Psalm 31:9-24 – Distress before Deliverance

In these verses the psalmist may be describing another deliverance, or he may be giving an enlarged account of the deliverance he described in the previous verses of the psalm. His description of his trouble is in verses 9-16 and his explanation of his deliverance is in verses 17-22, and then he exhorts other believers (vv. 23-25). 

The troubles affected him emotionally and physically – he was in distress and his bones were wasting (vv. 9-10). His troubles had been prolonged (v. 10) and even his neighbours regarded him as a problem (v. 11). He was isolated, with a sense of having been discarded like a broken vessel, and he was in constant danger from those scheming against him (vv. 12-13).

 

Nevertheless, David retained his faith in his gracious covenant Lord (v. 14), acknowledging that he is the God of providence (v. 15), and able to rescue him from all opponents (vv. 15-16). David believed in the efficacy of prayer and that the Lord in response to his requests could restore both his position and his reputation (v. 17). He also knew that, sometimes, answered prayer can mean judgment for the opponents of God’s people and kingdom (vv. 17-18).

 

David records that the Lord answered his prayer in an incredible way. He knows how to hide his people from destructive schemes and verbal attacks, and his ongoing protection is evidence of his covenant love, shown even when David was trapped in a city by his enemies (vv. 19-21). David acknowledges that he had been terrified that somehow he was no longer in God’s favour, but he gladly states that the Lord had heard his prayerful plea for deliverance (v. 22).

 

Therefore David is able to encourage other believers. He testifies that the Lord will come to their aid, and that even in the darkest of times he preserves his people and does not deal with them as he deals with others. Therefore they too should wait upon him until he helps them as well (vv. 23-24). 

 

While David was undergoing his time of distress, the Lord had been storing up blessings for him, and which overwhelmed him with their abundance once he came to experience them.

Psalm 31:1-8 - Prayer for Deliverance

David is once again in trouble, but he takes his situation to the Lord. He does not pray because he thinks the Lord does not know about the problem. This is a reminder that prayer is engaging with the Lord about matters of which he is fully aware.

Yet prayer is more than merely stating the problem; it is often a description of our faith, of how we regard God. In this set of verses, David says a great deal about the Lord, which is a feature of all the psalms. For a believer, prayer is not an approach to an unknown God. While David does refer to his problems, he also says much more about God than he does about those who were troubling him.

David regards the Lord as his only refuge. He knows that his God is this all the time. Yet he still prays to experience divine protection. Why? Because he wants the comfort connected to his spiritual privileges. He needs inner assurance that God is for him. He wants to experience the Lord’s power in his current providence (vv. 1-2). 

David in his prayer is both profound and simple. His God is the great Yahweh, but he also describes him symbolically as having an ear to listen and a hand to pull him out of the net laid by his enemies. The great God is present not only as a fortress but as a guide. Whatever else is included in describing God as a guide, it indicates that there is a future destination for David even although he is presently in trouble (vv. 3-4). David takes everyday things and uses them to describe God because they enable his faith to grasp the reality of God in his life.

In verse 5, David indicates that his faithful God has rescued him. Therefore he can trust in the Lord for the future. His spirit had been distressed, but now it was full of joy because of experiencing again God’s deliverance (v. 7). He affirms his commitment to God by distinguishing himself from idolaters (v. 6). He testifies that his God had been aware of his distress and had shared his inner pain, but had now given him spiritual liberty (v. 8). 

The verses of this psalm remind us that the spiritual life is primarily a relationship with God. This relationship persists in times of trouble as well as in periods of comfort. It confirms the reality of the faithfulness and friendship of God as well as the necessity of faith and prayer in the outlook of his people.

Psalm 30 — Dedication after Restoration

The heading of the psalm indicates that David wrote the psalm at the time of dedication of a building. It could have been a private dwelling or it could have been a religious building (the word translated as ‘temple’ means ‘house’).

David wrote this psalm as an expression of his gratitude for an experience of divine deliverance. He had been in great danger from a multitude of foes. Their attacks had caused a sense of oppression in his soul (something like the experience he describes at the beginning of Psalm 40), but the Lord, the heavenly physician, had restored his joy and renewed his spiritual energy (vv. 1-3).

His experience was not merely for himself to consider when he went to worship God. Other believers who observed him could take encouragement from his testimony of divine restoration. David would have known that such lows are common among God’s people. Yet their experiences of divine chastisement bring spiritual good (vv. 4-5).

David reveals that he had been guilty of self-confidence when things had been going well — he had assumed that they would continue. He knew that God had given them, but he forgot that God could bring changes that would alter what was happening. This happened to David, and dismay became prevalent in his outlook. He sensed the absence of God, and there is nothing worse than that for a believer (vv. 6-7).

Nevertheless, he knew what to do — pray to his covenant Lord. His prayer was strong, but focussed on a precious divine attribute — God’s mercy. He used arguments as petitions, not because he thought he was wiser than God, but because they seemed obvious ones to use (vv. 8-10). He did not have access to God’s secret will, so he prayed humbly according to his circumstances and asked for gracious restoration of his soul and body.

The outcome was that the Lord heard his prayers. Instead of being downcast, David became joyful. The joy of the Lord became his motive for service. He now had a song, which his tongue (his glory) would use in praising his Lord always (vv. 11-12).

Why is this psalm recorded for us? It tells us that the Lord can greatly restore our souls, but that the restoration may include deep chastisement for our sinful folly.

Psalm 29 - God is in control

It looks as if David had experienced a powerful storm that caused great disturbances in the created order. From David’s perspective, the God of salvation is also the God of providence, and the glory of his attributes is revealed even in the disturbances caused by his power. 

The storm began out at sea, moved into Lebanon and the north of Canaan and then south to the wilderness of Kadesh. It affected everything in its path, including the deer which were caused to give birth (v. 9).

This display of divine glory should cause a response among the angels as well as among the inhabitants of the land. The response should be verbal even among the heavenly hosts. It is part of their holiness to praise the Lord whenever he reveals his power (vv. 1-2). The storm is not limited to the locations where people dwell because it also shakes the wilderness (vv. 7-8). Presumably, only angels mainly saw this and are called to take note of it. 

The storm revealed that the mightiest and most fixed of earthly features can easily be disturbed by the Lord. What seems more powerful than the seas and oceans and what seems more fixed that the mighty cedars! Yet the Lord can easily disturb them and indeed makes the cedars seem to frolic like calves (vv. 3-6).

What did the storm say to David about his God? It told David that God was in control, that he ruled the elements on a global scale, that the same power was available for the blessing of his people, and that he was able to give to all of them the particular blessing of peace. It is good to have eyes to see what a storm is about.

Psalm 28 - Deliverance

David was concerned that the Lord, the one on whom he depended, would not listen to his prayers. If that should happen, there would be no difference between him and those who did not fear God (v. 1). David was looking for mercy from God. Mercy is more than forgiveness; it can also include deliverance from trouble. David, as did Daniel centuries later, showed his faith in God by looking towards the sanctuary (the tabernacle) because that is where God’s throne was, the seat on the ark of the covenant (v. 2). 

David is brave in expressing his faith in the Lord (v. 3). He would have to be dragged away with the wicked, those who are hypocrites who speak peace but mean harm. David is sure that they deserve divine punishment (vv. 4-5). Their main sin is a refusal to consider God’s actions. As a consequence, he will reduce them to nothing.

There must have been a time gap between verse 5 and verse 6 because in verse 6 David says that his prayer for deliverance has been answered. This divine rescue showed that the Lord was David’s deliverer and protector. Since that was the case, the only appropriate response from David was increased trust and grateful praise from his heart (vv. 6-7).

David had a special place in the kingdom of God as it was expressed in Israel. He was the king whom God had chosen and empowered for this role. Helping David was not merely help for David as an individual, it was also an indication that God would help his people (v. 8). 

As a godly king, David did what was appropriate for him as monarch — he prayed for his subjects. Yet he knew that they were much more than his subjects. He was aware that they were the heritage of the Lord, the people he had chosen to bless with great privileges. They were his weak flock, but since the powerful God was their shepherd, he could carry them easily for ever (v. 9).

With New Testament information, we can understand why blessings come to us because of the King. We also can appreciate how we have a Shepherd who carries us all the way to glory and throughout the ages to come.

Psalm 27 - Confidence

David begins this psalm by mentioning three aspects of the Lord that encouraged him not to fear his enemies. His opponents had unreliable and deceitful character flaws whereas the Lord was true and reliable. His God has no flaws, he is like light, and therefore David can depend upon him for deliverance, even when the number of his enemies is large and even an army. Eventually, they will be defeated (vv. 1-3).

In verses 4-6, David states the most important goal of his life, to worship God and to consider his beauty, especially in the location where sacrifices were made to him. David knew that he was a sinner, unworthy of divine protection, and unfit for God’s presence. Yet the means of getting access to God were revealed at the tabernacle in the various sacrifices offered there. We know that they pictured the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus on the cross which guarantees access to God’s presence and protection. Through Jesus, we can thank our faithful God gladly for the deliverances we receive regularly from him.

Yet in the meantime David was facing danger; therefore he turned to God, to the God who had encouraged David to seek him (vv. 7-10). In his troubles, David did not want to lose God’s favour. It looks as if even his parents had become unreliable, perhaps because of pressure forced on them during the time of Saul’s pursuit of him. The closest on earth might fail us, but the Lord never does, says David. His faith grabbed hold of this reality, but he still had to pray earnestly about it.

David realised that he needed divinely-given wisdom in his current troubles (v. 11-12). Therefore he asked the Lord to teach him what to do when so many were against him. He is precise in what he wishes to have — a level path. A path is the provision from God for making progress in pursuing his plan for our lives. David knew, and so do we, that the existence of enemies need not hinder advancing in the ways of God. But we should pray for his wisdom daily.

Despite his current difficulties, David was sure that he would yet see better times (vv. 13-14). He would not be slain by his enemies, no matter how powerful they seemed to be. His strategy was to wait for the Lord after waiting on the Lord. Willingness to wait for God’s time is not an expression of indifference or of weakness, but is evidence of having received wisdom from above, a wisdom that empowers strength in one’s heart and outlook. In David’s case, it all came true, and it does with all who follow his example.