Psa 57:1 To the choirmaster: according to Do Not Destroy. A Miktam of David, when he fled from Saul, in the cave. 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.
Psa 57:2 I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me.
Psa 57:3 He will send from heaven and save me; he will put to shame him who tramples on me. Selah God will send out his steadfast love and his faithfulness!
Psa 57:4 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.
Psa 57:5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth!
Psa 57:6 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. Selah
Psa 57:7 My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast! I will sing and make melody!
Psa 57:8 Awake, my glory! Awake, O harp and lyre! I will awake the dawn!
Psa 57:9 I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations.
Psa 57:10 For your steadfast love is great to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds.
Psa 57:11 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth!
Hallelujah On this Tuesday morning, I pray that you will be victorious with the Word of God and prayer. Two of my favorite words appear twice in this poem, which is considered one of the most beautiful poems in Psalms. Those words are mercy and truth. I believe that mercy and truth are modifiers that always describe God's disposition to its best. It is a word that can only be understood within a relationship, and it has infinite warmth and strength when it's used together.
When we focus on God's mercy and truth again, we immediately feel our hearts begin to flood with new warmth and mysterious power spring up in our famished heart.
Simply thinking of God's kindness and truth adds divine vitality to our life.
How does David feel in this psalm? He takes refuge in a cave in the wilderness of Adullam and En-gedi, and his heart is filled with fear. At night you can hear the howling animals. During the day, you'll have to step out again to find a safer place to escape the pursuers' eyes. Where to get food, how to get something to drink, where to wash, sleep, and lie down are continuous problems that never cease to bother his life at this moment. Wouldn't he be startled at the footsteps of wild beasts passing? Wouldn't his sleep escape by the sound of blowing wind? His heart must be a small boat floating in the midst of a storm in the sea tossed around. How can he find peace in the midst of it? If we read verse 4, we see the gloom of the circumstances surrounding him.
Psa 57:4 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.
Just as Daniel was thrown into the lions' den, just as Daniel's three friends were thrown into the fire, David's life today is in a situation where he cannot be at peace. However, just as Daniel was not shaken when he was thrown into the pit, just as Daniel's three friends were calmed before the raging king, David confesses he is at peace. Look at verse 7.
Psa 57:7 My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast! I will sing and make melody!
Sometimes we forget what the word 'steadfast' means in our typical praise songs. It means that the ship does not float off the anchor, but in the state that is fixed in one place, that is, the state that is firmly established, is being steadfast. What is now firmly established is my heart. I am making a public declaration that my heart is no longer shaken. David found it. I have found a way to find peace even in the raging stormy sea. It wasn't acquired by the means of enlightenment or meditation of some sort. There is nothing within me to produce peace that I need and seek. Instead, David saw God's grace and truth and in turn it had a tremendous impact on him. In verse 2, verse 3, David confesses this:
Psa 57:2 I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me.
Psa 57:3 He will send from heaven and save me; he will put to shame him who tramples on me. Selah God will send out his steadfast love(Grace) and his faithfulness(truth)!
You will see that God's kindness and truth are God's only means to save you. It has been so before, and I am sure it will be so in the future. In verse 10, David actually measures the size of his kindness and truth.
Psa 57:10 For your steadfast love is great to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds.
The kindness and truth of our Lord Jehovah God are not ideas and ideals, but tangible substances that can be measured and recognized in our real world. David recognized it as such, and he saw the size of his kindness and truth. So, not sorrow, but praise. Not a sigh, but a prayer of faith. Chapter 57 is all about hymns and prayers. It is a song of cheers from those who see God's mercy and truth with their own eyes. Therefore, it is in verses 5 and 11 that the praise of song and celebration bursts out.
Psa 57:5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth!
Psa 57:11 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth!
Those who experience the Lord's kindness and truth even a little, will feel the absolute reason for God to be exalted and glorified from the depths of his bones to the skin. David seems to have been through such a time in the wilderness. Like the disciples who could see Jesus in the boat with them in the storm, David was like in a boat swaying in the storm, and his heart was shaken, but like the disciples who could finally see the image of the Lord peacefully resting within their boat, he saw the grace and truth holding him steadfast as long as He is there with you.. God shows and demands that we rest in peace in the stormy sea first.
Which gods in the world are described with such words as kindness and truth? What god in the world has enough mercy and truth to fill the heavens and the firmament?
Psa 57:10 For your steadfast love is great to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds.
Where does it start? From the ground. The place that needs mercy and truth is the earth. I believe that when we can see even just a little amount of His love and truth that overflow and fill the earth and spills over from heaven, we will praise God with praise and thanksgiving shining even in the darkest of caves.
Let's pray together this time. When praying, meditate on the psalm we read together again, and let us see with our own two eyes the kindness and truth of God that is unfolding before us.. Would it make sense that the human eye could not see a huge building that extends to the sky and to the firmament? Even such a gigantic building is less than half of the sky. How can we measure the truth and mercy of God that will fill the whole world with ease? Lord, grant me spiritual eyes so that I can be mesmerized with Your kindness and truth that even the world cannot contain. Let's pray.