The God whose word is sure
Being vulnerable, we seek assurance of safety and success from every available quarter—even from powerful people whose word can’t be trusted. Only God’s word proves reliable in the end.
A David psalm. When the Philistines seized him in Gath.
1 Be gracious to me, O God
for people are attacking me
tearing me down all day long!
2 They trample me underfoot—
so many boldly attacking me.
O Most High
3 I turn in faith to you when I’m afraid.
4 Having put my trust in God
whose word I praise
I’m unafraid:
what can mere mortals do to me?
5 Obsessed with hurting me
they twist my words all day long.
6 They join together, lurk and spy
watching my every move
determined to take my life.
7 Don’t let them get away with their crimes!
Strike the nations down in your anger, God!
8 You’ve tracked my tossing and turning
and collected all my tears in your bottle
recording each one in your ledger.
9 My enemies will turn back
when I cry to you for help.
I know this because God is for me.
10 I trust in God, whose word I praise.
I trust in YHWH, whose word I praise.
11 Having put my trust in God
I’m unafraid:
what can mere mortals do to me?
12 I will yet fulfill my vows to you, God
and offer sacrifices to thank you
13 because you’ve delivered me from death
kept my feet from stumbling.
So I walk before God
in the light of life.
Tired of being the mouse in Saul’s cat-and-mouse game, David flees to Gath, in a move both desperate and daring. It’s desperate because he runs straight into the arms of his enemy, just as political refugees often do now, hoping to find a welcome due to their having a common foe—the common foe in this case being King Saul. It’s also daring because David seeks shelter from the very Philistines he’d defeated and shamed by decapitating their champion, Goliath. Doubtless still smouldering over that, some—very likely Goliath’s kinsmen—surveil David and drag him before their king, determined to cast doubt on his trustworthiness, strip him of the king’s protection, and put him to death.
David knows the Philistine king’s word is worthless since he’ll cave under pressure. David knows only God’s promise of protection is rock-solid, beyond reproach. So he turns to his true protector, putting his trust in him.
He takes comfort in God’s character. Far from being indifferent to our pain, God knows all we’ve suffered and treasures every tear we shed. Doubtless clinging to God’s promise that he’ll be Israel’s next king, David knows that, with God for him, his enemies can’t possibly do anything to him that God doesn’t permit, provided David keeps his eyes on him. David thus experiences God’s peace, though he’s still in grave danger, humanly speaking. He prays that God will judge his enemies and rescue him, as he walks in God’s life-giving light.
Lord, you know all I’m up against and cherish my every tear. You are unequivocally for me, no matter how much opposition I face or how weak and vulnerable I feel. I put my trust in your sure promise today. Establish your sovereign rule in and through me, I pray. Amen.
Meditate on this truth in your free moments today:
You’ve delivered me from death
kept my feet from stumbling.
So I walk before God
in the light of life.
