Rock of Salvation
Psalm 18:1-3,
While much of this that is written by David here in Psalm 18 is also found in 2 Samuel 22 when it was first written, as a song of praise to the LORD. Praise from David as he reflected upon the many times that the Lord had delivered him from his enemies, and from Saul the king of Israel, who had been pursuing him. In this song of praise, David sees and acknowledges that it is the Lord. The Lord, who is the one who is his strength in times of adversity. And that strength which comes from the Lord is then described in verse 2 of Psalm 18 using many different pictures. First, you might notice that David describes the Lord as my rock. He does this twice, likely thinking of the many times that David ran to and sought refuge in the rocks and the caves in the wilderness as he hid from Saul and his armies. A rock. It brings to mind a picture of a place of safety and protection from his enemies. But there's also a picture of security and certainty as a rock is stable and immovable, always present, never failing.
In addition to the Lord being pictured as a rock, David uses other pictures to emphasize and to reinforce the safety and the protection provided by the Lord. The Lord is pictured as his fortress and his stronghold; a well-fortified defensive position that provides protection; a place to flee to for safety when under attack by the enemy. The Lord is also pictured as a shield, an individual piece of armor that was of great importance in any battle used to provide protection against the weapons of the enemy. The Lord is also pictured as the horn of my salvation; perhaps alluding to the horns of animals that are used to protect themselves when being attacked.
In addition to these objects of safety and protection, the Lord is pictured as my deliverer. For it is the Lord, it is the Lord who is the one that rescued David. David understands that his deliverance from Saul and from all of his enemies is solely and completely attributed to the Lord. It was not by David's strength, it was by the strength of the Lord that David is delivered. And in all of these pictures we should not lose sight of the personal connection that David has with the Lord. He writes, “The Lord is my rock, the Lord is my fortress, my deliverer, my shield, my stronghold, the horn of my salvation.” And most importantly, I would suggest that he writes that the Lord is my God. David had a personal relationship with the Lord. The Lord was David's God, He was the one to whom David trusted and the one in whom David worshipped.
I think it's interesting to notice that when the song of praise was initially written by David, as recorded in 2 Samuel 22, it did not include verse 1, which appears here in Psalm 18. That verse reads, “I love you, O Lord, my strength.” Some believe that this verse was added by David at a later time when he gave this song of praise to the choir master to be sung. Perhaps he did this to emphasize that and express his great love for the Lord, as he reflected upon the Lord's great mercy and kindness to him in the many acts of deliverance. As one man wrote,
To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, the servant of the Lord, who addressed the words of this song to the Lord on the day when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul. He said, “I love you, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, and I'm saved from my enemies.”
While much of this that is written by David here in Psalm 18 is also found in 2 Samuel 22 when it was first written, as a song of praise to the LORD. Praise from David as he reflected upon the many times that the Lord had delivered him from his enemies, and from Saul the king of Israel, who had been pursuing him. In this song of praise, David sees and acknowledges that it is the Lord. The Lord, who is the one who is his strength in times of adversity. And that strength which comes from the Lord is then described in verse 2 of Psalm 18 using many different pictures. First, you might notice that David describes the Lord as my rock. He does this twice, likely thinking of the many times that David ran to and sought refuge in the rocks and the caves in the wilderness as he hid from Saul and his armies. A rock. It brings to mind a picture of a place of safety and protection from his enemies. But there's also a picture of security and certainty as a rock is stable and immovable, always present, never failing.
In addition to the Lord being pictured as a rock, David uses other pictures to emphasize and to reinforce the safety and the protection provided by the Lord. The Lord is pictured as his fortress and his stronghold; a well-fortified defensive position that provides protection; a place to flee to for safety when under attack by the enemy. The Lord is also pictured as a shield, an individual piece of armor that was of great importance in any battle used to provide protection against the weapons of the enemy. The Lord is also pictured as the horn of my salvation; perhaps alluding to the horns of animals that are used to protect themselves when being attacked.
In addition to these objects of safety and protection, the Lord is pictured as my deliverer. For it is the Lord, it is the Lord who is the one that rescued David. David understands that his deliverance from Saul and from all of his enemies is solely and completely attributed to the Lord. It was not by David's strength, it was by the strength of the Lord that David is delivered. And in all of these pictures we should not lose sight of the personal connection that David has with the Lord. He writes, “The Lord is my rock, the Lord is my fortress, my deliverer, my shield, my stronghold, the horn of my salvation.” And most importantly, I would suggest that he writes that the Lord is my God. David had a personal relationship with the Lord. The Lord was David's God, He was the one to whom David trusted and the one in whom David worshipped.
I think it's interesting to notice that when the song of praise was initially written by David, as recorded in 2 Samuel 22, it did not include verse 1, which appears here in Psalm 18. That verse reads, “I love you, O Lord, my strength.” Some believe that this verse was added by David at a later time when he gave this song of praise to the choir master to be sung. Perhaps he did this to emphasize that and express his great love for the Lord, as he reflected upon the Lord's great mercy and kindness to him in the many acts of deliverance. As one man wrote,
"As the love of God is the beginning of all our mercies, so should our love to God be the end and the effect of our receiving the Lord's mercies."
This love of David, this love was an intense, deep, passionate, heartfelt love for the Lord. For it was the Lord, he knew, who was the one who preserved him, who protected him, who sustained him in the face of the many trials that he encountered.
And it is with this in mind that David then moves to prayer in verse 3. He writes, “I call upon the Lord who is worthy to be praised and I am saved from my enemies.” As David comes before the Lord in prayer, he begins with praise, “Praise the Lord, for He is worthy to be praised.” For the Lord is David's God. He is his Lord, he is the one that he loves. And so David praises the Lord. Not only does he praise the Lord, but he also comes to the Lord with confidence; confidence knowing that it is the Lord who protects, the Lord who preserves, the Lord who delivers. He has done it in the past, He will do so again, He is the Lord, He is the Lord who saves. And although we may never be chased by armies into the wilderness, armies that are sent out by the king, seeking our destruction, but we do face many enemies, many trials, many afflictions in our lives.
So, may we always remember as God's people, that we have a personal God; a God who is our strength who is our place of safety, who provides us protection, who is the one who will deliver us. Let us be ready to run to the Lord, run to Him in prayer, for it is his strength that we need in times of adversity. Let us come to Him with hearts full of love, love for the Lord who is our God, who knows us, who cares for us and who protects us. And let us come with praise to the Lord, for we know that he has already delivered us from our greatest of enemies. The Lord has saved us already, and He will certainly continue to preserve us and uphold us and protect us. Therefore, let us love the Lord, for He is our strength.
So as we come to pray, may this song of praise of David and his prayer in Psalm 18 encourage us to come to the Lord with praise; praise for our God, for what He has done for us. But also come to God with confidence; confidence in our God as we pray to Him, for he has answered our prayers in the past and surely He will answer our prayers as we pray.
And it is with this in mind that David then moves to prayer in verse 3. He writes, “I call upon the Lord who is worthy to be praised and I am saved from my enemies.” As David comes before the Lord in prayer, he begins with praise, “Praise the Lord, for He is worthy to be praised.” For the Lord is David's God. He is his Lord, he is the one that he loves. And so David praises the Lord. Not only does he praise the Lord, but he also comes to the Lord with confidence; confidence knowing that it is the Lord who protects, the Lord who preserves, the Lord who delivers. He has done it in the past, He will do so again, He is the Lord, He is the Lord who saves. And although we may never be chased by armies into the wilderness, armies that are sent out by the king, seeking our destruction, but we do face many enemies, many trials, many afflictions in our lives.
So, may we always remember as God's people, that we have a personal God; a God who is our strength who is our place of safety, who provides us protection, who is the one who will deliver us. Let us be ready to run to the Lord, run to Him in prayer, for it is his strength that we need in times of adversity. Let us come to Him with hearts full of love, love for the Lord who is our God, who knows us, who cares for us and who protects us. And let us come with praise to the Lord, for we know that he has already delivered us from our greatest of enemies. The Lord has saved us already, and He will certainly continue to preserve us and uphold us and protect us. Therefore, let us love the Lord, for He is our strength.
So as we come to pray, may this song of praise of David and his prayer in Psalm 18 encourage us to come to the Lord with praise; praise for our God, for what He has done for us. But also come to God with confidence; confidence in our God as we pray to Him, for he has answered our prayers in the past and surely He will answer our prayers as we pray.
Posted in Pastor Devotional