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O Lord, Deliver My Life
To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments; according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.
6 O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger,
nor discipline me in your wrath.
Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am languishing;
heal me, O LORD, for my bones are troubled.
My soul also is greatly troubled.
But you, O LORD—how long?
Turn, O LORD, deliver my life;
save me for the sake of your steadfast love.
For in death there is no remembrance of you;
in Sheol who will give you praise?
I am weary with my moaning;
every night I flood my bed with tears;
I drench my couch with my weeping.
My eye wastes away because of grief;
it grows weak because of all my foes.
Depart from me, all you workers of evil,
for the LORD has heard the sound of my weeping.
The LORD has heard my plea;
the LORD accepts my prayer.
All my enemies shall be ashamed and greatly troubled;
they shall turn back and be put to shame in a moment.
(ESV)
Psalm 6 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
This is the first of the Penitential Psalms. Most believe this piece would have begun with a wail and finished as a song. Speaking of… have you ever wailed before God? Can you relate to David in these verses?
The first 7 verses speak to the reality of our world. Physical pain and suffering. Soul-anguish and depression. Weariness. Tears of sorrow. Oppression from spiritual and worldly enemies. These indeed still weigh on us even today. How do you deal in such emotions? How do you cope with the realities of life within your relationship with God?
What I love so much about this Psalm is the fact that David rested on God hearing him.
I am writing this to you so that you may know that you have eternal life—you that believe in the Son of God. 14 We have courage in God’s presence, because we are sure that he hears us if we ask him for anything that is according to his will. 15 He hears us whenever we ask him; and since we know this is true, we know also that he gives us what we ask from him.
1 John 5:13-15 GNB
The assurance of having God’s ear allows us to seek and pray towards His will. This means that as we verbalize needs in our relationship with Him, we discover what He desires for our lives. We may discover that we have more growth to address before relief comes. Or, we may find that God has another way in which He will bring deliverance. The point being, seeking God in prayer and being absolutely raw and authentic to Him is a process that uncovers His divine plan for our lives. A practical illustration of this is Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego when faced with the fiery furnace.
If the God whom we serve is able to save us from the blazing furnace and from your power, then he will. 18 But even if he doesn’t, Your Majesty may be sure that we will not worship your god, and we will not bow down to the gold statue that you have set up.”
Daniel 3:17-18 GNB
Cry out to God today. Wail before His throne. Confess your sin and ask Him for relief where needed. But do all this with a faith-filled attitude that says “even if…” I will still continue to serve You and glorify You and trust You. Why? Because He has made a way for us to live in freedom from our sin for all eternity. A God who accomplished all that is certainly capable of handling all of our pain and suffering as we give Him more and more of our heart. Let the joy of His sacrifice be your primary identity today. For those who know Him by faith through Jesus, you are a child of God, and the Father hears your prayer.