1. Hear my voice, O God, in my prayer. It often helps devotion if we are able to use the voice and
speak audibly; but even mental prayer has a voice with God which he will hear.
We do not read that Moses had spoken with his lips at the Red Sea, and yet the
Lord said to him, “Why criest thou unto me?” Prayers which are unheard on
earth may be among the best heard in heaven. It is our duty to note how
constantly David turns to prayer; it is his battleaxe and weapon of war; he
uses it under every pressure, whether of inward sin or outward wrath, foreign
invasion or domestic rebellion. We shall act wisely if we make prayer to God
our first and best trusted resource in every hour of need. Preserve my life
from fear of the enemy. From harm and dread of harm protect me; or it may
be read as an expression of his assurance that it would be so: “from fear of
the foe thou wilt preserve me.” With all our sacrifices of prayer we should
offer the salt of faith.
2. Hide me from the secret counsel of the wicked. From their hidden snares hide me. Let their secrets be met
by thy secret providence, their counsels of malice by thy counsels of love.
When they think evil, let thy divine thoughts defeat them; and when they do
evil, let thy powerful justice overthrow them.
3. Who whet their tongue like a sword. Slander has ever been the master weapon of the good man’s
enemies, and great is the care of the malicious to use it effectively. As
warriors grind their swords, to give them an edge which will cut deep and wound
desperately, so do the unscrupulous invent falsehoods calculated to inflict
pain, to stab the reputation, to kill the honor of the righteous. And bend
their bows to shoot their arrows, even bitter words. Far off they dart
their calumnies. Insult, sarcasm, taunting defiance, nicknaming, all these were
practiced among Orientals as a kind of art; and if we are less addicted to the
use of rough abuse, the less apparent venom of the tongue inflicts none the
less poignant pain. However, in all cases, let us fly to the Lord for help.
Against sword or arrow, David used the one defense of faith in God.
4. That they may shoot in secret at the perfect. They lie in ambush, with bows ready. Sincere and upright
conduct will not secure us from the assaults of slander. The devil shot at our
Lord himself, and we may rest assured he has a fiery dart in reserve for us.
The malicious will not accept fair combat; they shun the open field and lie in
ambush against those who are not so acquainted with deceit as to suspect their
treachery. Suddenly do they shoot at him, and fear not. They give their
unsuspecting victim no chance of defending himself; they pounce on him like a
wild beast leaping on its prey. They lay their plans so warily that they fear
no detection. We have seen in daily life the arrow of calumny wounding its victim
sorely, and yet we have not been able to discover the quarter from which the
weapon was shot. An open liar is an angel compared with this demon.
5. They encourage themselves in an evil matter. Good men are frequently discouraged, and not infrequently
discourage one another, but the children of darkness are wise in their
generation and keep their spirits up, and each one has a cheering word to say
to his fellow villain. Anything by which they can strengthen each other’s hands
in their one common design they resort to. They commune of laying snares
privily. They know the benefit of cooperation, and are not sparing in it;
they teach each other fresh methods. They say, Who shall see them? Their
pitfalls are too well hidden, and themselves too carefully concealed, to be
found out. So they think, but they forget the all-seeing eye, and the
all-discovering hand, which are ever hard by them. Great plots are usually laid
bare. Among the conspirators themselves truth finds an ally, or the stones of
the field cry out against them. Let no Christian be in bondage through fear of
deep-laid schemes, for surely there is no enchantment against Jacob; the
devices of the wicked are foiled. The Lord is at your right hand, and you will
not be hurt by the enemy.
6. They search out iniquities. These are no common villains, but explorers in iniquity,
inventors and concoctors of evil. To ruin a good person the evil-disposed will
often show as much avidity as if they were searching after treasure. They
accomplish a diligent search. Their design is perfected, consummated, and
brought into working order. They have sought and found the sure method of
vengeance. Both the inward thought of every one of them, and the heart, is
deep. No superficial wit is theirs; but sagacity, sharpened by practice and
keen hatred. He who deals with the serpent’s seed has good need of the wisdom
which is from above. Alas, how dangerous is the believer’s condition, and how
readily may he be overcome if left to himself! This is the complaint of reason
and the moan of unbelief. When faith comes in, we see that even in all this the
saints are still secure, for they are all in the hands of God.
7. But God shall shoot at them with an arrow. A greater archer than they are will take sure aim at their
hearts. Suddenly shall they be wounded. While they were bending their
bows, the great Lord had prepared his bow already, and he let slip the shaft
when least they looked for such an unsparing messenger of justice. The
righteous need not learn the arts of self-defense or of attack; their
avengement is in better hands than their own.
8. So they shall make their own tongue to fall upon
themselves. Their slander will recoil. Their
curses will come home to roost. Their tongue will bring home to them full
punishment. All that see them shall flee away. Afraid, both of them and
their overthrow, their former friends will give them wide space, lest they
perish with them. Those who crowded round a powerful persecutor are among the
first to desert him in the day of wrath.
9. And all men shall fear. They will be filled with awe by the just judgments of God,
as the Canaanites were by the overthrow of Pharaoh at the Red Sea. Those who
might have been bold in sin will be made to tremble and to stand in awe of the
righteous Judge. All shall declare the work of God. It will become the
subject of general conversation. So strange, so pointed, so terrible will be
the Lord’s overthrow of the malicious that it will be spoken of in all
companies. They sinned secretly, but their punishment will be wrought before
the face of the sun. For they shall wisely consider of his doing. The
judgments of God are frequently so clear and manifest that people cannot
misread them, and if they have any thought at all they must extract the true
teaching from them. Some of the divine judgments are a great deep, but in the
case of malicious persecutors the matter is plain enough.
10. The righteous shall be glad in the Lord.
Admiring his justice and fully acquiescing in its displays, they will also
rejoice at the rescue of injured innocence, and yet, their joy will not be
selfish or sensual, but altogether in reference to the Lord. And shall trust
in him. Their observation of providence will increase their faith, since he
who fulfills his threatenings will not forget his promise. And all the
upright in heart shall glory. The victory of the oppressed will be the
victory of all upright men; the whole host of the elect will rejoice in the
triumph of virtue. While strangers fear, the children are glad in view of their
Father’s power and justice.
Excerpt from:
The Treasury of David
By Charles H Spurgeon
