Beloved, I am glad to share with you today the above theme from Ps 57:1 and following. Indeed, like Psalms 51 and 56, this one begins with the words: “Use of grace towards me, O God!….” For divine grace is my resource both against the evil that surrounds me and against the sin that is within me (Ps 51:1-21). Whether the enemies are called Absalom, the Philistines or Saul… Satan or the world, the assured refuge of my soul is “in you,” Lord Jesus, “under the shadow of your wings” (verse 2). In such a shelter, I fear neither what comes out of the mouths of men, nor the net prepared under my feet (verses 5:7; Ps 91:1-8). “God… brings everything to a good end for me” (verse 3). This is the equivalent of Rom 8:26-28: “We know,” says the apostle, “that all things work together for the good of those who love God.” Faith leads us to believe and then experience that “all things,” even the most contrary to our own thoughts, are directed by God for our blessing.
But here the believer is more concerned with the glory of God than with his own deliverance (verse 6 repeated in verses 12 and Ps 108:1-6). It was the Lord’s prayer about the cross that was before Him: “Father glorify your name” (John 12:27-30) and it must be our first desire in every circumstance of our lives. The theme of this psalm is very similar to that of the previous one; it is still, without a doubt, the language of the same afflicted, in the same circumstances. The anticipation of deliverance is more complete and happier. And there we find, as later in Psalm 144, the expectation of this deliverance, operated by some envoy or some intervention from “above” or from heaven. The scene of Apocalypse 19 is the answer to this expectation: we see the heavens opening to give passage to the liberator, object of the desire and expectation of the afflicted of this psalm.
What a picture of the sufferings of God’s people in this world is given to us by this series of psalms that vigorously depict the iniquitous king, the apostate of the last days. All of Scripture certainly records these sufferings – “It is by many afflictions that we must enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22). What could Christ or God’s saints expect if not opposition and martyrdom, in a world that still remains His bitter enemy? “Let no one be shaken in these tribulations; for you yourselves know that we are destined for this! ” like people doomed to death” (1 Thess 3:3; 1 Cor. 4:9). But there remains a rest for God’s people (Heb 4:9). And so the happy expectation of the faithful in this psalm is the exaltation of God, the praise and hymns of his people, when the enemy has been slaughtered forever, when “the goodness and truth” of God and the envoy “from above” have delivered. The faithful prepare their instrument for a hymn of gratitude to the Lord, as David prepared the music for the days of Solomon (1 Chr. 25).
Be merciful to me, O God! The repetition of the prayer proves that the sorrow, anguish and apprehension that David was filled with at that time was not to be of a common description. It should be noted that his call to mercy is to have hoped in God. His soul trusted him; and it is a form of expression whose strength should not be neglected: for it implies that the trust he exercised came from his most intimate affections, – that it was not of volatile character, but deeply and strongly rooted. He declares the same truth in figurative terms, when he adds his persuasion that God would cover him with the shadow of his wings. Obtenir a shelter, and in this sense it can be understood with great convenience in the passage before us, where it is alluded to the shadow of the wings. David had committed himself, in short, entirely to the tutelage of God; and now experienced this blessed consciousness of dwelling in a place of safety, which he expresses at the beginning of the ninetieth psalm.
We find David attractive to him in the words that follow, Exalt yourselves, O God! above heaven: may your glory be above all the earth. To perceive the relevance of this prayer, it is necessary that we reflect on the height of boldness and pride to which the wicked proceed, when they are not restrained by God’s providence, and on the formidable nature of this conspiracy directed against David by Saul, and the nation in general, all that required a reported manifestation of divine power in his name. Nor is it a small comfort to consider that God, by appearing to the help of his people, is at the same time advancing his own glory. Against him, as well as against them, is directed the opposition of the wicked, and he will never suffer that his glory be obscured, nor that his holy name be soiled with their blasphemy. The psalmist returns to the language of the complaint. He had spoken of the cruel persecution to which he was subjected and now complains of the betrayal and deception that has been practiced against him. His soul which he describes as being inclined, in allusion to the squatting of the body when one is under the influence of fear, or to the birds when terrified by the thief and his nets, which do not dare to move a feather, but lie flat on the ground. Some read, He bent my soul. But the other is the most obvious rendering.
I will praise you, Lord! among the peoples. As the nations and peoples are here said to be listeners of the praise he offered, we must deduce from this that David, in the sufferings referred to throughout the psalm, represented Christ. It is important to observe this, because it proves that our own state and character are presented before us in this psalm as in a glass. That the words refer to the kingdom of Christ, we have Paul’s authority to conclude, (Rom 15:9) and, in fact, could deduce enough from it in the exercise of an enlightened judgment on the passage. To proclaim God’s praises to those who are deaf would be a much greater absurdity than singing them to rocks and stones; it is therefore obvious that the Gentiles are supposed to be brought to the knowledge of God when this statement of His name is addressed to them. He briefly addresses what he conceived as the sum of his song of praise, when he adds that the whole world is full of God’s goodness and truth. I have already had occasion to observe that the order in which these divine perfections are usually mentioned is worthy of attention. It is from his pure goodness that God is led to promise so easily and so freely. On the other hand, his faithfulness is praised to us, to convince us that he is as constant in fulfilling his promises as he is ready and willing to do.
And the psalmist concludes with a prayer that God will rise up and not suffer that his glory will be obscured, or that the audacity of the wicked will become intolerable by plotting their ungodliness for longer. The words, however, can be understood as a prayer that God will hasten the call of the Gentiles, of which He had already spoken in the language of prediction, and illustrate His power by executing not only an occasional judgment in Judea for deliverance from afflicted innocence, but His powerful judgments over the entire world for the submission of nations.
The following verses have been compiled for your edification and grouped together for your best edification.
I invoke the Most High God:
- Protector, a refuge
Ps 27:5 For He will protect me in His tabernacle on the day of misfortune, He will hide me under the shelter of His tent; He will lift me up on a rock. Ps 31:21 You protect them under the shelter of your face from those who persecute them, You protect them in your tent from the tongues that attack them. Ps 46:2 God is for us a refuge and a support, a help that is never lacking in distress. Ps 71:3 Be for me a rock that serves as an asylum, where I can always withdraw! You have resolved to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress.
- Persecution, imprisonment of saints, general references
Ps 7:2 Eternal, my God! I seek in you my refuge; Save me from all my persecutors, and deliver me, Ps 31:16 My destinies are in your hand; Deliver me from my enemies and persecutors! Ps 119:86, 157, 161 All your commandments are only faithfulness; They persecute me without cause: help me! 157 My persecutors and opponents are numerous; I do not depart from your precepts, 161 Princes persecute me without cause; But my heart trembles only at your words. Ps 143:3 The enemy pursues my soul, He tramples on my life on the ground; He makes me dwell in darkness, like those who have been dead for a long time.
- Set traps, general references
Ps 35:7 For without cause they stretched their net to me on a pit, Without cause they dug it to take my life. Ps 119:85, 110 Proud people dig pits before me; They do not act according to your law. 110 Wicked people set traps for me, and I do not stray far from your ordinances. Ps 140:6 Proud people set a trap and nets for me, They place rets along the way, They set me up pitfalls. Break. Ps 141:9 Guarantee me the trap they set for me, and the pitfalls of those who do evil!
- Elevation of God
Ps 21:14 Rise up, Lord, with your strength! We want to sing, celebrate your power. Ps 47:10 The princes of the peoples gather to the people of the God of Abraham; For to God are the shields of the earth: He is sovereignly elevated. Ps 57:12 Rise to heaven, O God! May your glory be upon all the earth! Ps 99:5 Exalt the Lord, our God, and bow down before his stepping stone! He is holy!
From all the above, we note that Ps. 57, although addressed to God in the same spirit, in the midst of the same circumstances, and under the same name, is more the expression of trust in God as a refuge of the faithful. God’s wings are a shelter until the calamities have passed, and the faithful await their complete deliverance from God’s glorious intervention that will end their affliction. God sent heaven and saved (verses 2 and 3). That is why the end of this Psalm is more triumphant than that of the previous one. “I will celebrate you among the people, O Lord! I will sing your praises among the peoples; for your goodness is great to heaven, and your truth to the clouds” (verses 9 and 10). The faithful expect God to rise publicly above heaven and his glory to be above all the earth. There was no help on earth that he could expect; but he is thus cast more completely on God, and thereby led to a fuller confidence in His protection and in the final manifestation of His power to deliver Him. It is always the same. The Most High God “sent heaven”! How much this directs upwards the gaze of the residue and binds it to a heavenly deliverance. Then the Lord is praised. Our prayers are with you all.
PRAYER OF ACCEPTANCE OF JESUS CHRIST AS LORD AND PERSONAL SAVIOR
I now invite every person who wants to become a new creation by walking in the truth, to pray with me the following prayer:
Lord Jesus, I have long walked in the lusts of the world ignoring your love for humans. I admit to having sinned against you and ask your forgiveness for all my sins, because today I have decided to give you my life by taking you as Lord and personal Savior. I recognize that you died on the cross of Calvary and rose from the dead for me.
I am now saved and born again by the power of the Holy Spirit. Lead me every day to the eternal life that you give to all who obey your Word. Reveal yourself to me and strengthen my heart and faith, so that your light may shine in my life right now.
Thank you, Lord Jesus, for accepting me into your divine family, so that I may also contemplate the wonders of your kingdom.
I will now choose a nearby waterpoint to baptize myself by immersion, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
All adoration, power and glory are yours, now and forever and ever. Amen!
I would be happy to react to any questions and comments you may have, before sharing with you tomorrow ” the prayer of the persecuted faithful (Ps 59).”
May the Lord Jesus Christ bless you abundantly.
David Feze, Servant of the Almighty God.