Love goes both ways Pt 15: Sing his praise

Psalm 138                               1I will praise you, LORD, with all my heart; before the “gods” I will sing your praise.  2I will bow down toward your holy temple and will praise your name for your unfailing love and your faithfulness, for you have so exalted your solemn decree that it surpasses your fame.  3When I called, you answered me; you greatly emboldened me.  4May all the kings of the earth praise you, LORD, when they hear what you have decreed.  5May they sing of the ways of the LORD, for the glory of the LORD is great.  6Though the LORD is exalted, he looks kindly on the lowly; though lofty, he sees them from afar.  7Though I walk in the midst of trouble; you preserve my life.  You stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes; with your right hand you save me.  8The LORD will vindicate me; your love, LORD, endures forever— do not abandon the works of your hands.

David, who wrote this Psalm, was one of eight sons of Jesse.  The others were warriors, but David was the youngest, a poet, and worshiper of God.  The people of Israel had been governed by God through the prophets, but the people saw that other nations had kings so they demanded God give them a king.  Saul then became king over Israel but eventually became worldly and was rejected by God.  At first he did well, but Saul’s pride grew and his reliance on God began to fade.  The prophet Samuel anointed David to be the new king of Israel, but it wasn’t for seven years as David first had to be accepted by his tribe of Judah, then the nation of Israel.  Scholars aren’t exactly sure when David wrote Psalm 138, but it seems likely it was on the occasion of his elevation to the throne of Israel.

I will sing your praise

In spite of difficulties which have gone before, David is adamant and determined to sing God’s praise.  Israel was surrounded by idol-worshipping nations and David seems defiant.  Certainly he is sincere, and he is showing exclusive devotion to the One True God.  David directs his worship before these idols, not in private but publicly and defiantly.  It is a political as well as spiritual act of allegiance.1  This reveals a theology that acknowledges God's supremacy not only over Israel but over every realm of power.

It is notable that David’s commitment to praise is not contingent on circumstances but arises from his knowledge of God’s character.  His worship, framed within a context of cosmic competition, boldly asserts Yahweh’s unmatched faithfulness.

When I called you answered

We often wonder if God is really there, or at least if he really cares about our individual circumstances.  When in the midst of my struggles, I’ve occasionally wondered, “God, do you really care?”  But the thing is that when I’ve looked back after the struggle has passed, I’ve seen God’s hand in the midst of its resolution.  This is the meaning of David’s cry, “When I called, you answered.”  And David’s cry shows that God immediately answered, and this immediacy points to God's attentiveness and willingness to act in human affairs.

But when God answers, it is not always with a solution to the problem.  I’ve often wished God would just ‘fix the thing’ but ‘fixing’ isn’t the same as ‘helping.’  God’s answer is often the gift of strength of soul to endure, or the emboldenment to overcome, and David praises God not because his problems necessarily vanished, but because he was inwardly strengthened to face them.  In our emotion and stress in a difficult struggle we forget that God has a wider view than we do.  And we forget that it is his strength, not ours, that changes things.  But more importantly, we forget that our perspective is often wrong.  We tend to blame our opponent, rather than realize our own hardness of heart could be the source of the problem.  Check out 2 Corinthians 12:8-9

8Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take [my thorn] away from me.  9But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

Paul had a nagging problem which he called a thorn in his side and asked God to remove it.  God’s answer was not to fix it, but to assure Paul he would help him overcome it.  Answered prayer is not only about changed circumstances but about a changed heart, made strong by divine presence.

You preserve my life

This verse reminds me of Psalm 23…

4Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

Either verse is a powerful statement of divine protection amid adversity.  The Lord’s preservation includes both shielding from enemies and sustaining the inner self.  The act of “stretching out your hand” implies decisive intervention, a gesture of both authority and intimacy.  These verses bind together the cosmic and the personal, portraying a God whose glory is not aloof but accessible.  The same Lord whom kings will one day praise is presently attentive to the struggles of the lowly and endangered.

The LORD will vindicate me

As a person grows older, especially in their eight or ninth decade, they realize time is short and they begin to wonder if their life has amounted to anything significant.  This was especially true in David’s day when even a king’s life could be ended by sword at almost a moment’s notice.  David serves us a declaration of confidence in future deliverance.  The term “vindicate” also conveys the idea of bringing to completion or perfecting.  This suggests that God’s work in the David’s life is not yet finished, but it is assured of fulfillment.

It is because God's love “endures forever” that the David dares to hope in divine vindication.  This concluding affirmation reinforces the theme of God's unchanging loyalty.  We should take great solace in this verse, and we should remember that just because there is much science and technology in our lives these days does not mea God doesn’t care about our lives.  Vindication is not just justification before enemies but the completion of divine purpose in one’s life.  The prayer “do not abandon” resonates with the human fear of divine silence, but it is cast against the solid backdrop of God's eternal covenant love.

Another echo…

10For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10).

What about me?

King David is known as “the man after God’s own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14).  His relationship to the Godhead was with YHWH, who we today call God the Father.  We have Son and Spirit in addition to the Father to guide us and shape us.  Jesus willingly sacrificed his ow life to facilitate greater intimacy with the Father.  Considering that both Father and Son went through great sacrifice to draw us close to them, it is not conceivable that they would not do the things described in Psalm 138.

Believer, God is on your side, he is for you, he is with you, he will never abandon you.  On the other hand, Satan and all the other so-called gods of this world want nothing but to separate you from God.  If they ever accomplish that, they will turn against you and say the separation was your fault.  Be careful what voice you listen to; if it is not uplifting, it is not God.

Footnotes

1.     Briggs and Briggs, Commentary on Psalms, 477.

2.     Goldingay, Psalms Volume 3, 609.