Psalm 27 comments

 

Psalm 27:1 ¶  «A Psalm of David.» The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? 2  When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell. 3  Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident. 4  One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple. 5  For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock. 6  And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round about me: therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy; I will sing, yea, I will sing praises unto the LORD.

 

David declares something we all can attest to, that the Lord God is his light and his salvation and no one can oppose Him. Isaiah will plead;

 

Isaiah 2:5  O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the LORD.

 

The Lord God, Jehovah, is David’s salvation. The name Jesus means, as Strong’s reports, Jehovah is Salvation.

 

The LORD is the strength of David’s life and he should be afraid of no one. As it is for us, the Lord should be our strength.

 

Psalm 84:11  For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.

 

Let’s remember Psalm 23.

 

1 ¶  «A Psalm of David.» The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2  He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. 3  He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. 4  Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. 5  Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. 6  Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

 

In verse 2 we have an example of hyperbole the ancient writers loved to use so often. Did David’s enemies literally want to eat his flesh or is that a figure of speech for the harm they wished to come to him. We also have such figures of speech in our talk today. This means that his enemies wanted to destroy his flesh and to deprive him of his possessions. Notice also chapter 14.

 

Psalm 14:4 ¶  Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge? who eat up my people as they eat bread, and call not upon the LORD.

 

Will the minions of the Beast of Revelation resort to ritual cannibalism of God’s people? I can’t say. But it is sure that David is confident of God’s protection and mercy.

 

Verse 3 brings to mind what will happen later as recorded in 2Kings 19 when a 185,000 Assyrians are killed by God, Assyrians who threatened Jerusalem.

 

The rest of the passage reminds me of Psalm 23. Let’s read it again.

 

Psalm 23:1 ¶  «A Psalm of David.» The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2  He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. 3  He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. 4  Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. 5  Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. 6  Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

 

We, as David was against his physical enemies, should be confident in God’s protection against our spiritual enemies, those malignant forces that wish to bring us down.

 

Psalm 27:7 ¶  Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me. 8  When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek. 9  Hide not thy face far from me; put not thy servant away in anger: thou hast been my help; leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation. 10  When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up. 11  Teach me thy way, O LORD, and lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies. 12  Deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies: for false witnesses are risen up against me, and such as breathe out cruelty. 13  I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. 14  Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.

 

See here David’s cry for mercy in some other examples..

 

Psalm 4:1 ¶  «To the chief Musician on Neginoth, A Psalm of David.» Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer.

 

Psalm 5:2  Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray.

 

Psalm 130:2  Lord, hear my voice: let thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications.

 

Psalm 143:1 ¶  «A Psalm of David.» Hear my prayer, O LORD, give ear to my supplications: in thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness.

 

He goes on in verses 8 and 9 with symbolic speech.

 

Exodus 33:20  And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.

 

We have heard preachers say the same thing in pleading with us to seek God’s face in prayer, to experience a close encounter with God. It is not in this context meaning that we are seeking an appearance of the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

David is pleading, as we would, that God would not abandon him and in His mercy would not reject him in God’s righteous anger.

 

Verse 10 is a profound statement. perhaps you grew up in a home where Christ was preeminent and you were taught the Bible and I don’t mean in a mean, controlling way either but with parents who expressed the fruit of the Spirit evidencing every day the love of Christ nurturing and leading you to be a Christian adult.

 

But, many, most have not had that experience. They either knew nothing of Christ or one or both parents did not teach them anything about God but left it up to the church when they decided to take their children to church or their expression of faith was so mean-spirited and cruel the child grew up angry and dismissive at God for the coarseness of their parents. David here, though, says that every child has a Father who will not forsake them, who will not abandon them, and that Father is God Himself.

 

Isn’t that a wonderful promise? God will teach, and lead, and protect, and take up a person even if their parents fail them. Our entire culture has come to rest on a lack of parental responsibility that has plagued several generations from at least the 1960s. Neglect of religion, of spiritual and physical needs, and even abandonment have become endemic as our culture and country slide downhill into the shadows.

 

David wants to be taught clearly and not given over to the malicious will of his enemies. It is clear that King David’s confidence is in the Lord. This is a great prayer for us.

 

Verse 13 is clear that David is not just waiting on some future appointment with God after death but expects to see God’s hand of mercy now in the land of the living.

 

Also for verse 14 see;

 

Isaiah 40:31  But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.