1.3 The Praise

Psalm 13:5-6 (KJV) “But I have trusted in Your Mercy (Loving Kindness); my heart shall rejoice in Your Salvation. I will Sing unto the LORD, because He has dealt bountifully with me.” – The “I’ of Psalm 13:5 is emphatic. Having uttered his moaning (Psalm 13:1-2) and voiced his Petition (Psalm 13:1-2), David reasserts his Faith (Psalm 13:5-6), the sober reflection to the fundamental attitude and disposition of his heart. His (David’s) despondency is changed to confidence as David’s Faith lays hold on three Characteristics of the LORD:

1.3.1 God’s Steadfast Love

Psalm 13:5a (KJV) “But I have trusted in Your Mercy (Loving Kindness).” – David has experienced God’s tender Mercy (Loving Kindness) in many situations. David’s Attitude from moaning (Psalm 13:1-2), to joyful Praise (Psalm 13:5-6), demonstrated his bold confidence of God’s Character/Nature/Ability. David’s forthright Prayer to God of “Love and Goodness” – “He (God) has dealt bountifully with me.” (Psalm 13:6b), being instrumental in David’s change of Attitude and thus experiencing God’s Loving Kindness (Mercy).  Psalm 13:5a (KJV) is “But I have trusted in Thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in Thy salvation.” This verse is part of a longer passage where David contrasts his despair with his unwavering trust in God’s love and Salvation (Deliverance). The full verse 5a (KJV) is the first part of a two-verse passage (Psalm 13:5-6) which continues with “I will sing unto the Lord, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.” 

• Significance: Psalm 13:5a reflects a shift from a state of distress to one of joyful confidence in God’s Goodness, even in the face of trouble.
• Interpretation: Other translations of the Hebrew word for mercy, such as hesed, include “Lovingkindness” or “Unfailing Love,” which emphasizes the steadfast and generous nature of God’s Love. 
• Psalm 13:5a marks a turning point in the Psalm, moving from Lamentation to Trust. It reflects a shift from feeling forgotten to refocusing on God’s Character and Promises.
• David declares that despite feelings of despair, his ultimate hope is in God’s “Mercy” or “Lovingkindness.” This faith is the source of his inward joy and rejoicing in the “Salvation {Deliverance}” God provides.
• Psalm 13:5a is immediately followed by Verse 6, which continues the theme of praise: “I will sing unto the Lord, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.” 
• Love is not irritable or easily angered. A quick temper is often evidence of viewing other people as obstacles to reaching one’s own goals. Love views serving other people as the goal itself, removing one reason to flare up when he gets in his way. Love is not resentful. It does not keep a record of wrongs.
• The loving-kindness of God is better than life, because it makes the life honorable, which otherwise would have been base and ignoble. It calls from darkness — to light; from the practice and defilement of sin — to the practice of piety and the beauties of holiness.
• Lovingkindness (02617) (Hesed/Chesed/Heced) is the idea of faithful love in action and often in the OT refers to God’s Lovingkindness (Mercy) expressed in His Covenant Relationship with Israel (His “loyal love” to His “Wife” Israel (Hos 2:18, 19, 20 = His “Loyalty to Covenant”).
• David’s Prayer with devotion to God decreases anxiety by reminding him (David) that there is a God who cares about his relationship.
• McCullough (1995) suggested the relationship between physiological and psychological in Prayer. Prayer is associated, with mental health, doe the better.
• McCullough (1995) posited that prayer activates health-promotive psychological mechanisms of hope.
• McCullough states that Prayer is useful as it changes the ways in which Individuals appraise stressful Events.
• Finney and Malony (1985) suggested that Contemplative Prayer involves hypnotic suggestion, and a condition of a lower level of arousal through inducing a state of relaxation.
• The Act of Prayer has been found to lead directly to a lower heart rate, reduced muscle tension, and slower breathing rate.
• McCullough, (1995). Clinical studies have also suggested that Prayer contributes to feelings of tranquillity by altering brain chemistry and structure (Newberg & Waldman, 2009).
• Levin (2020, p. 105) summarizes research finds a wide swathe of other physiological and neurological outcomes of Prayer, including decreased sympathetic nervous system activity, and increased parasympathetic nervous system activity (e.g., the opposite of the fight-or-flight response).

Taken together, these studies suggest that Prayer puts an Individual into a calm or relaxed state by prompting changes in brain chemistry and structure (Levin, 2020).

1.3.2 Contemplative spirituality

Contemplative spirituality, is defined as: “The Soul’s (Mind’s) inward vision and the heart’s simple repose (rest) in God.” Contemplative spirituality involves the soul more than the spirit of the Individual. This is not the same as “Biblical Meditation” or sometimes termed “Contemplative-Prayer” of (Psalm 1:2; Joshua 1:8; etc., etc). Contemplative spirituality is an extremely dangerous practice for any Individual/Church who desire to live a biblical, God-centred life of Biblical-Meditation. Contemplative spirituality is commonly associated with the emerging Church Movement, & contemplative spirituality is riddled with false teachings, that has little, if any, connected with Biblical Christianity.  There is a growing contemplative-spirituality-movement among Christian Activists that is anchoring the work for justice and social change in the deeper wisdom of the Christian tradition.

Practice – In practice, contemplative spirituality is primarily centred on meditation, although not meditation with the biblical perspective of Psalm 1:2 & Joshua 1:8 – “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.” Christian’s Meditation should be on God’s Word (Logos), whereas contemplative spirituality focuses on nothing, literally, emptying the Individual’s mind – supposedly, this helps the Individual to open his/her mind to a greater spiritual experience, but not of God’s Spirit, but the spirit of the world, using Romans 12:2, as the justification for such practice, which is taking Scripture out of context. Emptying the Individual’s mind is contrary to God’s Word (Logos) of Romans 12:2.

Contemplative spirituality also encourages the pursuit of a mystical experience with God. Mysticism is the belief that knowledge of God, spiritual truth, and ultimate reality can be gained through subjective spiritual experience. This spiritual experience subjugated/eroded the authority of God’s Written Word (Logos), the Scripture of: “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2Timothy 3:16-17). There is no biblical basis to believe that God adds additional teachings or truths to His Written Word (Scripture) through mystical experiences. Revelational experience of Rhema Word (Romans 10:17- Spoken Word), is Scriptural but it is subjected to God’s Written Word (Scripture).

The Manifesto of contemplative spirituality reads: “We come from a variety of secular and religious backgrounds, and we seek to enrich our journeys through spiritual practice and study of world’s great spiritual traditions. We desire to draw closer to the loving spirit which pervades all creation, and which inspires our compassion for all beings.”  This manifesto and practice of contemplative spirituality is not biblical and involves falsehood using Christian language. Thus, the only way to draw near to God the Father is through the way of Christ and His Word (Bible) through the Holy Spirit (John 14:16, 17, 26; John 15:26; John 16:13-15; 1John 2:20, 27).

1.3.3 Biblical Meditation

is also termed “Contemplative-Payer.” There is a difference between “contemplative spirituality” and “biblical meditation or contemplative {termed ‘thoughtful} prayer.” Biblical Meditation (Contemplative-Prayer) is hearing from God, is not a Science or a Method but rather of Relationship, because God is a Person, not an object or an impersonal force. Hearing from God involved the “fluid dance” of elements that move together in different ways to connect us with Him (God). The single most important key to hearing from God is intimacy with Him, and one of the most important keys to intimacy is biblical meditation (contemplative prayer). Biblical Meditation (contemplative prayer) means to “consider deeply, to reflect, to be absorbed in thought.” For us, to increase our effectiveness, we need to master the art of biblical meditation (contemplative-prayer) – Joshua 1:8 (NASB) “This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.” (Psalms 1:1-4; etc., etc). Christ by the Holy Spirit dwells within us (John 14:16, 17, 26; John 15:26; John 16:13-15; 1John 2:20, 27), so, all of God’s Life in the Spirit flows from “inside-out,” coming from deep within our spirit (heart – biblical meditation {contemplative-prayer}), not our mind (soul – contemplative spirituality), then, expresses through our soul (mind) and body, to the World.

Biblical Meditation (Contemplative-Prayer), is the spiritual discipline that enables us, through God’s Spirit – the “eyes” of our heart being enlightened so that we will know (understand and experience) what God is for us – Ephesians 1:8 “Which He (God) has made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence.”  Thus, Prayer is the Process of finding out what God wants to do and then asking Him to do it. Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) is an important precursor (forerunner) to that effort. Before we pray, we ought to meditate (contemplate), read the Bible, think, listen and be still (Psalm 46:10). Reading God’s Word (the Bible) reveals God’s Will to us, shaping our Prayer

• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) is to think deeply and exploring with our heart and mind a portion of God’s Word (Scripture) and allowing God’s Spirit to touch our innermost being (Psalm 1:4; Joshua 1:8).

• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) is creative thought which leads us to the realm of God’s Revelation, and Wisdom (Ephesians 1:17).
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) allows us to search inside and outside the box of our current paradigm, allowing God to let us “see,” and “hear” what He (God) revealed (John 7:38).
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) is more than the casual seeking for revelatory insight; our initial creative thoughts, provides the starting place for our encounter with God’s Spirit, in His things, in our pursuit of God (1John 2:20, 27).
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) – Many of us are satisfied with collecting random truth on the surface of our consciousness; it is good, wholesome insights; but it can only satisfy to a certain level, whereas, biblical meditation (contemplative-prayer) takes us into deeper level of relationship and revelation of God – God’s Revelation and Wisdom (Ephesians 1:17) has to be mined – Proverbs 25:2 “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of the kings is to search out a matter.” (Proverbs 23:23a; 2Peter 1:12; Acts 15:18).
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) would ultimately lead us to experience encounters with God, His Throne of His Majesty, Sovereignty and Supremacy – He (God) fills all things with Himself (Ephesians 1:23).
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) allows us to experience God’s Presence, both through His Written Word (Scripture) and His Spoken Word (Rhema), by His Spirit – 2Corinthians 2:10 “But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.”   
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) ushers us into God’s Presence and enables us to listen to God’s Heartbeat of His Desires (His Prophetic Word); we relate to Him (God), with questions, for our learning in our journey with Him, letting the Holy Spirit teaches us (John 14:26; John 15:26; John 16:13-15; 1John 2:20, 27), as we abide in stillness and rest (Psalm 46:10a). Waiting patiently…..He will reveal Himself (Isaiah 40:31). When our heart gets restless, we turn to worship; when our inner self is settled, we turn to listening. 
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) spontaneous thoughts do arise, we need to have them written down, but not to pursue these thoughts at that moment, as not to hinder God’s Prophetic Flow. Go back to these thoughts, later and ask God for understanding or additional information (Habakkuk 2:1-3).  
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) is creative thought which leads the Individual to the higher realm of God’s Revelation (John 6:63; 2Corinthians 3:16b – “Spirit gives Life”), and His Wisdom (Book of Proverbs). It takes the Individual beyond the realm of reason to where God’s Joy (Nehemiah 8:10b) and Activation of Faith (Hebrews chapter 11).
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) allows the Individual to search inside and outside the realm of his current paradigm. What he sees and hears touches him profoundly. It adds understanding and appreciation around the core truth of Christ, which is God within, for Christ dwells in us by the Holy Spirit (John 14:16, 17; 1John 2:20, 27). Thus, biblical meditation (contemplative-prayer) is not casual in the Individual seeking, of Revelatory Insight – Proverbs 25:2 “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of Kings is to search out a matter.”  

And God’s Treasure that comes, of, “Buying the Truth and sell it not” (Proverbs 23:23a), and thus, being “Established in the Present Truth” (2Peter 1:12b).

• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) is to think deeply and exploring with our heart and mind a portion of God’s Word (Scripture) and allowing God’s Spirit to touch our innermost being (Psalm 1:4; Joshua 1:8).
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) is creative thought which leads us to the realm of God’s Revelation, and Wisdom (Ephesians 1:17).
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) allows us to search inside and outside the box of our current paradigm, allowing God to let us “see,” and “hear” what He (God) revealed (John 7:38).
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) is more than the casual seeking for revelatory insight; our initial creative thoughts, provides the starting place for our encounter with God’s Spirit, in His things, in our pursuit of God (1John 2:20, 27).
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) – Many of us are satisfied with collecting random truth on the surface of our consciousness; it is good, wholesome insights; but it can only satisfy to a certain level, whereas, biblical meditation (contemplative-prayer) takes us into deeper level of relationship and revelation of God – God’s Revelation and Wisdom (Ephesians 1:17) has to be mined – Proverbs 25:2 “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of the kings is to search out a matter.” (Proverbs 23:23a; 2Peter 1:12; Acts 15:18).
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) would ultimately lead us to experience encounters with God, His Throne of His Majesty, Sovereignty and Supremacy – He (God) fills all things with Himself (Ephesians 1:23).
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) allows us to experience God’s Presence, both through His Written Word (Scripture) and His Spoken Word (Rhema), by His Spirit – 2Corinthians 2:10 “But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.”   
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) ushers us into God’s Presence and enables us to listen to God’s Heartbeat of His Desires (His Prophetic Word); we relate to Him (God), with questions, for our learning in our journey with Him, letting the Holy Spirit teaches us (John 14:26; John 15:26; John 16:13-15; 1John 2:20, 27), as we abide in stillness and rest (Psalm 46:10a). Waiting patiently…..He will reveal Himself (Isaiah 40:31). When our heart gets restless, we turn to worship; when our inner self is settled, we turn to listening. 
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) spontaneous thoughts do arise, we need to have them written down, but not to pursue these thoughts at that moment, as not to hinder God’s Prophetic Flow. Go back to these thoughts, later and ask God for understanding or additional information (Habakkuk 2:1-3).  
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) is creative thought which leads the Individual to the higher realm of God’s Revelation (John 6:63; 2Corinthians 3:16b – “Spirit gives Life”), and His Wisdom (Book of Proverbs). It takes the Individual beyond the realm of reason to where God’s Joy (Nehemiah 8:10b) and Activation of Faith (Hebrews chapter 11).
• Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) allows the Individual to search inside and outside the realm of his current paradigm. What he sees and hears touches him profoundly. It adds understanding and appreciation around the core truth of Christ, which is God within, for Christ dwells in us by the Holy Spirit (John 14:16, 17; 1John 2:20, 27). Thus, biblical meditation (contemplative-prayer) is not casual in the Individual seeking, of Revelatory Insight – Proverbs 25:2 “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of Kings is to search out a matter.”  
• And God’s Treasure that comes, of, “Buying the Truth and sell it not” (Proverbs 23:23a), and thus, being “Established in the Present Truth” (2Peter 1:12b).
• Biblical Meditation Lifestyle (contemplative-prayer lifestyle) – When developing biblical meditation (contemplation) as a lifestyle, learns to ease into it, beginning with one hour, and subsequently increase the length of time at our own pace, without pressure. Do not wait upon the Lord Jesus in a vacuum, but have the focus of desire in our heart, expressed to the Lord Jesus, and wait for Him (God) to respond.  
  • Engage our heart with the impression that we feel that God has spoken.
  • What does this mean to us?
  • What problems currently require God’s Intervention and Direction?
  • What Promise is the Holy Spirit drawing to our attention? Ask for Scriptural Support.
  • Study God’s Promises, look for key words and phrases.
  • Write down specifically what God has promised to us in our current situation.
  • How will we stand and position ourselves before God the Father?
  • What level of confidence does the Father wish to bestow upon us?
  • What fear, unbelief and inadequacy must we give up in favour of God’s Promise?
  • View God’s Promise and the Provision together until we fill our vision and hope and faith begin to rise.
  • Now, through the lens of God’s Promise, look at the problem. What has changed in our: Heart? Viewpoint? and Mind-set?
  • Compose a Prayer before God, a request for His Grace, Kindness, and Power to enable us to receive.
  • Write a Psalm of thanksgiving to God for what He has done in and for us in this current situation.
  • Write out in full a confession and a declaration that we can speak into our circumstances by the Power of the Holy Spirit (Job 22:28).
  • Are we challenging our circumstances with God’s Promise, a boldness and confidence will enter our language? How did we feel?
  • Continue declaring, believing, and challenging daily until God speaks further or the problem loses its power.
  • What has changed in us?
  • What have we learned?
  • What have we become in Christ?
  • Finally, enter all these things in the journal. Keep a record of our walk with God in this way not only to encourage ourselves in later times, but to provide a legacy for our family and friends.

In the Ministry, to biblically meditate means to think deeply about the Fatherhood of God (Matthew 6:9; Ephesians 3:14-15; Ephesians 4:6) the Lordship of the Lord Jesus Christ (John 15:1-11), and submission to the Person and Work of the Holy Spirit (John 14:16, 17, 26; John 15:26; John 16:13-15; 1John 2:20, 27), and a deep interest in the study of God’s Written Word (Scripture – 2Timothy 3:16-17), allowing what the Individual’s heart and mind, allowing what he thinks to touch his innermost being.

God’s Revelatory Truth must be dug out over days, weeks, months, and years, as I have been doing since June 1975, as God’s Revelatory Truth is never found on the surface but concealed – Proverbs 25:2 “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of Kings is to search out a matter.” God’s Revelatory Truth is also costly – 2Peter 1:12a “Buy the Truth and sell it not.”  Thus, it takes joy and patience to take truth down to its deepest level, which is beyond the meeting of our current needs. Beyond the depth of understanding the Power God’s Truth releases to the seeking/hungry Individual, and the Power released against his Adversary (Satan). Down to the depth where God lives in the highest places of His Majesty, Sovereignty and Supremacy. God fills all things with Himself – Ephesians 4:6 “One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”

God’s Wisdom – The current situation of the Ministry requires God’s Wisdom, but even more the current situation yearns for God’s Presence, as in God’s Presence, there is “Fullness of Joy” (Psalm 16:11), and “God’s Strength” (Nehemiah 8:10b). Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) allows the Individual to experience both through God’s Written Word (Logos – John 1:1; Revelation 19:13; 1John 1:1) and God’s Rhema Word (Romans 10:17):

• Hebrews 11:3b – “Framed by ‘the Word’ (Rhema) of God;”
• Hebrews 1:3b “Upholding all things by the Word (Rhema) of His Power.”

Coming alive in the Individual’s spirit. Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) also, leads the Individual/Church to God and the Revelation of what is in God’s Mind (Psalm 139:17-18a), and His (God’s) Heart (Counsel – Jeremiah 23:18, 22), allowing the Individual to stand before Him (God – “Before Whom (God) I stand” {1Kings 17:1b, 18:15; 2Kings 3:14; 5:16).

• The Individual needs to learn to ask questions of God, quietly, and peacefully, allowing the Holy Spirit to teach him how to abide in Christ (John 15:1-11).
• The Individual needs to learn to turn inwardly and “Be still and resting in the LORD” (Psalm 46:10).
• Waiting patiently, for Him (God) will come (Isaiah 40:31).
• When the Individual’s heart and mind get restless, turn to worship God, when his spirit settles, return to listening.

Write down the initial thoughts but do not pursue them just yet. Do not be distracted by what you hear, initially. Set it aside and come back to it later.

When the Individual first enters the lifestyle of Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer), he takes care to ease into it slowly, an hour at first, then longer until about half a day, and so on. The Individual must always have a focus; he does not try to wait in a vacuum. In the Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) exercise is a particular statement followed by a series of questions. This is both to give him practice in Biblical Meditation (contemplative-prayer) to bring him into God’s Revelation through the focus statement. Use the questions as the Spirit leads – this exercise is not prescriptive but merely a guide to enable the Individual’s meditation (contemplative-prayer). No doubt he will discover better questions as the Holy Spirit tutors him/Church.

1.3.4 God’s Deliverance

Psalm 13:5b “My heart rejoices in Your Salvation.” – David’s rejoicing is based upon God’s Salvation (Deliverance). David proclaims his joy in God’s Salvation = Deliverance – An expression of Faith that he believes refers to God’s Deliverance upon him. In Prayer, David is delivered from his travail. Peter expresses this same pattern of going from anxiety to rest as he admonishes: “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that in due time he may exalt you. Cast all your anxieties on Him, for He cares about you” (1Peter 5:6-7). What a reversal is seen in Psalm 13:5-6. Faith has climbed out of the cellar of despair and has ascended the heights of God’s Bounty. The feeling of isolation from God (Psalm 13:1-2) and the rejoicing of Salvation (Deliverance) in God (Psalm 13:5-6), are only separated by Prayer to God (Psalm 13:3-4).  Psalm 13:5b, “My heart rejoices in Your Salvation,” is part of a larger passage (verses 5-6) in which David expresses deep trust in God’s unfailing love despite difficult circumstances. Psalm 13:5 signifies a personal and joyful confidence in God’s deliverance and rescue from hardship and difficulty. It highlights a state of inner gladness and gratitude for God’s Salvation (Deliverance), which leads to praise and singing.

• Trust in God’s Love: Psalm 13:5 is preceded by “But I have trusted in Your Lovingkindness” (or Mercy, Steadfast Love, or Unfailing Love), setting the foundation for the rejoicing. David’s joy is a direct result of their confidence in God’s Character and Faithfulness.
• Personal Joy and Gladness: “My heart rejoices” describes a profound and sincere happiness that comes from a deep, internal trust in God’s Saving Work.
• Salvation as the Source of Joy: The object of this joy is “Your Salvation (Deliverance).” This refers to being saved from enemies, from sin, and from the consequences of sin.
• A Transition to Praise: Psalm 13:5 is immediately followed by “I will sing to the Lord, because He has dealt bountifully with me.” This shows that the joy of Salvation (Deliverance) is not passive but leads to active Praise and Worship.
• Trust in God’s Love: Psalm 13:5 is preceded by “But I have trusted in Your lovingkindness” (or Mercy, Steadfast Love, or Unfailing Love), setting the foundation for the rejoicing. David’s joy is a direct result of his confidence in God’s Character and Faithfulness.
• Personal Joy and Gladness: “My heart rejoices” describes a profound and sincere happiness that comes from a deep, internal trust in God’s Saving Work.
• Salvation as the Source of Joy: The object of this joy is “Your {God’s} Salvation (Deliverance).” This refers to being saved from enemies, from sin, and from the consequences of sin. 

But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your Salvation (Deliverance). I …

1.4 David’s Gratitude

Psalm 13:6a, “I will sing unto the LORD,” is the beginning of a verse expressing gratitude for God’s Goodness, often followed by “for he has been good to me” or “for he has dealt bountifully with me.” This joyful declaration is made after a period of despair and trust, signifying that faith leads to singing praises for God’s Goodness and Mercy (Lovingkindness). This phrase signifies a shift from lament or Prayer to joyful Praise, a celebration of God’s Blessings despite past or present troubles. 

• Meaning: Psalm13:6a marks a change in tone from despair to joyful anticipation and thanksgiving.
• Context: It comes at the end of a Psalm where David, has been crying out to God. It follows David’s expressions of deep sorrow and feelings of being forsaken, where he asks why God has seemingly left him.
• Shift in Perspective: Psalm 13:6a marks a transition from despair to joyful gratitude, with David choosing faith and to focus on God’s Goodness rather than his own troubles.
• Reason for Singing: David sings because God has been generous and provided for him, and he trusts in God’s Mercy (Lovingkindness). The Phrase is a response to God’s Generous and Bountiful Actions.
• Theological Significance: It represents a faithful response to God’s Goodness and Mercy (Lovingkindness), even amid difficult circumstances, by choosing to praise and rely on God

The Result: This Singing is a physical and vocal expression of an inner heart filled with joy, trust, and thankfulness for God’s Salvation (Deliverance) and unfailing Mercy (Lovingkindness).

Psalm 13:6, then, based on Faith, David asserts that what he feels, real though, those feelings are to him, is not really the way things are. And we must say the same. Yes, we must confront and acknowledge our feelings. But then we must lay those feelings alongside reality and see how they measure up. We see, if we have made the Faith commitment to God, we have Faith in God’s Love and Goodness to us in our experiences.  And so, despite how we feel, we know God Answers and Delivers. This irrepressible Hope, always clarified and crystallised by Prayer, is one of the constant Features of the Psalms.

John Bunyan: “I never knew what it was for God to stand by me at all turns, and at every offer of Satan to afflict me, etc, as I have found Him since I came in hither; for look how fears have presented themselves so have supports and encouragement; yea, when I have started even as it were nothing else by my shadow, yet God, as being very tender of me, hath not suffered me to be molested, but would with one Scripture or another strengthen me against all; insomuch that I have often said, Were it lawful, I could pray for greater trouble, for the greater comfort’s sake.”                                                                                                                                

1.4.2 God’s Goodness

Psalm 13:6b (KJV) “He has dealt bountifully with me.” –  God’s readiness to deliver delights us. God’s abounding Goodness (Loving Kindness) to David when he was in trouble/difficulties.

• David’s Praise (Singing) is based upon God’s bountiful Care. The basic idea of the word translated “dealt bountifully” is completeness, which NEB interprets as “granted all my desire.” 
• David Knows God’s Silence would not last forever and so answers his own question of Psalm 13:1-2. God will deliver him/us because He (God) loves him/us and has been good to him/us in the past.

Psalm 13:6b (“He has dealt bountifully with me”) is the conclusion to Psalm 13, where David resolves to Praise the LORD because of His Abundant Goodness and Mercy (Lovingkindness) received. This declaration follows a period of lament (Psalm 13:1-2), where David shifts from a cry of despair to one of joy, expressing that God’s Past Faithfulness has given him confidence in future deliverance. The phrase signifies a profound sense of gratitude and trust in God’s consistent, generous provision. 

• A Shift from Lament to Praise: Psalm 13:6b marks a turning point from the desperate questions of the earlier verses in Psalm 13:1-2 to a confident expression of praise (Psalm 13”5-6).
• Reason for Praise: The reason for the song is explicitly stated: God has dealt “bountifully,” meaning abundantly or generously, with David, the Psalmist.
• Trust in God’s Character: The statement of Psalm 13:6b is rooted in David’s trust in God’s Mercy and Salvation (Deliverance), leading to a joyful heart even in difficult circumstances.
• A Declaration of Gratitude: Psalm 13:6b is an expression of thankfulness for all that God has done, and it serves as a testament to God’s Goodness and Mercy (Lovingkindness). 

David ends Psalm 13 in triumph: “I will sing to the LORD, because He has dealt bountifully with me.”  David’s thought has moved from:

• God’s Silence (Psalm 13:1-2).
• God’s Illumination (Psalm 13:3-4).
• God’s Loving Kindness (Mercy) & Salvation = Deliverance (Psalm 13:5).
• God’s bountiful Goodness (Psalm 13:6b) that results in Praise – “Sing unto the LORD” (Psalm 13:6a).

1.5 General Comments

David expresses his grief and anguish in the form of Worship which should be the response of Christians. David, in other words, finds within his community of Faith the general pattern of expression that helps direct his cry, a pattern which emphasis the need for direct address to God, for honesty in One’s expression of need and frustration, and for trust that God is in command of every situation. David is not alone as he attempts to deal with his crisis, nor is he the only one to experience crisis.  

We can thus learn from these Psalms of Individual Lamentation how to move from grief to joy, as David does.  We cannot answer the question of how the change of mood and situation was accomplished. God works individually in our hearts and lives.

But David’s life is restored and that his health is renewed, and his enemy overcomes is boldly asserted. Important in this transformation process is both the honest, direct approach to God which is taken and the typical pattern of Prayerful Petition (which includes statements of trust) which is adopted.

Here are clues for us too. In our crises we need to address God personally. We need to use such resources in the community of faith as Psalm 13 teaches us how best to make Petition. As an Individual/Church we have too often been intimated by suffering and failure. “The Victorious Christian Life” has been wielded as a club to silence us. The Psalm of Individual Lament can teach us the central means of dealing with life’s misery and agony. How can the Faithful today cope with life’s extremities, with those question marks that defy rational analysis?  We should learn to express our agony in the form of the Prayerful Petition or Lament, a form that bring our question into the realm of Faith that renewed our trust. 

1.6 Application

Now are you feeling God’s Silence in your life? You might be in circumstances where you deeply need God but just cannot seem to feel Him in our life.

Perhaps you have lost a job or lost a loved one through death. Perhaps the anguish has been brought on by a total inability to communicate with your spouse or your children.

It might be caused by physical pain, or doubts, or unjustified personal attacks. And just when you need God the most, He seems most absent from your life.

Do not yield to despair. Others have been there before us. We need not let that feeling of abandonment lead you down the road of despair. You could, you see, try one of the many ways of explaining of God’s Silence in our lives.

You could try to mask the silence through a frantic pace at work, or a whirlwind social schedule, as if being active and surrounded by People can fill the void left by God’s Silence.

You might hide behind overeating, or perhaps over exercising. You could seek escape through drinking or drugs, or the enticing finality of the escape offered in a handful of pills. But that does not have to be your pathway. Keep Praying.

Even if you feel it does not yield any immediate result, keep it up. And then in Faith reflect on God’s Unfailing Love and all the way that His (God’s) Goodness & Mercy (Lovingkindness) has enriched our life in the past. Have confidence based on that Faith that He (god) will bring deliverance to us.

Remember, it is out of God’s Silence that God makes Himself felt. Wait patiently in Faith for that new, deeper experience of God Himself that will be ours when the Silence is broken. David’s Pathway led not to despair, but back to joy and song. We can too!!

1.7 The Lessons

Such a real-life experience throw much light on God’s Dealings with His People. “The Secret of the LORD is with them that fear Him” (Psalm 25:14). And Psalm 13 lets us into it. It teaches us:

• The Child of God is the object of the Father’s tender Kindness and Love, even at the moment of tumultuous anguish and deep darkness of despair. The sun shines just as brightly on us, even when a film over the eyes obscures our sight of it. Saints are never nearer or dearer to God’s Heart than when we are in trouble.
• God graciously set apart the anguish and makes it the means of quickening to intense devotion. It is not when all is calm that Prayer is at its best. ah no! It is when we are stunned, startled, and half-paralysed by some dreadful and unexpected trail that we Pray the most earnestly. It is quite possible that at such times words may fail; but God reads deep meaning in the tear and hears heavenly eloquence in the sighs of those that seek Him.
• The anguish will be removed in God’s own time. When the trial sent us has secured its needed end in the quickening of devotion, the strengthening of faith, and the improvement of the whole life, then will the pressure be taken off, nor ought we to desire it otherwise. It is far more important to have our afflictions sanctified than to have them removed.
• By the very trials through which we have passed we shall have learnt to be Comforters of others. If the Psalmist had known that the written experience of his sorrows and his songs would have gone down to hundreds of Generations, to comfort sorrowing souls in all time, he would have been thankful for his trouble, sharp as it was:
  • It is only those who have experienced trouble that can effectually be Comforters of others (2Corinthians 1:6; Hebrews 2:18).
  • It is not to be supposed that merely because we have sorrow at one moment, we shall have joy in the future. Only God’s Mourners can expect God’s Comforts (Matthew 5:4), is for those named in (Matthew 5:3). The vast difference pointed out in Isaiah1:10,11 should be reverently and anxiously pondered.
  • It is only the renewed Person that can possibly thus trust, pray, and plead, when in the midst of Jesus Christ; to have sin forgiven, and the soul renewed. He who has first cast his burden of sin and guilt on an Atoning Saviour, and who is being renewed by the Holy Spirit, may come every day and cast their burdens, and all his care, upon his Father, God.
  • It is definite better to be in the depth of the valley of sorrow, as a good man, and to let our God lead us up to the height of joy, than, as a godless man, to be at the height of merriment and laughter for a while, only to sink to the depths of despair.

1.8 The Seven Emotions

Thinking himself shut off from God – Psalm 13:1“How long will You forget me…..hide Your face from me?” It does not follow that God had hidden His Face; and assuredly He had not forgotten the troubled Believer. Had it been so, the afflicted Person had not survived to offer this Prayer. It is in the midst of sore anguish that we can rightly gauge God’s Mind towards us. 

Fearing his Adversaries – Psalm 13:4 “Lest mine Enemy say. I have prevailed against him; and those who trouble me rejoice when I am moved.” – David was evidently surrounded by those who lay in wait for him. He could have faced them boldly had it not been for the hiding of God’s Face. But that made him tremble, and no wonder.

Sorrowfully Musing – Psalm 13:2 “How long shall I take Counsel (“Pain”) in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? How long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?”  What a tumult of agitation was David now passing through? And what a bewildered and bewildering host of “trouble thoughts” and queries seize the mind at such times as these. 

Sinking under the Pressure – Psalm 13:3 “Consider and hear me, O LORD my God; lighten my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death.” The phrase indicates that David was at the very verge of despair. “Courage almost gone,” so that his spirit is failing, or his bodily frame is giving way. The Writer may mean either or both.

Trusting – Psalm 13:5 “But I have trusted in Your Mercy; my heart shall rejoice in Your Salvation.” The “darkest hour is just before dawn.” The woe reaches its deepest and bitterest; and them – trust prevents absolute despair. The renewed heart clings to God, even in the dark. And he to whom our spirit thus clings will appear for us at the right time, an in His own wonder-working way.

Prayer – Psalm 13:5b “My heart shall rejoice in Your Salvation.” – The whole Psalm is Prayer. One of the greatest blessings in life is to have a friend who will never misunderstand us; and by whom all our unintelligible and contradictory words will be pitied and not blamed. Who will bury our follies in his own love.  But there is only One in whom all this exists to Perfection – even our God. He never misinterprets the language of broken hearts and bewildered souls. We may always tell Him exactly what we feel, as we feel it; or, if words will not come, then “our groaning” is not hid from Him. He will answer us not according to our plan but will do exceedingly abundantly for us “above all that we can ask or think.” Psalm 13:4 may not and does not give us the highest style of pleading. But it indicates the burden on the heart. And whatsoever is a burden on a child’s heart is to the Father an object of loving concern and may be rolled over on to God.

Song of Deliverance – Psalm 13:6 “I will Sing unto the LORD, because he has dealt bountifully with me.” – So, he who moans at the beginning of Prayer may Sing at the end of it. Thus, does Psalm 13 run through the various shades or stages of emotion. Having gone down to the depths of the valley of anguish, David comes at length to stand on the heights of the Mount of Praise!

• Psalms