Tag: Faith

Psalm 6 – The Psalm of Repentance

1.0 The Overview

Psalm 6 is called “the Penitential (Repentant) Psalm,” and it is first of the Seven Penitential Psalms (Psalm 6; Psalm 32; Psalm 38; Psalm 51; Psalm 102; Psalm 130; Psalm 143), that expresses the sorrow (Psalm 6:3, 6-7), the effects of grief on the body, soul, and spirit (Psalm 6:2, 4).

  • David Pleads for God’s Mercy (Psalm 6:2, 4), which are the unfailing marks of the Person who is broken and contrite, who turns to God for Mercy and Deliverance – Psalm 6:4 “Return, O LORD, deliver me! Oh, save (deliver) me for Your mercies’ sake!”
  • Psalm 6 is sometimes called “the Personal Lament” and the classification of “trouble” and “trust” is aptly described in Psalm 6. 
  • Psalm 51 is the best-known Penitential Psalm, the Psalm of David, when Nathan, the Prophet came to David, after he had had committed adultery with Bathsheba and murdered her husband, Uriah (2Samuel Chapter 11).
  • Psalm 6 is the First of these “7 Penitential Psalms,” there may be no specific mention of sin, but the anguish and the language is truly that of the real Penitent (Repentant) Person, who feels the weight of the wrong which he had done.
  • Psalm 6 is the Psalm of David to the Chief Musician on Neginóth upon Shem’inith. David wrote a total of 73 Psalms out of the 150 Psalms; and 10 Messianic Psalms out of the 16 Messianic Psalms.
  • Psalm 6 is divided into Four Stanzas – The First Stanza is Psalm 6:1-3; the Second Stanza Psalm 6:4-5; the Third Stanza is Psalm 6:6-7; and the Last Stanza is Psalm 6:8-10.

“Neginóth” means “stringed instruments,” which apparently indicates that such should be used in preference to wind instruments in the “Penitential Psalm” to reflect its solemnity (gravity) of mood.

F.W.Grant’s comment is very beautiful. “The flute is silent, and the music of the stringed instruments, better fitted to express the deeper emotions of the heart, follows them: and indeed, in the bass notes upon the octave.”  “Shem’inith” means “the eighth” or “an octave” or eight strings of a musical instrument or eight noted melodies to which Psalm 6 is to be sung. 

Spurgeon remarks on Psalm 6: “A proof of the high antiquity of these Psalms…proofs of their being what they profess to be, the ancient writings of King David of olden times.” We cannot be certain that this Psalm belongs to the Period between David’s Sin with Bathsheba and Absalom’s Rebellion (J. Flanigan – “What the Bible teaches”).

1.1 David Appeals

Psalm 6:1-3 “O LORD, do not rebuke me in Your Anger, nor chasten me in Your hot displeasure. Have Mercy on me, O LORD, for I am weak; O LORD, heal me, for my bones are troubled. My soul also is greatly troubled; but You, O LORD – how long?”  

  • David is in deep distress of body (“bones”) soul (“greatly troubled”) and obviously expecting and deserving God’s rebuke and chastisement because of some grievous sin, which were not spelled out.
  • David, in the spirit of true repentance, he neither denies nor refuses God’s rebuke and chastening:

1.1.1 David Submits

Psalm 6:1“O LORD, do not rebuke me in Your Anger, not chasten me in Your hot displeasure.” – David submits himself to God’s rebuke and chastening – “Whom the Lord loves He chastens,” and, “No chastening for the present seems to be joyous, but grievous” (Hebrews 12:6,11).

  • David requests that God’s rebuke and chastening be tempered and comes not to him {David} in His (God’s) Anger or hot Displeasure.
  • David understands that “I (the LORD) will not contend for ever, neither will I (the LORD) be always wroth; for the spirit should fail before Me (the LORD), and the souls which I (the LORD) had made” (Isaiah 57:16).
  • Jeremiah also made the same request to the LORD: “O LORD, correct me, but with judgement; not in Your Anger, lest You bring me to nothing” (Jeremiah 10:24). 

Whatever the cause of David’s Plea, his focus is on God’s Anger as he begins his Prayer. He uses two basic Hebrew words for Divine Dealing: “Anger” and “Hot Displeasure:”

  • Anger – The word “anger” comes from the root meaning both “Anger” and “Nose;” there is a clear connection between Anger and the “blast of breath” of snorting of Psalm 18:15.
  • Hot Displeasure – The term, “hot displeasure” is derived from the verb “to be hot;” God’s Anger burns.

Psalm 6, God’s “Anger” and “Hot Displeasure” are remedial rather than punitive and destructive. When David asks that God not “rebuke” him, it is in the sense of “correct” him in His Anger or “chasten” (“discipline”) him in His “Hot Displeasure.”

1.1.2 David Pleads

Psalm 6:2a “Have Mercy (“unfailing love” – NIV) upon me, O LORD; for I am weak (withering).” – David pleads for God’s Mercy and understanding of his frailty (weak = withering).Bodily ailment (illness) seems certainly to be implied.

It is that sort of bodily ailment which is often produced by mental distress – a general languor [laziness}, weariness, and distaste for exertion (Psalms 31:10; Psalm 38:3; Psalm 102:3).  David does not follow the example of:

  • Adam & Eve hid themselves amongst the trees of the Garden (Genesis 3:8).
  • King Saul turned to the Witch (1Samuel 28:7).
  • Jonah ran to Tarshish (Jonah 1:3).

David’s request shows the recognition of the disciplinary side of suffering. He does not deny his guilt, nor claim innocence.

  • David appeals for God’s Mercy (“Unfailing Love” – NIV) from an Angry God, from Himself to Himself.
  • David appeals from God’s Virtue, Justice, Mercy. David does not plead what he is or what he has done for God but appeal out of his “weakness (withering).” 

1.1.3 God’s Mercy

Psalm 6:2a “Have Mercy (“unfailing love” – NIV) upon me, O LORD; for I am weak (withering),” is sought from God for Davids physical well-being (Psalm 6:2), as well as his emotional (soul) and spiritual well-being (Psalm 6:2-4). The basis of appealing for God’s Mercy is twofold:

  • God’s Mercy (“Unfailing Love” – NIV) transcends (rise above) over His Anger (Psalm 6:1).
  • David’s Physical Condition – “I am Weak” (Withering – Psalm 6:2a).

1.1.4 David acknowledges

Psalm 6:2b “O LORD, heal me; for my bones are vexed.” –David acknowledges his wrongdoing and recognises the extent of this grief has affected his physical well-being (bones = bodily frame).

David requests God for “healing of his bones (bodily frame) and release from agony.”  David is withered and troubled in his “bones.” Bones also frequently indicates the Person’s inmost being.

1.1.5 David Realises

Psalm 6:3a “My soul is very vexed.” – David realises that the grief and the vexation (trouble) is now beginning to affect his emotional life (“soul”), deeply (“very vexed” = very troubled = terrified). The “Soul” implies the strength and fortitude. Soul troubled is the very Soul of trouble (Spurgeon). David is sick in his whole being:  

  • His Bones = “Physical being” is vexed (“trouble = terrified” – Psalm 6:2b).
  • His Soul {Mind} = “Emotional being” is very vexed (“very troubled = terrified” – Psalm 6:3a).
  • His Mind is on death (Psalm 6:5).
  • He Groans and Cries all night as depression set-in (Psalm 6:6).
  • His eyesight dimmed and he aged (Psalm 6:7). 

David’s Anguish is so severe that both his body (bones – bodily frame), and soul, his inner resources of mind and spirit, are on the verge of breakdown. Of them both {body & mind}, David says that they {body & mind} are vexed (“troubled = terrified”). David’s condition is one of the utmost terrors, felt physically {body}, mentally {soul}, and spiritually {spirit}.

1.1.6 David Calls

Psalm 6:3b “But You O LORD, how long?” – David calls for “God’s Mercy” is punctuated with the declaration of “O LORD” (mentioned five times in Psalm 6:1-4), with a desperate cry of “how long” (Psalm 6:3b). David’s cry is that of the Person wearied out with long suffering (Psalm 90:13) “The how long” (domine usuequo) is the favourite cry of John Calvin when he faced intense grief.

1.1.7 David Prays

(Psalm 6:1-3) – David’s Prayer is an effective antidote to his trouble because it leads him to repose (rest) on God’s “Unfailing Love (NIV) = Mercy (KJV)” (Psalm 6:2). David pleads on God’s Character, whose attitude towards His {God’s} People is one of “Steadfast Love” (Mercy -Psalm 6:2) – Psalm 6:2a “Have Mercy (“unfailing love” – NIV) upon me, O LORD; for I am weak (withering).”

David demonstrates 7fold attitudes of true repentance: (1) David submits (Psalm 6:1); (2) David Pleads (Psalm 6:2a); (3) David looks to God’s Mercy (Psalm 6:2a); (4) David Acknowledges (Psalm 6:2b); (5) David Realises Sin affects (Psalm 6:3a); (6) David Calls on God (Psalm 6:3b); (7) David Prays (Psalm 6:1-3).

Trouble is “the Teacher of Prayer.”In trouble even the Person who does not Pray will begin to Pray. Prayer in trouble is like an arrow shot from a full-bent bow – straight at the mark. David’s Prayer was intensely:

  • Personal – “My Supplication” (Psalm 6:9).
  • Urgent – “The Voice of my Weeping” (Psalm 6:8b).
  • Persistent – “All the Night” (Psalm 6:6a).
  • Seizing hold on God’s Mercy as his {David’s} Plea (Psalm 6:4b).
  • Pattern according to our blessed Lord Jesus’ example (Hebrews 5:7).

David’s Prayer is the cry of an anguished Person. He {David}longs that God’s chastisement should be over and done.

David is suffering Physically (“bones are vexed = “troubled”) and Emotionally (“soul is very vexed = very troubled”), due to the extent of the LORD (Jehovah’s) Anger and Hot Displeasure (Psalm 6:1).

Story:In one of those moods of despondency, which at times sweep over all of us, it is in the language of Psalm 6 that Jane Welsh Carlyle utters her cry for help. On March 24th, 1856, she had resolved, in spite of weakness and ill-health, neither to indulge in vain retrospect nor to gaze into vague distances of the future, but to find the duty nearest to hand, and do it. Two days later she had learned how much she was the creature of external conditions. “One cold, rasping, save March Day,” aided by the too tender sympathy of a friend brought back all her troubles, and she writes (March 26th, 1856):

“Have Mercy upon me, O LORD, for I am Weak.
O LORD heal me, for my bones are vexed.
My soul is also sore vexed; but You O LORD, how long!
Return, O LORD, deliver my soul.
O save me for Your Mercies’ sake.”

1.2 David Travails and Tears

Psalm 6:4“Return, O LORD, deliver my soul: Oh, save me for Your Mercies’ sake. – David grieves at God’s Absence, and pleaded: “Return, O LORD.” It is consistent and understandable fact, that Sin causes God’s Presence to depart. This is evident in Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:8, 23).

We cannot have both Sin and God’s Presence – Isaiah 59:2 “But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you, that He will not hear.” David makes the 3fold Requests. Notice the sequence:

1.2.1 God’s Presence

Psalm 6:4a “Return O LORD.” – David seeks the Return of God’s Presence. He comes from the Deprecatory {Disapproving – “Rebuke me not”- Psalm 6:1} to the Supplicatory {Mercy, Healing, Deliverance, Salvation – Psalm 6:2, 4}.

  • David believes in “God’s Faithfulness.” Not that God will do nothing against him, but that He would do something for him.
  • David’s Prayer is to “Take hold on God (Psalm 6:1), Rests on God’s Mercies (Psalm 2), Moves God because of His {God’s} Fatherly Love (Psalm 6:1-4), Prevails against the circumstances with God (Psalm 6:1-4).” 

1.2.2 Deliverance

Psalm 6:4b “Deliver my Soul.” – David Pleads for “Deliverance” (Salvation) because he believes in the “Steadfast Love” of God. He (David) Prays for release from the Sickness of body (Physical {bones are troubled – Psalm 6:2b}and soul (mental, emotional healing – Psalm 6:3a}. 

1.2.3 Salvation

Psalm 6:4c “Oh, Save me for Your Mercies’ Sake.” – David could not plead for justice because justice would condemn him.

  • David Pleads for God’s Mercies {Unfailing Love, NIV – Psalm 6:2a 4b} – The Abundant of God’s Mercies {Unfailing Love}, expresses the Greatness, Vastness, and Magnanimity (Generous Spirit – Psalm 51:12) of God’s Mercies {1Peter 1:3 – “Abundant Mercy”}.
  • David Turns to God’s Mercies {Unfailing Love, NIV}, and continued to cry to Him (God), notwithstanding the Greatness of his {David’s}Guilt. 
  • Communion with God {“Return – Psalm 6:4a}, Deliverance from Sickness {Heal me, bones are troubled – Psalm 6:2b} and Salvation {Deliver me,…Save me – Psalm 6:4b} involves the whole Person and is grounded on God’s Mercies (Unfailing Love, NIV).
  • Salvation, as we have seen in Psalm 6:1-4, is not merely release from Sin but includes the restoration of the whole Person (our spirit {Relationship with God}, soul {mental, emotional health}, and body {physical health} – 1Thessalonians 5:5:23).
  • David’s Call for Healing has both the terror of sickness and the confidence in God’s Mercy {Unfailing Love, NIV} to Deliver.

In our mortality we know the terror, but in our faith, we can know God’s Power to restore us. Prayer is the Power Point, bringing the Healing by God’s Spirit to the wounds of our lives.

1.2.4 Living

Psalm 6:5 “For in death there is no remembrance of You; in grave (shoel) who shall give You thanks? – David feels his burden is so great, it will soon bring him to his death (grave), if his burden is not removed.

  • David appeals for Healing (Psalm 6:2) because of God’s Mercy {Unfailing Love, NIV – Psalm 6:2, 4}.
  • David Needs {Healings of his spirit, soul {mind, mental}, and body {physical} – Psalm 6:2-4}, but because of the finality of Physical Death (Psalm 6:5).
  • David is not denying consciousness after death, but he reasons that his death (Psalm 6:5) does not glorify God with two Facts:

First, No Remembrance of God (Psalm 6:5a) – Remembrance is more than mental recollection. It is recounting of experiences of God’s Great Mercy {Unfailing Love, NIV – Psalm 2a, 4b} in an Act of Worship:

  • Psalm 71:15 “My mouth shall tell of Your Righteousness and Your Salvation all day, for I do not know their limits.”
  • Isaiah 63:7 “I will mention the lovingkindness of the LORD and the Praises of the LORD according to all that the LORD has bestowed on us, and the Great Goodness towards the House of Israel, which He has bestowed on them according to His Mercies (Unfailing Love), according to the multitude of His Loving kindnesses.”

Second, No Praise or Giving of Thanks in the Grave. The Hebrew word “Sheol” (Grave – Psalm 6:5b).

David is not addressing himself to the question of the question of “afterlife;” rather, he is pleading with God to spare his life.

Psalm 32, particularly verses 3 and 4, indicate that David was so affected physically by his remorse and regret that he lived in fear of death? – Psalm 32:3-4 “When I kept silent, my bones grew old through my groaning all the day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my vitality was turned into the drought of summer, Selah.”

1.3 David’s Weariness

Psalm 6:6-7 “I am weary with my groaning; all the night makes I my bed to swim; I drench (water) my couch with my tears. Mine eye wastes away because of grief; its growth old because of all mine enemies.

1.3.1 Emotional Health

In Psalm 6:6-7, David elaborates on his emotional condition and introduces a new aspect (enemies). Not only does he {David} experienced sickness (Psalm 6:2b – “Bones are troubled”); he has Enemies as well {Psalm 6:7b}.

“The Weak” (“Withering”) of Psalm 6:2 because of his (David’s) profuse and bitter weeping (Psalm 6:6-7):

  • Depression and Exhaustion as complete as this are beyond “self-help” or “Counsellor’s Advice” – “I am weary with my groaning.” (Psalm 6:6a). God’s People may groan but we are not to grumble, as grumbling is ungodliness (Jude 15-16).
  • Sleepless Weeping is added to his (David’s) Groans – Psalm 6:6b “All the night makes I my bed to swim; I drench (water) my couch with my tears.” Day and night, sleeplessly, David wept and groaned and prayed, until physically, was drained of strength and energy.
  • David’s tears watered his bed by night and bedewed his cough by day and there is no respite (break, rest – Psalm 6:6-7a).
  • Sleep Depredation – His (David’s) eyes sunken with sleep depredation – “My eyes are consumed” (Psalm 6:7a). His (David’s) Eyes fall in, becomes dull, and, as it were “waste away” through long-continued grief (Psalm 6:7a; Psalm 31:9).
  • David had aged prematurely and, sadly his enemies know it – “Its growth old because of all mine enemies.” It becomes due and heavy and sunken, like the eyes of an old man. How often has it not been noted that nothing so many ages a Person as grief!
  • Penitent is David that he expresses: “I water my cough with my tears.” (Psalm 6:6c). Night after night he drenches his bed because of the realisation of his sin. He is truly remorseful (regretful). 
  • Weeping is the eloquence (expressiveness) of sorrow. Tears “as liquid” of Prayers and of Weeping as a constant dropping of importunate intercession which will wear its way right surely into the very heart of mercy, despite the stony difficulties which obstruct the way (Charles H Spurgeon).
  • Contrite – It is not the weeping eyes God respects as the broken heart – “God stood looking on Hezekiah’s tears” and added 15 years to his life (Isaiah 38:5).

David’s Physical Sickness (Psalm 6:2) and deep emotional distress (Psalm 6:3) has come from the sense of God’s Absence, the consuming illness (Psalm 6:2-3).

The Enemies used David’s debilitation (weakened) to attack him (Psalm 6:7b). It is ironic that when we are down, others exploit the situation. Psalm 6:6-7 Portrays the emotional Anatomy of all illness:

  • Groaning (Psalm 6:6a).
  • Crying (Psalm 6:6b).
  • Sleepless Nights (Psalm 6:6)
  • Outside Attacks (Psalm 6:7b).

1.3.2 The Lordship

What else can David do but Prays and Calls upon the LORD (the Call of “O LORD” – five times in Psalm 6:1-4 and total = 8 times throughout Psalm 6).

  • Martin Luther said: “Prayer is the Leech of the Soul that sucks out the venom and swelling thereof.” 
  • John Trapp said: “How oft hath Prayer found me despairing almost but left me triumphing and well assured of pardon!”

1.4 Prayer Answered

Psalm 6:8-10 “Depart from me all you Workers of Iniquity; for the LORD has heard the Voice of my Weeping. The LORD has heard my Supplication; the LORD will receive my Prayer. Let all mine Enemies be ashamed and greatly (very) Vexed; let them turn back and be ashamed suddenly.”

1.4.1 Prayer Answered

David’s tears and Prayers have not been for nothing. David suddenly shifts in tone and his shout: “Depart from me, all you Workers of Iniquity,” (Psalm 6:8a), indicates that David’s Plea for Mercy (“Unfailing Love,” NIV) has been heard by God. This sudden display of Confidence in God, is found in almost every Suppliant (Pleading) in the Book of Psalms, is most telling evidence of an answering touch from God – “The LORD has heard the voice of my weeping.” (Psalm 6:8b).  

1.4.2 David the King

The context of our Lord Jesus’ quotation of “Depart from me, all you Workers of Iniquity” in Matthew 7:23 implies His {God’s} Judgement that David is speaking here as King.

  • This is not merely “a hard-pressed” David rounding on his Enemies, but the Sovereign (King David) asserting his Power to rebuke his Enemies.
  • David’s Enemies are called “Workers of Iniquity” (Psalm 6:8a), are the People who harm a sick man for their own advantage.

David has complete Assurance by quoting the Name “the LORD” (Jehovah) three times and twice. David uses the phrase “The LORD hath heard.” (Psalm 6:8b, 9a). He makes three Statements in anticipation of Answered Prayer:

  • The LORD had heard the Voice of David’s Weeping (Psalm 6:8b). Penitential tears speak loudly.
  • The LORD had heard David’s Supplication (Psalm 6:9a). Supplication means “Request for favour or grace.”
  • The LORD had heard David’s Prayer (Psalm 6:9b). David speaks of his inward conviction. David knows that he had Prayed sincerely and fervently. David is certain, therefore, that his Prayer is heard and accepted.

The above three Statements of “The LORD had heard,” are the essence of David’s “trust” of the LORD. Therefore, all those who plague or criticize him are suddenly rebuked.

  • Restored – Now, as he {David} is restored and reconciled, his (David’s) added Plea that his Enemies should be as he had once been, Sore Vexed (troubled) and Ashamed.
  • David’s words “My soul is greatly vexed (troubled)” (Psalm 6:3a), now describes his Enemies in Psalm 6:10a “Let all my Enemies be ashamed and greatly vexed (troubled – Psalm 6:10).”

In David’s Restoration, he moves closer to the LORD, and further away from his Enemies. David’s two problems resolved:

  • David’s Fellowship with God is Restored – The Issue of Psalm 6:1-4.
  • David’s Vulnerability to his Enemies is protected by God (Psalm 6:8-10). 

David can triumphantly declare that his Enemies will be “ashamed” (mentioned twice – “Confounded” – Psalm 6:10) and very vexed (“very troubled” – Psalm 6:10) not so much by revenge as by the desire that by David’s Deliverance and Restoration of God. David Enemies’ False Accusation is exposed (Psalm 6:10):

  • In Attacking David, his (David’s) Enemies have attacked the LORD Himself (Psalm 6:10).
  • In Seeking David’s Sickness as God’s Judgment, his (David’s) Enemies have failed to see God’s Mercies (Unfailing Love – NIV) and His (God’s) Covenantal Love upon David, in the Davidic Covenant (2Samuel 7; 1Chronicles 17; Psalm 89; Psalm 132).

God restored David’s Physical Sickness {“Bones are troubled” – Psalm 6:2) and Mental (“Soul greatly troubled – Psalm 6:3, 6-7), and inflicted on David’s Enemies (“Greatly troubled” – Psalm 6:10a). David Prays against his Enemies: “Let them turn back and be ashamed suddenly” (Psalm 6: 10b).

1.5 Application

There is much we can learn from Psalm 6 about Praying for Restoration, as David

  1. Not all Sickness is the result of Sin and God’s Judgement – However, some Sickness and the Physical Ailment can come from spiritual and emotional Pain (Psalm 6:2, 3, 6-7), due to our sin. When body, soul and spirit are troubled (Psalm 6:2-3), due to our sin, healing must include both the physical, emotional, and spiritual – Psalm 6:2b, 3a “Heal me, for my bones {physical} are troubled. My Soul {emotion} also is greatly troubled.” It is important to seek God for Healing and Restoration, involving the Prayer for “inner healing,” so that there will be holistic healing (spirit, soul, and body – 1Thessalonians 5:23) and not only symptomatic alleviation.
  2. If we Sinned, the chain of Sin, Sickness and God’s Judgement can be broken, if we sincerely repent and seek God’s Forgiveness and Restoration. While it is true that we Reap what we Sow (Galatians 6:7), nevertheless, God is fully able and desirous of breaking that Chain. Beyond His (God’s) Judgement is His Mercy (Unfailing Love – NIV – Psalm 6:2a, 4b). God through our Lord Jesus Christ restores us, in Jesus Christ, His Son with His Grace and Mercy – Psalm 68b,9 “For the LORD has heard the Voice of my Weeping. The LORD has heard my Supplication; the LORD will receive my Prayer.”
  3. Correct Diagnosis (of sin or otherwise) for Healing is important. If our Sickness is due to our Sin and Disobedience, we need to lay out all our symptoms before the LORD, as David did in Psalm 6:2b-3a, in honesty and open ourselves totally to God’s Forgiving and Healing Power (Psalm 6:8b-9), of His (God’s) Mercy {Unfailing Love, NIV – Psalm 6:2a, 4b).
  4. Our Prayer and Supplication to God, may involve the rebuttal of our Enemies, if so, revealed to us by God’s Spirit, and having received answer to our Prayer – Psalm 6:8a, 10 “Depart from me, all your Workers of Iniquity…Let all my Enemies be ashamed and greatly troubled; let them turn back and be ashamed suddenly.” However, it is important that we do not assume it to be so, as not to be presumptuous.
  5. As we Pray, we are to trust God for Healing upon us, David confesses: “The LORD has heard my Supplication; the LORD will receive my Prayer” (Psalm 6:9). We may not see the immediate result, as David experienced, but we are to keep on thanking God and trusting Him. As Francis McNutt teaches, often Healing is progressiveas more of God’s Power through Prayer.
  6. Today God is Restoring His Healing Covenant to the Church (Exodus 15:26; Psalm 103:3; Psalm 107:20; Exodus 23:25; Proverbs 3:8-9; Isaiah 53:5; 1Peter 2:24; 1Corinthians 12:8-9; 2Chronicles 30:20; 3John 2; Marks 16:18). Jesus’ Promise that those who believe “will lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover” (Mark 16:18) as more and more Christians experienced Divine Healings, as they take God at His Word, by Faith.

Psalm 5 – Preparation to Worship

1.0 The Statement

In Psalm 5, an atmosphere of strife between the Righteous and the Wicked, such as is frequently found in the Book of Psalms. The situation is like that of Psalms 3 and Psalm 4 in both, there are dangerous Foes all about. Like Psalms 3 and Psalm 4, it is a mixture of Praise and Prayer to God combined with Complaints about Enemies and about Wicked men in General.

Psalm 5 may have been used by the Priests in their Preparation for Morning (Psalm 5:3). Sacrifice or by the Individual as he prepared for Worship. Psalm 5, is not marked by any Notes of Division, but seems to consist of Five Parts:

  1. The Morning Prayer (Psalm 5:1-3).
  2. The Warning to the Wicked (Psalm 5:4-6).
  3. The Renewed Prayer (Psalm 5:7-8).
  4. The Denunciation of Woe on the Wicked (Psalm 5:9-10).
  5. An Anticipation of Blessings and Favour for the Righteousness (Psalm 5:11-12).

The Superscription, “To the Chief Musician upon Nehiloth,” is thought to mean, either, continuously, “To the Chief Musician: A Psalm upon Inheritances.” In the latter case, the respective “Inheritances” of the Wicked (Psalm 5:6) and the Righteous (Psalm 5:11, 12) are supposed to be meant.

The Title is like that of Psalm 4. Both have to do with the Chief Musician. But instead of being played on some stringed Instrument (Neginoth) this Psalm is for the Nehiloth, which may mean “flutes.”

Psalm 5, unlike Psalms 3 and Psalm 4, where some Verses are directed to the Readers, Psalm 5 in its entirety is addressed to God:

  • David’s Complaints are not to men but to God.
  • David urges not men but God.
  • He communes not with men but with God.

Even the criticism of the Wicked is put in the form of Praise: “The foolish (lit., arrogant, boastful) shall not stand in Your sight: You hates the Workers of Iniquity” (Psalm 5:5).

It is another instance of the Person praying reminding God of His (God’s) Faithfulness. Later in Psalm 5:10, David exhorts that God, who abhors unrighteousness, cast out the Transgressors. Psalm 5 reflects how the righteous man prays for deliverance not only for freedom from suffering, but to allow himself to serve God, without distraction. The NKJV entitles it: “A Prayer for Guidance.”

1.1     The Morning Prayer –

Psalm 5:1-3 “Give ear to my words, O LORD consider my meditation. Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God; for unto Thee will I Pray. My Voice shalt thou hear in the Morning, O LORD, in the morning will I direct my Prayer unto thee and will look up.”

1.1.1 Call for Attention

Psalm 5:1 “Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider the meditation.” – David opens Psalm 5, with the Personal Request: “Give ear to my Words, O LORD consider my meditation.” God is not only to be felt, but He is also to be addressed.  David’s Confidence is that his Prayer (cry) will be heard.

The words “Consider my Meditation” (“Silent musing” in Psalm 39:3, or, literally, “Groaning”) are richer if understood as Prayer that God will interpret those unintelligible noises that come from deep thoughts.

David Prays that God will understand his deep groaning that cannot be uttered in words. This Prayer (“Consider my Meditation” – Romans 8:26) is one of the most fervent and spiritual Prayer which cannot be
expressed in words, and is summed up:

  • Reality – David is not speaking into the air; or to an Infinite Impersonal Power that takes the heed; but to the Living God.  
  • Efficacy (Effectiveness) of Prayer means that Prayer has the Power to touch God’s Heart. The earnest desire and pleading request of His Children touched God. It is true that God knows what His Children need, better than we do; but Fervour (Passion) of desire, perseverance, and patient of faith, in asking, accompanied with child-like resignation to His (God’s) Will, are often the very conditions for God to grant what we ask.  
  • David’s Invocation (Prayer) to God: “Give ear…..Consider…..Hearken.”
  • David’s Desire of God’s Attention: “My Words, my Meditation, and my Cry.”
  • David’s Vocatives:“O LORD,my King, and my God.”

David expresses his anguish in the opening address of Psalm 5:1-3. David’s words to the LORD come in the pains that he (David) is experiencing. These expressions all show the urgency and energy of David’s feelings and petitions.  

1.1.2 The Covenant

Psalm 5:2 “Hearken (give heed) to the voice of my cry, my King, and my God; for to You will I pray.” David expresses to God the Covenantal relationship with the expression, of repeat “my” (3 times) in the phrase “My King and my God,” gives the Prayer firm footing.

  • David uses the anthropomorphic (humble like) language keeps his (David’s) Prayer Personal.
  • David lifts his Prayer to the Personal God, Yahweh, who is David’s King, the Source of David’s Help in adversity.

Here is David’s Personal submission and confidence, as God Reigns. David comes to Him (God) when he is in trouble. “My King and my God” are also the pith (most important part) and marrow of David’s Plea. Here is a grant argument why God should answer Prayer – because He is our King and our God. We are not Strangers to Him:

  • The King is expected to hear the Petitions of His own People.
  • We are His Worshippers, and He is our God.
  • Our relationship with Him is by Covenant, by Promise, by Oath, and by Blood of Christ (Colossians 1:14; Ephesians 1:7).

The use of the word King puts David’s own Kingship into its right context – David is King over Israel; but God is King over David. David accepts that he is the man under authority, not one who struggle for his own ends by his own means.

1.1.3 Worship

– Psalm 5:3a “My (David’s) voice You (God) shall hear in the morning, O LORD.” – “In the Morning,” indicates that the Psalm may have been composed for Morning Worship (c/f Psalm 3:5). In parallels form, the time is specified, probably connecting the David’s Prayer with the Morning Sacrifice.

The emphasis on “the morning” suggests that this by its possible allusion to the Daily Sacrifice at God’s Threshold, “Where I will meet with you, to speak there to you” (Exodus 29:42).

David, it seems, puts his Praying into such a context (as in Psalm 141:2) to express the Assurance of Atonement and the total commitment with which he comes before God. But he also comes expectantly. If not, it may simply indicate that David considered Prayer important enough to put early in his daily schedule.  

1.1.4 Preparation

Psalm 5:3b “In the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up.”It is the phrase that is used for the laying in order the wood and the pieces of the Sacrifice upon the altar (Leviticus 1:7, 8, 12; Leviticus 6:5; Numbers 28:4), and it is used also for the putting of the Showbread upon the Table.

Prayer is viewed as the Sacrificial Act. Prayer also means just this: “I will arrange my Prayer before You (God);” I will lay it out upon the Altar in the morning, just as the Priest lays out the Morning Sacrifice. I will arrange my Prayer; or, as the Old Master Trapp has it, “I will marshal up my Prayers,” I will put them in order, call up all my Powers, and bid them stand in their Proper Places, that I will Pray with all my might, and Pray acceptably.”  

1.1.5 Expectant

Psalm 5:3c “And will look up” or, as the Hebrew might better be translated, “I will look out,’ I will look out for God’s Answer. After we have Prayed, we will expect that God’s Answer shall come. This exhortation: “And I look up” (Psalm 5:3c) is the Words that are used in another place where we read of those who “Watched for the Morning.” So will I watch for Thine Answer, O my LORD! I will spread out my Prayer like the Sacrifice on the Altar, and I will look up and expect to receive God’s Answer.

It is Prayer with fervency and preparation of expected result. Prayer should not be flashes of a hot and hasty brain, but the steady burning of a well-kindled fire. David directs his Prayer to God and look up for the Answer.

Story: During the Second World War a U.S. Arms Plant was producing defective bomb sights. Sabotage was suspected. It was discovered, however, that the defects came because the employees were working so carefully on a small part that their eyes went out of focus. The remedy was for them to break periodically and look away at a distance to rest their eyes. Then their work became flawless. As a rest our souls, looking up to our King and God, whose ear is open to us, we have clear vision to face the battles of the day.

1.2 The Warning to the Wicked

Psalm 5:4-6 “For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness, nor shall evil dwell with You. The boastful shall not stand in Your sight; You hate all Workers of Iniquity. You shall destroy those who speak falsehood; the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.”

1.2.1 God’s Character

Psalm 5:4“For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness, nor shall evil dwell with You. David knows what God Character is like and he Prayed according to God’s Character, as he (David) knows that he cannot expect God to do anything that is against His {God’s} own Character. This is bold intimacy expressed – “For You are not a God who hath pleasure in wickedness; neither shall evil dwell with thee” (Psalm 5:4). It is biblical for God’s People to remind God of Who He is. When the LORD threatens judgement upon Israel, Moses recalls God’s Past Dealings by praying: “Pardon the iniquity of this people…..according to the Greatness of Your Mercy, just as You have forgiven this People, from Egypt even until now” (Numbers14:19).

Certainly, God does not have amnesia (loss of memory), and in His Character He has every right to judge Wickedness and Sin. However, when we recall His Mercy in our Prayer, we establish in our hearts the basis upon which we seek and expect God’s Favour. Nevertheless, by stressing God’s Character, David calls upon the LORD to stand with him against his Enemies. One by one those whom God Opposes are listed in Psalm 5:4:

  • God does not take “pleasure” in or delight in “Wickedness” – Psalm 5:4a “For You are not a God who has pleasure in Wickedness.” The noun here means “Criminal Acts.” God opposes Lawbreakers. God stands on the Side of Justice.  
  • God does not allow evil in His Presence: Psalm 5:4b “Nor shall evil dwell with You.” The Hebrew word used here for “Evil” denotes the broad concept including “distress, injury, misery, calamity.” Evil is anything other than God’s Holiness and Perfection, and it is excluded from Him by definition. Light has no fellowship with Darkness.

1.2.2 God Hates Pride

Psalm 5:5a “The boastful (literally arrogant) shall not stand in Your (God’s) sight.” – God does not allow the boastful Person to stand in His (God’s) Gaze “for God resists the Proud but gives grace to the Humble” (1Peter 5:5; Proverbs 3:34; James 4:6). Dwight L. Moody used to say, “In heaven there will be NO self-made Individuals.”

1.2.3 God Hates Iniquity

– Psalm 5:5b “You hate all workers of iniquity (lawlessness).” God’s hatred is not an irrational outburst, but God’s moral response to lawlessness (iniquity) or to those who do evil. There is a different between human’s hatred and God’s hatred.

  • Hatred in human beings is generally thought of in terms of strong emotional distaste or dislike for someone or something.
  • Hatred in God is a judicial act on the part of the righteous Judge who separates the Sinner from Himself. This is not contradictory to God’s love, for on His love for Sinners, God has made it possible for sin to be forgiven, through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, so that all can be reconciled to God. However, if the Sinner chooses not to repent, he/she will reap the harvest of God’s hatred in eternal separation from Him.  

The phrase “Workers of Iniquity (Lawlessness)” appears often in the Individual Psalms of Lament. As a rule, it means Groups of People who scheme together, boast together, and use words as their evil weapons:

  • Psalm 64:2-4 “Hide me from the secret plots of the Wicked, from the rebellion of the Workers of Iniquity, who sharpen their tongue like a sword, and bend their bows to shoot their arrows – bitter words, that they may shoot in secret at the blameless; suddenly they shoot at him and do not fear.”
  • Psalm 5:9 “For there is no faithfulness in their (Wicked) mouth; their inward part is destruction; their throat is an open tomb; they flatter with their tongues.”

1.2.4 God Destroy Liars

Psalm 5:6a “You shall destroy those who speak falsehood.” –  In the context of Psalm 5:5 “The boastful shall not stand in Your sight; You hate all Workers of Iniquity.” – These are the Workers of Iniquity. The Hebrew verb for “destroy” is commonly used for destroying Enemies in battle and the destruction of Heathen Cults.

God takes up Arms in judgement against “Those who speak falsehood.” (Psalm 5:6a). The ultimate Source of the Lie is Satan himself, as Satan is the Liar and the father of Lies (John 8:44); in destroying Liars, God rolls back Satan’s Evil Kingdom.

Psalm 5:6a declares that God will destroy those who speaks lies (falsehood), highlighting God’s attitude towards falsehood and deceit. The LORD, who is the epitome (personification) of truth and justice, stands against lies and deceitful Person.

Psalm 5:6a emphasises the consequences that awaits the Person who engages in falsehood, indicating that God will not tolerate dishonesty.

1.2.5 God Detests Deception

Psalm 5:6b “The LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.” – The verb “abhors” refers to both ritual and ethical rejection. The term “blood-thirsty” may be murderers but most likely the Person involved in “character-assassination.”

  • Psalm 5:6b teaches that God abhors (detests) the Individual who engages in character assassination (bloodthirsty) and in deception, thus, revealing God’s moral stance, underscores God’s desire for righteousness and His opposition to wickedness.
  • Psalm 5:6b affirms the importance of truth and honesty in our words and actions. As Followers of Jesus Christ, we are called to reflect God’s character, which includes walking in truth and integrity.
  • Psalm 5:6b challenges us to examine our own lives and evaluate whether our words and actions align with God’s standard of truth and righteousness.
  • Psalm 5:6b shows that God’s abhorrence of lies reminds us of the inherent value of truthfulness and the need to align our lives with God’s Written Word.
  • Psalm 5:6b prompts us to evaluate our own speech, ensuring that we speak truthfully and avoid deceitful practices.
  • Psalm 5:6b emphasizes God’s justice and His opposition to violence and bloodshed. It reminds us that God’s character is inherently just and righteous.
  • Psalm 5:6b states that God stands against those who inflict harm and engage in acts of violence. This verse serves as a reminder that God’s desire is for His People to pursue righteousness, seeking justice and peace in all our dealings.
  • Psalm 5:6b calls us to be God’s People of integrity, avoiding deceit and violence in all our interactions. Instead of participating in lies or engaging in acts of harm, we are called to pursue truth, justice, and peace.
  • Psalm 5:6b reminds us of the consequences of dishonesty and wickedness.
  • Psalm 5:6b underscores the reality that God will hold us accountable who engage in deceit and violence.
  • Psalm 5:6b encourages us to live with the awareness of God’s Presence and judgment, making choices that honour Him and align with His (Gode’s) character.
  • In Psalm 5:6a is the only instance, in this Psalm, of David’s speaking to God in the third Person. There David mentions what God Himself already Knows, which in fact it is known to God, as He (God) is Omniscience (Psalm 139:1-6).

Through this catalogue (character-assassination and deception) of Evil, we have the strong ethical sense of God’s Character and Judgement against Human Wickedness. God says no to “Wickedness, boastful, workers of iniquity, liars, and those who kill by deceit or character-assassination.” Their Prayers are not heard, and God’s Judgement on them is certain.

God’s Rejection of those who speak falsehood and deceive shows forth to the exposition of the liars of Psalm 5:9 who are David’s enemies and the subject of his (David’s) lament. We too need to take moral inventory as we come before God. What separates us from Sinners, however, is not our righteousness but God’s Mercy.

God hears us, not because we are good, but because we have received His Goodness of His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. David’s Prayer now takes shape as a Plea for Justice. The crescendo from the mild negatives of Psalm 5:4 “For You are not a God who has pleasure in Wickedness; neither shall evil dwell with You,” to the expression of Divine Wrath in Psalm 5:5b-6 “You hate all Workers of Iniquity. You shall destroy those who speak falsehood; the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.”

God is David’s integrity and refuge when he (David) is under wrongful attack. This is shown in Psalm 143:2 “Do not enter into judgement with Your Servant, for in Your sight no one living is righteous.” –  Where David the Plaintiff (as he is in Psalm 5) pauses to acknowledge that if God is to test his (David’s) Character instead of his (David’s) case, he (David) would be undone. This is taken for granted in the David’s Protestations of Innocence.

1.3 The Renewed Prayer

Psalm 5:7-8 “But as for me, I will come into Your house in the multitude of Your Mercy; in fear of You I will worship toward Your holy temple. Lead me O LORD, in Your Righteousness because of my enemies; make Your way straight before my face.”

1.3.1 The Worship

Psalm 5:7 “But as for me (David), I will come into Your house in the multitude of Your Mercy; in fear of You I will worship toward Your holy temple.” This contrasts with the debauchery (depravity) and deceit of the Wicked described in the Psalm 5:5-6. David’s entrance into God’s House, God’s Presence, in worship, is based on Divine Grace {“multitude of Your (God’s) Mercy” – hesed (Psalm 5:7a)}, or, through the abundance of Your (God’s) Mercy (Psalm 69:13,16).

It is God’s Mercy that David is Preserved. The theological significance of Psalm 5:7 lies in its teachings on approaching God’s Presence with humility, gratitude, and reverence, as well as acknowledging His Loving Kindness (Mercy) towards us. We need to remind ourselves of the privilege of coming into God’s Presence.

  • At the same time, God’s “Abundant {multitude} Mercy” is no grounds for presumption: Psalm 5:7b “In fear (reverence) of You I will worship toward Your holy Temple.” David’s Worship is never without Fear (reverence) – the reverent sense of God’s Presence.
  • This “Fear (reverence)” is before God’s Holiness and Wonder before His (God’s) luminous (glowing) Power and Awesome Works – Psalm 5:7b “In fear (reverence) of You I will worship toward Your holy Temple.” John, the Apostle, experienced this Fear (reverence) when he saw the Vision of the Risen Christ and “fell at His feet as dead” (Revelation 1:17).
  • The word “Worship” literally means “to bow down” in reverence and submission. Worship is an act of surrender. In both Hebrew and English, Psalm 5:7 is a chiasmus, although Translators have somewhat revised the structure. Literally it would read: 

But I, In the multitude of You Mercies, I will come to Your House
I will worship at Your holy Temple. In Your Fear (Reverence).

Worship is the utmost virtue of the Redeemed, and coming to the LORD, coming to His House, to worship Him is the great privilege.

1.3.2 David’s Desire

– Psalm 5:8 “Lead me O LORD, in Your Righteousness because of my enemies; make Your way straight before my face.” David’s enemies seek to kill him (2Samuel 15:13-1`4), so David needed to follow God’s Guidance to stay safe and to persevere in righteousness. Believers, too, need God’s Guidance as we navigate through the world that seeks to conform us to its philosophy and conduct.

In the beginning, David desire is that his Prayer be heard (Psalm 5:1-2), and he declared that he would begin his Prayer in the morning (Psalm 5:3), and before God’s Temple (Psalm 5:7).

Now David’s desire is that God will lead him in the Path of God’s Righteousness (Psalm 5:8a), because of his (David’s) Enemies (Psalm 5:8a), or, of “those that lie in wait for him” (RV, margin), lest, if he (David) makes a false step, his Enemies would triumph over him, and thus, bring discredit upon the cause of God and His People. When we are surrounded by Liars and Deceivers, it is only God’s Guidance that we do not fall prey to the Enemies.  

God’s Mercy, then, results in Worship and Worship results in David’s Desire – “Lead me, O LORD, in Your Righteousness because of my Enemies.” Here is what David desired and prayed for.

1.3.3 David’s Pathway

Psalm 5:8b “Make Your way straight before my face.” – God’s Righteousness is revealed in the straight way, He (God) makes before us. According to Romans 12:1-2, when we offer our bodies to the Lord Jesus, as Living Sacrifices in Worship, we then know God’s Will, that which is “Good (Moral),” “Acceptable (Agreeable),” and Perfect (Growing us into Maturity).”       

1.4 Denunciations

Psalm 5:9-10 “For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is very wickedness (destruction); their throat is an open sepulchre (tomb); they flatter with their tongue. Pronounce them guilty (Destroy You them), O God! Let them counsels’ own counsels; cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions, for they have rebelled against You.”

1.4.1 Indictment

Psalm 5:9 “For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is very wickedness (destruction); their throat is an open sepulchre (tomb); they flatter with their tongue.” Now in Psalm 5:9, the general indictment of Psalm 5:4-6 becomes specific. Psalm 5:9, describes the Enemies and brings us to the central issue of Psalm 5.

Psalm 5:9 contains David’s assessment of those that are against him. It is as if David becomes the Prosecuting Attorney whose central charge against the guilty is lying.

  • No Faithfulness in their mouth = No Steadfastness = “No Sincerity” (Psalm 5:9a).
  • Their attitude is only Wickedness (Psalm 5:9b).
  • Their throat is an open Sepulchre (Tomb – Psalm 5:9c).
  • They flatter with their tongue (Psalm 5:9d)– Literally, “they make smooth their tongues,” which may, perhaps, include flattery, but points rather to smooth arguments, specious reasoning, and the habit of making the worse appear the better cause.    

The “mouth,” the “inward part,” the “throat,” and the “tongue,” are all named as vehicles of Deception. The absence of “faithfulness” or steadfastness is covered up by flattery. The interior destruction and death, the depths of depravity, represented by the jolting metaphor of the throat as “an open tomb,” are all disguised by smooth words. We are reminded of Jesus’ rebuke on the Pharisees and His description of them as “whitewashed tombs…..full of dead men’s bones” (Matthew 23:27).

Paul used elements of Psalm 5:9 in Romans 3:13 where he, too, describes the Wickedness of men. This description of depraved man as used by Paul as being an accurate description of humans, not of David’s Enemies only, but of humans by nature. Verbal violence is as much an epidemic for us as it was for Ancient Israel, and we, too, fail to see the depths behind the cunning.

1.4.2 Deception

Psalm 5:9b “They flatter with their tongue,” warns us against this deception of flattery, the violent abuse of words, the costumes that veil the heart’s intentions. We live in an age of flattery. Manipulation and deception are all encompassing. People trained in Social Sciences mould People’s values, tastes, and behaviours through the media and advertisement. With the “marrying” of Psychology to Mass Communications, we are all subject to the exploitation of our fears, for economic gain. It was Hitler who fused technology and propaganda to become the last 20th Century European to command world history. His field general, Rommel, always travelled with a camera crew that sent daily newsreels back to the Third Reich. Hitler built an empire by deceiving untold millions. He made flattery an art, promising Germany a one-thousand-year empire.  

1.4.3 Call for Judgement

Psalm 5:10 Pronounce them guilty (destroy You them), O God! Let them fall by their own counsels; cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions, for they have rebelled against You.” – The Call for God’s Judgement is in order: “Pronounce them guilty (destroy You them”), O God.” It is God alone who can see the heart, and God is Righteous in declaring His Judgements.

The Prosecutor (David) asks a sentence of ultimate irony: that the guilty “Fall by their own Counsels.” Those who deceive will thus become the Prisoners of their own deception as they begin to believe their own lies and their own counsel cannot hold them up. This same passive Wrath of God is described in Romans 1. God gives them up to their own desires as the Sign of His (God’s) “No” against them.

  • First, comes the Sentence: “Guilty” = “Destroy You them, O God” (Psalm 5:10a).
  • Second, the Execution follows = “Let them fall by their own counsels” (Psalm 5:10b) – David’s Prayer against Ahithophel (2Samuel 15:31), and its remarkable outcome.
  • Third, the active Wrath of Final Expulsion = “Cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions.” (Psalm 5:10c).

The Motivation for this Appeal for Judgement is not Personal: ultimately the Rebellion is not “against me” but “against You (God).” This is the awful destiny of those who cover the tome (work) of their hearts by flattery. Then Psalm 5:10, with Strong Passion, David as much as exhorts God to destroy his Enemies, let them Fall, and to Cast them out.   

1.5 Blessings and Favours

Psalm 5:11-12 “But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them; let those also who love Your Name be joyful in You. For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous; with favour You will surround (compass) him as with a shield.”

1.5.1 David Rejoices

(Psalm 5:11) – David focuses on the Righteous and Prays that they might have cause to rejoice, to shout, and to be joyful (Psalm 5:11). In the Book of Psalms, the exhortation of “joy,” joyful,” “glad,” “gladness,” “rejoice,” occurs more than 90 times.  Psalm 5 ends on a note of joy. In contrast to the “fall” of the Wicked (Psalm 5:10a), David is joyful (Psalm 5:11).

True joy, a spontaneous expression of the heart and comes from those who “Put their trust in the LORD.” (Psalm 5:11a). The Person rejoices because “He trusts in God” and “Loves God’s Name” (Psalm 5:11).   The Reason for Rejoicing and Trust is threefold:

  • God defends David/Us (Psalm 5:11b).
  • The LORD blesses the Righteous (Psalm 5:12a).
  • The LORD compasses round about him as with the Shield (Psalm 5:12b. The Righteous needs do not fear what his Enemies can do to him because he (David/Us) has Divine Assistance and Protection.

David/Us can shout for joy despite troubles because he (David/Us) is defended (literally, “Covered”) by the Living God. “You do cover him” (“compass him”), is one whose only other occurrence is in 1Samuel 23:26, where it describes a hostile force “closing in” on David, only to find itself quietly deflected by God’s encircling, Providential care of him (David). Then, to trust in God is:

  • To have the joyful expectation. It lights up the future with a certain hope, our hope in God – Psalm 5:11a “But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You.”
  • To have the joyful experience. If it is a joy to trust God, it is double joy to find by experience that God accepts the trust He invites; rewards the faith that lays hold on His promise – Psalm 5:11b “Because You defend them; let those also who love Your Name be joyful in You.”  

God Protects us from our Enemies Deception (Psalm 5:11b). This leads us to perpetual, expansive, vocal delight: “Let them ever shout for joy.” (Psalm 5:11a). True joy comes from God’s Faithfulness and God’s Protection, all summed up in God’s Name (Psalm 5:11c). God’s Name Reveals:

  • The Character of God.
  • The Nature of God.
  • The Personhood of God.

To Call on God’s Name in Prayer is to actualise His Presence, and to be in His Presence is Fullness of Joy – Psalm 16:11 “You (God) will show me the path of life; in Your Presence is Fullness of Joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”   

1.5.2 God Blesses

Psalm 5:12 gives the grounds for loving the Name of God: “For You, O LORD, will bless the Righteous; with favour You will surround (compass) him as with a shield.” All the joy of the Righteous springs from the fact that God’s Blessing is upon him. The sense of God’s favour fills the Psalmist’s heart with rejoicing. Psalm 5:12 concludes the Psalm on the Note of Assurance, with complete Faith that God, the Judge of all the Earth will do right (c/f Genesis 18:25). From experience, and simply because David believes in the God to whom he Prays, he boldly says, “With favour will You compass (the righteous) as with a shield” (c/f Psalm 3:3):

  • All of God’s Bounty is for the Righteous (Psalm 5:12a).
  • For the Individual who receives His (God’s) Mercy and respond in Worship and Obedience (Psalm 5:7-8).

Like “the shield” of Protection, “the favour” of the LORD will “surround” the Person who puts his trust in Him (God). Blessing and “favour” are for those who love the Name of the LORD. The Shield (tsinnah) is the large, long Shield that protected the whole body, is not for the defence of any part of the body, as almost all the other pieces are, but it is a piece that is intended for the defence of the whole body. The shield does not only defend the whole body, but it is the defence to the Soldier’s Armour also. Thus, Faith it is Armour upon Armour, God’s Grace that preserves all the other Graces. God’s Favour, thus encompassing a Person effectually Secured him against all dangers – Psalm 5:12b “You will surround (compass) him as with a shield.”  

1.6 Summary

Psalm 5, then, is the Prayer for Protection from Deception. It is only before the true God, in submission, to Him, and in Worship, that the Individual Person will find the Truth and be defended from the Deception of our Enemies. It is God who by His Spirit crushes the Lies about us, establishing us steadfastly in Himself. Since God is reality, He makes us real. This is the favour which surrounds us “as with a shield.”

Second Psalm – The Messianic (Part 3)

1.4 Submission

Psalm 2:10-12a “Now therefore, be wise, O Kings; be instructed, you Judges of the Earth. Serve the LORD with fear (reverential fear) and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little.” The Admonition of God the Father is to the Kings and Rulers of the Earth, the Executive and Judicial Branches of Government. True wisdom is in submission while there is time and before the judgement falls. If the rebellious men do not bend, they will break. In the light of this, Five Important Instructions are given to the Totality of God’s Requirements:

1.4.1 Be Wise

Psalm 2:10-12a “Now therefore, be wise, O Kings; be instructed, you Judges of the Earth. Serve the LORD with fear (reverential fear) and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little.” The Admonition of God the Father is to the Kings and Rulers of the Earth, the Executive and Judicial Branches of Government. True wisdom is in submission while there is time and before the judgement falls. If the rebellious men do not bend, they will break. In the light of this, Five Important Instructions are given to the Totality of God’s Requirements:

1.4.2 Be Instructed

Psalm 2:10b “be instructed (taught), you Judges of the Earth.” – Be taught by experience, as addressed to the Judicial Officers – if they (Judicial Officers) are not wise enough to know beforehand, that opposition towards God, is futile. Learn the Divine Purpose and Plan concerning His Son, the Anointed One (Jesus Christ). Compare the advice of Gamaliel (Acts 5:38-39). A colloquial translation might render the first two instructions: “Wise up; get smart.” With such enlightened attitudes and divinely illumined spirits they then could Serve, Rejoice, and Kiss (pay homage) to the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

1.4.3 Serve the Lord

Psalm 2:11a “Serve the LORD with fear (reverential fear).” – The term “Serve” includes the surrender of the will and the submission of the heart. It means to come under King Jesus’ Rule and to obey Him. The NASB renders Psalm 2:11a: “Worship the LORD with reverence.” In the Old Testament and New Testament, Serve is often used in parallel with the attitude of “Worship” (Deuteronomy 6:13; Deuteronomy 10:20; Matthew 3:10; John 9:31; Romans 1:25):

  • Psalm 100:2 summons us to Worship: “Serve the LORD with gladness; Come before His Presence with Singing.”
  • That Worship means Submission is seen in Psalm 95:6 “Oh come, let us Worship and bow down; Let us kneel before the LORD our Maker.”

The Fear (Reverence) in Service comes from a sense of awe and even terror before God’s Majesty, Power, and Holiness (Exodus 20:18-21).  If the Rebels will not Serve Him (Honour and Obey Him) from love, they will do it from fear, when God’s Wrath is kindled.

1.4.4 Rejoice

Psalm 2:11b “An rejoice with trembling.” – Worship includes joy; do not content with fear. Go on from fear to joy. A good Person “Rejoice in God always” (Philippians 4:4). This joy comes from the God’s Presence: “In Your Presence is fullness of joy” (Psalm 16:11). It is not sentimental, however; it includes the “fear” (reverence) of the previous phrase now manifest by “trembling.” So, such rejoicing must be “with trembling;” or, with reverence, since no service is acceptable to God, but such as is rendered “with reverence and godly fear” (Hebrews 12:28). Fear (Reverential Fear) without joy is torment; and joy without holy Fear (reverence), would be presumption.

Perhaps the typical Charismatic Church needs: “Rejoice with trembling” underscored. We sometimes forget that it is possible to put these two things (“rejoicing with trembling”) side by side. Often when we rejoice, we lose our sense of dignity, and when we fear God, we forget to enjoy our positions of Sonship to rejoice.

1.4.5 Kiss the Son

Psalm 2:12a “Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish from the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little.” – The attitude of submission to the Lord Jesus Christ and joy and awe in His (Christ’s) Presence leads then to an Act (“Kiss” = Honour) of submission. Kissing the Son is an Act of Worship and Honouring. It is the Sign of Surrender. Thus, the Greek word for Worship, Proskuneó, means “Come toward to Kiss.”

To Surrender to our Lord Jesus, to Rejoice in His Presence, and to Kiss (Worship) Him (Jesus) in an Act of Submission, means that Rebellion is over, and Reconciliation has taken place. Apart from this, there is only His (God’s) Anger, Wrath, and the Perishing.

  • Repentance – In Luke 7:38 it is a Sign of Repentance. The poor woman who came into the house of Simon and stood behind Jesus did five things: She wept, she washed His feet with tears, she wiped them with the hairs of her head, she kissed His feet, and she anointed them with the ointment. The tears and the kiss were evidence of true Repentance. Our Lord Jesus said, “Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much.”
  • Forgiveness – The Kiss is also a token of Forgiveness (Luke 15:11-24) the Prodigal Son came back home to his father, and after his confession, received a Kiss of Forgiveness, a ring, a robe, shoes on his feet, and a welcome home banquet.
  • Homage and Loyalty – (Genesis 41:40; 1Samuel10:1). The ARV renders the expression, “with trembling kiss His feet.” The Kissing of Royal feet and hands was a symbol of Homage. The negative example is Judas, who crowned his treachery with a kiss

To “Kiss the Son” means more than to pay homage to Him. It means to embrace Him, depend entirely upon Him; to kiss Him, and not be ashamed of that fact (Song of Sol. 8:1). “Kiss the Son” is the Old Testament way of saying: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:31)

1.5 Son

Psalm 2:12a “Kiss the Son.” –  It is interesting to notice that two words for “Son” are used in Psalm 2:

  • Psalm 2:7, the term “Son” is “ben.”It is the Jewish word “Ben-jamine”
  • Psalm 2:12a, the term “Son” is “bar.”  It is a Gentile word “Bar-abbas.” 

Why the difference? The first “ben” (Psalm 2:7) is Christ relationship with God as the Son of His Right Hand; the second “bar” (Psalm 2:12a), Christ relation to the Gentile Powers referred to in Psalm 2. At the Crucifixion they cried, away with Him, give us Bar-abbas. The use of the word here would be a stab at their conscience. Judas gave Him the kiss of hypocrisy and treachery, but here the admonition is to Kiss the Son in true Contrition and Repentance. If Psalm 2 was written at the time of the Absolom’s rebellion, what a tragic local reference it has!

1.6 The Pleas

Psalm 2:12a “Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish from the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little.” – Psalm 2 ends with two Powerful Pleas:

  • God’s Anger – “Lest He (God) be angry” – The omission of a customary token of respect is an insult which naturally angers the object of it. The compassion, gentleness, tenderness of Jesus, are sometimes dwelt on to the exclusion of His (Jesus’) Majesty and Righteousness. There is no more greater Warning in the Scripture that the “Wrath of the Lamb” (Revelation 6:16-17).
  • Perish – “And ye perish from the Way.” If an Individual refuses, he perishes from the Way (the Lord Jesus Christ – John 14:6); the Individual wanders; he misses the Way (Jesus) and is seriously lost; he perishes as the result of being lost. Professor Cheyne’s rendering is: “You (Individual) goes to ruin.”  To make the Son (Jesus) is to bring destruction on himself or course in life –because of God’s Wrath – “When His (God’s) Wrath is kindled but a little.”

1.7 The Blessings

Psalm 2:12b “Blessed are all they who put their trust in Him.” – Psalm 2 ends of “blessing” echoes Psalm 1:1 and links the two Psalms together. It ends with the phrase described the Believer’s Place of Blessedness. The Person arrives there by putting his trust in God. Psalm 2 ends with the Promise, using the same line of thought with which Psalm 1 begins: “Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him.”

It is foolish to fret and chafe against God’s Government. All Mankind is under Christ, whether in this state of being or in any other. Christ has the Heart of Love as well as the Sceptre of Power; and He rules to Save. Those who will not submit to the Sceptre of Christ’s Grace must feel the weight of His iron rod. True Blessedness is found in submission to Christ; this Blessedness is Greater than Tongue can Express or Heart Conceive.

  • In Psalm 1 we see the Wicked driven away like chaff (Psalm 1:4); in Psalm 2, we see the Wicked (Rebellious) broken in Pieces like the Potter’s Vessel.
  • In Psalm 1, we beheld the Righteous, are blessed and like the Tree planted by the Rivers of Water (Psalm 1:3); and in Psalm 2 we contemplate Christ the Covenant Head of the Righteous, made better than a Tree Planted by the Rivers of Water, for He is made King of the whole Universe, and all the Nations and People will bow before Him (Philippians 2:10).

1.8 Evangelistic

Psalm 2 is Evangelistic. It is addressed to the Nations. It beats with Missionary Heart. It is the Nations who are in revolt against Christ (Psalm 2:2). It is the Nations, however, who are promised to Him (Psalm 2:8). And it is the Nations who are called to Him (Psalm 2:10).

Psalm 2 directs the Nations to the Son (Jesus), warns the Nations of God’s Judgement to come, and Promises the Blessing if the Nations Worship (Serve) Him. Thus, Psalm 2 is for all the Nations and People. It is for the Nations, the Gentiles who submit to God’s Son and King.

In Psalm 2, the learning is: “Serve the LORD with fear, rejoice with trembling,” and “Kiss the Son.” Psalm 2 is also structuring an Evangelistic Invitation. It defines the problem, the Nations’ Revolt.

Psalm 2 offers the Solution: “God’s Son (Jesus).” Psalm 2 warns of judgement to come and calls us to surrender to Him (Jesus) in Worship (Serve). The road back to God the Father is already marked and the Way (Jesus) is open. Christ who stands at the Way, we must come and receive Him….”Kiss the Son.”

The Trinity (Matthew 28:19b) (Part 1)

The Statement

Matthew 28:19b “Baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Our God, the Three in One, with the term Trinity – while the term “Trinity,” as related to the three Persons (Father, Son & Holy Spirit – Matthew 28:19b) forming the Godhead – Romans 1:20b “Even His Eternal Power and Godhead,…..” is not found in the Scripture, yet the fact of it is clearly evident from the beginning (Book of Genesis) to the end (Book of Revelation). The number “three” has always been associated with the Godhead and Perfect Witness:

  • Matthew 28:19b “Baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
  • 2Corinthians 13:1b “By the mouth of two or three witnesses every word shall be established.”

Three times the Seraphim cried: “Holy, Holy, Holy” (Revelation 4:8; Isaiah 6:3) – Holy to God the Father, Holy to God the Son (Christ), Holy to God the Holy Spirit. To the “World,” the concept of the “Three-in-One” cannot be comprehended by natural reasoning, nevertheless, to the born-again Believer, accepts by faith and revelation.

Point 1: Divine Benediction

Also, three times the Divine Benediction is given by Moses in Numbers 6:24-27: “The LORD (the Father) bless you and keep you; The LORD (the Son) make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; The LORD (the Holy Spirit) lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace. So, they shall put My Name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them.” This Divine Benediction is affirmed in the N.T – 2Corinthians 13:14 “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God (the Father), and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.”

Each of the Divine Benediction in the O.T (Numbers 6:24-26) is twofold: (1) God the Father “bless and keep us;” (2) God the Son “makes His face shine upon us, and be gracious to us;” and God the Holy Spirit “lifts up His countenance upon us, and give us peace;” so that there are two Members of the Godhead in each, while the Name Jehovah (The LORD) is mentioned three times. This marks the “blessing” as being Divine in its Source. No human merit draws forth the Divine Benediction; God’s Grace was the Divine Benediction’s Origin, and God’s Peace was the Divine Benediction’s Result.  

Point 2: Epistle of the Ephesians

A unique feature of the Epistle to the Ephesians is the way in which each chapter emphasises the Truth of the Trinity – the Three Persons of the Godhead are wrapped together in the verse:

  • Ephesians 1:17 “God….the Father of Glory……our Lord Jesus Christ, the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation (imparted by God’s Spirit).”  
  • Ephesians 2:19-22 “God (the Father),…..Jesus Christ……of God in the Spirit.”
  • Ephesians 3:14, 16 “…The Father…..Lord Jesus Christ,……His Spirit….”
  • Ephesians 4:30, 32 “…Holy Spirit of God…….God (the Father) in Christ…..”
  • Ephesians 5:18, 20”…..the Spirit…..God the Father…..Lord Jesus Christ.”
  • Ephesians 6:6, 17 “….Christ,……God (the Father)……the Spirit….”

Point 3 – Book of Revelation

The Three-in-One Mystery of the Godhead united in the Glorious Work of Redemption – God the Father “Warning” (Revelation 22:18-19); God the Son “Witnessing” (Revelation 22:16); God the Holy Spirit “Wooing” (Revelation 22:17).  

Point 4 – Israel’s Flag

The Official Emblem of Israel’s flag is a “Six-Pointed-Star” known as “the Star of David,” or more correctly “the Shield of David.” The Emblem consists of two Triangles, one pointing upwards and the other Triangle pointing downwards. Many Hebrew Christians interpret this Emblem to Represent the Holy Trinity of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19b), and the Human Trinity of man’s spirit, soul and body (1Thessalonians 5:23). In God’s Sight, “three” is the Perfect Number, expressive of Beginning, Middle and End, and therefore a symbol of Deity.

Point 5 – Operation of the Godhead

The Ministry of the Godhead Operates in three Beneficial Ways:

  • God the Father in the Past Eternity Conceived the Plan of Salvation for the World of Sinners, lost and ruined by Adam’s Fall (Genesis 2:17; Genesis 3:6; Romans 5:12; 1Corinthians 15:22a), yet the Fallen Humanity is loved by Him (the Father – John 3:16).
  • God the Son at Calvary Executed God the Father’s Divine Plan, and by doing so Manifested or Expressed that Love of God the Father’s Heart (1John 4:8 – “God is Love”).
  • God the Holy Spirit, sent by God the Father and God the Son, Reveals the Sacrificial Love of the Father and the Son to the hearts of men (1Corinthians 2:10-12), and He (Spirit) Operates the Divine Plan of Redemption in the lives of those who Repented of their sins and Received Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour.  

How comforting to know that we are loved by the Three Persons (Father, Son & Holy Spirit) of the Godhead, and we are received as God’s children with Inheritance! (Romans 8:14-17).

The Just Shall Live by His Faith (Habakkuk 3:16-19)

1.0 The Statement

Habakkuk 3:16-19 (NIV) “I heard, and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the Nation invading us. Though the fig-tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails, and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Saviour (Salvation). The Sovereign LORD is my strength; He makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights. For the director of music, on my stringed instruments.”

Habakkuk 3:16-19 is one of the greatest confessions of faith found anywhere in Scripture. Habakkuk faced the frightening fact that his Nation will be invaded by a merciless Enemy (Chaldeans – Habakkuk 1:6). The Prophet knows that many of the people will go into exile, and many will be slain. The land would be ruined, and Jerusalem and the temple will be destroyed. Yet he tells God that he will trust Him no matter what happens! His demonstration of faith is in three areas:

1 Patient Waiting on the Lord

Habakkuk 3:16 (NIV) “I heard, and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the Nation invading us.” – If Habakkuk had depended on his feelings, he would never have made this great confession of faith:

  • Looking ahead, he saw the Nation heading for destruction, and that frightened him – “The Nation invading us” (Verse 16c, NIV).
  • When he looked within, he saw himself trembling with fear – “My heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled” (Verse 16, NIV)
  • When he looked around, he saw everything in the economy about to fall apart – “The fig tree does not bud and there no grapes on the vine,…..the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food,…..there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls” (Verse 17, NIV).
  • When he looked up by faith, he saw God, and his fears is managed – “Yet I will patiently wait” (Verse 16b, NIV).

Habakkuk walks by faith (Habakkuk 2:4b “The just shall live by his faith,” KJV) by focusing on God’s Greatness and His Glory. One of the marks of faith is the willingness to wait patiently for the LORD to work: “Whosoever believes shall not act hastily” (Isaiah28:16, NKJV).

When we run ahead of God, we get into trouble – Moses failed when he tried to deliver the Nation of Israel by his own hand, ending up committing murder (Exodus 2:11-12).

God’s Wordstates: “In quietness and confidence shall be our strength” (Isaiah 30:15b; Habakkuk 3:19a “The Sovereign LORD is my strength”):

  • Habakkuk could wait patiently because he knew that God was at work in the world – Habakkuk 1:5 (NIV) “Look at the Nations and Watch – and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even it you were told.”
  • Habakkuk prayed that God’s Work would be kept alive and strong – Habakkuk 3:2 “LORD, I have heard of Your fame; I stand in awe of Your deeds, O LORD. Renew them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy.”
  • God commanded Habakkuk to wait – Habakkuk 2:3 (NIV)“For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, waif for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.”  

God’s Promise is God’s Enablement. No matter what we see and no matter how we feel, we must rest (wait patiently) on God’s Promise and not allow ourselves to “fall apart” – “Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him” (Psalm 37:7). Whenever we find ourselves getting “up-tight” within, we can be sure that we need to stop, pray, and wait on the LORD, before we do some foolish thing. Keep in mind these three verses:

  • “Stand Still” (Exodus 14:13).
  • “Sit Still” (Ruth 3:18).
  • “Be Still” (Psalm 46:10).

2. Rejoice in the Lord

Habakkuk 3:17-18 “Though the fig-tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails, and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Saviour.” The Destruction – By the time Chaldeans was through the Land of Judah, there would not be much of value left – Habakkuk 2:17 (NIV) “The violence you have done to Lebanon will overwhelm you, and your destruction of animals will terrify you. For you have shed man’s blood; you have destroyed lands and cities and everyone in them.”  And Habakkuk 3:17(NIV) “The fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines,…..the olive crops fails and the fields produce no food,…..there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls.

  • Buildings would be destroyed.
  • Treasures would be plundered.
  • Farms and orchards would be devastated.

The economy would have fallen apart and there would be little to sing about – Habakkuk 3:19b “For the director of music, on my stringed instruments.

  • Habakkuk’s Joy – Habakkuk discovered that God was his joy – Despite the total destruction and devastation (Habakkuk 2:17; 3:17), Habakkuk declares that he will still rejoice in the God of his Salvation (Deliverance). Here is one of the strongest demonstrations of faith in the Scriptures – Habakkuk 3:18 “Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in God of my Salvation.” Habakkuk could not rejoice in the circumstances, but he could rejoice in his God!Habakkuk’s testimony reminds us of Apostle Paul’s admonition: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and in everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1Thessalonians 5:16-18).
  • Habakkuk’s Strength – Habakkuk also discovered that God was his strength, his salvation, and his song (Isaiah 12:1-2; Exodus 15:2; Psalm 118:14):His Salvation – Habakkuk 3:18b (KJV) “God of my salvation.” His Strength – Habakkuk 3:19a (KJV) “The LORD God is my strength.” His Song – Habakkuk 3:19c (KJV) “To the chief singer on my stringed instruments.”

Though Habakkuk’s heart pounded, his lips quivered, his legs trembled at the coming calamities (Habakkuk 3:16), yet the Prophet burst into song and worshipped the LORD. The LORD gives us “Song in the night” (Psalm 42:8), if we learned to wait patiently on Him and rejoice in Him.

3. Reliance on the Lord

Habakkuk 3:19a (NIV) “The Sovereign LORD is my strength; He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; He enables me to go on the heights.” Habakkuk’s heart was pounding, his lips quivered, and his legs trembled (Habakkuk 3:16), yet:

  • He could stand and be sure-footed as a Deer.
  • He was able to run swiftly and go higher than he had ever gone before.

Habakkuk’s Secret was his reliance on the LORD – “The Sovereign LORD is my strength” (Habakkuk 3:19a, NIV):

  • This is one of the reasons why God allows us to go through trails because trials draw us nearer to Him and lift us above the circumstances – Deuteronomy 32:13a (KJV) “He (God) made him ride on the high places of the earth.”
  • David experienced this when he was being chased by King Saul: “It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; He enables me to stand on the heights” (Psalm 18:32-33, NIV).
  • G. Campbell Morgan said: “Our joy is in proportion to our trust. Our trust is in proportion to our knowledge of God” (G. Campbell Morgan, “The Westminster Pulpit,” London: Pickering and Inglis, Vol.6, pg.153).

4. Summary

Habakkuk teaches us to face our doubts, fears, and questions honestly, take them humbly to God, wait for His Word to teach us, and then worship Him no matter how we feel or what we see. God does not always change our circumstances, but He can change us to meet the circumstances. That is what it means to live by faith – Habakkuk 3:4b (KJV) “The just shall live by his faith.”