The road to character
What believer hasn’t served God only to feel God has seemingly lumped them in with unbelievers or pretenders to faith? This is David’s prayer when he felt that way.
A David psalm.
1 Vindicate me, YHWH
for I’ve lived with integrity
and trusted YHWH without wavering.
2 Examine me, YHWH, try me—
test me, heart and mind.
3 I keep your unrelenting love always in view
and walk in your truth.
4 I don’t run with those who lead empty lives
or hang around with spiritual pretenders.
5 I can’t stand the gang of thugs
and have nothing to do with
those who give themselves to evil.
6 I wash my hands in innocence
and circle your altar, YHWH
7 in order to thank you out loud
and recount all the wonderful things you’ve done.
8 I love the house you’ve made your home
the place where your glory shines, YHWH.
9 Don’t drag me away
with those who ignore what you say
or take my life
when you call scoundrels to account—
10 men who brandish a blade in one hand
and a bribe in the other.
11 Unlike them, I live with integrity.
Redeem me, be merciful to me.
12 My feet are planted on level ground.
When all his people come together
I will worship YHWH.
While this psalm’s first word (shaphat) can mean “vindicate” and “judge,” it can also mean “render a verdict.” Since David mentions no accusations against him, he’s asking God to examine his life and see that he genuinely seeks to please him and keep his covenant. He’s not claiming to be perfect. But since he’s resolutely held to God’s path, he’s asking God to keep his part of the covenant by blessing him, not punishing him with unbelievers.
David double-frames his prayer with an emphasis on integrity and the security it brings. Like Psalm 1, this psalm speaks of life in relationship to God and contrasts the believer’s values, lifestyle, focus, and end with those of unbelievers who cheat, bribe, and bully their way through life. David asks God to see that he’s walking a completely different path from those who merely pretend to serve God—the path bounded by YHWH’s grace and truth. On that basis, he asks God to redeem him, not curse him with evildoers. He doesn’t need to mention the covenant for his hearers to know he has its requirements and rewards in mind.
David loves God’s sanctuary, where he can glimpse God’s glory. On entering, he washes his hands to show that he wants no part in the sins of evildoers, and he looks to YHWH for grace and redemption. Circling the altar, David overflows with praise in company with God’s people. Since we’re created for relationship with God—to worship him—David puts this at the heart of his poem.[1] This being the path David has chosen, he ends as he began, with a practical declaration of faith: living for God puts him on level ground, where he won’t slip, as everyone on life’s alternate pathways eventually will.
Jesus, you call me not to impress others with my seeming goodness, but to model your character from the inside out. Help me resist evil’s deadly pull, make you my focus, and worship with your people. Bless me in this place, where I truly stand secure. Amen.
During your free moments today, pray this prayer:
Vindicate me, YHWH
for I’ve lived with integrity
and trusted YHWH without wavering.
[1] The psalm’s chiasm is as follows: A: I walk with stability on integrity’s path (1-3), B: I avoid evildoers (4-5), C: I worship in purity before your altar (6), D: I PUBLICLY PRAISE AND THANK YOU (7), C: I love the house where your glory shines (8), B: Don’t treat me like an evildoer (9-10), A: Here on integrity’s path, I know stability in community (11-12).
