Deliverance

 

And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom.  To Him be glory forever and ever.  Amen!  2 Timothy 4:18 (NKJV)

When we recite the Lord's Prayer, we come upon this phrase:  "deliver us from evil."  It can mean deliver us from sin, as we all fall into temptation daily.  It can also mean deliver us from the evil one, meaning the devil or from men who are opposed to God. 

When we read Psalm 54, the preamble tells us the specific event in which David prayed for deliverance from men who were focused on his destruction.  We read about this event in 1 Samuel 23, beginning in verse 15:

David saw that Saul had come out to seek his life.  David was in the wilderness of Ziph at Horesh.  And Jonathan, Saul's son, rose and went to David at Horesh, and strengthened his hand in God.  And he said to him, "Do not fear, for the hand of Saul my father shall not find you.  You shall be king over Israel, and I shall be next to you.  Saul my father also knows this."  And the two of them made a covenant before the Lord.  David remained at Horesh, and Jonathan went home.  Then the Ziphites went up to Saul at Gibeah, saying, "Is not David hiding among us in the strongholds at Horesh, on the hill of Hachilah, which is south of Jeshimon?  Now come down, O king, according to all your heart's desire to come down, and our part shall be to surrender him into the king's hand." 

We see that the residents of Ziph were willing to give up David to Saul so that he could be killed.  It is interesting to note that the Ziphites were Israelites.  They were not foreigners like the Philistines or Edomites.  In fact they belonged to the very tribe that David belonged to, the tribe of Judah.  He was one of them, yet they were willing to betray him into Saul's hand.  This was a foreshadowing of Judas, the disciple who betrayed Jesus into the hands of the Pharisees.

Knowing this, David prayed this prayer in Psalm 54

O God, save me by Your Name, and vindicate me by your might.  O God, hear my prayer; give ear to the words of my mouth.  For strangers have risen against me; ruthless men seek my life; they do not set God before themselves.  Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the upholder of my life.  He will return the evil to my enemies; in Your faithfulness put an end to them.  With a freewill offering I will sacrifice to You; I will give thanks to Your Name, O Lord, for it is good.  For He has delivered me from every trouble, and my eye has looked in triumph on my enemies.

I. DAVID'S COMPLAINT

A.   My Enemies Are Malicious

After calling on God to hear him, David calls these men "strangers" and "ruthless men".  The Hebrew word "stranger" here can mean "estranged" or "strange men," even "the insolent."  Technically, they were David's kinsmen, as they were all from the tribe of Judah.  Yet to David they showed a rude and arrogant lack of respect.  They called for David's life to gain favor with the king.  They were looking out for themselves at David's expense.

David also calls them ruthless.  This same Hebrew word is also translated terrible, oppressor, mighty, strong, and violent.  It can mean awe-inspiring or terrifying.  This was no small thing.  David feared for his life.

At times, we also may be fearful.  We may be in physical danger like David was, or we may fear for our family, our friends, or our finances.  1 Peter 5:8-10 says, "Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.  Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.  And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself restore, confirm, strengthen and establish you."  In times of distress, may we call out to God like David did.

B.  My God Is Mighty To Save

On whom does David call?  He calls out for salvation and for vindication, not from the soldiers who were in his ranks, but from God.  David specifically calls on the name of the Lord--not that he called God by name, but he invokes the reputation, fame, and glory that His name implies.  Romans 10:13-14 says, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.  How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in Him of whom they have never heard?"  God's reputation precedes Him.

Matthew Henry wrote in his commentary, "He appeals to God's strength, by which He was able to help him, and to His name, by which he was engaged to help him, and begs He would save him from his enemies and judge him, that is, plead his cause and judge for him. David has no other plea to depend upon than God's name, no other power to depend upon than God's strength, and those he makes his refuge and confidence. This would be the effectual answer of his prayers (v. 2), which even in his flight, when he had not opportunity for solemn address to God, he was ever and anon lifting up to heaven: Hear my prayer, which comes from my heart, and give ear to the words of my mouth.

Proverbs 18:10 says, "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe."  Jeremiah 15:21 says, "And I will deliver you out of the hand of the wicked, and redeem you from the grasp of the ruthless."  Isaiah 49:25 says, "Thus says the Lord: even the captives of the mighty shall be taken, and the prey of the tyrant shall be rescued, for I will contend with those who contend with you, and I will save your children."

II. DAVID'S COMFORT

A.  The Proclamation

"Behold, God is my helper," David says in verse 4.  He goes on: "The Lord is the upholder of my life.  He will return the evil to my enemies."  Then in verse 7, is this confident conclusion.  "For He has delivered me from every trouble, and my eye has looked in triumph on my enemies."  There are three separate statements of faith.

1.  God is my helper; the Lord is the upholder of my life.  Someone asked Fred Rogers about his response to a particular tragedy.  "When I was a boy," he said, "and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, 'Look for the helpers.'  You will always find people who are helping."  While it is always good to see people helping other people after a tragedy, David was not calling on other people.  His help was in God and God alone.

Unbelievers often accuse Christians of using God as a crutch.  I don't think this is what David meant by helper.  God is not there to assist me to do something I could do when I was younger, or that I could do on my own if only I had more strength.  No, God's ability is not limited like that.  The term "upholder of my life" is not a crutch; it's not even a stretcher, although that is more in line with the original meaning--one on whom I can lean, can find rest, can lie down on while He carries me.  This is why God could say in Exodus 14:14, "The Lord will fight for you; you only need to be still." God is sovereign; He will work out His will and His way, and deliver us in the process.

Now God may use people to work out His will and His way.  In our reference passage in 1 Samuel 23, we see that when Saul did pursue David, he was very close to finding him and bringing him to trial.  Verse 26 says, "Saul went on one side of the mountain, and David and his men to the other side of the mountain."  Suddenly, in verse 27 a messenger came to Saul, and said, "Hurry and come, for the Philistines have made a raid against the land."  Saul had to call off his search for David because it was more important to fend off a foreign attack from the Philistines.  Coincidence?  I don't think so.

2.   He will return the evil to my enemies.  God is able to turn the tables, to bring the same measure of trouble to evil men that they themselves were trying to bring to the godly.  Matthew 7:1-2 says, "Judge not, that you be not judged.  For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you."

In the book of Esther, the evil Haman built a gallows on which to hang Esther's uncle Mordecai; in the end, it was Haman himself who was executed on that same structure, while Mordecai lived. In Judges 11, Jephthah was looked down upon by his half-brothers because he was the son of a prostitute.  They all rose to positions of power in the army, but looked down on Jephthah because of his lineage.  In the end, however, when the people were in dire straits, they came to Jephthah and asked him to lead them against their enemies.

And this brings us to our third point.

3.  He has delivered me from every trouble, and my eye has looked in triumph on my enemies.  God is faithful.  He is unchanging.  David knew from experience what God could do.  Why would he doubt God now?  Psalm 37:25 says, "I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or His children begging for bread."

Our own experience can testify to the goodness of God.  We have seen His mighty works, not only in scripture, but in our own life experiences.  Does that mean He will always keep us from danger? No, but it does mean He will deliver us, just as He has done so many times before.

B.  The Prayer

"In Your faithfulness," David prays, "put an end to them.  With a freewill offering I will sacrifice to You; I will give thanks to Your Name, O Lord, for it is good."  Because of God's nature, David can rest assured that He will work all things out for His glory.  If we remain faithful to Him, then it may also work out for our good.  Romans 8:28 says, "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose."  If we are called according to His purpose, then when God works His purpose in us we will be better off.  We may not be where we wanted to be, especially if our desire was to benefit ourselves.  God may not have purposed us to be wealthy or famous, or to have anything resembling success in the eyes of the world; but if He works out His purpose in us and we are called to that very purpose, then we are to be envied.

Lamentations 3:22-23 says, "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness."  This is the reason that David could bring a freewill offering, a sacrifice that was not required to fulfill a vow, or to pay for a sin that had been committed.  In the book of Exodus, when God commanded Moses to build a tabernacle, the people brought freewill offerings.  That is, God did not command for them to give anything toward the building of the Tabernacle.  There was not some giant building fund or giving campaign like you see in so many churches.  As God moved in their hearts, so they gave, and the result was a mobile Temple that was more ornate and beautiful than any of the tents in which they dwelt.

Notice the verb tense in the promise that David makes.  I will give You praise.  He knew that whatever the outcome, he would end up praising God, both in this life and the next.  Like Job, he knew that God's name would be praised whether he lived or died; but somehow I think this was a statement of faith.  When God delivered Him from the hands of his enemies, David would give God praise, no matter how long it took.

When I was growing up in a Baptist church, we would sing this hymn by W. A. Ogden

1 ’TIS the grandest theme through the ages rung;
’Tis the grandest theme for a mortal tongue,
’Tis the grandest theme that the world e’er sung,
“Our God is able to deliver thee.”

-refrain-  He is able to deliver thee,
He is able to deliver thee:
Though by sin oppressed, go to Him for rest;
Our God is able to deliver thee.

2 ’Tis the grandest theme in the earth or main!
’Tis the grandest theme for a mortal strain,
’Tis the grandest theme, tell the world again,
“Our God is able to deliver thee.”

3 ’Tis the grandest theme, let the tidings roll
To the guilty heart, to the sinful soul,
Look to God in faith, He will make thee whole,
“Our God is able to deliver thee.”

How to avoid scorn and derision from the Righteous One

 

He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision.  --Psalm 2:4

One of my all-time favorite movies is The Princess Bride.  Although it is not a religious film in any way, shape, or form, there is divine imagery throughout.  Westley, the hero, is pure of heart, with an undying love for Buttercup.  His love is sacrificial, and he veritably comes back from death's door to rescue her and save her from a fate worse than death.

I hope you won't think less of me when I tell you that one of the many reasons I love this film is its use of insults.  When Buttercup is announced as the bride-to-be of Prince Humperdinck, all the people bow down except one wretched woman who dares to speak the truth.  "Boo!  Boo!!" she hisses.  "Bow to the queen of slime, the queen of filth, the queen of putrescence!  That's what she is.  The queen of refuse."  The point is well taken, for to have been taken in by this sham marriage would not only have meant that Buttercup had turned her back on True Love, but as we find out later in the film, would have led to her demise in a political plot thought up by Humperdinck to have her killed and then to use her death to foment a war against their enemies.

When Humperdinck does confront the (mostly) resurrected Westley, he accuses the farm boy of being too weak to fight.  Westley counters, "It's possible, pig.  It's conceivable, you miserable vomitous mass."  He goes on to explain what would happen to Humperdinck if he did not surrender. "I'll explain," he says," and I'll use small words so that you'll be sure to understand, you warthog-faced buffoon."  You remember the scene.  Westley does not want to fight to the death, but rather what he calls "to the pain."  He promises to defeat Humperdinck, then cut off his feet below the ankles, then his hands below the wrists, followed by his nose.  Then he promises to gouge out his eyes one by one.  Humperdinck interjects, as if to show he has no fear, "And then my ears.  I understand, let's get on with it."  Westley retorts, "Wrong! Your ears you keep and I’ll tell you why. So that every shriek of every child at seeing your hideousness will be yours to cherish. Every babe that weeps at your approach, every woman who cries out, “Dear God! What is that thing,” will echo in your perfect ears. That is what ‘to the pain’ means. It means I leave you in anguish, wallowing in freakish misery forever."

I could not help but recall this scene when I read Psalm 52.  Read it with me now.

Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man? The steadfast love of God endures all the day.  Your tongue plots destruction, like a sharp razor, you worker of deceit. You love evil more than good, and lying more than speaking what is right.  You love all words that devour, O deceitful tongue.  But God will break you down forever; He will snatch you and tear you from your tent; He will uproot you from the land of the living.  The righteous shall see and fear, and shall laugh at him, saying, "See the man who would not make God his refuge, but trusted in the abundance of his riches and sought refuge in his own destruction!"  But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God.  I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever.  I will thank You forever, because You have done it.  I will wait for Your Name, for it is good, in the presence of the godly.

We have been studying those particular Psalms with a back-story, ones that point to a particular time in the life of David that he wanted memorialized in song.  The superscription to this Psalm says "To the choirmaster.  A Maskil of David, when Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul, 'David has come to the house of Abimilech'."  If you have been following my blog recently, you will recall this reference, for it is from 1 Samuel 22.  Psalm 34 makes reference to it, but here in Psalm 52 it serves as a direct indictment of a man named Doeg, who was aligned with Saul.

David had been fleeing from Saul, and Saul was always one step behind.  In frustration, Saul whines that everyone in his royal court is in on the conspiracy.  "No one discloses to me when my son makes a covenant with the son of Jesse.  None of you is sorry for me or discloses to me that my son has stirred up my servant against me, to lie in wait, as at this day." (1 Samuel 22:8).  There was a man in Saul's court named Doeg. We have seen in 1 Samuel 21:7 that he had witnessed David at the house of Abimilech the priest in the city of Nod.  It is not clear how much time had elapsed between chapters 21 and 22; it could be that Doeg held onto this information until it would benefit him.  In other words, he may not have gone straight to the king and said, "I have seen David at this place."  Instead, he only divulged this information when it appeared that Saul may have been willing to pay for it.  At the very least this information would have gained Doeg a prominent place in Saul's court.

Unfortunately, this pledge of loyalty caused Doeg to commit even more egregious sins.  1 Samuel 22:11-17 says that Saul summoned Abimilech and demanded to know why he had committed treason, by giving aid and comfort to his enemy.  Abimilech the priest protested his innocence--why wouldn't he help David, who was the king's son-in-law?  How could he have known that Saul now counted David as his enemy?  Saul ordered his soldiers to kill not only Abimilech, but all of the priests.  When the soldiers refused to touch the men of God, Saul ordered Doeg to kill them all.  Doeg then killed 85 priests, along with their women and children. (1 Samuel 22:18-19.)

It was this tragedy that David wrote about in Psalm 52:1-4.

Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man?....Your tongue plots destruction, like a sharp razor, you worker of deceit.  You love evil more than good, and lying more than speaking what is right.  You love all words that devour, O deceitful tongue.

Matthew Poole wrote in his book A Commentary on the Holy Bible, vol 2 Ezra to Psalms (1968), “O mighty man! he speaks ironically. O valiant captain! O glorious action! to kill a few weak and unarmed persons in the king’s presence, and under the protection of his guards! Surely thy name will be famous to all ages for such heroical courage.”  The English translation probably masks the vile names that David was calling this coward Doeg the Edomite.

Before you recoil at calling people vile names, thinking that it is not very Christ-like, remember the words of Jesus Himself when He called out the Pharisees, calling them a "brood of vipers" (see Matthew 12:34 and 23:33).  These men were supposed to be keepers of the Temple, where the people went to meet God Himself, yet they had put up costly barriers for the people and then shared in the profits.  In the same way, Doeg provided military intelligence to Saul in his war against David, then took the priests captive and slew them as an act of war, in hopes of gaining wealth from Saul, the king.

David then pronounces judgment on Doeg.

But God will break you down forever; He will snatch and tear you from your tent; He will uproot you from the land of the living.  The righteous shall see and fear, and shall laugh at him, saying, "See the man who would not make God his refuge, but trusted in the abundance of his riches and sought refuge in his own destruction." --Psalm 52:5-6

Surely God would punish Doeg for his deeds.  And when his life had been required of him, the righteous would read of him and laugh at his legacy.  The Hebrew word for laugh used here means to laugh mockingly, to jeer and deride.  Here I think we can insert the insults from the movie: "See the pig, the miserable vomitous mass, the one who would not take refuge in the Almighty!  He trusts in his riches, this prince of putrid, this son of slime, the mercenary of muck!"

Doeg showed loyalty to Saul in a way that would make him famous, just not in the way that he had wanted.  He would forever be seen as one who strapped on a sword against those who strapped on the Ephod, killing innocent people for personal profit.  David points out that God would not allow it, but would break him down forever, tear him from his tent, and uproot him from the land of the living.  Moreover, when he stood before God in judgment, he would be cast into hell.

Finally David contrasts his own righteousness under the grace of God.

But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God.  I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever.  I will thank You forever, because You have done it.  I will wait for Your name, for it is good, in the presence of the godly.  --Psalm 52:8-9

David was not innocent in this scenario, and not without guilt.  First of all, he had lied to Abimilech the priest, hiding from him the fact that he was fleeing from Saul.  David make another admission of guilt in 1 Samuel 22:22, when one of the sons of Abimilech escaped and told David that Saul had killed the priests.  "David said to Abiathar (the son of Abimilech), 'I knew on that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul.  I have occasioned the death of all the persons of your father's house'."

Yet David trusted in God, not gold, for his protection.  Twice in this Psalm he uses the Hebrew word hesed, once in verse 1 (the steadfast love of God) and again in verse 8.  This is one of my favorite words in the Bible, because it is so rich.  It can mean goodness, kindness, and faithfulness.  It can also mean a reproach, and shame.  To David the steadfast love of God meant mercy, forgiveness and favor.  To Doeg, the steadfast love of God meant reproach for a wicked thing. 

Circling back to Christ-likeness.  Many people take the verse out of context that says "Judge not, lest you be judged." (Matthew 7:1)  They forget the very next verse, which says, "For with the judgement you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you."  In context, this is a warning against hypocrisy.  Let's look at John 7:24, where Jesus said, "Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment."  Further, in John 8:26, Jesus said to the Pharisees, "I have much to say about you and much to judge, but He who sent me is true, and I declare to the world what I have heard from Him."  If we are to truly be like Jesus, we will declare to the world what we have heard from Him, and judge people according to His righteousness.  But we must also bear in mind his grace and mercy, His hesed, so that by His grace we can draw others to Him.  For those who reject His message, Jesus gave a parable in Matthew 25 about separating the sheep and the goats.  His sheep, who had gone about on earth doing good and trusting God's faithfulness will be given a reward and will live with Him in heaven.  The goats, who had gone about on earth denying goodness and not trusting in God, will be separated from Him forever.  By their fruits we shall know them (Matthew 7:20).

Those trees that bear good fruit will be pruned so they can be more productive.  Those trees that do not bear good fruit are taken down and burned.  David likens himself to a green olive tree, vibrant and full of life, bearing good fruit for all to see.  Doeg was uprooted and was like a tree destined for the burn pile.