Psalm 20 & 21: The Battle Belongs to the Lord

Introduction

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit. Welcome back to our series through the Psalms, where we step into the story of Israel and live the same ancient truths in our lives today. Let’s begin by giving this time to the Lord.

[Prayer]

Structure

If you’ve been following this series, we’ve been talking about the book of Psalms as the prayer book and song book of ancient Israel. It was a collection of poems written by people like King David, King Solomon, Asaph, and other ancient Israelites, and the book gives us a glimpse into the life of God’s people. The book of Psalms is not really a book of rules that tries to tell us what to do or don’t do; it’s more like a diary or journal of a spiritual person who is pouring out his prayers to God. Some of them are joyful and optimistic, others are full of pain and grief. And when we read them together, we get a better picture about what an authentic relationship with God looks like, and then we have a better idea about how we can live an authentic relationship with God.

For today’s lesson, we’re going to explore two Psalms together because they are actually two halves of a big story. Or rather, they don’t tell us the story itself, but Psalm 20 shows us what happens before the story, and Psalm 21 shows us what happens after the story. And by using our brains and some careful reading, we can find out what’s going on.

Antiphony: congregation’s prayer for the king, and the king’s response

The time of trouble becomes the time of prayer

Exegesis

[v1] The name of the Lord is not voodoo or magic or a blank cheque (as other ANE cultures used it), but it is God’s gift to Israel - a token of his self-revelation (nearness to Israel) and his readiness and accessibility to them.

[v2] Contrast with Israel under Eli, when they trusted in the ark of the covenant rather than him who hallowed the ark. God sends help and support and chooses to accept the sacrifices - it is not merely a transaction or a mechanical affair.

[v7] “trust” is an inference of “we will make mention” —> we will proclaim the name of God, usually used in a setting of worship where the use of God’s name invokes his presence and power. Egypt trust in chariots and horses - look where it got them.

[v7] Idolatry of any sort?

Political Implications?

As we step back and consider Psalm 20 as a whole, there is one more dimension that we can think about. Here is the nation of Israel praying to God on behalf of its king, certainly a king who fears and trusts God.

The question for us might be, how do we pray engage in this kind of prayer today? Could we go before the Prime Minister or President and say “May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble! May the name of the God of Jacob protect you!”

Israel was in a slightly different situation from most of us - everyone in Israel believed in Yahweh as the one true God and the true leader of Israel. For Israel to partake in this back-and-forth prayer with the king was something beautiful and sacred for all.

But to my knowledge, there is no nation on earth that currently operates that way because there is no nation where Yahweh of Israel is recognized as the one true God by everyone in that nation. In the 21st century, we live in what might be called a pluralist society, where people of different faiths are expected to live in harmony and peace with one another.

Romans 13, 1 Timothy 2:8