In The Word
Read: Psalm 31
A Psalm of Complaint and of Praise.
For the music director. A Psalm of David.
31 In You, Lord, I have taken refuge;
Let me never be put to shame;
In Your righteousness rescue me.
2 Incline Your ear to me, rescue me quickly;
Be a rock of strength for me,
A stronghold to save me.
3 For You are my rock and my fortress;
For the sake of Your name You will lead me and guide me.
4 You will pull me out of the net which they have secretly laid for me,
For You are my strength.
5 Into Your hand I entrust my spirit;
You have redeemed me, Lord, God of truth.
6 I hate those who devote themselves to worthless idols,
But I trust in the Lord.
7 I will rejoice and be glad in Your faithfulness,
Because You have seen my misery;
You have known the troubles of my soul,
8 And You have not handed me over to the enemy;
You have set my feet in a large place.
9 Be gracious to me, Lord, for I am in distress;
My eye is wasted away from grief, my soul and my body too.
10 For my life is spent with sorrow
And my years with sighing;
My strength has failed because of my guilt,
And my body has wasted away.
11 Because of all my adversaries, I have become a disgrace,
Especially to my neighbors,
And an object of dread to my acquaintances;
Those who see me in the street flee from me.
12 I am forgotten like a dead person, out of mind;
I am like a broken vessel.
13 For I have heard the slander of many,
Terror is on every side;
While they took counsel together against me,
They schemed to take away my life.
14 But as for me, I trust in You, Lord,
I say, “You are my God.”
15 My times are in Your hand;
Rescue me from the hand of my enemies and from those who persecute me.
16 Make Your face shine upon Your servant;
Save me in Your faithfulness.
17 Let me not be put to shame, Lord, for I call upon You;
Let the wicked be put to shame, let them be silent in Sheol.
18 Let the lying lips be speechless,
Which speak arrogantly against the righteous
With pride and contempt.
19 How great is Your goodness,
Which You have stored up for those who fear You,
Which You have performed for those who take refuge in You,
Before the sons of mankind!
20 You hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the conspiracies of mankind;
You keep them secretly in a shelter from the strife of tongues.
21 Blessed be the Lord,
For He has shown His marvelous faithfulness to me in a besieged city.
22 As for me, I said in my alarm,
“I am cut off from Your eyes”;
Nevertheless You heard the sound of my pleadings
When I called to You for help.
23 Love the Lord, all His godly ones!
The Lord watches over the faithful
But fully repays the one who acts arrogantly.
24 Be strong and let your heart take courage,
All you who wait for the Lord.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
Walking In The Word
Many scholars believe this to be one of the psalms written during the time in David’s life when he was fleeing from King Saul. David opened up by expressing his trial, his distress, his attacks, and his persecutions. Through all this, we see in Psalm 31:14 that David chose to trust in the Lord. David showed us with his life how he held onto faith. He had a promise from God to be established as king, and, at this time, all he had was that promise. David held onto his faith in God believing that His promise would eventually come to pass. David encouraged others who felt the same, even before his promise was fulfilled: “Be strong and let your heart take courage, all you who hope in the Lord” (Psalm 31:24). As you know from scripture, God did as He promised and made David King.
Hebrews 11 tells us that faith is the assurance of things hoped for and the conviction of things not seen. Trusting God is part of our faith-walk. If we believe this to be a “conviction,” then we must choose to exercise that conviction through faith. Maybe God has spoken something to you that has not yet come to pass. I encourage you not to lose hope. Hold onto your faith like David, trust in God, and watch God’s promises come to pass; then you will be able to encourage others and model for others how to trust in the Lord.