Psalm 5—perfect Man In The Midst Of Enemies. Series

Thursday, January 9, 2014

Tom Lowe

Psalm 5—Perfect Man in the Midst of Enemies.

1 Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my meditation.

2 Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray.

3 My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.

4 For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee.

5 The foolish shall not stand in thy sight: thou hatest all workers of iniquity.

6 Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: the LORD will abhor the bloody and deceitful man.

7 But as for me, I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy: and in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple.

8 Lead me, O LORD, in thy righteousness because of mine enemies; make thy way straight before my face.

9 For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is very wickedness; their throat is an open sepulchre; they flatter with their tongue.

10 Destroy thou them, O God; let them fall by their own counsels; cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions; for they have rebelled against thee.

11 But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee.

12 For thou, LORD, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.

Introduction

This psalm is also thought to be a psalm of David. There is evidence in the psalm itself that the author at the time of its composition was beset by enemies, but the occasion on which the psalm was composed is not specified. At least one prominent commentator believes that the psalm was composed during the time of Saul, and that it references the persecutions which David experienced at that time; but most interpreters have assigned it to the time of Absalom‘s rebellion. The psalm may be divided into four parts:

I. An earnest prayer of the author to God to hear him; to listen to his cry, and to deliver him, verses: 1-3.

II. An expression of unwavering confidence in God as the protector and the friend of the righteous, and the enemy of all wickedness, verses 4-7.

III. A Prayer to God for His guidance and protection while he is under this duress, verses 8-10.

IV. An exhortation for all to put their trust in God, verses 11-12.

Commentary

1 Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my meditation.

Give ear to my words, O Lord.

We naturally incline the ear toward anyone when we wish to hear clearly what he says, and we turn away the ear when we do not. The meaning here is that David prayed that God honor him by listening to his prayer, that he would pay attention to his “words”—to what he was about to “express” as his great desire. He intended to convey only what he wished to be granted.

Consider my meditation

He calls his prayer his “meditation,” to signify that it was not merely words, but that it proceeded from, and was accompanied with, the deepest thoughts and most fervent cares of his soul.

He wanted the Lord to carefully think about what he called here his “meditation;” that is, he desired him not merely to listen to his “words,” but to the secret and unexpressed desires of his soul. The idea seems to be that while his words would be sincere and truthful, yet they could not express “all” he wanted to convey. There were desires of the soul which no language could convey—deep, unuttered “groanings” [“Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. (Romans 8:26-27).], which could not be expressed in language. It is not easy to determine the true meaning of the word translated “meditation,” but in all probability it refers to an internal emotion—an intense, passionate feeling—perhaps finding partial expression in sighs [Romans 8:26], but which does not find expression in words, and which words could not convey. He prayed that God would listen to the “entirety” of his soul’s desires—whether expressed or unexpressed.

David knew Him to be a prayer hearing God, Psalms 65:2, and that his ears were always open to hear complaints and requests: that’s why he had such great confidence in prayer.