up but sings with
a doubly steadfast heart in v.7-8,
“I will sing and make
melody!
Awake, my glory!
Awake, O harp and lyre!
I will awake the dawn!”
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| Bugling Merit Badge |
David’s strong word picture of
awakening the dawn with his song sounds quite loud. He
would not have been good to have on a submarine trying to avoid detection! When
I was a Boy Scout, I earned the bugling merit badge (much to my parents' chagrin)
after repeatedly practicing the calls, such as “Reveille” (the military wakeup
call). David rehearsed his songs of praise without inhibition.
Aside
from the resounding cave acoustics, the point is well made: when we have
eyes to see God at work on our behalf, we cannot help but show our gratitude
with enthusiasm. I am reminded of when the Apostles were forbidden by the Sanhedrin
from teaching and speaking to the people in the name of Jesus,
But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it is
right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we
cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.” (Acts
4:19-20)
I would
suggest that our ability to see God at work in our lives begins much like David
began this psalm: by asking for God’s mercy and trusting him to be our refuge. God's miracles flow from his requested mercy, for they are not given to fulfill our sense of entitlement.
David is quite confident that God will be merciful
and the storms of destruction will pass by (v.1), that God would fulfill his
divine purpose for David (v.2), and save him and shame his enemies (v.3), and
that when all is over he will be thanking and singing praises to God “among the
peoples…among the nations” (v. 9). Such a statement demonstrated great
confidence and foresight. While David did live to do just what he said he
would, by writing this psalm, his words have continued to ring out in thanks and
praise throughout the generations all around the world!
