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Psalm, Chapter 57

Prayer for Rescue from Persecutors.

For the choir director; set to [a]Al-tashheth. A [b]Mikhtam of David, [c]when he fled from Saul in the cave.

57 Be gracious to me, O God, be gracious to me,
 For my soul takes refuge in You;
 And in the shadow of Your wings I will take refuge
 Until destruction passes by.

-          The title of this message is Prayer for Rescue from Persecutors

o   It brings to the front line our need to pray for rescue (we need to be rescured)

o   It also brings to mind “from persecutors” all Christians have persecutors (those who are trying to cause us trouble to damage our Christian testimony)

-          For the choir director

o   This means it was meant to be a song and the worship leaders were to encourage God’s people to sing this song for a specific reason

-          Set to Al-tashheth (Al-tashheth means “destroy not” or “do not destroy”

-          A Mikhtam (Mikhtam means “golden thing that covers or hides” or “precious tablet inscription” the idea is so precious of words it warrants being engraved. A psalm precious as stamped gold)

-          When he fled from Saul in the cave

o   David means “beloved” but also “weak” or “flowing”

o   Saul means “to ask” or “ask for”

-          Consider this

o   We have prayer for rescue from persecutors

o   Then we have Al-tashheth (do not destroy), then David (beloved), then Saul (asked for or to ask)

o   Everything points towards the beloved of God who are weak asking God to help!

-          What is the thing you are afraid of today that makes you want to run and hide in a cave?

o   It’s time to ask God to rescue you because you are His beloved!

-          Now David shows us how to do it

o   Be gracious to me, O God, be gracious to me

o   The first thing David asked is for God to be gracious to him

o   grace is absolutely the thing we need (it is unearned, undeserved favor)

o   he repeats the phrase twice be gracious to me; be gracious to me; apparently David wants to make sure God heard this request so he repeated it

§  so too sometimes we need to repeat our request to God multiple times

§  that does not mean he did not hear you the first time

§  it means sometimes you have to say it multiple times to get to the place of faith where you will believe that he heard you and that he will answer

-          for my soul takes refuge in you

o   your soul is the part of you that lasts forever

o   David says his soul is taking refuge in God

o   a refuge is a safe harbor or a safe place

§  it is a place that you can run to in your protected from all harm

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Psalm, Chapter 56

Supplication for Deliverance and Grateful Trust in God.

For the choir director; according to [a]Jonath elem rehokim. A [b]Mikhtam of David, [c]when the Philistines seized him in Gath.

56 Be gracious to me, O God, for man has [d]trampled upon me;
[e]Fighting all day long he oppresses me.

-          The title of this message is supplication for deliverance and grateful trust in God

-          the word supplication means an urgent request (it is a form of urgent prayer)

-          this prayer As for deliverance (this means to be delivered from a bad outcome to a good one)

-          and grateful trust in God (When you put your trust in God you will have much to be grateful for)

-          For the choir director (the one who is supposed to encourage praise)

-          According to Jonath Elem Rehokim (the silent dove of far-off places)

-          A Mikhtam of David

o   The name Mikhtam means “golden thing that covers or hides” or “precious tablet inscription” the idea is so precious of words it warrants being engraved. A psalm precious as stamped gold

-          When the Philistines seized him in Gath

o   When was this? 1 Sam 21: 10-15

o   Remember David pretended to be insane… so Saul would let him go…

-          So here is what we have in this title

o   The choir director (The worship leader)

o   The silent dove of far-off places (the Holy Spirit)

o   David (beloved)

o   Mikhtam (tablet worth inscribing in gold – The Word)

o   Philistines (seeker of wisdom & knowledge)

o   Gath (winepress)

o   Praise God He sent the Holy Spirit to His beloved and The Word to those seeking wisdom & knowledge to learn of the winepress (the blood of the lamb that takes away the sins of the world)

-          Now that was just from the title

-          now beginning in verse one:

-          be gracious to me. oh God. For man has trampled upon me

o   we need God's grace because we have been trampled upon too

-          fighting all day long he oppresses me

o   This is a picture of world demand fighting against godly men

o   but it's also a picture of the flesh fighting with the spirit all day long

2 My foes have [f]trampled upon me all day long,
For [g]they are many who fight proudly against me.

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Psalm, Chapter 55

Prayer for the Destruction of the Treacherous.

For the choir director; on stringed instruments. A [a]Maskil of David.

55 Give ear to my prayer, O God;
 And do not hide Yourself from my supplication.

-          The title of this message is prayer for the destruction of the treacherous

-          it's interesting that this is a prayer for the destruction of certain people

-          The key to understanding this is the meaning of treacherous

o   guilty of or involving betrayal or deception

o   Those engaged in treachery are intentionally misleading someone to trick them so that they receive the opposite of what they think they will

o   that would obviously be a very evil thing to do: therefore, the people that do this would be evil (Intentionally deceiving others to cause harm)

o   Apparently David has reached a place in his heart where he wants these treacherous people destroyed (he is sick of the damage they are causing)

§  this may sound familiar to some of you listening today

-          for the choir director; on stringed instruments

o   this means for the person in charge of directing the choir (that means leading them to sing for a specific purpose in unison)

o   on stringed instruments means that they were playing instruments like harps or guitars or the Lyre

o   It seems odd to put such words to song and yet when God does destroy those that are treacherous it can bring great joy to those of us who are sick and tired of watching it happen

-          it is a Maskil of David

o   a masculine is something that was previous wisdom or knowledge gained

o   it is a saying (often from the Bible)

o   he had experienced in real life by men or women who know it to be true

2 Give heed to me and answer me;
 I am restless in my complaint and [b]am surely distracted,
3 Because of the voice of the enemy,
 Because of the pressure of the wicked;
 For they bring down [c]trouble upon me
And in anger they bear a grudge against me.

-          Give heed to me and answer me (notice that David wants God's attention)

o   he is asking the guard would give heed to him which means to listen to him

o   and then he's asking God to answer him

o   there seems to be a confident certainty in the way that David asks these two things of God

o   do you have a certain degree of certainty when you ask God for anything?

§  do you expect that he will hear you?

§  do you expect that he will answer you?

-          I am restless in my complaint and I'm surely distracted

o   David says he is restless and distracted

o   so too, sometimes we often become restless about something that's really bothering us

o   if we think about it too often it can distract us from things that God actually wants us to do

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54 Save me, O God, by Your name,
 And vindicate me by Your power.

-          Prayer for Defense against Enemies

o   Sometimes we need to prayer for defense against our enemies

 We never face our enemies alone because in instant you may enter the throne room of God ask Him to defend you!

  It is like having the most powerful army in all the universe and you can come to the commander in chief and ask Him to defend you!

- -          A Maskil of David

o   A Maskil is Jewish wisdom or sayings from men who studied the bible

o   And men who had experienced life long enough to know God’s word is true

-          When the Ziphites came and said to Saul

o   Is not David hiding himself among us?

o   The Ziphites were snitches

  They kept telling Saul where David was so he could kill him

  Twice they went to Saul at Gibeah and told him where David was hiding

 (I Sam. 23 :19; 26 :1)

§  The Ziphites were loyal to man’s power not God’s will (very unwise)

-          Is not David hiding himself among us?

o   David was constantly hiding from Saud and his followers because they wanted to kill David (it is a picture of how the devil roams about seeking whom he may devour)

2 Hear my prayer, O God;
 Give ear to the words of my mouth.

-          Notice David’s response to this situation

-          Hear my prayer, O God

o   David immediately goes into prayer to His God!

o   This is exactly what we need to do in times of trouble

o   Notice he stats by asking God to hear his prayer (he asking for attention)

o   When was the last time you asked God to hear your prayer?

o   When was the last time you asked God for His attention?

-          Give ear to the words of my mouth

o   David is asking with specificity

o   He wants God to bend His ear toward him to listen to the words of his mouth

o   He asking for Almighty God to listen the words of a singular, puny, undeserving man

  Sometimes we think God is to big or too important to hear our tiny little mouths from our unworthy and humble little state of being.

§  Yet David is not asking in vain; He expects God to listen

·         Do you expect that God Almighty will actual stop what He is doing and listen to poor little old you?

§  David is expecting God Almighty not only to listen but to answer him

·         Do you expect an answer to your current prayer?

·         Or do you think God is too busy or doesn’t care?

·         The key to answered prayer is “faith” that God hears & answers

·         If He didn’t why would He say “pray without ceasing”?

§  It is very impressive that God Almighty would want to actually hear the words of David’s mouth or ours but He does!

·         What a Loving Creator & Father!

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Psalm, Chapter 53

Foolishness and Wickedness of People.

For the music director; according to [a]Mahalath. A [b]Maskil of David.

53 The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”

-        The title of this chapter is foolishness and wickedness of people

-        foolishness and wickedness always go together

-        people who are wicked are very foolish (because judgment day is coming)

-        this song was written for the music director (in other words it's a song)

-        to Mahalath. A Maskil of David

o   Mahalath means sickness, sad song, writhe

o   Mahalath is also the daughter of Ishmael (He Will Hear God)

-        It is a maskil of David

o   A Maskil is a saying of an enlightened man, a scholar (Jewish wisdom)

-        The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God”

o   Anyone denies the existence of God is a fool (that what the Word says)

o   If you can look a new born baby being born without fearing God – you are a fool

o   If you can look at the biochemistry of a human being and not fear God – you are a fool

o   If you can look up into the heavens and see the glorious lights, shapes and sizes and begin to comprehend the enormity of the universe an yet you don’t believe in God – you are a fool.

o   If can see geometric patterns in flowers and colors and smell their beautiful scent or watch a hummingbird flutter about them while appearing still and yet you don’t believe in God – you are a fool.

-        You can’t take apart our timex watch (about 1,200 pieces) and shake it for 6 billion years and tell me that it will come out a watch ticking on time because it takes intelligent design and assembly – so never say or thing “there is no God” or you are a fool!

 They are corrupt and have committed abominable injustice;
 There is no one who does good.

-        They are corrupt, and I've committed abominable injustice

o   this is a very clear description of why some people don't believe in God

o   it is because they are corrupt

§  having or showing a willingness to act dishonestly in return for money or personal gain

o   And have committed abominable injustice

§  notice they have committed (they are steep and deep in their sin)

§  abominable means “worthy of or causing disgust or hatred”

§  this means God is disgusted with them

§  they cause injustice (the opposite of justice)

§  evil intent to deceive and harm on purpose

-        There is no one who does good

o   God said that there is not one who does good

o   He is speaking about those who do not believe in God

o   some people say well I might not believe in God but I'm a good person

§  according to scripture there is not one who does good (without faith in God)

o   not one means not any (not a single one)

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Psalm, Chapter 52

Futility of Boastful Wickedness.

For the choir director. A [a]Maskil of David, [b]when Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul and said to him, “David has come to the house of Ahimelech.”

52 Why do you boast in evil, O mighty man?
 The lovingkindness of God endures all day long.

-          The title of this message is Futility of Boastful Wickedness

-          Futility means pointless or useless

-          Boastful means showing excessive pride and self-satisfaction in one’s achievements, possessions, or abilities

-          Wickedness means the quality of being evil or morally wrong

-          Its useless evil people to boast about their achievements or possessions (because they will all burn up quickly)

-          A Maskil of David, when Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul and said to him “David has come to the house of Ahimelech”

o   A Maskil (saying of Jewish Wisdom) of David (beloved) when Doeg (unpleasant servant of Saul) the Edomite (red, muddy) came and told Saul (asked for, prayed for) sand said to him “David (beloved) has come to the house of Ahimelech (My brother is King; Brother of the King)

o   Jewish wisdom speaks of the beloved, in servitude of the flesh, became red mud (covered by the blood) when they prayed, and came to house of their brother the King)

o   Doeg was a snitch, he told Saul that David fled to the house of Ahimelech who prayed for David and helped David by feeding him the show bread to prevent him and his men from starving. Doeg was loyal to King Saul who wanted David dead at the time.  Saul commanded that Doeg go and kill Ahimelech and those who helped David.

o   This chapter is a song and wisdom about what should be done about an evil man who causes much harm to God’s people

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Psalm, Chapter 51

A Contrite Sinner’s Prayer for Pardon.

For the choir director. A Psalm of David, when [a]Nathan the prophet came to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.

51 Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness;
 According to the greatness of Your compassion blot out my transgressions.

-        The title of this message is a contrite sinners prayer for pardon

-        the first attribute to note is contrite

o   feeling or expressing remorse or penitence; affected by guilt:

o   "a broken and a contrite heart"

-        The second attribute to note is that it is a sinners prayer

o   this means that the person who sends recognizes his sin and considers himself a Sinner

-        the third attribute of this title is that this contrite Sinner is praying for pardon

o   this means he is asking for forgiveness (with the correct attitude of heart)

-        It is a Psalm of David when Nathan the prophet came to him

o   David means “beloved”

o   Nathan means “he gives”

o   This is a picture of how God will give mercy to his beloved children if they repent from their sin and ask with a contrite heart

-        after he had gone in to Bathsheba

o   Bathsheba means daughter of an oath

o   This is a picture of her status as married woman

-        The prophet Nathan had come in and explained to David the king that there was a man who had a herd of sheep and other animals but he coveted the one sheep, the only sheep that his neighbor owned. so the man who owned herds of sheep took the man’s sheep who only owned one.  David became enraged and said this man should be killed. Nathan then explain that the man in this story was King David and that the one sheep that he took which belonged to another man was Bathsheba. David was cut to the heart because he knew he had sinned and had tried to cover it up by having Uriah move to the front lines and killed. Now God's prophet shows up and tells him that God knows what he did in that he told it to Nathan.

-        all of these things are what we learn merely from the title; now we get into the chapter:

-        be gracious to me, oh God, according to your loving kindness

o   grace is an extraordinary type of love that gives someone something they do not deserve (it is the opposite of what they do deserve)

o   David is asking for God to be gracious to him and to do so according to his loving kindness (this was a tall order to ask considering his sin)

o   but we all must remember that worse in abounds grace did abound much more

-        according to the greatness of your compassion blot out my transgressions

o   David is recognizing the greatness of God's compassion

o   thank God he is compassionate and understands that sometimes we give in to the flesh

o   in this first David is recognizing that he has a big stain caused by his sin and he once got to blot it out (wash it away)

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Psalm, Chapter 50

God, the Judge of the Righteous and the Wicked

50 The Mighty One, God, the Lord, has spoken
 And summoned the earth, from [b]the rising of the sun to its setting.

-        The title of this message is God, the judge of the righteous and the wicked

-        it's important to note that he is the judge of both the righteous and the wicked

-        we will give an account of ourselves

o   those who put their faith in Jesus will be rewarded

o   those who refused to believe in Jesus will be judged harshly

-        this is a Psalm of Asaph

o   Asaph means gatherer or collector

o   God will gather us all together and separate the wheat from the chaff

-        The mighty one, God, the Lord, has spoken

o   when God has spoken - it's final (you can count on this)

-        and summoned the earth, from the rising of the sun to its setting

o   this means from the east to the West and everything in between

o   to summon the earth means everyone in it

 2 Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,
 God has shone.

-        This is a picture of Jesus returning to earth in all His glory

-        He comes riding on a White Horse

 3 May our God come and not keep silent;
 Fire devours before Him,
 And a storm is violently raging around Him.

-        May our God come and not keep silent

o   this means come now and Lord

-        fire devours before him

o   fire is always a picture of judgment (it burns up everything that is ungodly)

-        and his storm is violently raging around him

o   this is a clear indication of His power and might

o   He often travels with clouds and Thunder and lightning

o   in other words his appearance well leave people awestruck

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Psalm, Chapter 49

The Foolishness of Trusting in Riches.

For the music director. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.

49 Hear this, all peoples;
 Listen, all inhabitants of the world,
 2 Both low and high,
 Rich and poor together.

-          Yesterday we read chapter 48 together then we caught a fresh vision of the new Jerusalem a 1500 mile cube floating over Jerusalem with the glory of Jesus Christ lighting up the whole earth from inside (it's hard to come back to planet earth)

-          the title of this message is the foolishness of trusting in riches

o   foolishness means that you think you are the smart one in the room but it will soon be revealed that you are a fool (which means you really never knew anything)

o   trusting in riches is the opposite of wisdom and it's foolish

-          once again this message is for the music director (the one who is supposed to encourage God's people to praise)

-          and it is a Psalm of the sons of Korah

o   The sons of Korah We're super grateful because they were born into an evil family who tried to take over for Moses and the ground opened up and swallowed them alive and closed itself. the sons of Korah were spared by God and seven generations later we find them leading worship in the Tabernacle; therefore, they are exceedingly grateful having come out of such a dark hole into the glorious light of the king of kings.

-          hear this, all peoples, listen, all inhabitants of the world

o   this is the sound of the trumpet trying to get your attention

o   you need to hear this, I need to hear this, all people need to hear this

o   and not just hear but to listen (you can hear a sound but it doesn't mean you're listening to it; to listen to it means you are listening with the intent to understand)

o   Are you ready to listen with the intent to understand today?

-          both low and high, rich and poor together

o   this is draw your attention that it doesn't make a difference about your position in this life whether you have a low position or a high position

o   it also does not matter whether you are rich or poor

o   the truth is we are all in the same bucket and we all need to listen to this

3 My mouth will speak wisdom,
 And the meditation of my heart will be understanding.

-          My mouth will speak wisdom 

o   if your mouth is to speak wisdom and is going to speak the word of God

-          and the meditation of my heart will be understanding

o   this means that you will receive God's word in your heart where you will allow it to shape your thinking in your life to the level you make different decisions in alignment with God's will for you.

o   wisdom is to know some fact and to decide wisely based on what you have learned

o   understanding means that you understand the reason behind the wisdom and the result of making bad or good choices

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Psalm, Chapter 48

The Beauty and Glory of Zion.

A Song; a Psalm of the sons of Korah.

48 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised,
 In the city of our God, His holy mountain.

-          The title of this message is beauty and glory of Zion

o   beauty means it's something beautiful to look at

o   glory means that it shines with the light from God

o   Zion is a reference to the place where the new Jerusalem will hover over the earth a 1500 mile cube made of precious stones with Jesus Christ himself lighting it up like a Christmas tree (providing light to the whole earth)

o   this is also a picture of heaven

-          This chapter is a song 

-          It was a song and a Psalm of the sons of Korah

o   we remembered the sons of korah were the Super grateful sons who God had grace and mercy on and he adopted them out of an evil family who were killed and swallowed up by the earth and then covered up alive. these sons continued to live and produce other sons; finally, after seven generations the sons of Cora became the leaders of music and praise in the Tabernacle.

o   they're let alone love gratitude was exceedingly great when they understood the evil family they came from in the beautiful position of grace they find themselves in now - This is why they're going to sing this song!

-          now in verse one the song begins

-          great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised

o   great is the Lord means that he is the greatest that has ever lived or ever will

o   and greatly to be praised means the has done more for us that he won ever has or ever will

o   his greatness there's something to behold (it is grander than your imagination)

-          in the city of our God, his holy mountain

o   the city of our God is a city that is not made by human hands

§  again it is a 1500 mile cube made of precious stones that comes down from heaven and floats above the earth

o   his holy mountain describes the high place in Israel where the new Jerusalem is supposed to float over. but it also speaks of strength and power and size and glory

2 Beautiful in elevation, the joy of the whole earth,
 Is Mount Zion in the far north,
The city of the great King.

-          Beautiful in elevation

o   this means it's high and lofty and amazing like a mountain covered with snow

-          The joy of the whole earth

o   it's like a giant diamond or a giant jewel it's something amazing to behold and look at (I'm imagining something shining brighter than the brightest diamond the size of the mountain)

-          is Mount Zion in the far north

o   Mount Zion again is a specific place in Jerusalem where God promised that when he returns he would come back and rule and reign from there

o   this will be the site of the new Jerusalem, the 1500 mile cube of precious stones

o   inside will be many mansions of which we shall have our own and we will live inside it with Jesus Christ our Lord and savior who lights up this cube like a light bulb and lights the entire earth from it 24/7 with no darkness

-          the city of the great king

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