God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. --Psalm 46:1-3
Continuing in our study of the book of Psalms, I want to kind of pull back the curtain a little bit, and take a look behind the scenes. Every poet had his own experience to draw from when he or she writes verse. The reader may insert his or her own life experience into the words to take a personalized meaning from it, but the original reason for writing, the initial motivation for memorializing the moment on paper does not change.
We are given a little bit of background in a few of the Psalms. Thirteen of them have a preamble or preface giving us a glimpse into the events leading up to the words. The first Psalm like this was one we have already looked at, Psalm 3 (see post from May 14 entitled Cover Me.) The preface to that chapter indicates authorship and an event or season in that person's life that inspired the writing. It says, "A Psalm of David, when he fled from Absalom his son."
If you read 2 Samuel 15:13-29, you will see how David's third son Absalom (whose name means "my father is peace") attempted a coup by staging a revolt against King David. The young prince set himself up as king in his father's absence. David's response was a prayer that God would save him and "strike all my enemies on the cheek," and "break the teeth of the wicked." As a military strategist, his hope was to hold onto the throne and put down the one who was trying to usurp his throne. As a father, he hoped God would not deal too harshly with his son; maybe just give him a slap in the face to wake him up, or as we might say today to give him a slap on the wrist and send him home where he can't hurt anybody (toothless, as it were.)
The second Psalm with such a preface also likely deals with the Absalom situation indirectly, although Bible scholars are unsure of the exact reference. Psalm 7 begins, "A Song of David, which he sang to the Lord concerning the words of Cush, a Benjamite." Some think this refers to 2 Samuel 16:5-13. A relative of Saul, the king of Israel before David, hurling insults and cursing David as he pursued Absalom. Saul was of the tribe of Benjamin, and Saul's father was called Kish (which is similar sounding to Cush). There is also some evidence that the Hebrew word cushi was in itself a curse. Other scholars believe it is a reference to 2 Samuel 18:21-32, when David's general Joab sent a Cushite messenger to tell David that the civil was was over, and that his son Absalom was dead (although there is no connection with the tribe of Benjamin here).
I think it is more likely to be the second example, because there are a number of emotions expressed in the 7th Psalm that might be experienced by a victorious warrior who is also a grieving father. In any case, we know that David's response to the situation was to go to God.
We go to God for Refuge
Let's read the first two verses here.
O Lord my God, in You do I take refuge; save me from all my pursuers and deliver me, lest like a lion they tear my soul apart, rending it in pieces, with none to deliver. --Psalm 7:1-2
The messenger sent by Joab in 2 Samuel 18 delivered his message of Absalom's demise with the words, "May all of your enemies and all those who rise up against you for evil be like that young man." Although it was not what David wanted to hear, it meant that justice had been done. It showed that God had delivered David from the evil brought by his own family, and that God's will had been done in the lives of both David and his son, as well as for the nation of Israel. It also showed that God dealt with Absalom's sin.
God had shown Himself as the protector of the kingdom of Israel and of the king. He had poured out His wrath on the evil one who had tried to take the throne by force. David recognized that God was in control, even though it did not turn out the way he (David) had wanted. If God is to be our refuge, then we must trust Him for the outcome.
We go to God in Repentance
Deep in his heart, David knew that his son Absalom had sinned. He wanted to make sure that he did not end up with the same outcome that had befallen his son. Let's read what David said next.
O Lord my God, if I have done this, if there is wrong in my hands, if I have repaid my friend with evil or plundered my enemy without cause, let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it, and let him trample my life to the ground and lay my glory in the dust. --Psalm 7:3-5
Part of David's emotions must have been something that all fathers experience when our children suffer: "O God, why couldn't it have been me instead?" Yet in his grief he cried out to God to convict him of any unconfessed sin, so that the same fate would not be handed to David as had been given to Absalom. I don't believe David was being vindictive here--he was not saying, "Absalom got what he deserved; if you play with the ox, you might get gored." Instead, I believe David was saying that but for the grace of God he might have met the same fate as Absalom.
God's wrath is real. We don't preach it very much any more in our pulpits, but in 1741 Jonathan Edwards preached the sermon "Sinners in the hands of an angry God," which caused widespread revival in England. A hundred years later Charles Spurgeon wrote, "If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our bodies. If they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees. Let no one go there unwarned and unprayed for." We must confess and repent. 1 John 1:9 says, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
We go to God with Reliance in Him
David was the king. He could do whatever he wanted. But he knew that God alone was in charge.
Arise, O Lord, in Your anger; lift Yourself up against the fury of my enemies; awake for me; You have appointed a judgment. Let the assembly of peoples be gathered about You; over it return on high. --Psalm 7:6-7
Many of us (even Christians) believe in self reliance. Emerson said, "To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment." Unfortunately, this statement is untrue. If we are true to ourselves only, we fall into sin. We must not do what comes naturally to us, but we must be obedient to what God tells us to do. The best way to do that is to be faithful to a local church body that believes the Bible and preaches grace by faith in Christ alone as outlined in Scripture for the glory of God.
It's not following the crowd that we should avoid; it is following the wrong crowd.
We go to God for Righteousness
David knew that God was sovereign, that He was righteous, and that He would judge the nations.
The Lord judges the peoples; judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness and according to the integrity that is in me. Oh, let the evil of the wicked come to an end, and may You establish the righteous--You who test the minds and hearts, O righteous God! My shield is with God, who saves the upright in heart. God is a righteous judge, and a God who feels indignation every day. If a man does not repent, God will whet His sword; He has bent and readied His bow; He has prepared for Him His deadly weapons, making His arrows fiery shafts. Behold, the wicked man conceives evil and is pregnant with mischief and gives birth to lies. He makes a pit, digging it out, and falls into the hole that he has made. His mischief returns upon his own head, and on his own skull his violence descends. I will give to the Lord the thanks due to His righteousness, and I will sing praise to the Name of the Lord, the Most High. --Psalm 7:8-17
He knew that God had judged Absalom righteously--it was not God's will that the royal line of succession should go through Absalom, and there is no record in Scripture that Absalom had ever sought God in the matter. James 4:6 quotes Proverbs 3:34 when it says, "God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble." 1 Peter 5:6 says, "Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that He may exalt you in due time."
It is only by God's grace that we draw our next breath. Who are we to question Him? Even if our whole world falls apart, we can trust Him fully. He is our refuge. If we repent and believe, we can rely on Him to be our righteousness.
