Psalm 71
1In you, O Lord, I take refuge; let me never be put to shame.
2In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; incline your ear to me and save me.
3Be to me a rock of refuge, a strong fortress, to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress.
4Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of the unjust and cruel.
5For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O Lord, from my youth.
6Upon you I have leaned from my birth; it was you who took me from my mother’s womb. My praise is continually of you.
I am struck by David's words in this psalms. Mostly because they are so familiar. If you read the psalms, you will find that the theme of being delivered from one's enemies and the proclamation of God's deliverance and refuge are reoccurring themes throughout. What strikes me, however, is that this psalm is an "old man's cry for deliverance..." (New Oxford Annotated Bible, p. 708) David is still praying the same prayers...
One only has to peruse the biblical literature regarding the latter years of David's life to see why. It never ceases to amaze me that one of the Bible's greatest heroes is a man who is so human. This is a man whose life is mixed with awesome good, and horrific evil. One day he is slaying giants, the next he is committing murder. This is a man who has known God in all his glory, and also a man who has been acquainted with the worst of human depravity. A man who has straddled the best of human experience, and the worst.
In his last days, according to 1 Kings, he is lying in bed, unable to stay warm. He's already suffered the attempt of one son to overthrow his throne. Who can forget the harrowing tale of Absalom's vengeance upon Amnon for an incestuous relationship with his sister; his attempt to succor his father's throne by conspiring with David's enemies? Who can forget David's ejection from Jerusalem and his concubines being defiled by Absalom before all of Israel.
There's one scene in this drama that has always haunted me. It is one that depicts the depth of despair that David was feeling at this time. As he is fleeing, a man of Saul's lineage begins to follow them, pelting him with stones and cursing the King. One of his companions offers to kill the man for saying such things, but David says, "Behold, my own son seeks my life; how much more now this Benjamite! Let him alone, and let him curse; for the Lord has bidden him." (2 Sam 16:11) Obviously, the story does not end there, but in this verse we get a glimpse of the despair and uncertainty that he was feeling.
No one who has read the story can forget the battle that ensues to defeat Absalom. Absalom is finally defeated, but the picture of David, his father, weeping over Absalom's death is a portrait that words can not describe. The love of a father for a son who has done nothing but bring him grief and harm is the very essence of the gospel story.
But, now, even in old age, David's troubles are not over. For he's lying in bed, unaware that another attempt to overthrow his throne is underway; Adonijah, is attempting the same. This attempt is quashed and Solomon, David's illegitimate son of Bathsheba (please, don't overlook that statement), is ultimately anointed to take David's place. David dies and is buried in Bethlehem. The end of his life is a mixture of unbelievable goodness, feats accomplished unlike any of his successors, but it is also a story that is fraught with the horror of human weakness, failure, hurt, and pain.
And, so, we approach this Psalm 71 and realize that in the end stage of his life, he is praying the same prayers. "..deliver me...rescue me, be my rock and fortress..." How often, have we grown weary with praying the same prayers? How often do we find ourselves in the very same situations, facing the same demons, needing the same deliverance from the same God who has helped us time and time again?
Nothing has changed for David: he is still experiencing the same stress, the same troubles, fears, and insecurities. He is praying the same prayers at the end of his life as he prayed in his early years.
Obviously, David knew the right things to say; reading his psalms, one understands that this is a man who loved God; a man who understood God. Yet, even imbued with this knowledge, it did not insulate him from the horrors of his own depravity, and his inclination to do evil. It did not keep the bad things that happen in life away. It did not save him from the hurt and pain that is common to life.
I want to ask you a very sobering question today. What if life, as you know it, never changes? I think there are many, today, who seek religion as a refuge from life, as if faith is somehow going to insulate them from the pain and suffering that is indicative of so much of human existence; as if faith is going to keep the boogie man away... keep us from hurting...
There are many times in our lives when we find ourselves traveling the same rugged terrain, facing the same struggles, seeking refuge from the same hurt and pain. I wish it was easier than this. But, unfortunately, we are living in a real world where things do not always go our way. And, if that was the only thing we were conscious of, I don't think any of us could survive. Thus, the value of our faith...
Unfortunately, I think we encourage this compartmentalization of faith; a place where if we just get it right, everything will be peachy. "David fell off the wagon again--I don't think he will ever get it right." "Mary is having problems in her marriage again..." These pronouncements and others like theses can be heard in any given congregation the world over. If they just had faith... but the beauty of faith is that God is with David as much when he fails as when he gets it right. God is with Mary in her struggle...
I know some people will try and use this as a license--those types will always be with us, and God will always be with them. But, faith says that the same God who sustains us when we slay the giant is the very same God who is with us when the giant slays us. If King David's life means anything, it certainly proves this.
Recently, I have been reading up on some facets of what is known as liberation theology. Stories of men and women who, often, left lives of leisure to go and live in solidarity with those who are oppressed, lacking the basic necessities of survival. Many of them died, never really seeing any change. Hunger and starvation, oppression and injustice is still prevalent in a vast majority of the world. How did these great men and women sustain their effort in the face of so much to the contrary?
I am reminded of another of David's psalms: Where would I be if I did not believe I would experience the LORD’s favor in the land of the living? (Ps 27:13, WEB) This is the faith that sustains. I believe that while I may not always be where I want to be; I may not always experience the good of life and be as happy as I want to be, but I believe that there is a God, who has promised to be with me always. I know that he can change things; I know he is bigger than anything I face. I know, that He is just as much God when I am good as He is when I am bad. I know that His promise to be with me is just as valid when the world is spinning out of control and I do not know where to turn or what to do.
So, we pray the same prayers, we trust in the same deliverance and refuge; it's not a one time, everything is defeated experience. To the contrary, it's deliverance and refuge and security that we will need over and over again. Our enemies will rise again and again and again... David lying on his very death bed could not rest... but, be comforted this morning that God is with you! Keep praying, keep believing, keep hoping! Never forget for one moment, that God is right by your side, in the good and the bad. That is what David learned, that is what this psalms is teaching us today!
Oh God, may your presence sustain us in the good and bad times of life,
May we acknowledge you in every station of our lives,
may we never cease to believe that your goodness and love will be manifested in our world, even in the midst of human suffering. Amen
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