Psalm 63

Dear RTB’ers,

In spite of being on the run, David is still full of confidence and praise: …for You have been my help, and in the shadow of Your wings I will sing for joy. But those who seek to destroy my life … shall be given over to the power of the sword … But the king shall rejoice in God… (vv. 7, 9-11, edited)

I find that I disagree with the STS opening paragraph introducing this Psalm. The header to the Psalm says that David was in the “wilderness of Judah”, which is the mountainous area south of Jerusalem and west of the Dead Sea. This is the area where David fled when he was on the run from Saul. However, the STS editors suggest that David was on the run from Absalom, but when David fled from Absalom he went east and crossed the Jordan. (Recall the issue of Judah bringing him back over the Jordan, with the other Israeli tribes angry with Judah. See II Samuel 19:11-15, 41-43.) Either way, David is on the run and still oozing with confidence in the Lord’s deliverance.

Blessings.

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See also: June 12 (2022) / Psalm 63.

Psalms 61-62

Dear RTB’ers,

Another two Psalms today, both ascribed to David, but neither pointing to any specific incident in his life – and he had a number of enemies! In both of these Psalms “the king” is specifically mentioned (Prolong the life of the king…, v. 61:6a) or suggested (They only plan to thrust him down from his high position. v. 62:4a). Is David the author, speaking in the third person? Or is there a different author, with the Psalms still ascribed to David? What is confusing to me today was probably straightforward years ago when these Psalms were spoken or sung, over and over, again and again, for thousands of years in temple and synagogue worship. Not an issue for us today…!

A note on Psalm 61:8 took me to an item in my Study Bible that was one of their earlier notes relating to Psalm 7:17, “Prayer springs from need, and praise must follow deliverance.” It struck me how true that is. We constantly pray when we have need(s) and we often give thanks when we see answered prayer, but does our thanks really lead to praise? Do we really honor God for who He is and what He has done for us? I know that I fall short in this realm. Again, I could learn from David.

Today’s verse worth noting: Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. (v. 62:8) Carol and I are dealing with that trust right now as we are waiting for that person or family that will buy our farm. We go back in time and are confident in the Lord moving us in this direction, but waiting and praying for that buyer is difficult. In years past we’ve had difficulties selling properties and that past hangs over us. We do need to Trust in Him at all times… Please pray with us for that level of trust in our current situation.

Blessings.

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See also:

• June 10 (2022) / Psalm 61
• June 11 (2022) / Psalm 62

Psalm 60

Dear RTB’ers,

David makes his plea (Psalm 60:1-5), the Lord answers directly (Psalm 60:6-8), then David continues his plea (Psalm 60:9-11a), and eventually expresses his confidence in the Lord’s deliverance (Psalm 60:11b-12). I can understand David pleading for the Lord’s deliverance, then the Lord’s response, almost like He has already delivered Israel, but then I have confusion as to David’s second set of pleas, words like: Have you not rejected us O God? You do not go forth, O God, with our armies. (v. 10) In the end David’s ultimate confidence in the Lord’s deliverance shows forth in the last verses, plus all the nations mentioned were conquered by David during his reign. So maybe this Psalm was written “after the fact”, with David expressing what he had felt before his victories? Like many psalms for me, this one is confusing.

I need to quote my wife from 2022 when RTB was looking at the Psalms and Wisdom literature:

A moment of levity here… I am amused by the contrasting metaphors used in this psalm. Referring to the Israelite nation: they are God’s property, his helmet, his scepter. The ones for their enemies: God will use Moab as his “washbasin” — likely a vessel for washing dirty, dusty feet. Yuck! He will “toss his sandal” at Edom — the way you shoo away a dog(?) or challenge an enemy(?). My study notes mention taking off your sandal is a sign of claiming land in these cultures. He will “shout in triumph” at Philistia — they have already lost their battle against Israel, they just don’t know it yet!

Her last sentence tells the whole story: “…they have already lost their battle against Israel, they just don’t know it yet!”

Blessings.

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See also: June 9 (2022) / Psalm 60.

Psalms 58-59

Dear RTB’ers,

Two psalms today – unlike yesterday’s two psalms, these two are seemingly unconnected. In Psalm 58 David is attacking unrighteous judges, asking the Lord to restrain them and praying for deliverance for this unjustly tried. Then in Psalm 59 David is again praying for his own protection against his enemies.

David believes that these unrighteous judges are inherently evil – from birth: The wicked are estranged from the womb; they go astray from birth, speaking lies. (v. 58:3) But he also has confidence in God’s deliverance of the righteous from unjust decisions. I especially like verse 11: … surely there is a God Who judges on earth. They’ll get theirs!

Psalm 59 is (again!) a bit confusing. The header has this Psalm as a time “…when Saul sent men to watch his house in order to kill him.” But then the wording of the Psalm seems to speak more of Israel’s enemies, not just one man (Saul) pursuing another (David). The first four verses seem personal enough. But then David seems to get more global: You, LORD God of hosts, are God of Israel. (v. 59:5a) We even have mention of “nations” in verses 5 and 8. He has them prowling around the city (Ps. 59:6b), not just watching “his house”. So there seems to be a major disconnect between the header and the text of the Psalm. But however we read the text, we again see David’s confidence, his expectation of the Lord’s deliverance. Strangely enough, David does not want his enemies killed; he wants his “people” to know that it is God who is his avenger and that his enemies are slowly “consumed” so that even they will know of the God in Heaven: … consume them till they are no more, that they may know that God rules over Jacob to the ends of the earth. (v. 59:13b) I need to learn from David’s example: O my Strength, I will sing praises to You, for You, O God, are my fortress, the God Who shows me steadfast love. (v. 59:17) I think praise is David’s secret weapon!

Blessings.

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See also:

• June 7 (2022) / Psalm 58
• June 8 (2022) / Psalm 59

Psalms 56-57

Dear RTB’ers,

What can man do to me? (vv. 56:4b, 11b) David has the perfect perspective here. For us, on this side of the Cross, it’s an easier perspective because we can think eternally. But David did not have that level of assurance, although he did have events in Israel’s history (e.g., the Exodus) and Samuel’s anointing of him to be king and his own deliverances from Saul that he was able to be confident in God’s deliverance of him from any enemies on Earth. We need those few words to be our confidence: What can man do to me?

It’s hard for me to read the ending of Psalm 57 without singing the words! (That’s the case for many psalms!) Take a minute and listen. The middle verses (Ps. 57:7-8) are also set to music, “My heart is steadfast…make melody.” It’s wonderful to get these music verses in my head first thing in the morning. Try it!! GLORY!!

Blessings!

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See also:

• June 5 (2022) / Psalm 56
• June 6 (2022) / Psalm 57

Psalm 55

Dear RTB’ers,

Not long ago one of you commented to me that s/he was “with me” in not understanding the Psalms. They were referring to my July 27 post wherein I spent more than a few sentences explaining the possible sources of my confusion with the Psalms. Today I am not alone in not fully understanding Psalm 55. We read that one of David’s friends has turned against him – but we do not know the friend’s name: For it is not an enemy who taunts me. … But it is you, a man, my equal, my companion, my familiar friend. (v. 13) Scholars have suggested Absalom, but he is David’s son, not his  equal and not his “friend”. Others have suggested Ahithophel, one of David’s former advisors who then aligned with Absalom against David. (See II Samuel 15:31; 16:15-23; 17:1-23.) Simply, we do not know who this “friend” is.

David does not speak kindly of this friend. Our STS companion book speaks of the personification of their evil as if it were walking the walls and the streets (Ps. 55:9-11). Still, David’s confidence in God does not fail: But I call to God, and the LORD will save me. …He hears my voice. … God will give ear and humble them, … because they do not change and do not fear God. (vv. 16-17, 19) David leaves us with good advice: Cast your burden on the LORD, and He will sustain you; He will never permit the righteous to be moved. (v. 22) The apostle Peter even cited this verse (I Peter 5:7). Maybe we should listen…?

Blessings!

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See also:

• June 3 (2022) / Psalm 55:1-14
• June 4 (2022) / Psalm 55:15-23

Psalms 52-54

Dear RTB’ers,

Three psalms today, but they could easily be read as one. Try it. Move Psalm 52:8-9 and Psalm 53:6 to the end of Psalm 54 and the remaining verses are consistent as a prayer by David for deliverance from his foes and his recognition of their foolishness in not trusting/believing in God. The setting, as the titles indicate is during the time that David was on the run from Saul. He had taken the sacred bread (I Samuel 21:1-6) from Ahimelech the priest for himself and his men. Doeg the Edomite had seen that event and reported it to Saul (I Samuel 21:7, 22:9-10). In the following verses Saul then kills those priests (I Samuel 21:11-19).

So, reading all three psalms as one, the header to Psalm 52 clearly makes the connection to the Doeg-event, with David ridiculing Doeg and Saul’s men: The righteous shall see and fear, and shall laugh at him, saying, “See the man who would not make God his refuge, but trusted in the abundance of his riches…” (vv. 6-7a). Skipping the next two verses, the “fool” mentioned in Psalm 53:1 could clearly be Doeg or Saul’s men. They are fools because they do not believe in or trust in God: Have those who work evil no knowledge, who eat up my people as they eat bread, and do not call upon God? (v. 53:4) Then, skipping verse 6, Psalm 54 returns to David on the run: For strangers have risen against me; ruthless men seek my life; they do not set God before themselves. (v. 54:3). So together the three psalms read as one.

We cannot leave these three psalms without highlighting verse 53:3b, …there is none who does good, not even one, quoted by Paul in Romans 3:10-12, verses often cited by evangelicals in pointing out the prevalence of sin in everyone who has ever lived – Jesus excepted!

Blessings!

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See also:

• June 1 (2022) / Psalm 52
• June 2 (2022) / Psalms 53-54

II Samuel 24

Dear RTB’ers,

Today we leave II Samuel and in so doing, except for two chapters in I Kings we end our stories of David and his activities. And we leave him on a sour note – his desire for a census of the people of Israel and Judah and God’s resulting judgment on him. Scripture does not give any reason for why David wanted the census, but he went ahead with it in spite of Joab’s resistance. Later David saw that he had done wrong and repented (v. 10). The Lord, through Gad offered David three choices. We can read clearly that David did not want the second option, the foes’ pursuit. But it seems as if David is letting God decide between the first and third options, with the resulting pestilence.

An interesting connection between a couple of verses… First, David speaking: I am in great distress. Let us fall into the hand of the LORD, for His mercy is great; but let me not fall into the hand of man. (v. 14b) Then we read of God’s mercy: … the LORD relented from the calamity and said to the angel who was working destruction among the people, “It is enough; now stay your hand.” (v. 16b) We can never know God as well as we would like, but it seems that David had a connection with his Lord that I certainly do not share. He knew of God’s mercy – the Bathsheba incident again? – was he that confident in God’s mercy? Then, by staying the pestilence is God rewarding David’s confidence in Him, or was that His original intent? It does seem that God changed His mind – He relented – when the angel reached Jerusalem.

Today’s reading is a confusing chapter. It ends with David’s purchase of Araunah’s land which, as STS reports is Mt. Moriah, which had previously been the location of Abraham’s sacrifice of Isaac, then becomes the Temple site. So David now owns the land on which the Temple will be built. But we’re getting ahead…

Blessings!

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See also: April 18 (2023) / Psalm 60; I Chronicles 18:14-21:30; II Samuel 24.

II Samuel 23

Dear RTB’ers,

David is brimming with confidence as to his relationship with God: For does not my house stand so with God? For He has made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and secure. For will He not cause to prosper all my help and my desire? (v. 5) I fully believe that God wants to prosper all our helps and desires. It is He who put us together, who built those desires into our hearts, leaving Himself to be that utmost desire for each of us. We need to seek Him more!

His “everlasting covenant” is fully realized in his descendant, Jesus. With verse 5 my Study Bible cites earlier verses in II Samuel, God’s covenant with David, printed here fully:

When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be to him a father, and he shall be to Me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men, but My steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before Me. Your throne shall be established forever.

II Samuel 7:12-16

Again, David’s throne is established forever in the person of Jesus!

Blessings!

II Samuel 22

Dear RTB’ers,

My Study Bible noted that this Psalm was probably written after David’s victories over Saul (and possibly other enemies), but before his sin with Bathsheba. Two sets of verses today confirm that likelihood. First, his victories, wherein he acknowledged the Lord’s hand in his deliverance: He rescued me from my strong enemy, from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me … but the LORD was my support …He rescued me, because He delighted in me. (vv. 18-20) Then David speaks of his “righteousness” – his desire to serve the Lord and be right before Him: The LORD dealt with me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me. For I have kept the ways of the LORD and have not wickedly departed from my God. … from His statutes I did not turn aside. I was blameless before Him and I kept myself from guilt. And the LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness, according to my cleanness in His sight. (vv. 21-25) David sounds almost arrogant in these five verses. Maybe it’s his youth speaking out; as noted above, he has not yet met his Bathsheba difficulties.

The Psalm is included in the Psaltery as Psalm 18. We read that last year in mid-July (the 16^th and 17^th). Hopefully John can provide that link. Therein I explored today’s reading in greater detail.

For now, one other item struck me, a very small item: … people whom I had not known served me. (v. 44b) This is David in all his humility. He knows that he has been taken from his shepherding, chosen by the Lord as the youngest in his family, and even in his relative youth has attained to a level that he could not have imagined. People he had not known serve him. Amazing! To come from nowhere to be raised on high. I think of Harry Truman, of Bill Clinton, of Ronald Reagan and many others – all with common roots who rose to the highest position in our country. For this I will praise You, O LORD, among the nations and sing praises to Your name. (v. 50) A good closing.

Blessings!

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See also:

• April 17 (2023) / II Samuel 22-23; I Chronicles 18:1-13
• July 16 (2024) / Psalm 18:1-30
• July 17 (2024) / Psalm 18:31-50