In Times of Trouble, Turn to God

A psalm of David.

1 Contend, O LORD, with those who contend with me;
    fight against those who fight against me!
2 Take hold of shield and buckler
    and rise for my help!
3 Draw the spear and javelin
    against my pursuers!
Say to my soul,
    “I am your salvation!”

4 Let them be put to shame and dishonor
    who seek after my life!
Let them be turned back and disappointed
    who devise evil against me!
5 Let them be like chaff before the wind,
    with the angel of the LORD driving them away!
6 Let their way be dark and slippery,
    with the angel of the LORD pursuing them!

7 For without cause they hid their net for me;
    without cause they dug a pit for my life.
8 Let destruction come upon him when he does not know it!
And let the net that he hid ensnare him;
    let him fall into it—to his destruction!

9 Then my soul will rejoice in the LORD,
    exulting in his salvation.
10 All my bones shall say,
    “O LORD, who is like you,
delivering the poor
    from him who is too strong for him,
    the poor and needy from him who robs him?”

11 Malicious witnesses rise up;
    they ask me of things that I do not know.
12 They repay me evil for good;
    my soul is bereft.
13 But I, when they were sick—
    I wore sackcloth;
    I afflicted myself with fasting;
I prayed with head bowed on my chest.
14     I went about as though I grieved for my friend or my brother;
as one who laments his mother,
    I bowed down in mourning.

15 But at my stumbling they rejoiced and gathered;
    they gathered together against me;
wretches whom I did not know
    tore at me without ceasing;
16 like profane mockers at a feast,
    they gnash at me with their teeth.

17 How long, O Lord, will you look on?
    Rescue me from their destruction,
    my precious life from the lions!
18 I will thank you in the great congregation;
    in the mighty throng I will praise you.

19 Let not those rejoice over me
    who are wrongfully my foes,
and let not those wink the eye
    who hate me without cause.
20 For they do not speak peace,
    but against those who are quiet in the land
    they devise words of deceit.
21 They open wide their mouths against me;
    they say, “Aha, Aha!
    Our eyes have seen it!”

22 You have seen, O LORD; be not silent!
    O Lord, be not far from me!
23 Awake and rouse yourself for my vindication,
    for my cause, my God and my Lord!
24 Vindicate me, O LORD, my God,
    according to your righteousness,
    and let them not rejoice over me!
25 Let them not say in their hearts,
    “Aha, our heart's desire!”
Let them not say, “We have swallowed him up.”

26 Let them be put to shame and disappointed altogether
    who rejoice at my calamity!
Let them be clothed with shame and dishonor
    who magnify themselves against me!

27 Let those who delight in my righteousness
    shout for joy and be glad
    and say evermore,
“Great is the LORD,
    who delights in the welfare of his servant!”
28 Then my tongue shall tell of your righteousness
    and of your praise all the day long. – Psalm 35:1-28 ESV

This is a difficult psalm to read because to contains harsh language that seems out of place and inappropriate for a child of God. It is one of four imprecatory psalms in which the writer asks God to pour judgment out on his enemies. The words are vindictive in nature and don’t seem to fit in with the New Testament concept of loving your enemy and turning the other cheek. In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught a new way of treating one's enemies.

“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” – Matthew 5:44-48 ESV

In his account of this same sermon, Luke records Jesus delivering yet another rule-bending lesson on enmity with one’s enemies.

“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.” – Luke 6:27-31 ESV

Yet, in Psalm 35, David calls down curses from God on those who oppose him. He asks God to destroy them. So what are we supposed to do with this information? Are we to use this Psalm as a pattern for our own prayer lives? Does the content of this psalm provide us with a pattern for responding to those who oppose us or try to do us harm? I think the answer is no.

The real lesson of this psalm is that life can be difficult. Even David, the king of Israel and the man who was known as a man after God’s own heart, found himself facing trying situations. He had been falsely accused, unjustly attacked, and was under constant threat of betrayal from both within and without. He minced words in expressing the actions of his enemies.

Bring shame and disgrace on those trying to kill me;
    turn them back and humiliate those who want to harm me. – Psalm 35:4 NLT

I did them no wrong, but they laid a trap for me.
    I did them no wrong, but they dug a pit to catch me. – Psalm 35:7 NLT

Malicious witnesses testify against me.
    They accuse me of crimes I know nothing about.
They repay me evil for good. – Psalm 35:11-12 NLT

It seems unlikely that David exaggerated his claims or used hyperbolic language. The threats against him were real, and he was legitimately concerned for his well-being.

We must never forget that David was writing as the king of Israel. He was the anointed, God-appointed leader of the nation and was responsible for opposing all those who stood against God and His people. David’s job as king was to defeat the enemies of Israel and defend the people of God. As the king, he represented God and was the primary target for attack by all those who refused to acknowledge Yahweh as the one true God. David was obviously frustrated, fearful, and weary of the constant attacks on his leadership and person. He was tired of all the false accusations and clandestine attempts to dethrone and defeat him. Unable to hide his frustration with the ill treatment he received from those he had shown mercy and grace, David cried out to God to turn the tables and give these individuals a taste of their own medicine.

The key to understanding this Psalm is not based on what David asks to be done but on who he asks to do it. David was the king, and he could have taken matters into his own hands and given these people exactly what they deserved. He was a warrior and had a powerful army at his disposal. He was the ultimate judge in the land and could have enacted judgment and meted out justice as he saw fit. David was fully capable of solving all these problems in his own way. But instead, he called out to God.

O LORD, oppose those who oppose me.
    Fight those who fight against me.
Put on your armor, and take up your shield.
    Prepare for battle, and come to my aid. – Psalm 35:1-2 NLT

Wake up! Rise to my defense!
    Take up my case, my God and my Lord.
Declare me not guilty, O LORD my God, for you give justice. – Psalm 35:23-24 NLT

He appealed to the ultimate judge of all men and asked Him to act as his advocate and protector. This psalm is brutally honest and paints a clear picture of David's pain and frustration. It provides an accurate glimpse into the life of this man who tried to love and serve God all his life. He shared his heart with God, honestly opening up about his feelings. He holds nothing back. But in the end, David placed all of his pain, frustration, and confusion in the hands of God. He knew the solution to his problems could only come from one source: The LORD. He understood that victory over his enemies would be up to God and that the timing and nature of that victory might differ from what he desired.

Ultimately, his rescue and release from his trials would be up to God, who was fully aware of his suffering and capable of doing something about it. So he asked God to come to his defense, take up his case, and declare him innocent. David was willing to wait on God. Yes, he struggled with what appears to be God’s apparent delay in answering, but he waited nonetheless. He gave God his cares and concerns and trusted Him to do the right thing. Why? Because he knew that “Great is the LORD, who delights in blessing his servant with peace? (Psalm 35:27 NLT).

Father, life can be hard. People can be difficult. Sometimes I am tempted to take matters into my own hands in an attempt to solve my problems. But help me to turn to You instead. You are my advocate, protector, and rescuer. You know what is best and You always do what is right. May Your Spirit give me patience as I wait and an overwhelming sense of peace as I contemplate Your love, justice, mercy, and power. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Say What?

Luke 6:20-49

“But to you who are willing to listen, I say, love your enemies! Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who hurt you.” – Luke 6:27-28 NLT

Whenever I read some of the message of Jesus, I can almost hear those in His audience looking around at each other with confused looks on their faces, and shrugging their shoulders, as if to say, "What is He talking about?" Most of us have heard these messages a thousand times and we have grown used to them. But those in Jesus' audience on the day He delivered these words would have been shocked at what they were hearing. Some of what He said probably sounded like nonsense. How in the world could the poor be blessed by God? For those in the crowd who were hungry because of a lack of food or funds, Jesus' talk of blessing and satisfaction would have contradicted their experience. If you happened to be in sorrow that day due to the circumstances surrounding your life, having Jesus tell you that a time of laughter was on its way would have sounded hollow. Oh, and it gets better. "What blessings await you when people hate you and exclude you and mock you and curse you as evil because you follow the Son of Man. When that happens, be happy!" (Luke 6:22-23 NLT). Now let's be honest. Think about just how ridiculous that sounds. Now imagine how it must have sounded to the common Jew sitting listening to Jesus speak that day. They were already hated, excluded, mocked and cursed in so many ways. Their own religious leaders looked down on them. Yet here is Jesus promising them more of the same if they would simply follow Him.

Then Jesus really confused them. He began to contradict their long-held concepts regarding prosperity and righteousness. Their faith system had taught them that the blessings of God were materialistic in nature. To be wealthy and prosperous was a sure sign of God's blessing. Yet Jesus pronounces a series of woes on the rich, fat and happy of His day. He paints a completely different picture on how to view these things. Basically, Jesus says that those who find their fulfillment, happiness and satisfaction in the things of this world, instead of in God, will someday be sorely disappointed. The tables will be turned. The justice of God will set all things right. This message would have been a shock to the system of His hearers. All they had been taught and believed would have been turned on its head by Jesus' words.

And then He really rocked their boat by giving them a whole new way of relating to their enemies. For the Jews, enemies were everywhere. They were then, as they are now, a despised people. They were under the iron-fisted rule Rome. Their entire history had been one of constant wars, living as a conquered people, putting up with oppression, captivity and the degradation of living as little more than slaves in their own land. But Jesus tells them to love their enemies, to do good to those who hated them, to bless those who cursed them, to pray for those who hurt them. This was radical stuff. Not only that, it was impossible. These requirements would have seemed onerous and off-setting to the Jews in Jesus' audience. His suggestion to turn the other cheek would have sounded ridiculous and repulsive to their middle eastern sensibilities.

But what Jesus was doing was clarifying the standard by which God judges. Jesus tells them, "If you love only those who love you, why should you get credit for that? Even sinners love those who love them!" (Luke 6: 32 NLT). Doing good to those who return the favor takes no special capability. Anyone can pull that off. What Jesus is suggesting is impossible. It goes against our very nature as human beings. But it is the very nature of God. Which is why Jesus told them, "You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate" (Luke 6:36 NLT). He is the standard. And what God wants from His people is godliness, not just more humanness. Our humanness is what got us into trouble in the first place. It is our very humanity that will be the death of humanity. In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul tells them "Imitate God, therefore in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ" (Ephesians 5:1-2 NLT). What Jesus is describing for His listeners is the life of a believer. But He was still in His incarnate or earthly state. He had yet to die, be resurrected or ascend back to heaven. The Holy Spirit had yet to be given. The lifestyle He was describing WAS impossible. Apart from a relationship with Christ, none of these things would be possible. Later on in His ministry Jesus would say, "Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing" (John 15:5 NLT). But those who placed their faith in Jesus Christ would be given the power to pull off what Jesus was saying. Their live would be marked by a new set of rules, new power, a new nature, and new capacity for living in the difficult surroundings of this fallen world. Jesus closes out his message with a promise. Those who would listen to His teaching and follow Him, all the way to the cross, would have a firm foundation on which to stand amidst the storms of life. They would receive the power to thrive in this world and live a distinctively different life just like the one Jesus describes in this passage. And we who are in Christ today, are the recipients and beneficiaries of that promise.

Father, even today, some of what Jesus said sounds so impossible. But never let me forget that all of this is only possible through Your grace and mercy. I need Your power to pull it off. If I try to do it in my own strength I will fail. But with You all things are possible and apart from Christ I can do nothing. Amen.