Day 3: Psalm 3
“Royal Family at War!”
“Rebel Takeover Imminent”
“King Flees Enemy Forces”
“King’s Advisors Defect”
“It’s Looking Bleak for David – God Won’t Save Him”
These could have been the news headlines at the time described in Psalm 3! The title in our bibles is “A psalm of David when he fled from his son Absalom”
The events which form the background to this Psalm are recorded in 2 Samuel 13 onwards:
In brief, King David, (Israel’s hero who years earlier had defeated Goliath) has had to flee from his own son who is leading an overwhelming rebel army. People who were loyal to him are now against him. Wow. What must that have felt like? This is the ultimate family conflict – his son is coming to destroy him with a massive rebel army! And it’s not just his son who has betrayed him – his closest friends and advisors have also deserted and sided with his son and every one is saying that even God can’t rescue him now.
Afraid for his life, I’m guessing David felt betrayed, bewildered, disappointed, angry, let down – and maybe self-recrimination and self-pity were in there too.
It’s in this desperate situation that he cries out in verse 1
Oh Lord how many are my foes. How many rise up against me.
This is the depths of despair. This is no mere short term setback in the ebb and flow of battle. He is facing defeat, onlookers are saying that even God can’t rescue him and it is compounded by the break down in relationship with those closest to him.
However David does not wallow in his misery. In verse 3 he lifts his eyes up above the circumstances to the Lord. He recognises that the Lord is his shield, and with the Lord as his shield he knows no one can prevail against him. It’s as though he turns his gaze from the problem and towards the Lord, and as he does so all his confidence returns.
He describes the Lord in verse 3 as
my glory and the lifter of my head.
And in verse 4 as
the one who answers from his holy mountain
Now he’s got heavens perspective he can even lie down and sleep (verse 5). He can rest easy without fear because his confidence is in the Lord
How may this apply to us?
If you are in difficult circumstances, if you are dealing with relational breakdown, if it seems that you have no hope or circumstances are desperate – now is the time to lift your eyes above the circumstances to the one who is your shield, who is your glory and the lifter of your head.
The song “More Than Enough”, addressing God says this:
Your glory’s my glory
Your victory’s my victory
Your promise is life to me
I love that.
Whether you’re facing difficult times or not, why not take a few moments right now to declare those truths over your life.`
Nick Reynolds
Campus Pastor, Workington