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The background of which David writes this Psalm is uncertain other than he was already a king (verse 6). This Psalm can be divided into two portions by the word, “Selah” into verses 1-4 and verses 5-8. Verse 1 is a cry to pray for God’s deliverance; we can deduce that the king is in a despairing situation whereby his heart has grown faint (verse 2). In the desperate condition, the Psalmist uses five metaphors – rock, refuge, tower, tent and wings to claim the promises of God concerning His attributes.
One significant image is how David asked God to lead him to the rock that was higher than him. In both biblical times and even in present battle strategy, the warring party who is on a higher ground takes on a favorable position of overcoming their opponents. In Ps 18:2, David says, “My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge.” He acknowledged his total dependence on God to help him win all his fight against his enemies. The other metaphors to describe God as His refuge, tower, tent and wings also echo this deep conviction of David’s trust in God.
Scholars are divided against the meaning of the Hebrew word, “Selah” that divides the two sections. But the expression ‘pause and calmly think about that” used by the Amplified Bible helps to bring some of these different meanings together. The metaphors that David employed to describe God’s protection and shelter over him certainly helped David to pause and acknowledge God in the midst of his troubling circumstances.
In the second section, David called to mind and asked God to remember the vows he had made to Him in verse 5. And verse 8 tells the readers that Daivd performed these vows every day. The readers can appreciate the kind of vows that David made from what He penned in this section. David was a godly king who feared God in his life (verse 5). It is a common desire for any king to reign for the longest time (verse 6); but more often than not it is for his own personal or selfish reasons. But David guarded his heart by being humble before God and prayed for God’s hesed (steadfast love) and faithfulness to prevail over his reign. David prayed and vowed about such things that pleased God.
Dear brothers and sisters, we may be going through a difficult patch in our life recently and perhaps we are also praying fervently to God for His help. From David’s example, we can use our current plight to evaluate the condition of our heart. Is God prompting you to return to Him in any aspect of your life that is not pleasing to Him? Second, let us learn to pray and claim upon the promises of God that He answers our prayers in accordance with His will and timing.
PRAYER
Deep within me, dear God, you know that I love you and I fear you. Please help me to live out my faith in honoring your name. I pray that you also help me not to be obsessed with how others view and think of me. You know the trouble that I am in - (pray and tell God what is happening to you…). You are my rock, refuge, tower, tent and wings. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
