SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 12/2/2012
8:22:13 AM
My Worship Time Focus: Psalm 143
PT-1
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Psalm 143:1-6
Message of
the verses: Today we will begin to look at Psalm 143 by
looking at several introductions from different Bible Commentators in order to
help us better understand what this psalm is about.
“It is so much like other Davidic psalms that we
accept the title without a moment’s hesitation. David’s history illustrates it,
and his spirit breathes in it. Why it has been set down as one of the seven
Penitential Psalms we can hardly tell; for it is rather a vindication of his
own integrity, and an indignant prayer against his slanderers, than a
confession of fault. It is true the second verse proves that he never dreamed
of justifying himself before the Lord; but even in it there is scarcely the
brokenness of penitence. It seems to us rather martial than penitential, rather
a supplication for deliverance from trouble than a weeping acknowledgment of
transgression. We suppose that seven penitentials were needed by ecclesiastical
rabbis, and therefore this was impressed into the service. In truth, it is a
mingled strain, a box of ointment composed of divers ingredients, sweet and
bitter, pungent and precious. It is the outcry of an overwhelmed spirit, unable
to abide in the highest state of spiritual prayer, again and again descending
to bewail its deep temporal distress; yet evermore struggling to rise to the
best things. The singer moans at intervals; the petitioner for mercy cannot
withhold his cries for vindication. His hands are outstretched to heaven, but
at his girdle hangs a sharp sword, which rattles in its scabbard as he closes
his psalm.” (Charles H. Spurgeon)
“This is the seventh and last of the ‘penitential psalms.’ It is included primarily because David felt
he needed to confess sins that were keeping him from enjoying God’s help and
blessing (vv. 1-2). He had concluded that
the suffering he was experiencing from the attacks of the enemy were actually
God’s chastening, so he asked God for mercy.
It is true that the
Lord can use painful circumstances and difficult people to bring us to
repentance, but sometimes those very things are God’s ‘tools’ to polish and
mature us, not to punish us. In
this psalm, David presents many requests to the Lord, all of which may be
summarized in two prayers: ‘Hear me’
(vv. 1-6) and ‘Answer me’ (vv. 7-12).
This kind of praying is a good example for us to follow.” (Warren Wiersbe)
“Hear Me”—Tell God Your Situation (vv. 1-6): “1 ¶
«A Psalm of David.» Hear my prayer, O LORD, Give ear to my
supplications! Answer me
in Your faithfulness, in Your righteousness! 2 And do not enter into judgment with Your
servant, For in Your sight no man living is righteous. 3 For the enemy has persecuted my soul; He has
crushed my life to the ground; He has made me dwell in dark places, like those
who have long been dead. 4 Therefore my
spirit is overwhelmed within me; My heart is appalled within me. 5 I remember the days of old; I meditate on all
Your doings; I muse on the work of Your hands. 6 I stretch out my hands to You; My soul longs
for You, as a parched land. Selah.”
We see first of all in this psalm that David pleads with
the Lord on the basis of His character, for God is faithful and God is
righteous and because David believes that God is both righteous and faithful he
can claim these promises of God in forgiving any sin. 1John 1:9 states, “If we confess our sins, He
is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness.” David knew the
principles of this verse long before John penned it. We see from verse two that David calls
himself a servant of the Lord, affirming that he is a son of the covenant and
therefore could plead on the basis of the Word of God.
Now David moves on to tell the Lord the things that he is
going through because of his enemies.
Some have said that this psalm was written when Absalom was trying to
take over the nation of Israel, but most say that it was when David was young
and Saul was in relentless pursuit and persecution of David, and thus gives
such a vivid description of what he is going through that we can almost feel
the pain that David is experiencing.
There as those in today’s world and I suppose in days
gone by that would say that true believers cannot go through dark days and
difficult situations, and so it would be good for those to ponder what David is
writing here in order to have their minds changed to the truth of Scripture. Paul speaks of some of the hardships that he
went through in his service for the Lord:
“24 Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. 25 Three
times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked,
a night and a day I have spent in the deep. 26 I have been on frequent
journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my
countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the
wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; 27 I have been in
labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often
without food, in cold and exposure (2Cor. 11:24-27).”
In verses five and six we see that David remembers the “good
old days,” but what days is David thinking about? When David was younger and tending his father’s
flocks he had to kill both bears and lions, so that was not such a good
day. He served in the court of Saul and
Saul tried to kill him, and now he was on the run from Saul. It seems that David may have been thinking
about things like the creation of the world, or the call of Abraham, or the
life of Joseph, or perhaps the Exodus from Egypt. David may be making up his own Hebrews 11
stories as he remembered the great things that God did and did through His
servants and this would cause David to begin to worship the Lord right in the
cave where he was living. That cave
became a sort of “holy of holies” for David.
Spiritual meaning
for my life today: It is good to
remember the wonderful works of the Lord when times are not going well, and for
that matter it is good to remember them at all times. I have counseled different believers who were
going through difficult times to begin to read in the book of Psalms, for in
Psalms you will find help for your troubled soul for you will find people who
have already gone through similar situations that you are going through and
therefore find comfort.
My Steps of Faith for Today: Remember the truths of God’s Word in order to
find comfort and to continue to learn contentment. Remembering and meditating on these truth
will transform my mind so that I can think more like the Lord.
Memory verses for the
week: Psalm 130:1-7
1 Out of the debts I cried to You, O LORD. 2 Lord, hear my voice! Let Your ears be attentive to the voice of my
supplications. 3 If You, LORD, should
mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand?
4 But there is forgiveness with You, That You may be feared.
5 I wait for the LORD, my soul does wait, And in His Word
do I hope. 6 My soul waits for the Lord
more than the watchman for the morning; Indeed more than the watchman for the
morning. 7 O Israel, hope in the LORD;
For with the LORD there is lovingkindness, and with Him is abundant redemption.
12/2/2012 9:31:57 AM
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