Psalm 21

SLIDE 1 I’ve got a couple of questions for you. First question: How often do you ask God for help? God wants us to ask. Through the prophet Isaiah, God tells us: SLIDE 2

2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. SLIDE 3 When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. 3 For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. (Isaiah 43:2-3a)

God says he will be there for us when we need him.

SLIDE 4 Ronnie Miller tells about going fishing for cat fish with some friends. There were four of them in two flat bottom aluminum boats. Ronnie’s friend’s boat had a motor, but his didn’t. The four of them would head out just as the sun was going down and anchor just above some rough water. From there they would cast downstream. It must have been a good place to fish because Ronnie says they always caught something.

One evening it had gotten dark. The only way for them to know how close they were to the rough shoals was from the sound of the water running over the rocks. As you can probably guess, Ronnie allowed his boat to get too close to the shoals and his boat took off. Ronnie was too concerned, but the guy in the boat with him immediately began to yell, “I can’t swim. I can’t swim. I’m going to die. Help! Help!”

The guys from the other boat tried throwing Ronnie a line but they weren’t able to catch it. Finally, Ronnie says he decided he would get out of the boat and try to drag it to shore. When he did he found the water was only about three feet deep. But his friend was still in boat yelling and frantically padding throwing water ten feet in the air and almost hitting Ronnie in the head. Ronnie held onto the boat until the other one pulled up beside them and threw them a line. You can understand why Ronnie says they don’t let the guy live that one down. He was terrified he was going to drown in water he could have easily have walked out of. Of course when it’s dark and you can’t see, it seems much scarier than it actually is.

In Isaiah, God says when we go through deep waters that he will be with us. When you go through rivers of difficulty, we will not drown because he is our salvation. All we need to do is call to him for help.

So how often do you call on God for help? Do you ask God for help when you have meeting you’re dreading and ask God for guidance? Do you ask God for help when you have a test at the doctor’s office and you’re not sure what the results will be? The truth is we always need God’s help.

You may have heard this morning prayer asking God for help:

Dear Lord, so far I’ve done all right. I haven’t gossiped, haven’t lost my temper, haven’t been greedy, grumpy, nasty, selfish, or overindulgent. I’m really glad about that. However, in a few minutes I’m going to get out of bed and from then on I’m going to need a lot more help.

God tells us to turn to him for help.

Second question: How often to you thank God for the help he’s given you?

Turn to Psalm 21. Two weeks ago we looked at Psalm 20. As a reminder, I said that these two psalms are connected. Psalm 20 is believed to be a prayer for a king as he prepared for battle and asked God for help. I divided the Psalm 20, with only nine verses into two main sections: our requests of God and our response. We pray that God will: SLIDE 5

Answer and protect

Help and support

Remember and accept

Bless

SLIDE 6 Our response it to trust him. I wish that were as easy to do as it is to say. It is easy to trust God when things are easy and going our way, but it becomes more difficult when life becomes difficult. Regardless of whether we can see God moving on our behalf, we are to trust him. We trust that he loves us and will do what is best in our lives for his glory.

SLIDE 7 Psalm 21 is a psalm of thanks as David returned from battle. Concerning these two psalms Alexander Maclaren wrote:

There [Psalm 20] the people prayed for the king; here [Psalm 21] they give thanks for him: there they asked that his desires might be fulfilled; here they bless Jehovah, who has fulfilled them: there the battle was impending; here it has been won, though foes are still in the field.

It has been suggested that the psalms were written by David’s before and after his battle with the Ammonites. The Ammonites were descendants of Lot’s youngest daughter. The Israelites had fought with the Ammonites since the time of the judges. This particular battle is found in 2 Samuel 12. There we read that Joab, David’s general, had attacked the water supply for the Ammonite city of Rabbah. David then attacked the city itself and captured it. After capturing the king, David took the crown of the king’s head and placed it on his own.

We’re told the crown weighed seventy-five pounds. I think I’d rather not put that crown on my head. You’ll remember the quote: “Heavy is the head that wears the crown.” I don’t think this is what they were referring to, but a seventy-five pound crown would certainly weigh heavy on your head.

David and his men then plundered the city, taking everything of value and enslaving the people. They then turned to the other Ammonite towns and did the same. Returning home, David wrote this psalm of praise, thanking God for the victories he had given them.

Psalm 21 is undoubtedly a Messianic Psalm because some of the expressions, especially those found in verses 8-12, cannot be applied to David himself, but only to Jesus.

This psalm starts as most have so far:

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

We don’t learn much from that except that it was written by David.

SLIDE 8 The psalm begins with thanks to God for what he does for the king.

1 The king rejoices in your strength, Lord. How great is his joy in the victories you give! 2 You have granted him his heart’s desire and have not withheld the request of his lips. 3 You came to greet him with rich blessings and placed a crown of pure gold on his head. [David isn’t referring to his own crown, but that seventy-five pound crown that previously belonged to the defeated king of the Ammonites.] 4 He asked you for life, and you gave it to him – length of days, for ever and ever. 5 Through the victories you gave, his glory is great; you have bestowed on him splendor and majesty. 6 Surely you have granted him unending blessings and made him glad with the joy of your presence. 7 For the king trusts in the Lord; through the unfailing love of the Most High he will not be shaken. (Psalm 21:1-7)

David begins by saying that he rejoices in the strength of God. It is God’s strength that gives him victory over his enemies.

Next, David thanks God for giving him the desires of his heart. In Psalm 37 David wrote: SLIDE 9

Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. (Psalm 37:4)

SLIDE 10 This doesn’t mean that God is going to give us everything we ask for, but that when we delight in God our desires will fall in line with God’s desires. Like Jesus praying the Garden of Gethsemane, our goal should not be that our will is done, but God’s will. Our goal should be to align our will with his will. Unanswered prayer should cause us to question is we are indeed seeking God will for our lives.

What was David’s desire? In Psalm 20 David was praying for help over his enemy, but that wasn’t his primary desire. His primary desire was to glorify God. We see that in the previous psalm.

Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. (Psalm 20:7)

This was David’s motivation, his trust in God and his desire to bring God glory. You’ll remember when David fought Goliath that his motivation was God’s glory. SLIDE 11

David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.” (1 Samuel 17:45)

David went on to say: SLIDE 12

“All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.” (1 Samuel 17:47)

That was David’s desire then and it was his desire in this psalm, to give God glory and thank him for all he had done. David is aware that every blessing he has came from God.

SLIDE 13 Verse 7 is a declaration of faith that we can pray as well. David offers this prayer in third person, but we can make it personal.

For I trust in the Lord; through the unfailing love of the Most High I will not be shaken.

This is not saying that we will never have problems. Nor is it saying we will never face defeat. What it is saying is that no matter what we face we will trust in God and our faith in him will not be shaken. It is a declaration of trust in God that he is with us and that he will see us through.

The year was 1920. The scene was the examining board for selecting missionaries. Standing before the board was a young man named Oswald Smith. One dream dominated his heart. He wanted to be a missionary. Over and over again, he prayed, “Lord, I want to go as a missionary for you. Open a door of service for me.” Now, at last, his prayer would be answered.

When the examination was over, the board turned Oswald Smith down. He didn’t meet their qualifications. He failed the test. Oswald Smith had set his direction, but now life gave him a detour. What would he do?

As Oswald Smith prayed, God planted another idea in his heart. If he could not go as a missionary, he would build a church which could send out missionaries. And that is what he did. The church where Oswald Smith ministered sent out more missionaries than any other church at that time. Oswald Smith brought God into the situation, and God transformed his detour into a main thoroughfare of service.

Do you trust God to be with you and see you through whatever it is in life that you face? Do you believe that?

SLIDE 14 Next, the psalm thanks God for what he does to his enemies.

8 Your hand will lay hold on all your enemies; your right hand will seize your foes. 9 When you appear for battle, you will burn them up as in a blazing furnace. The Lord will swallow them up in his wrath, and his fire will consume them. 10 You will destroy their descendants from the earth, their posterity from mankind. 11 Though they plot evil against you and devise wicked schemes, they cannot succeed. 12 You will make them turn their backs when you aim at them with drawn bow. (Psalm 21:8-12)

Ultimately, this is what God will do to all his enemies. We should never confuse our enemies with God’s enemies. We may not like someone. There are those who just get under our skin. We may see their words and actions as destructive and consider them enemies, but it doesn’t make them God’s enemies. Our goal, as is God’s, should always be their salvation. Jesus said concerning our enemies: SLIDE 15

43 You have heard that it was said, “Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.” SLIDE 16 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. SLIDE 17 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? SLIDE 18 47 And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matthew 5:43-48)

SLIDE 19 That’s the way we are to treat our enemies, but one day God is going to deal with his enemies. Charles Spurgeon wrote:

We pity the lost for they are men, but we cannot pity them as enemies of Christ.

Why are they enemies of God? David says it’s because they planned evil against God. They devised wicked schemes against him and his people. As a result, God will deal with them as they deserve. While that day will come, it hasn’t come yet.

Right now it looks like the enemies of God are succeeding and there’s nothing to hold them back. But David knows that God will turn them back when he draws his bow against them. David pictures them as nothing more than target practice for God. They may rebel thinking there is nothing that can stop them, but when God finally says enough, they will run in fear. As one commentator wrote:

God takes sure aim; who would be his target? His arrows are sharp and transfix the heart; who would wish to be wounded by them? Ah, ye enemies of God, your boastings will soon be over when once the shafts begin to fly!

SLIDE 20 Lastly, the psalm exalts God for his victories.

13 Be exalted in your strength, Lord; we will sing and praise your might. (Psalm 21:13)

The psalm ends the way it begins by giving praise to God.

We are good at singing songs and hymns of praise. But as it has been mentioned before, we’re also good at singing and not really thinking about what were singing. We need to praise God because he is worthy and it’s good to remember the answers he has given to our prayers. It’s good to thank God for all that he has done for us.

I know that it is easy for me to ask God for help in a situation I’m facing and then, when it’s over, moving on to the next situation without stopping to thank God for his help. We need to do what David did and take time to thank God. He lifted up his voice to God to thank God for granting him his desires and protecting him from his enemies. We pray for something and then don’t show our appreciation for his answer.

It’s as if we treat God like a vending machine. If I want a Dr. Enough, I can walk across the street, put in my money, push a button, and I’ll receive the drink I want. Before I walk away do I thank the vending machine? No. It’s just doing what it’s been told to do. Once I give it my money it’s obligated to give me a drink.

Do we ever treat God like that? I’ve done what I’m supposed to do. I’ve fulfilled my part of the bargain. I’ve asked God for help and now he’s obligated to help me. That’s what he’s there for. Why should I give thanks?

But that was not David’s heart. He wanted to make sure he didn’t fall to that temptation. So at the first chance he took time to give thanks to God. We must remember that God isn’t obligated to help no matter how often we ask him.

There’s a story in the Gospel of Luke that demonstrates this principle. Jesus was traveling to Jerusalem. He was on the border between Samaria to the south and Galilee to the north. As Jesus and his disciples approached a village, some men starting calling out to him. The men had leprosy. So, the ten of them called out to Jesus asking for mercy. They wanted Jesus to heal them. When Jesus saw them, he simply said to go show themselves to the priests. The Old Testament law required those being healed of leprosy to be declared cured by a priest. It also required the person healed to make a sacrifice to God. Jesus didn’t say he’d healed them just that they were to present themselves to a priest. However, the story says that as they made their way to a priest they were healed. By stepping out in faith and obeying Jesus, they were cleansed of their leprosy.

Then the story takes a dark turn. Only one of the men came back to give thanks. Like David in our psalm, that man came back praising God. Luke says he did so shouting his praises so that everyone could hear him. Then, he threw himself on the ground at Jesus’ feet and gave him thanks. Luke added that this man was a Samaritan. He was a man despised by the Jews. Do you remember Jesus’ response? SLIDE 21

17 Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18 Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” 19 Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.” (Luke 17:17-19)

SLIDE 22 It’s probably good that I was not the one who healed the men. I might have taken back the healing for the nine who didn’t come back to give thanks. But that’s not the way God operates and Jesus didn’t give the nine men back their leprosy. But Jesus did point out the importance of giving thanks.

How often have we been one of the nine and failed to thank God for the help he has given us? This psalm reminds us of the need to stop and give God thanks. We should be the happiest and most thankful people on earth.