Slippery Places
Today’s Reading – Psalms 73 – 77 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Revelation 17 – 22; Psalms 146 – 150; Proverbs 30 – 31)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – 1 John 4:7 & 8
Read the “0630 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
“But as for me, my feet were almost gone; my steps had well nigh slipped.” – (Psalm 73:2)
“Surely thou didst set them in slippery places: thou castedst them down into destruction.” – (Psalm 73:18)
I remember one day years ago when I was working as a youth director at the Christian Bible Baptist Church in South Toms River, I was picking up one of the guys from the youth group during an ice storm. Everything was covered with ice. I watched as this young man very carefully left his house and walked toward my truck. I turned my head for a minute, and when I looked back he was nowhere in sight. I assumed that he went back inside for a moment because he had forgotten something. That’s when I saw a hand stretching up to grab the mirror on the pasenger door of the vehicle. He was holding on to that mirror for dear life. With all of his strength he pulled himself up, and steadied himself to get in the cab. I don’t think that I have ever laughed so hard in all of my life. The young man could not even stand on his own simply because the ground underneath him was too slippery.
I may be taking too much liberty with this passage, but I can not help but notice that twice in Psalm 73 there is a reference made to slipping. In verse 2 the psalmist says that he had almost slipped because of his envy of the prosperity of wicked people. Then again in verse 18 we see another reference to a slippery place. I got to thinking that God’s people often fall because they tread 0n slippery places. You can make the application here wherever it fits in your life, but a slippery place is a place, person or thing that presents to us a great temptation to sin. Maybe for you it’s the wrong crowd, or it could be sitting home alone on the internet; but it is a place where you can easily fall into sin. If you don’t want to fall, stay away from slippery places.
By the way, did you ever notice that when you fall off your feet, you often have a difficult time getting back up on your own. It is the same when you fall into sin. Don’t be too prideful to call out to someone and ask them for help.
Posted in Thoughts from Psalms by Phil Erickson with 1 comment.
Make His Praise Glorious
Today’s Reading – Psalms 65 – 68 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Revelation 10 – 12; Psalms 136 – 140; Proverbs 28)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – James 4:10
Read the “0628 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Read an earlier post from this passage – “What Are You Thinking About?”
“Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands: Sing forth the honour of his name: make his praise glorious.” – (Psalm 66:1-2)
Our God is an awesome, and wonderful, and great, and powerful God. The English language really does not contain enough adjectives to describe how glorious our God is. Yet, we who have been saved through faith in the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ are encouraged to learn about the greatness of God from His Word, and then communicate our appreciation and admiration to Him first, and then to the people around us. In order to do this, we must first study God. One of the reasons why many Christians hava a tough time praising Him is because they don’t know Him; and there are others who are praising Him, but not according to knowledge. We are commanded to study God through the Scriptures. If the God you serve seems vague or small to you, it is because you do not know Him very well. Open the Bible and read about His awesome power, as well as His infinite wisdom, and loving compassion. He is wonderful. Get to know Him.
Once we know some things about God, we are to sing about Him. These Psalms were all originally songs, and many of them are songs of praise. I sometimes get a kick out of watching the song service at our church. I often see people going through the motions, thoughtlessly and half-heartedly mouthing the words of the hymns. Every once in a while I have to shake myself, and remember what I am singing, and to whom I am doing it. Singing is a form of praise and worship. When we sing the songs of God, we are worshipping Him, and praising Him. If there is one part of our church service that I have really been trying to work on, it is the song service.
Notice also Psalm 66:3:
“Say unto God, How terrible art thou in thy works! through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies submit themselves unto thee.”
Finally, we are to speak our praise to God, and for God continuously. The Scripture says that the redeemed of the Lord are supposed to “say so” (Psam 107:2). We have an awful lot to be thankful for; and an awful lot to praise Him for. My preacher in Texas used to say, “if you’re not going to Hell, you ain’t got no problems; and you ought to be shouting.” He is right. I once heard Pastor Charlie Clark say, “Open your big, fat mouth, and praise God.” Perhaps if we started praising the Lord as we ought to, more people would be attracted to our God. Just a thought.
Posted in Thoughts from Psalms by Phil Erickson with 3 comments.
Betrayed By A Friend
Today’s Reading – Psalms 51 – 57 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Revelation 4 – 6; Psalms 126 – 130; Proverbs 26)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – 1 Timothy 1:17
Read the “0626 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
“For it was not an enemy that reproached me; then I could have borne it: neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me; then I would have hid myself from him: But it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide, and mine acquaintance. We took sweet counsel together, and walked unto the house of God in company.” (Psalms 55:12-14)
It is not clear exactly what the context is surrounding Psalm 55. Some have claimed that David was referring to Saul; others have suggested that it was his son, Absalom; and still others believe that it could have been Ahithophel (2 Samuel 15) who was David’s counsellor but had turned against him. A man as great as David was, no doubt, had a lot of friends, along with a lot of enemies; and I am sure that he had several friends (and even family members) that turned on him. Nothing is quite as painful as the betrayal of a friend. It hurts deeply. You expect your enemies to treat you badly, but when a friend turns on you, it often takes you completely by surprise.
What can you do today when you are betrayed by a friend:
Pray – This whole Psalm is really a prayer from David regarding the situation. He gave the problem to the Lord. Resist the temptation to talk to people about the betrayers, and instead talk to the Lord. It is OK to “gossip” to the Lord.
“As for me, I will call upon God; and the LORD shall save me. Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.” (Psalms 55:16-17)
By the way, don’t just pray for the Lord to punish your enemy; pray that God will restore your friendship. Jesus commands us to love our enemies, which includes those enemies who used to be our friends. Pray also for God to show you where you might have failed as a friend yourself. It is very interesting that the person that betrays us often feels justified in their betrayal, and perhaps sometimes they are; not that their betrayal was necessarily right, but perhaps there may have been some underlying reasons, or hurt feelings that may have motivated the betrayal.
Love – You can continue to love and “do good to them which hate you”. This is certainly not easy, but it is the best way to demonstrate the love and grace of our Lord. He loves us, even though we fail Him continually, and even betray Him at times. We may never win back our friends, but we can make it easy for a restoration to take place. Continue to be a friend to those who no longer see you as a friend.
“But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;” (Matthew 5:44)
I think we all have been on both sides of this equation. I have had people that in my view have betrayed me; but I am also sure that there are people out there that would say that I have betrayed them; and I suppose there is some truth to that. We don’t always get it right, do we? But, we can strive to make things right with the people who are at odds with us.
Posted in Thoughts from Psalms by Phil Erickson with 5 comments.
You Can’t Take It With You
Today’s Reading – Psalms 46 – 50 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Revelation 1 – 3; Psalms 121 – 125; Proverbs 25)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Ephesians 4:32
Read the “0625 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
“For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away: his glory shall not descend after him.” – (Psalm 49:17)
You have heard it said that you will never see a U-haul behind a hearse, except, of course, in comical pictures like the one above. The bottom line from Psalm 49 is that your accumulated wealth and status in this life will do you no good in eternity, unless your life and wealth have been invested in the cause of Christ and in the lives of others. This Psalm admonishes us to not envy the lifestyles of the rich and famous among us. First of all, we don’t see the whole picture. While they may seem to be enjoying life on the surface, we know that lives that are lived outside of the will of God are not really happy on the inside. There is a lack of inner peace and a void that cannot be filled with the things that this world offers.
I want to be clear to point out, however, that wealth or possessions are not evil in themselves. God blesses His children with some of the non-sinful pleasures in this life. The key, however, is found in v. 20:
“Man that is in honour, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.” – (Psalm 49:20)
Notice that only the man that understandeth not is like the beasts that perish. Honor and wealth, and possessions, etc. are wonderful gifts given by the Lord to the person that “understands” Him and His will. So, go ahead and enjoy the possessions that this life contains, but do not let them possess you, and remember to thank the Lord who gave them to you.
One more thought from today’s reading:
“Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me: and to him that ordereth his conversation aright will I shew the salvation of God.” (Psalm 50:23)
Notice in this verse that works are connected in some way with salvation. I know that almost seems contradictory to everything that we teach about salvation being by grace apart from works (Ephesians 2:8 – 9), but bear with me for a minute as I give you my thoughts on the above verse. I believe that when God begins working in the hearts of believers, they often approach Him through good works. The common misconception of most people is that salvation only comes through good behavior. However, any person who is honest with himself quickly realizes that he cannot be good all the time because he has a sinful nature that is prone to sin. However, to the person who is sincerely trying to please God, God will show him how to be saved, which is only through faith in Christ’s shed blood on the Cross of Calvary as payment for his sins.
In the New Testament, there is a story about a Gentile man who was trying to please God. He was centurion named Cornelius (Acts 10). There is a long and wonderful story given about this man’s salvation, but Peter told the man “Cornelius, thy prayer is heard, and thine alms are had in remembrance in the sight of God” (Acts 10:31). Here was a man that was trying to please the Lord the only way that he knew how and then God sent Peter to him to give him the Gospel, explaining to him that the only way to be saved was through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Posted in Thoughts from Psalms by Phil Erickson with 3 comments.
Mountaintop or Valley
Today’s Reading – Psalms 21 – 25 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – James 1 – 5; Psalms 96 – 100; Proverbs 20)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Isaiah 40:31
Read the “0620 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Read a previous post from today’s reading – “Are You Teachable?“
“Thou hast given him his heart’s desire, and hast not withholden the request of his lips. Selah.” (Psalm 21:2)
“O my God, I cry in the daytime, but thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent.” (Psalm 22:2)
Isn’t it interesting the difference between Psalm 21 and Psalm 22. Many of these Psalms are just praises and prayers to God right out of the heart of David. In Psalm 21, everything is great. David is praising the Lord for all of the wonderful things that God has done for him. In Psalm 21, it appears that everything is going great in David’s life.
Now when we get to Psalm 22, it seems like the bottom has fallen out of David’s life. Notice in verse 2, he accuses God of not hearing him. That’s funny because in the first Psalm (22), he said that God gave him the desires of his heart. What happened? Is there some kind of a contradiction here? No. It is just that David, like us, is viewing God through the eyes of his present circumstance. Apparently, his circumstance in Psalm 22 was not as good as Psalm 21. Remember, these Psalms are expressions of the deep feeling coming straight out of David’s heart.
I find that my prayer and praise to God is much the same way. Like David, I too go through different seasons. At times, it feels like nothing is going wrong in life; but at other times it seems as if God is completely absent from my life and the devil is having a “free for all”. Do you ever feel that way? I guess maybe David was just as human as we are. I would like to some day get to the place where my praises to God are consistent regardless of the valley or the mountaintop I may be traveling through.
Posted in Thoughts from Psalms by Phil Erickson with 4 comments.
My Thoughts and Words
Today’s Reading – Psalms 17 – 20 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Hebrews 9 – 13; Psalms 91 – 95; Proverbs 19)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Proverbs 27:15
Read the “0619 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
“Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.” (Psalm 19:14)
I love the Word of God. I thoroughly enjoyed the Book of Job; but I am also having a wonderful time each morning in the Psalms. As I read this morning, I was captured by the beauty of Psalm 19. Verses 1 – 6 are expressions of David’s worship of God. Verses 7 – 11 are remarks that lift up the Word of God, and the reader is admonished to place a higher value on the Word of God than gold. Great Advice!
However, the verses that really caught my attention were verses 12 – 14 where David prays to God regarding God’s help in keeping him from sin. In verses 12 and 13, he speaks of secret sins and presumptuous sins. The presumptuous sins are those that we do blatantly, proudly, and in public view. David begs God’s help in the removal of these things.
Verse 14 is the prayer that all of us should have on our lips and in our hearts the moment that we awake from sleep. How often do we violate our relationship with God by allowing evil thoughts to take hold of our meditations. We muse on things that are clearly outside of the will of God. Ask God to control your thought life. The minute the devil causes you to think about something that is wrong, take it to God and ask Him to help you. Purposely divert your thoughts to things that are true, honest, just, and pure, etc. Our sin begins with the musings of our heart.
Notice also the petition regarding his words. Oh, how I wish that I could take back some of my words. The tongue can be a consuming fire, a deadly poison. Why not ask God to help you get your tongue under control.
I wonder how many mistakes we could have avoided in the past had we made this our prayer? We don’t have to make the same mistake in the future. Let God control your thought life and your tongue!
Posted in Thoughts from Psalms by Phil Erickson with 11 comments.
Choosing the Right “I Will” – Lessons from Psalm Nine
Today’s Reading – Listen to Psalms 9 – 16 (Audio)
Read along on Blue Letter Bible – Psalm 9
(Second Milers also read – Hebrews 5 – 8; Psalms 86 – 90; Proverbs 18)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Proverbs 3:5 & 6
Read the “0618 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
Read a previous post from this passage – “Does God See?“
“1 To the chief Musician upon Muthlabben, A Psalm of David. I will praise thee, O LORD, with my whole heart; I will shew forth all thy marvellous works. 2 I will be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing praise to thy name, O thou most High. 3 When mine enemies are turned back, they shall fall and perish at thy presence. 4 For thou hast maintained my right and my cause; thou satest in the throne judging right. 5 Thou hast rebuked the heathen, thou hast destroyed the wicked, thou hast put out their name for ever and ever. 6 O thou enemy, destructions are come to a perpetual end: and thou hast destroyed cities; their memorial is perished with them. 7 But the LORD shall endure for ever: he hath prepared his throne for judgment. 8 And he shall judge the world in righteousness, he shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness. 9 The LORD also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. 10 And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee. 11 Sing praises to the LORD, which dwelleth in Zion: declare among the people his doings. 12 When he maketh inquisition for blood, he remembereth them: he forgetteth not the cry of the humble. 13 Have mercy upon me, O LORD; consider my trouble which I suffer of them that hate me, thou that liftest me up from the gates of death: 14 That I may shew forth all thy praise in the gates of the daughter of Zion: I will rejoice in thy salvation. 15 The heathen are sunk down in the pit that they made: in the net which they hid is their own foot taken. 16 The LORD is known by the judgment which he executeth: the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. Higgaion. Selah. 17 The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God. 18 For the needy shall not alway be forgotten: the expectation of the poor shall not perish for ever. 19 Arise, O LORD; let not man prevail: let the heathen be judged in thy sight. 20 Put them in fear, O LORD: that the nations may know themselves to be but men. Selah.” (Ps 9:1–20)
Psalms 9 and 10 are believed to be connected as together they contain an acrostic where each major section begins with the next letter of the Hebrew alphabet. This is not line-by-line, and there are disruptions in the pattern, nevertheless the acrostic is visible across the span of these two psalms.
However, Psalm 9 is quite different from Psalm 10. In Psalm 9, the theme begins right away with praise for the divine justice of God. In Psalm 10, the writer seems to be not looking at things through the eyes of faith, at least at the onset. The psalmist begins with a natural man’s view of the human condition. All is despair and hopelessness, until he gets to verse 12. In verse 12, he is reminded of the divine justice of God, which in turn changes his perspective of life.
This is a picture of the way we sometimes look at life. On days when we are full of faith, yielded to the Spirit of God, we see life through a divine perspective, recognizing God’s sovereign purpose. But then there are also days when we are in the flesh, and the world begins to darken our perspective. We then see only the evil out there, and it begins to overtake us. The outlook always looks bleak to the Christian who walks in the flesh.
Psalm 9 is both a psalm of praise and a prayer for the divine justice of God in dealing with the enemies of God’s people.
My devotional thought for Psalm 9 centers on the four “I will” statements made by David in verses 1–2:
“I will praise thee, O LORD, with my whole heart; I will shew forth all thy marvellous works. I will be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing praise to thy name, O thou most High.” (Psalm 9:1–2)
Let’s compare David’s “I wills” with Satan’s recorded in Isaiah 14:
“For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.” (Isaiah 14:13–14)
David’s four “I will” statements exemplify true worship and humility—a heart that exalts God alone, testifies to His faithfulness, and finds joy in Him even amid enemies. This is the path of the righteous that leads to blessing and victory.
In complete contrast, Satan’s five “I will” statements reveal the very essence of sin: prideful self-exaltation that seeks to usurp God’s rightful place. Scripture repeatedly warns us that “pride goeth before destruction” (Proverbs 16:18) and that “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble” (James 4:6).
This powerful contrast between Psalm 9 and Isaiah 14 illustrates the daily choice every believer faces: Will we join David in wholehearted praise of the Most High, or follow Lucifer’s doomed path of self-promotion?
Today’s practical challenge: When trials come and the enemy seems strong (as David faced), choose to declare these four “I wills” out loud. Praise the Lord with your whole heart, testify of His marvellous works, rejoice in Him, and sing His praise. As we do, we shift our focus from the problems around us to the sovereign God above us.
Notes
- “Muthlabben” means death of a son, though it is not clear what this is a reference to. Some have suggested that it could be a reference to the death of Goliath – “the death of a captain.” Though it is not clear what the historical context of Psalm 9 is, some believe that David might have penned it after the victory against Goliath.
- “Higgaion” means meditation. It could have indicated that softer, reflective instruments be used.
Posted in Devotions, Thoughts from Psalms and tagged Acrostic Psalm, David, Humility, I will statements, Isaiah 14, Lucifer, Praise and Worship, Pride, Pride vs. Humility, Psalm 9, Psalms, Trust in God by Phil Erickson with no comments yet.
Troubled? Find Peace from Psalm Three
Today’s Reading – Psalms 1 – 8 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Philemon – Hebrews 4; Psalms 81 – 85; Proverbs 17)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Proverbs 3:5 & 6
Read the “0617 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Read previous post from this passage – “A Recipe for Success,” and “Kiss the Son.”
Text
“1 A Psalm of David, when he fled from Absalom his son. LORD, how are they increased that trouble me! many are they that rise up against me. 2 Many there be which say of my soul, There is no help for him in God. Selah. 3 But thou, O LORD, art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head. 4 I cried unto the LORD with my voice, and he heard me out of his holy hill. Selah. 5 I laid me down and slept; I awaked; for the LORD sustained me. 6 I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people, that have set themselves against me round about. 7 Arise, O LORD; save me, O my God: for thou hast smitten all mine enemies upon the cheek bone; thou hast broken the teeth of the ungodly. 8 Salvation belongeth unto the LORD: thy blessing is upon thy people. Selah.” (Ps 3:1–8)
I am excited to begin our journey today through the Psalms. In many of these Psalms, we see the personal experience of King David or whoever happened to write the psalm, but we also often see an application to the Nation of Israel, whether it be in their historical, or sometimes prophetic context (i.e. the Tribulation Period). We can also often see an application to the saints of God everywhere. Many of the trials, feelings, and emotions that David, etc. experienced, we can identify with as well.
Background
This Psalm is known as a Mourning or Lament Psalm. Psalm 1 is known as a Wisdom Psalm. Psalm 2 is known as a Messianic Psalm. There are 6 other categories within the Psalms, which include Testimonial Psalms, Imprecatory Psalms (asking for judgment), Pilgrim Psalms (sung during pilgrimage to Jerusalem, Penitential Psalms (sorrow for sin), Historical Psalms, Creation or Nature Psalms.
The Psalms are written by many different writers: David (73); Asaph (12); Korahthites (12); Solomon (2); Moses (1); Ethan (1); Anonymous (49). Note – Psalm 1 was anonymous; Psalm 2 is technically anonymous, but the Book of Acts tells us that it was spoken by the mouth of David (Acts 4:25)
In Psalm 3, we are introduced to “Selah” – pause – remember these Psalms were originally set to music. This is a musical rest. For us it means stop, look, and listen.
Introduction to Psalm 3
David was running from his own son in this Psalm.
You may remember that the problem began with David’s sin with Bathsheba, along with his murder of Uriah.
“Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in his sight? thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife. Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house, and I will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbour, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun. For thou didst it secretly: but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.” – (2 Samuel 12:9-12)
What David went through with Absalom was a result of his sin. We will all eventually pay the piper. We will all reap in judgment what we sow in sin. Thank God, if we are saved, we will not reap all of what we sowed, but there will still be consequences for deliberately sinning against God.
Absalom was the brother of a little girl named Tamar who was raped by their half-brother Amnon. Absalom eventually killed Amnon in retaliation for what he did to his sister. He was banished from David’s kingdom for a while, but was eventually permitted to return, but his relationship with his father was never right. He began to win over the people of Israel and finally became so popular that he was able to lead much of Israel in rebellion against their king, and his father. David was forced to leave the city of Jerusalem and flee to the wilderness. Absalom was killed in the battle that followed, and David was placed back on the throne, but only after enduring the loss of many “so-called” allies, and even friends and family members.
See 2 Samuel 16 for some background on this Psalm (the actual passage that deals with this entirely is 2 Samuel 15:13 – 17:22
Outline of Passage
I A Discouraging Situation (vs. 1 – 2)
There will be times in life when God allows us to go through difficult days. Some of these times may be a direct result of the bad choices we have made in the past. Some of the trials we go through will be simply because we are living for the Lord. The Bible is clear that godly people will go through some dark valleys.
“Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.” – (1 Peter 4:12-14)
“Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:” – (1 Peter 1:6-7)
The valleys of life can be very tough. In these first two verses, David is reflecting on his situation. Thank God for the pause (Selah). When you find yourself focusing on your situation, pause for a second – stop, look, and listen – and turn your attention to the solution – God.
II A Delivering Solution (vs. 3 – 4)
Here the tone shifts dramatically with “But thou, O Lord art …”
- Shield — God’s protection.
- Glory — God’s presence and honor.
- Lifter up of mine head — God’s provision and restoration (contrast with David’s bowed head in 2 Samuel 15:30).
“And David went up by the ascent of mount Olivet, and wept as he went up, and had his head covered, and he went barefoot: and all the people that was with him covered every man his head, and they went up, weeping as they went up.” – (2 Samuel 15:30)
God may let you go through the dark days like this, but you can also trust Him to lift you up. By the way – church is for lifting people up, edifying and encouraging each other.
David cried out, and God heard him from His holy hill. What a comfort! “Call unto me, and I will answer thee…” (Jeremiah 33:3).
“This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them. O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.” – (Psalm 34:6-8)
III A De-stressing Security (vv. 5 – 6)
David slept peacefully and awoke sustained by the Lord. Fear lost its grip. “I will not be afraid of ten thousands…” When we truly fear (reverence) the Lord, we need not fear men or circumstances. Remember what Elisha told his servant: “They that be with us are more than they that be with them” (2 Kings 6:16).
IV A Definite Salvation (vv 7 – 8)
David spoke of deliverance as a foregone conclusion. Salvation belongs to the Lord, and His blessing is upon His people.
Conclusion
- We start out at “Woe is Me” – “the sky is falling” – everything is bad
- We remind ourselves of the promises of God. If we call on Him, He will answer. Nothing can happen to us unless God allows it for our good or his glory.
“And David said to Solomon his son, Be strong and of good courage, and do it: fear not, nor be dismayed: for the LORD God, even my God, will be with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, until thou hast finished all the work for the service of the house of the LORD.” – (1 Chronicles 28:20)
- We then get that peace that passes understanding.
- All without seeing any change in our present circumstances.
Devotional / Practical Thoughts
-
Pause and Remember Who God Is (The Power of “Selah” and “But Thou”) In discouraging situations, we naturally fixate on the “how are they increased” reality. David models the better way: pause, lift your eyes, and declare the truth about God. He is your Shield in battle, your Glory when you feel ashamed, and the One who lifts your head when life beats you down. Church family and fellow believers play a role here too—encouraging and lifting one another up.
- Trust God for Peace and Deliverance – Even Before You See It David went to sleep in the middle of a rebellion with an army pursuing him. He awoke confident because the Lord sustained him. We may not see immediate change in our circumstances, but we can have peace that passes understanding by trusting God’s promises. Nothing touches us unless He allows it for our good and His glory. As David later told Solomon, “Be strong… fear not… for the LORD God… will be with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee” (1 Chronicles 28:20).
Friend, are you in a “Psalm 3” season? Family strife, betrayal, health struggles, financial pressure, or spiritual attack? Remember: God has not abandoned you. Cry out to Him. Rest in His sustaining grace. Salvation and blessing belong to the Lord.
Posted in Devotions, Thoughts from Psalms and tagged Absalom, Absalom's Rebellion, David, David flees Jerusalem, lifter up of mine head, Psalm 3, Selah, shield by Phil Erickson with 1 comment.
Praise God!
Today’s Reading – Psalms 146 – 150 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Matthew 27 – 28; Psalms 66 – 70; Proverbs 14)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 89:1
Read the “0714 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“Praise ye the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.” – (Psalm 150:1-6)
“Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands: Sing forth the honour of his name: make his praise glorious.” (Psalms 66:1-2)
I remember visiting Solid Rock Baptist Church years ago, and Pastor Clark had noticed some teenagers that weren’t singing. He rebuked them, saying, “Open your big fat mouth and praise God”. I will never forget it, and I often want to shout the same thing at our church.
It is interesting how many times the word praise is used in the Psalms. In fact, every psalm that we have read this morning mentions the word “praise” several times. The Lord deserves our praise. We should praise him first because of who He is; and then because of all that He’s done for us. We should praise God all the time, but it is especially important to praise the Lord in the church house. We can praise Him through our singing, and in our prayers and testimonies. We serve an awesome God, so “open your big fat mouth and praise God”!
Posted in Thoughts from Psalms by Phil Erickson with 2 comments.
Open Thou Mine Eyes
Today’s Reading – Psalm 119 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Matthew 19 – 20; Psalms 46 – 50; Proverbs 10)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 48:1 & 2
Read the “0710 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
“Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.” (Psalms 119:18)
“105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. … 130 The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.” (Psalm 119:105, 130)
What a wonderful privilege it is to be able to open up a copy of the Word of God. Our reading this morning in Psalm 119 is all about God’s word. Almost every verse in this Psalm contains a word that is synonymous with the Bible. For instance, in vs. 1 – 6, you will see the words, “law,” “testimonies,” “ways,” “precepts,” “statutes,” “commandments,” and “judgments.” All of these words are references to the Word of God. They all have slightly different meanings, but together they help us to understand what the Word of God is, as well as what it does. This is a wonderful psalm, replete with tremendous truths and promises regarding our relationship with God through the Bible.
This psalm is the longest psalm at 176 verses as well as the longest chapter in the Word of God. It is another Hebrew acrostic, but it is different from any of the other acrostics that we have seen in that the 176 verses are divided into 22 sections, each containing 8 lines or verses. These 22 sections all correlate with the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Thus the first eight verses all begin with “Aleph”, the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The next eight verses (vs. 9 – 16) all begin with “Beth”, the second letter of the Hebrew alphabet; and, so on.
The writer is unknown and the historical context is unknown, but there are some clues as to the type of person that wrote it. Wiersbe writes: “The writer must have been a “high profile” person because he mentioned the opposition of rulers (vv. 23, 161; “princes” in kjv), a word that can refer to Gentile rulers or local Jewish tribal leaders (Neh. 3), and he also spoke to kings (v. 46)..”[1]
Wiersbe believes that the writer may have actually been Jeremiah. Others have speculated that it was Moses or perhaps David. We simply do not know.
There is no doubt regarding the theme of this psalm. In nearly every verse, the writer extolls his love and devotion to the Word of God. All verses, save 5 (vs. 84, 90, 121, 122, and 132) speak directly about the Word of God.
Allan Ross wrote this regarding Psalm 119:
The psalm is largely a collection of prayers and meditations on the Word of God, referred to by 10 synonyms.
“Law” (tôrâh), occurring 25 times in the psalm, denotes direction or instruction. More often the word refers to a body of teaching, probably Deuteronomy and Leviticus, if not the whole Pentateuch. In fact, in John 10:34, the corresponding Greek word for “Law” seems to include the entire Old Testament.
“Word” (dāḇār) occurs 20 times in the psalm. It is a general term for God’s revelation, but the “Ten Commandments” are called “Ten Words” (literal Heb., Deut. 4:13).
“Saying” (’imrâh) occurs 19 times. It is often a poetical synonym for dāḇār.
“Commandment” (miṣwâh) occurs (in the Heb.) 21 times in the plural and once in the singular collectively. It signifies a definite, authoritative command. It is frequently joined with the next two words.
“Statutes” (ḥūqqîm) occurs 21 times. In the Psalms it is always in the plural. Literally it means “things inscribed.” So it refers to enacted Laws.
“Judgment” (mišpoṭ) occurs 19 times in the plural, and 4 times in the singular. It represents a judicial decision that constitutes a precedence, a binding law. In the Pentateuch it referred to the laws after the Ten Commandments. The word can also mean God’s judgmental acts on the wicked.
“Precepts” (piqqûḏîm) occurs 21 times. It is a poetical word for injunctions, found only in the Psalter (always in the pl.).
“Testimony” (‘ēḏâh) occurs 22 times in the plural and once in the singular. It is a solemn attestation, a declaration of the will of God. It is a general word for ordinances that became God’s standard of conduct.
“Way” (derek), used five times in the plural and six times in the singular, is a metaphorical term describing the pattern of life marked out by God’s Law.
“Path” (’ōraḥ), used five times in Psalms, is parallel to “way.”[2]
My attention this morning was drawn to v. 18, where the psalmists asks the Lord to open his eyes so that he could understand (see) wondrous things from the Word of God. The Bible does contain a myriad of “wondrous things,” but oftentimes our spiritual eyes are not open enough to receive them. There are certainly many reasons for this but I believe one of them is the fact that we do not approach the Word of God expectantly and prayerfully, anticipating a life-changing truth. Our prayer should be the same as the psalmist every time we open up the Bible: “Open thou mine eyes.”
Everything that we need to succeed in this life is contained in the Bible. But we are missing so many principles that would guide, instruct, and protect us simply because we are not looking, because our eyes are closed. Stop approaching the Word each day as a religious ritual but rather, open it looking for the truth that you will need to help you survive, and even thrive as an ambassador for the Lord Jesus Christ. God has the answers for the problems and challenges that you will be facing today and tomorrow. They are in His Word. Ask Him to help you see them.
[1] Wiersbe, W. W. (2004). Be Exultant (1st ed., p. 102). Colorado Springs, CO: Cook Communications Ministries.
[2] Ross, A. P. (1985). Psalms. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, pp. 879–880). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
Revised 07/10/2025
Posted in Thoughts from Psalms by Phil Erickson with 2 comments.