Such wisdom, power, and love!

Cynics sneer at the idea that God made humans the center of so magnificent a universe. As reasonable as such cynicism may seem, David insists on a counterintuitive story.

 For the music director, on the gittith. A David psalm.

¹ YHWH, our Lord
how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Your glory outshines suns
and stars beyond counting!
² Out of the mouths of toddlers
and babes at the breast
you established a stronghold
against your enemies
to silence the foe and avenger.
³ When I look up at the glittering night sky
it’s your handiwork I see—
the moon and stars you made.
⁴ So, what on earth are human beings
that you care for them?
Why give the son of Adam a second thought? 

⁵ Yet you made him
the pinnacle of your creation
with only you above
and crowned him with glory and honor—
⁶ lord of the earth—
putting everything under his feet:
⁷ sheep and cattle on the hillside
lions and wolves in the wild
⁸ every bird that flies the skies above
every fish that swims the seven seas. 

⁹ YHWH, our Lord
how majestic is your name in all the earth!

David clearly has Genesis 1-3 in mind here. He praises YHWH, whose majesty surpasses that of the heavens. His next point, that YHWH builds a stronghold, relates to the Canaanite creation myth which has Baal defeating the forces of chaos in creation and then building a temple-fortress to keep his enemies at bay.

As surprising as this fortress imagery is, David’s use of it is even more surprising since God uses the voices of little kids to build his stronghold. Here David seemingly pictures a children’s chorus drowning out God’s enemies. But kids have always been central to the redemptive plan of the God who chooses the weak to shame the strong. In Genesis 3, God promises that the woman’s descendant will crush the serpent’s head. That child—one of the many descendants later promised to Abraham and the greater son promised to David—would be God’s ultimate defense against evil.

David brings his poem to a dramatic standstill in verse 4, with two questions virtually synonymous in the Hebrew. He wonders, What can possibly explain why so wise and powerful a God made weak-willed humans lords of his creation? Only the unrelenting love embodied in the promised son, a love unique in a world where the gods were said to despise their mortal subjects.

Verse 5 pivots from presenting humans as small amidst creation’s grandeur, to seeing them as exalted, just below God in authority, representing him gloriously on earth (Gen. 1:26-28). God remains graciously committed to partnering with us on earth.[1] As the biblical story played out, God restored our race to full partnership with him through Jesus, who was given a name above every name not because Jesus was God, but rather because he was the true human. As the perfect man, he restored the hope of glory to our race.

David’s glimpse of God’s greatness and grace here prompts him to end as he began, praising God for his majesty revealed in creation.

Prayer:

Your wisdom, power, and love are astounding, Lord! You have mere children silence your foes! Give me childlike faith to believe your love is unstoppable. Fill me with that love, and fit me to rule as your faithful servant over whatever you entrust to me. Amen.

In your free moments today, pray these words:

YHWH, our Lord
how majestic is your name in all the earth!

[1] In one sense, verses 2-3 contrast with verses 5-8, but in another sense, the two passages are complementary, shaping the poem’s chiasm: A: YHWH’s magnificence in creation (v. 1), B: Human authority over creation (vv. 2-3), C: WHAT IS HUMANITY THAT YOU CARE FOR US? (v. 4a), C: WHAT IS THE SON OF ADAM THAT YOU REGARD HIM? (v. 4b), B: Human authority over creation (vv. 5-8), A: YHWH’s magnificence in creation (v. 9).

God of Justice, God of Truth

As society’s ground of morality shifts to whatever feels good, relationships are increasingly blighted by injustice and false accusation. This psalm invites victims to take refuge in the just Judge of all.

A David psalm, which he sang to YHWH about Cush the Benjaminite.

¹ YHWH my God
I’ve taken refuge in you.
Rescue me from this mob stalking me.
Save me ² lest, like a lion
they maul me and tear me limb from limb
with no one to rescue me or even help.
³ If their charges are true, YHWH my God
if I’ve stained my hands with extortion
⁴ if I’ve repaid my ally evil for good
or attacked my enemy for no reason
⁵ then let them hunt me down
trample me to the ground
and stomp my honor into the dirt.

⁶ Do something, God!
Burst onto the scene, YHWH!
Meet my foes’ fury
with the inferno of your anger
as your just sentence is carried out.
⁷ Summon my accusers
and let all rise as you take your seat
high above all earthly courts—
⁸ for you judge everyone everywhere.
Then, YHWH
declare me honorable and in the right.
⁹ Ring down the curtain on evil
and set those who please you on their feet.
Since you probe us, heart and mind
be the righteous God that you are.

¹⁰ God is my shield
saving the pure in heart
¹¹ a just judge
whose anger against evil burns constant.
¹² When a person refuses to repent
God sharpens his sword
pulls back his bow, takes aim
¹³ and shoots his flaming arrows
with deadly accuracy.

¹⁴ Look at the wicked:
they conceive evil plans
become pregnant with mischief
and give birth to falsehood.
¹⁵ The deeper they make their trap
the farther they fall
when they then stumble into it.
¹⁶ All their mischief backfires
landing on their own skulls.

¹⁷ I will thank YHWH
for being just and true.
I will sing praise to YHWH
for being God Most High.

Cush, a member of King Saul’s tribe, is in hot pursuit of David. Furious with David, he and his band falsely accuse him of injustice, mistreating friends, and picking fights with enemies. In a culture prizing loyalty and honor, Cush makes David out to be an absolute jerk.

David’s framework here is legal. Saul has denied him his day in court. So, he asks God to take up his case and defend him since God is just, knows everything, and is committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of those who keep his covenant. Having run to him for shelter, David declares that he’s willing to pay with his life if it turns out he’s the villain his enemies make him out to be. That’s how sure he is of his innocence. As his stalkers close in on him, he urges God to stop them in their tracks and entrusts himself to the only judge he can count on to judge him justly.

God’s character is implicitly in sharp contrast to that of the neighboring nations’ gods, whose own worshippers saw them as capricious narcissists. Recalling how perfect God’s justice is, how implacable his hatred of evil, David imagines God in position, ready to judge his foes. Having devoted themselves to evil,  they produce falsehood, but all their efforts are futile. For in setting a trap for the innocent, they only set themselves up.

David isn’t out of the woods when the psalm ends, but he sees the answer to his prayer is on the way. So he promises to praise God for being the God he is, voicing his assurance that God will act on his behalf.

Prayer:

Jesus, you know all about blame shifting and false accusation. And you aren’t fooled by it: no thought or motive escapes you. You’re in complete control, ready to act when the time is right. Deliver me from evil. Trusting that you will ultimately enact perfect justice, I praise your name. Amen.

In your free moments today, meditate on these words:

I will thank YHWH for being just and true.
I’ll sing praise to him for being God Most High.

A cry in the dark

The grim realities of aggression, pain, and death often put peace and security out of reach. But what if God himself is our problem? If he is, then he’s also our only hope.

A David psalm.

¹ Don’t rebuke me in your anger, YHWH
or punish me in your wrath.
² Have mercy on me, YHWH
because I’m languishing.
Heal me, YHWH
because even my bones shake with terror.
³ My soul is deeply disturbed
while you, YHWH—how long?
⁴ Turn back, YHWH—spare my life!
Rescue me for the sake of your unfailing love.

⁵ No one thinks of you when they’re dead.
Who gives thanks to you in Sheol?
⁶ I am worn out from all my groaning.
Every night I flood my bed with weeping
my pillow awash with me
on the salt sea of my tears.
⁷ Grief darkens my vision—
my eyesight fails because of all my enemies.

⁸ Get away from me, all you evildoers
because YHWH has heard my crying!
⁹ YHWH has heard my plea for mercy.
YHWH will answer my prayer.
¹⁰ All my enemies will be ashamed
and shaken with terror.
They will turn back suddenly in disgrace!

David’s physical pain and mental anguish bleed into each other here. Some view his basic problem as illness, while others believe it’s his enemies’ devastating aggression. In the first case, his illness has rendered him vulnerable to attack. In the second, his illness is stress-related, brought on by enemy aggression.

While David complains about various physical ailments, he concludes by focusing on not his healing, but rather his enemies’ defeat. This could mean his healing is implicit. But it more likely suggests that his ailments are produced by stress caused by his enemies’ hostility, which leaves him angry, anguished, shaken to the core, asking God, “How long will you let this go on?”

This psalm is traditionally classed as a psalm of contrition presumably because David begs God to stop rebuking him. He describes God’s treatment of him, using the same words Psalm 2 uses to describe God’s treatment of his enemies (e.g., rebuke, anger, terrify/terror). On the surface at least, David views his challenges as divine punishment. But biblically, God’s anger isn’t random. It’s always directly related to sin, and David neither confesses sin nor expresses contrition.

This lends weight to a different interpretation by which David accuses God of wrongly giving him the treatment his enemies deserve. He says in effect, “You’ve got the wrong guy, YHWH! I honor and praise you. So why banish me to Sheol, where neither praise nor worship belong?”

However we interpret the psalm, God’s reluctance to answer is David’s real problem. So he calls on God to change course for the sake of his unrelenting love. Then, sensing that God has indeed heard his prayer and will rescue him, he commands his enemies to get lost and boldly declares that YHWH is about to turn the tables on them, making them retreat in terror and disgrace. David thus invites us to resolute faith coupled with outspoken honesty and the boldness to hold God to his word.

Prayer:

Lord, I’m comforted to know that nothing can separate me from your relentless love. But how long will evil aggression ravage? Give me David’s faith, honesty and boldness, to hold you to your promise. May your kingdom come, I pray. Amen.

In your free moments today, pray these words:

Turn back, YHWH—spare my life!
Rescue me for the sake of your unfailing love.

Seeking refuge in God

Pleasing God can prompt those around us who despise God to attack us verbally and physically. But God still reigns supreme, and his hatred of evil means we can count on his protection.

A David psalm. 

¹ Listen to my prayer, YHWH
and consider my groaning.
² Hear my cry for help
as I pray to you
my king and my God.
³ In the morning you hear my voice, YHWH
as I begin each day anew
laying out my case before you
and awaiting your response.

⁴ Because you’re not a god who delights in evil
who welcomes wickedness as a houseguest.
⁵ The debauched can’t stand in your presence—
you hate all wrongdoers
⁶ and destroy those who tell lies.
YHWH loathes the bloodthirsty and treacherous.

⁷ But as for me
through the overflow of your unyielding love
I will enter your house
there to fall in awe of you
before your holy temple.
⁸ Keep me on the path of righteousness, YHWH
Make your way plain to me
surrounded as I am by watchful foes.

⁹ Because not a single thing they say is true—
their hearts are utterly malignant
their throats an open grave
their tongues greased with flattery.
¹⁰ Declare them guilty, O God.
Let them be misled by their own counsel.
Banish them for their many crimes
because they’ve rebelled against you.

¹¹ But may all who take refuge in you
rejoice and sing for joy forever.
Spread your protection over them
so that all who love your name may revel in you.
¹² For you bless those who seek you, YHWH
and surround them with your favor like a shield.

Though God reigns supreme, David is targeted by enemies who attack him treacherously, thus making themselves God’s enemies. Though David seems to be writing in exile, he’s confident God will restore him to his rightful place, enabling him to worship in God’s house with joy.

All he says of YHWH stands against the backdrop of the pagan gods. More messed up than their worshippers, the gods were said to nurse over-inflated egos and care nothing for the weak and afflicted. By contrast, YHWH cares for the oppressed, which is why David pours out his heart to him every morning. Since God is holy and just, David knows God will inexorably oppose words and deeds aimed at violating and destroying him.

David’s prayer that his enemies will be misled by their own counsel reminds of his asking his friend Hushai to see if he could mislead Absalom by giving him bad counsel (2 Sam. 15:32-37). Refusing to fight evil with evil, David asks God to banish his enemies and guide him through the minefield of their treachery without letting him slip into their evil ways. He asks for and affirms his faith in God’s protection and blessing on all who take shelter in him.

The pagans had to merit their gods’ attention, but David doesn’t recommend himself to God. Rather, YHWH’s unyielding love flings the door wide open to the undeserving. Knowing his gracious God will welcome him, he pictures himself falling awestruck before his holy sanctuary. And he asks that God will enable all who take refuge in him to rejoice and revel in his faithfulness to them.

Prayer:

Jesus, I bow before you in a world bent on dethroning you. Thank you that you welcome and protect all who seek refuge in you. Keep me on the true path—looking to you, listening to you, honoring you—till the day you reign in glory over all and earth’s joy can’t be contained. Amen.

In your free moments today, pray these words:

May all who take refuge in you
rejoice and sing for joy forever.
Spread your protection over them
so that all who love your name may revel in you.