Psalms 3 – 5
The Psalms are an interesting group of writings. Many of which were written by David during his up and down life. Think about it he was a farm hand when Nathan told him he would be king. Then he slew the giant and became Saul’s right hand man. Then Saul went nuts and he was on the run and had to live in caves. Then he assumed the role of king. Then he had the adulterous affair with Bathsheba and the resulting turmoil for the rest of his life.
You can see from these Psalms how his prayers have shown those troubles. Verse 3:1 opens after his son had taken the throne:
Eternal One, my adversaries are many, too many to count.
Now they have taken a stand against me!
His back is against the wall and he is being mocked (verse 2). But he knows that when God is for you who can be against you. At the same time think about this battle, both believe God is on their side. In Joshua 5 this question is asked and the response is “neither”. In marriage this happens often, where God is petitioned by both people to change the other one. Both believe in God, and both may be righteous in their petition, yet the key is the heart.
If you know God is with you, who cares if you win or lose. We see this in David when Saul and his sons attack him. He honors God first, sure he may complain but he understands God’s ultimate power.
Verse 4:1 opens a Psalm of worship:
Answer my prayers, O True God, the righteous, who makes me right.
I was hopelessly surrounded, and You rescued me.
Once again hear me; hide me in Your favor;
bring victory in defeat and hope in hopelessness.
I first would like to ask a question to you. Have you ever prayed something like this? I know I have and often the prayers seem to remain unanswered. Garth Brooks’ line from a song comes to mind … “some of God’s greatest gifts and unanswered prayers.” I look at a property “deal” we were working years ago and how it fell through. At the time I was crushed and did not understand, but with perfect hindsight I can see that two years later we closed the shop and that sale would have purchased a large commercial building that would have been an anchor to the shop.
So don’t worry if your prayer life does not always match your life, there are reasons that you may never understand, but often become clear years or decades later.
Verse 5:1 is one of my favorite verses because of what it is asking:
Bend Your ear to me and listen to my words, O Eternal One;
hear the deep cry of my heart.
Think about what David is asking. He is asking God to listen, assuming He does not sometimes. I like it because it shows me the great King David has the same insecurities that I have with my relationship with God. The funny thing is God, by his nature, is always listening. He may just not respond as we believe he should.