Heart of a Psalmist - Worshipping Christ Through The Psalms

‘Almost all the phrases used are found in other psalms’ 2 leading some scholars to believe that this is a composite psalm composed long after David lived. ‘To the title of the Psalm the LXX (the Greek Sep- tuagint Bible quoted so often by Paul in the New Testament) adds: “when his Son Absalom was pursu- ing him.”’ 3 It is closely associated with the cave experience of Psalm 142 and yet it expresses the distressing circumstances and trust in God that characterized all of David’ life.

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LISTEN TO MY PLEA - 1-6, Looking In and Backwards

“Hear my prayer, O Lord; listen to my plea! Answer me because you are faithful and righteous. Don’t bring your servant to trial! Compare to you, no one is perfect.” (1, 2)

This is an impassioned speech to a judge before the trial commences; David’s prayer is his only de- fense as he faces death squads who are relentlessly hunting him. He makes two appeals to God’s un- changing character. First is to God’s “faithfulness” to his promises; then to his “righteousness” which is the ‘order of his salvation established by his holy love.’ 4 He has found himself to be outside of this ‘order of salvation’ on account of his own sins and humbly asks God to faithfully set him back in right stand- ing. Usually the petitioner claims his innocence but here David shows us the way to being made right with God by admitting his sins. This psalm bears the marks of our New Testament faith as ‘no living man possesses a righteous- ness that avails before God …consequently his deliverance depends upon the forgiveness of his sins, and will coincide with this.’ 5 Centuries later the apostle Paul builds his teaching of being made right with God upon this humble confession of the psalmist: “So we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be accepted by God because of our faith in Christ and not because we have obeyed the law. For no one will ever be saved by obeying the law.” (Gal. 2:16) ‘The enemy may be Saul, but is more probably an abstract expression for “my enemies” generally.’ 6 The terrible darkness mentioned here could have been the experience of living in the cave of En-Gedi that magnified his despair. “…like those in the grave” is translated “sphere of death” 7 and is referring to the despondency that surrounds those who are about to die and being cut-off forever from the joys of living in this world. ‘ …the poet seems to himself like one who is buried alive forever.’ 8 “I am losing all hope…” is translated by the New King James Version as: “…my spirit is overwhelmed within me;…” corresponding to Psalm 142:3 where David says the exact same thing: “When my spirit was over- whelmed within me, then you knew my path.” (Ps. 142:3 NKJV) He is paralyzed physically, emotionally and spiritually; he is unable to move himself from this emotional and mental state. ‘ …in his inward part his heart falls into a state of disturbance…so that it almost ceases to beat.’ 9 The only thing that can break this grip of death is ‘the power of remembrance’. In one way his re- membrance of the happy times of his personal past only makes his present situation more unbearable. But as he thinks upon the history of his people and how God has faithfully delivered them in their trou- bles, his courage begins to return to the level that allows him to cry out to God in renewed prayer. “I re- member…I ponder…I think about….” the battle rages in the mind of the worshiper. ‘The Israelite sees former times as the reality before him, whereas we think that we have them behind us, as the past.’ 10 There are no time barriers to the God ‘who was, and is, and is to come’; the reality of the past now be- gins to enlighten his present darkness giving him hopeful glimpses into future blessings. “I reach out for you. I thirst for you as parched land thirsts for rain. Interlude” (6) Until a person makes a personal effort to “reach out” to God by their own words, all external efforts to encourage and lift up are secondary. We must remember that the spiritual battle that is taking place in the heart of the psalmist was done in the atmosphere of music and worship creating an environment that is conducive to positive responses of the soul. Still it is the cry of our lips coming from our inner- most spirit that turns the battle from darkness to light. “My enemy has chased me. He has knocked me to the ground. He forces me to live in darkness like those in the grave. I am losing all hope; I am paralyzed with fear.” (3, 4) “I remember the days of old. I ponder all your great works. I think about what you have done.” (6)

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