2. Rescue me from these criminals; save me from these murderers
3. They have set an ambush for me. Fierce enemies are out there waiting, Lord, though I have not sinned or offended them.
4. I have done nothing wrong, yet they prepare to attack me. Wake up! See what is happening and help me!
5. God of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,wake up and punish those hostile nations. Show no mercy to wicked traitors.
6. They come out at night,snarling like vicious dogs as they prowl the streets.
7. Listen to the filth that comes from their mouths; their words cut like swords. “After all, who can hear us?” they sneer.
8. But Lord, you laugh at them. You scoff at all the hostile nations.
9. You are my strength; I wait for you to rescue me, for you, O God, are my fortress.
10. In his unfailing love, my God will stand with me. He will let me look down in triumph on all my enemies.
11. Don’t kill them, for my people soon forget such lessons; stagger them with your power, and bring them to their knees, O Lord our shield.
12. Because of the sinful things they say, because of the evil that is on their lips, let them be captured by their pride, their curses, and their lies.
13. Destroy them in your anger! Wipe them out completely! Then the whole world will know that God reigns in Israel.
14. My enemies come out at night, snarling like vicious dogs as they prowl the streets.
15. They scavenge for food but go to sleep unsatisfied.
16. But as for me, I will sing about your power. Each morning I will sing with joy about your unfailing love. For you have been my refuge, a place of safety when I am in distress.
17. O my Strength, to you I sing praises, for you, O God, are my refuge, the God who shows me unfailing love.
Wake up,Lord!
Saul sent soldiers to watch David’s house in order to kill him. It's very hard to have a joyful outlook on life when that happens... so David tells the Lord what he is facing. "They have set an ambush for me. Wake up and punish those hostile nations. Show no mercy to wicked traitors."
I'll say I've never been tempted to tell the Lord to "wake up!" I think there's a pretty good reason for it though. David says his enemies are coming at him like snarling, vicious dogs (just in case God hadn't noticed?).
It looks as though He had a right to be impatient. Not only was he in danger, but he had done nothing to precipitate their evil intentions. He tells God "I have not sinned or offended them. I have done nothing wrong." Therefore, it seems he was on solid ground with his request.
But, then something interesting happens. David wants God's justice to serve as an everlasting lesson for his people. So he tells God "Don’t kill them, for my people soon forget such lessons; stagger them with your power, and bring them to their knees." If God simply kills them they will soon be forgotten...along with the lesson.
In the novel Ethan Frome, by Edith Wharton, we understand what David is saying. The narrator of the novel meets the cripple, Ethan Frome. As the novel unfolds we find out that Ethan was injured in a tragic accident twenty years earlier. He and the woman he loved were being forced to part. They decided to form a suicide pact and intended to ride a sled down a steep hill and hit a tree. Neither was killed, but both were crippled.
That's, of course, is not the tragedy. Ethan was in love with his wife's cousin and wanted to run away with her. The tragic lesson...on the cost of infidelity...was seared into the brain of every town person each day they saw Ethan limp off to work. Who knows how many fictional families were saved because of that daily reminder?
Well, I admire David's unique take on justice. He wanted it not only for himself, but as an object lesson for his people as well. It almost seems as though personal justice may actually be selfish justice. David wanted no part of that.
I think we have an important lesson here. We should not be seeking God's intervention in our lives simply for our own comfort or convenience. When God, in His grace, chooses to deliver us we need to be certain we faithfully proclaim what God has done. Let's not keep it to ourselves. As David said..."as for me, I will sing about your power. Each morning I will sing with joy about your unfailing love. For you have been my refuge, a place of safety when I am in distress."
Live boldly out there today...
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