Psalm - 16

Psalm 16

Introduction

The first Easter Sunday when Jesus rose from the dead, no one can yet make sense of the empty tomb. The women have discovered it empty and report it back to the disciples.

Luke 24:10-11

After this, two of Jesus’ disciples are walking to a village called Emmaus. Listen to what happens:

Luke 24:13-27

Beginning with the Pentateuch and the Prophets, he showed them from ALL the Scriptures the things concerning himself. What a sermon that must have been! I would have loved to have heard that sermon. How incredible it must have been to have the OT dots connected to see the bigger picture of the entire Bible pointing to Jesus. What texts do you think he used to point to himself?

Undoubtedly one of the texts he used is our Psalm for tonight, Psalm 16. We know that because the Apostle Peter uses Psalm 16 in his Pentecost sermon in Acts 2. The Apostle Paul uses it in his sermon at Antioch in Acts 13. Both use it the same way…to prove the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.

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Background – Scholars debate when this Psalm took place in David’s life. It could have taken place during any challenging season in his life (on the run from Saul, ousted by his son Absalom, etc.). They take the backdrop to be one of danger and impending death since David prays for refuge in verse 1 and mentions death in v. 10.

I don’t believe that is necessarily the backdrop. David’s words here seem to lack the desperation of impending death like some of his other psalms contain. I think he is just musing upon the realities of life (including death) and seeing God’s grace in it all. This psalm is a simple declaration, describing what a faithful servant of the Lord looks like, and how faithful the Lord of that servant truly is.

1. FAITHFUL SERVANT (v. 1-6)

As David lays out his simple request to God, he proceeds to describe his own faithfulness to God. Not in an arrogant manner like he is bragging. But in a humble, straightforward manner that expresses his undying devotion to his gracious God.

a. Confess Faith (v. 1-2)

- Opens with a simple prayer…preserve me for in you I take refuge. Lit. translates as ‘keep watch over me.’

o Psalm 11:1-3

o Not necessarily referring to danger, but could just be an overarching prayer for God to continue His watchful care over David’s life.

§ Could be prayed right after God gives him the covenant in 2 Samuel 7 of the eternal Davidic reign. If that’s the case, then he definitely wants God to continue to watch over him.

§ Plus, after the Davidic covenant is given, David responds to God in praise and uses some of the same language.

§ 2 Samuel 7:18-29

- For in you I take refuge…God, you are the hiding place. Now, this is no cowardly response from David, if indeed he is enduring some danger in his life. David courageously takes on bears and lions as a shepherd boy; fights Goliath as a teenager; fights multiple military campaigns. He is not afraid of a fight. But from a spiritual perspective, he knows that he finds his safety and security in God alone. It is God who has kept him safe. God has brought about the victories.

o David doesn’t take credit for his success. He sees that behind it all is a good and gracious God.

o Take refuge – the verb is typically used of a bird finding shelter, or someone sheltering in a cave, or even behind his shield. David finds his comfort and protection in prayer. This relationship with God is what protects him.

- V. 2 – You are my Lord…this is his personal confession of faith. No one could doubt or question who David answers to, who he worships. He has clearly confessed to God the foundation of his faith.

o Romans 10:9-10

§ This is what happens at salvation. We are to confess that Jesus is Lord. He is the one we answer to. He is the Master. There is total reliance upon him.

o I have no good apart from you…not only does David answer to the Lord, he identifies him as the source of all the good in his life.

§ James 1:17

§ If there is something good in your life, it has come from God. He is the source of all the good.

§ Lit. – my good does not exceed you. There is no good, in me or around me, that did not come from God.

o Notice he is totally dependent upon and totally infatuated with this good and gracious God. He finds both security and satisfaction in God.

b. Express Loyalty (v. 3-4)

- His loyalties are clear…not only are they with God, but also with God’s people. One of the ways, a primary way, we show tangible love for God is by showing tangible love to His people.

o ILL – if you want to make me an enemy in an instant, mistreat my kids. Speak bad about them, be rude to them, harm them in some way. And you’ll have an enemy for life. that is the natural parental instinct. God is our Father. He fiercely protects his kids. This is why the NT overwhelming teaches us towards relational holiness.

§ Psalm 15:4

o Saints – Heb. Hasidim…lit. holy ones. He will use it again in v. 10. This is what the NT calls God’s people. The people of God are defined as his holy ones…set apart ones.

§ They are the ‘excellent’ ones…lit. noble ones. Uses same word in Psalm 8:1 for majestic.

o Part of faithfulness to God is to love those who love Him.

- But not only do we associate with the holy, we disassociate with the unholy.

o V. 4…run after…lit. pay price for another god. Referring to some sort of earning, payment to be able to find acceptance with that god.

§ Sorrow multiplied…same words used in Genesis 3:16 for consequence of the Fall.

§ Sorrow…general word that could refer to physical, emotional, anxiety.

· No matter what you do, it is never good enough.

· Ephesians 2:1-10…bad news v. good news…bad news v. worse news. If God told us we had to earn salvation, that is never good news. How could we ever do enough? How could we ever know?

· ILL – India…people walking around constantly nodding in worship at different temples. Constant anxiety. That worship doesn’t work.

o He will not participate in their worship…blood offerings. Nor will he even utter their names.

§ Baal – Lord; Molech – King. To even say their names would bestow on them titles they do not deserve.

§ Whose name is on his lips? V. 1 – God (El); v. 2 – LORD (Yahweh), Lord (Adonai – Master).

o Notice the clear delineation of relationships in his life…we will associate, love, delight in those who love God; but he refuses to associate with false gods and those who love those false gods.

c. Profess Praise (v. 5-7a)

- After laying out what he says about God in v. 5-6 he cannot help but to spontaneously praise God at the beginning of v. 7.

- V. 5…my chosen portion and my cup

o Portion is the word for inheritance. So his chosen portion, his chosen inheritance is God. The language he uses here and in v. 6 about lines falling is the language of dividing up allotments of land for the Israelites after they conquered Canaan.

o Towards the end of Joshua, each tribe is allotted a determined plot of land that is their inheritance. That land will be what takes care of them for the rest of their lives and for generations to come.

§ So what is David saying? God is that for me. Interestingly enough, all the tribes got land inheritance except for one. The Levites were not given land.

§ Numbers 18:20

o My cup…tends to refer to destiny. The wicked drink the cup of judgment while the righteous drink the cup of blessing (Psalm 23:5).

§ God is his provision and God is his destiny.

o You hold my lot…God controls it all. Whatever will happen to David, whatever will take place in his life…God holds that cup. God controls that inheritance.

- V. 6 – lines fallen for me in pleasant places

o Like surveying the land…it is good. The more he surveys of God, the more amazed and grateful he is.

o Beautiful inheritance – and what is that inheritance? It is God himself. God is his portion and inheritance. In life and after life…you get God!

- Notice how affectionately he speaks of God…pleasant places, beautiful. He isn’t after money. He isn’t after a big palace. He isn’t after power. He is genuinely after more of God.

o ILL – commentator asked convicting questions…if God promised you wealth, success, happiness, but not himself, would you be content? If God promised Heaven and all that comes with it, but he wouldn’t be there, would you want to go?

o God is better.

§ Philippians 1:21; 3:8

2. FAITHFUL LORD (v. 7b-11)

That is the servant’s role before God. That is what faithfulness looks like. But the rest of the Psalm gives us the ‘why’ behind it. Why be faithful to the Lord? Because the Lord is so very faithful to his people. This helps us keep God’s goodness at the forefront. Keeping his goodness in sight helps us maintain proper motivation for continued faithfulness to Him.

ILL – baby funeral…God is both sovereign and good

And these verses show us not just that we enjoy God, but that we enjoy his gifts to us. ILL – if you gave gift to your child at Christmas and they set it aside to sit with you, would that honor you? Not really. You got it for them to see their joy and enjoy its blessing. Same with God. His gifts are extensions of himself and his love for you.

a. Guidance (v. 7)

- Gives me counsel…God doesn’t leave you alone to figure it out by yourself. He counsels.

- My heart instructs me…the word for instructis the word for chasten or discipline. By heart (lit. kidneys) he is referring to the biblically-informed conscience. By your sin, it should rightly bother you. It corrects. So God graciously, kindly, directs and disciplines; he counsels and he corrects.

o How does he do this? Well, the key is found there in the phrase in the night. Literally, nights. Is this while he sleeps like some sort of osmosis? No. From the rest of the psalms we come to see that David’s nightly habit was to pray and meditate upon God’s word.

o This is how God counsels/corrects/directs/disciplines…by continual meditation upon his word.

§ ILL – Master’s thesis…faithfulness by daily devotions.

b. Stability (v. 8)

- Set the Lord before me…meaning in his thoughts and perspectives. He is ever mindful of God. God’s will, commands, Word, perspectives…all are his priority. To fail to do this is to open yourself up to trouble. What God says, how God feels…this is what matters most.

- At my right hand…not as some assistant director of life. The right hand was the position of honor and power. God is the one he commits to honor. God is the one who is the strength of his life.

o Therefore…I shall not be shaken.

o He holds all confidence that he will not be moved. He is firm and secure…in his relationship with God, in his role as king.

§ 15:5…never be moved.

c. Resurrection (v. 9-10)

- His heart is glad and his entire life is lived in praise to God for his faithfulness.

o Whole being…lit. glory…related to word for liver…insides, spirit.

o Flesh also dwells secure. So not only is he secure in all these other areas of life, even physically. How can that be? If David is really facing some sort of imminent danger, how could he ever say this? How could he know? Well, he can’t know if he will live or die.

o So he expresses this confidence even about his physical safety, but that has to be taken in the context of the next verse.

- V. 10…even if he doesn’t live, even if he dies…he knows God will not abandon him. So he is physically secure…precisely because…he is not worried about his death.

o Will not abandon to Sheol…Sheol is the place of the dead, the grave.

§ If God is all of this for me, then surely he won’t abandon me at the moment of my greatest need.

§ He is utterly confident that his relationship with this kind and gracious God will not end upon his death. It will simply continue into eternity.

o Holy one see corruption…disagreements on how this should be translated. Some see it as referring to decay. Others see it as another metaphor for death. Footnote says ‘pit.’ And that is what the word means. God will not leave you in the grave.

§ These are the verses that are used by Peter and Paul in their sermons in Acts. They both interpret the verses the same way…David couldn’t be referring completely to himself. That yes, God would not abandon you in the grave, he will bring you into eternal life.

§ But David died and decayed in his grave. Therefore, David was speaking of another. They both use these verses to prove the OT prophecy of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead.

o This is what God has promised…not just for Jesus, but for all who trust in Him. He will not leave you there. He will raise you, just as he raised Jesus.

§ 1 Corinthians 15:9

d. Eternity (v. 11)

- Path of life…even in death, the Lord shows to us the path to life.

o John 11:25

o But this doesn’t only have to refer to eternal life. Following Jesus now is the way of life. To walk in his ways is to truly live.

§ John 10:10

- Fullness of joy…life abundant

o Not only is the Lord the source of all that is good, he is the source of joy. This is why Christians who are sour all the time are missing something critical in their faith. He brings joy.

- Pleasures forevermore…eternal joy, eternal satisfaction. David said earlier in v. 6 that his allotment in life and eternity with God fell in pleasant places…now he says that God provides pleasures. Same root word…pleasure and pleasant. Things that are pleasing. Life-giving. Joyous. They all come from God.

o They are found at God’s right hand. In v. 8 God is at David’s right hand, and now in v. 11, David is at God’s right hand.

o This is how it works…when the Lord is the center of your life, the source of your good and joy, you will eternally live with him. He will not abandon you. He will welcome you to himself for an even better form of relationship.

Conclusion

Polycarp was the Bishop of Smyrna, a city in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey). It is one of the cities Jesus writes a letter to in Revelation 2. In fact, it would be helpful to see what Jesus wrote to them, because it seems to find fulfillment in Polycarp.

Revelation 2:8-11

Smyrna followed through on persecuting the Christians. Upon being warned that his arrest was impending, the elderly Polycarp left the city and hid in a farmhouse. The threat was real. The citizens of Smyrna had recently executed several Christians for the faith and now the mob was after him. The city was fiercely loyal to Rome and the old gods.

The governor dispatched troops to track him down. Polycarp had the distinction of being the last church leader who had been discipled by one of Jesus’ apostles. He had studied under the Apostle John. Witnesses are tortured by the soldiers until his hiding place is revealed. When they arrive to arrest him he welcomed them as old friends and asked his hosts to serve them food and drink. He only asked for an hour to pray before they marched him to the arena to his death. Overhearing his godly prayers, they allowed that hour to stretch into two hours.

When they near the city, a pagan magistrate rides up in a chariot and picks up Polycarp. He tries to persuade him to sacrifice to the gods, to offer incense up to the Emperor. Making no headway, he pushes him out of the chariot and wounds his leg.

Polycarp limped his way to the arena and the mob exploded in cries of rage as he entered. The governor asked him to deny Christ and promises that he will be spared if he does. Polycarp replied with his now famous statement: “Fourscore and six years have I served him, and he has never done me injury; how then can I now blaspheme my King and Savior?”

As he rejects further prompts to deny Christ, the governor threatens to burn him alive. Polycarp responds by preaching to him about eternal fire in Hell. He is ordered to be executed. The soldiers prepare to nail him to the stake, but he assures them nails will not be necessary. He will not run, so they tie him instead. The fire is lit and the flames rise around him. But according to eyewitness accounts that day, it seemed as if the flames parted around him to avoid him. They claimed his body glowed like gold in the fire. Finally, on February 23, 155AD, a soldier executed him with a sword.[1]

This is a man who knew how to live. He was faithful to the Lord. And this is a man who knew how to die. Nothing changed. He did not chase death, but he welcomed it when it came. Because he knew the truth of the promises in Psalm 16…the Lord will not abandon his people at the moment of their greatest need.

[1] https://christianhistoryinstitute.org/incontext/article/polycarp-testimony