God who fulfills His purpose for me

Be sober-minded; be watchful.  Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.  --1 Peter 5:8

 If you have read my posts recently, you know that we are studying Psalms with a backstory.  That is, we are looking specifically at those Psalms that have a pre-amble, or an opening context, referring to a specific time in David's life.  From these real-life experiences, we are seeing the practical applications of these psalms to our daily lives.

Psalm 57 is one example.  A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about the background to Psalm 54, where David was pursued by Saul so closely, that, according to 1 Samuel 23, Saul's army was on one side of the mountain and David's rag-tag group of fighting men were on the other.  In that case, God intervened by sending the Philistines to attack Jerusalem.  Saul had to break off his pursuit of David to go defend his capitol city.

We read in 1 Samuel 24 that after Saul's army had driven out the Philistines, they went right back to chasing after David.  He got wind that David was in a wilderness called Engedi, which is translated "the fount of the kid".  Saul took his men to a location called "the Wildgoats' Rocks."  That's when Saul, the king, felt the call of nature.  He went into a nearby cave for a bit of privacy, as it would be unseemly for the men to see their king squatting in the field.

The cave that he chose just happened to be the cave where David was hiding with some of his men.  On the one hand, this presented a scary situation.  David had about 600 men with him; Saul's army numbered about 3000.  To be outnumbered five to one, and to see Saul's army so very close--well, it was a frightening situation.  On the other hand, this was an opportunity.  Saul was unguarded, and David's men urged him to strike down the king right there.  That would have made the army disband, as they would have had no leader and no reason to continue the pursuit.

In this case, David mad a choice to spare Saul't life,  but he also wanted to make a statement.  He sneaked up to where Saul was--well, let's say in a vulnerable position.  He unsheathed his knife, and cut off a corner of Saul's garment.  Then, when Saul was done and went back outside the cave to join his army, David called out to him.  "See how close I was to you?" he said.  "I could have killed you right there.  But I didn't.  So why do you seek my life."

It was in this context that David wrote Psalm 57.

Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in You my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of Your wings I will take refuge, till the storms of destruction pass by.  I cry to God Most High, to God who fulfills His purpose for me.  He will send from heaven and save me; He will put to shame him who tramples on me.  God will send out His steadfast love and His faithfulness!  My soul is in the midst of lions; I lie down amid fiery beasts--the children of man, whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords.  Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let Your glory be over all the earth!  They set a net for my steps; my soul was bowed down.  They dug a pit in my way, but they have fallen into it themselves.  My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast!  I will sing and make melody.  Awake, my glory!  Awake, O harp and lyre.  I will awake the dawn!  I will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to You among the nations.  For Your steadfast love is great to the heavens, Your faithfulness to the clouds.  Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let Your glory be over all the earth.

I.  Trust in the Lord among the Lions 

A.  Trust in God's mercy.

I can't read verse one without thinking of the parable Jesus told of the Pharisee praying on the street corner contrasted with the tax collector who went afar off, and beat his breast, and prayed, "O God, be merciful to me, a sinner."  We can sincerely ask for God's mercy only when we are at the end of ourselves.  Here David had taken refuge in a cave, and who should show up but his sworn enemy.  David had no choice but to trust God in that situation.

Verse two speaks of taking refuge in the shadow of God's wings.  You will recall that just before Jesus was crucified, He stood outside the city of Jerusalem and wept.  "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it!  How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing." (Matthew 23:47)  God knows we can't do it on our own, and He offers to be our refuge time and again.  We only need to come to the end of ourselves and seek His protection.

B.  Lions lying in wait.

Verse four describes the situation in which David find himself.  "My soul is in the midst of lions; I lie down with fiery beasts."  Some 500 years later, a man named Daniel would be taken up by his enemies and cast into a den of lions.  This Psalm is a foreshadowing of Daniel's dilemma, as David was among men with teeth as sharp as spears and arrows, and whose words were like swords.  However, Daniel may have known this Psalm, and his mind may have been drawn to it for encouragement, because Daniel literally slept among the lions.

Enduring Word Commentary (https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/psalm-57/) gives a sermon outline attributed to Spurgeon that I wish I knew the context of.  He said, "Spurgeon gave comfort and advice to believers who felt they were among lions:

· If you are among lions, you will have fellowship with Jesus and His church.
· If you are among lions, you will be driven nearer to your God.
· If you are among lions, remember that God has them on a leash.
· If you are among lions, remember there is another Lion, of the Tribe of Judah.

C.  David's Song of Praise

Even in the midst of this dire situation, David's heart was full of praise to God.  "Be exalted," he said. "Let Your glory be over all the earth."  When I was in high school, my English teacher had a poster hung up behind her desk.  You may have seen the photo in a meme (but this was before everyone had a cell phone).  It shows a kitten, claws out, hanging desperately to a rope.  The caption reads, "When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on."

David may have felt like he was at the end of his rope, but his hope was in God.  God is my refuge, a very present help in time of trouble.

II.  From the Pit to Praise On High

A.  What becomes of the enemy's trap

Verse 6 says, "They set a net for my steps.... They dug a pit in my way, but they have fallen into it themselves."  You remember the story of Daniel?  The king awoke early and ran to the lion's den.  When he found Daniel alive, the king ordered his servants to let down a rope and pull Daniel out.  Then the king ordered that the men who betrayed Daniel should be thrown into the lions' den, where they were devoured.

From his circumstances as he came to the cave, we sense David said this with the anticipation of faith. It had not yet happened, but he knew that it would.  This is the essence of faith, that we should trust in the Lord even before His divine deliverance.

B.  David's heart of praise.

Verse 7 and following show David's faith is strong.  He summons stringed instruments to accompany his song of salvation.  He gives thanks to God for deliverance.  English theologian Thomas Horne said, "The resurrection of Jesus from the grave, foreshadowed in the deliverance of David from the hand of Saul, was a transaction which caused the heavens and all the powers therein, to extol the mercy and truth of God."

Think of a murder board.  You know, you've seen them in mystery movies and television shows, where a white board or bulletin board has a bunch of photos, maps, and memos, sometimes with different colored string connecting all of them.  When you think of Scripture as a unified work, your mind connects the different scenes with one another via a golden thread.  David's cry for mercy as he sought refuge in a cave connects with Daniel's prayer from a pit full of lions, both of which foreshadow Jesus' body being laid in a tomb only to have the stone rolled away so that everyone could witness the glory of God in His resurrection.  It is no wonder that David praised God.

C.  David's Song of Praise (reprise)

All great musicals have a reprise of one or more songs.  Like an opera, David reprises his own song of praise.  "Be exalted, O God, above the heavens.  Let Your glory be over all the earth."  May we have this song of praise on our lips whenever we seek refuge in the Almighty.  Let us sing it over and over, like a regal refrain.

God be praised!