trust in the midst of conspirators psalm...

http://www.BibleStudyWorkshop.com 1

Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell

Trust in the Midst of Conspirators

Psalm 56:1-13

Landmark Publications, Inc., 1045 Maynor Street, Nashville, TN 37216, U.S.A., John C. Sewell, Ph.D., Editor.

http://www.BibleStudyWorkshop.com


Trust in the Midst of Conspirators

Commentary

by

Clyde M. Miller Text: Psalm 56:1-13, 1. Be merciful to me, O God, for men hotly pursue me; all day long they press their attack. 2. My slanderers pursue me all day long; many are attacking me in their pride. 3. When I am afraid, I will trust in you. 4. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me? 5. All day long they twist my words; they are always plotting to harm me. 6. They conspire, they lurk, they watch my steps, eager to take my life. 7. On no account let them escape; in your anger, O God, bring down the nations. 8. Record my lament; list my tears on your scroll —are they not in your record? 9. Then my enemies will turn back when I call for help. By this I will know that God is for me. 10. In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise- 11. in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? 12. I am under vows to you, O God; I will present my thank offer-ings to you.




13. For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life. (NIV) Introduction: I. For the historical notation in the superscription, see 1 Sam. 21.

A. 1 Samuel 21:1-15, David went to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest. Ahimelech trembled when he met him, and asked, "Why are you alone? Why is no one with you?" David an-swered Ahimelech the priest, "The king charged me with a certain matter and said to me, 'No one is to know anything about your mission and your instructions.' As for my men, I have told them to meet me at a certain place. Now then, what do you have on hand? Give me five loaves of bread, or whatever you can find." But the priest answered David, "I don't have any ordinary bread on hand; however, there is some consecrated bread here—provided the men have kept themselves from women." David replied, "Indeed women have been kept from us, as usual whenever I set out. The men's things are holy even on missions that are not holy. How much more so today!" So the priest gave him the con-secrated bread, since there was no bread there except the bread of the Presence that had been removed from before the LORD and replaced by hot bread on the day it was taken away. Now one of Saul's servants was there that day, detained before the LORD; he was Doeg the Edomite, Saul's head shepherd. David asked Ahimelech, "Don't you have a spear or a sword here? I haven't brought my sword or any other weapon, because the king's business was ur-gent." The priest replied, "The sword of Goliath the Philis-tine, whom you killed in the Valley of Elah, is here; it is wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you want it, take it; there is no sword here but that one." David said, "There is none like it; give it to me." That day David fled from Saul




and went to Achish king of Gath. But the servants of Achish said to him, "Isn't this David, the king of the land? Isn't he the one they sing about in their dances: "'Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands'?" David took these words to heart and was very much afraid of Achish king of Gath. So he pretended to be insane in their pres-ence; and while he was in their hands he acted like a mad-man, making marks on the doors of the gate and letting sa-liva run down his beard. Achish said to his servants, "Look at the man! He is insane! Why bring him to me? Am I so short of madmen that you have to bring this fellow here to carry on like this in front of me? Must this man come into my house?" (NIV)

1. This may or may not be the historical background of the psalm.

II. “These words alternate between descriptions of suffering because of foes and expressions of trust, with the latter predominating.

A. We do not know if the author has been delivered, or yet ex-pects to be.

1. The latter seems more likely.

III. “Ps. 56:1-4 describe the trampling and fighting of his enemies (Ps. 56:1-2), countered by the author's trust in God (Ps. 56:3-4). Ps. 56:5-7 further describe enemy activity, with a call for God to recompense them. The author finds great comfort in knowing that God is aware of his agony (Ps. 56:8), and therefore reaffirms his faith with renewed vigor (Ps. 56:9-11). Ps. 56:12-13 speak of his response (vows, thanks) when God delivers him, and celebrate his happy state under divine blessing. The psalm's inclination to repetition is most obvious in the refrain of Ps. 56:4, 10-11”—Ash.




A. Psalm 56:1-4, Be merciful to me, O God, for men hotly pursue me; all day long they press their attack. My slander-ers pursue me all day long; many are attacking me in their pride. When I am afraid, I will trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me? (NIV)

1. Psalm 56:1, 2, Be merciful to me, O God, for men hotly pursue me; all day long they press their attack. My slanderers pursue me all day long; many are at-tacking me in their pride. (NIV)

2. Psalm 56:3, 4, When I am afraid, I will trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me? (NIV)

B. Psalm 56:5-7, On no account let them escape; in your an-ger, O God, bring down the nations. (NIV)

C. Psalm 56:8, Record my lament; list my tears on your scroll —are they not in your record? (NIV)

D. Psalm 56:9-11, Then my enemies will turn back when I call for help. By this I will know that God is for me. In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise- in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? (NIV)

E. Psalm 56:12, 13, I am under vows to you, O God; I will present my thank offerings to you. For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life. (NIV)




IV. Repetitions are noted in Psalm 56:10, 11, In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise- in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? (NIV) Commentary:

Prayer for Deliverance From Slanderers Psalm 56:1-2, Be merciful to me, O God, for men hotly pursue me; all day long they press their attack. My slanderers pursue me all day long; many are attacking me in their pride. (NIV) Psalm 56:1, Be merciful to me, O God, for men hotly pursue me; all day long they press their attack. (NIV) I. “Be merciful to me” acknowledges his helplessness and his depend-ence of God for relief.

A. This prayer is followed by his initial description of his ene-mies.

B. “All day long” becomes a refrain (1,2,5) to indicate the in-cessant pursuit of the enemies.

1. Psalm 56:1, 2, 5, Be merciful to me, O God, for men hotly pursue me; all day long they press their at-tack. My slanderers pursue me all day long; many are attacking me in their pride. All day long they twist my words; they are always plotting to harm me. (NIV)

Psalm 56:2, My slanderers pursue me all day long; many are at-tacking me in their pride. (NIV)




A. “Slanderers” are those who lie and twist his words (5a).

1. Psalm 56:5, All day long they twist my words; they are always plotting to harm me. (NIV)

B. They are also conspirators (6a) who band together to carry out their nefarious schemes.

1. Psalm 56:6, They conspire, they lurk, they watch my steps, eager to take my life. (NIV)

C. “Many” are “attacking” him “in their pride”.

1. The last phrase apparently means that they arrogantly believe that their cause is just.

Trust in God

Psalm 56:3-4, When I am afraid, I will trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mor-tal man do to me? (NIV) Psalm 56:3, When I am afraid, I will trust in you. (NIV) I. The psalmist admits his fear, but he finds strength in his trust in God.

A. He will later declare that he “will not be afraid” (4b,11a).

1. Psalm 56:4, 11, In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me? in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? (NIV)

a. His trust has dispelled his fear.




b. His resource is greater than that of his enemies.

Psalm 56:4, In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me? (NIV) I. Verse 4 elaborates his resource.

A. The repetition of the phrase, “O God”, emphasizes his singu-lar source of help.

1. “Word” here refers to God’s promises of protection to His faithful.

2. “Mortal man” is impotent compared to God who is in-finite in power.

B. The psalmist, therefore, will not be afraid of his enemies.

1. Verse 4 forms a refrain (cf. v. 11).

a. Psalm 56: 4, 11, In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me? in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? (NIV)

A Call for Recompense

Psalm 56:5-7, All day long they twist my words; they are always plotting to harm me. They conspire, they lurk, they watch my steps, eager to take my life. On no account let them escape; in your anger, O God, bring down the nations. (NIV)




Psalm 56:5, All day long they twist my words; they are always plotting to harm me. (NIV) I. His enemies “twist” his “words” in their “plotting to harm” him.

A. They take his words out of context and use them in an effort to prove him in the wrong.

Psalm 56:6, They conspire, they lurk, they watch my steps, eager to take my life. (NIV) I. “Steps” here refer to his walk or manner of life.

A. Not only do they twist his words, they also attempt to smear his life.

B. Several expressions reveal the intensity of their efforts: “press their attack” (1b), “pursue me” (2a) and “always plot-ting” (5b).

1. Psalm 56:1,2,5, Be merciful to me, O God, for men hotly pursue me; all day long they press their attack. My slanderers pursue me all day long; many are at-tacking me in their pride. All day long they twist my words; they are always plotting to harm me. (NIV)

2. Their hearts are set on homicide.

Psalm 56:7, On no account let them escape; in your anger, O God, bring down the nations. (NIV) I. “On no account” begs God not to let any of their ungodly efforts to harm him succeed.




A. Much of modern theology rejects the concept of God’s an-ger.

1. This, however, indicates a rejection of the divine au-thority of His word.

B. Israel could recall great events when divine anger had been manifested.

1. God’s fury consumed Pharaoh’s army (Ex. 15:7-8), and caused the inhabitants of Philistia, Moab and Canaan to be struck with terror (Ex. 15:14-16).

a. Exodus 15:7, 8, In the greatness of your maj-esty you threw down those who opposed you. You unleashed your burning anger; it con-sumed them like stubble. By the blast of your nostrils the waters piled up. The surging wa-ters stood firm like a wall; the deep waters con-gealed in the heart of the sea. (NIV)

b. Exodus 15:14-16, The nations will hear and tremble; anguish will grip the people of Philis-tia. The chiefs of Edom will be terrified, the leaders of Moab will be seized with trembling, the people of Canaan will melt away; terror and dread will fall upon them. By the power of your arm they will be as still as a stone— until your people pass by, O LORD, until the people you bought pass by. (NIV)

2. God’s anger was kindled against Miriam and Aaron in their rebellion against Moses, so that Miriam was tempo-rarily stricken with leprosy (Num. 12:9-16).




a. Numbers 12:9-16, The anger of the LORD burned against them, and he left them. When the cloud lifted from above the Tent, there stood Miriam—leprous, like snow. Aaron turned toward her and saw that she had lep-rosy; and he said to Moses, "Please, my lord, do not hold against us the sin we have so fool-ishly committed. Do not let her be like a still-born infant coming from its mother's womb with its flesh half eaten away." So Moses cried out to the LORD, "O God, please heal her!" The LORD replied to Moses, "If her father had spit in her face, would she not have been in disgrace for seven days? Confine her outside the camp for seven days; after that she can be brought back." So Miriam was confined out-side the camp for seven days, and the people did not move on till she was brought back. Af-ter that, the people left Hazeroth and en-camped in the Desert of Paran. (NIV)

C. Israel also understood the remedial purpose behind God’s wrath.

1. God is slow to anger and he will not keep his anger forever against those who repent (Ex. 34:6-7; Ps. 103:6-18).

a. Exodus 34:6, 7, And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, "The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the




children and their children for the sin of the fa-thers to the third and fourth generation." (NIV)

b. Psalm 103:6-18, The LORD works right-eousness and justice for all the oppressed. He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel: The LORD is compassion-ate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust. As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more. But from everlasting to everlasting the LORD's love is with those who fear him, and his right-eousness with their children's children- with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts. (NIV)

II. The Bible doctrine of propitiation and atonement grows out of the need to assuage the wrath of God through the atoning blood offered on behalf of the guilty sinner (Lev. 17:10-11; 2 Chron. 29:3-11; Rom. 3:21-26; Eph. 2:1-10).




A. Leviticus 17:10, 11, "'Any Israelite or any alien living among them who eats any blood—I will set my face against that person who eats blood and will cut him off from his people. For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the al-tar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one's life. (NIV)

B. 2 Chronicles 29:3-11, In the first month of the first year of his reign, he opened the doors of the temple of the LORD and repaired them. He brought in the priests and the Le-vites, assembled them in the square on the east side and said: "Listen to me, Levites! Consecrate yourselves now and consecrate the temple of the LORD, the God of your fa-thers. Remove all defilement from the sanctuary. Our fa-thers were unfaithful; they did evil in the eyes of the LORD our God and forsook him. They turned their faces away from the LORD's dwelling place and turned their backs on him. They also shut the doors of the portico and put out the lamps. They did not burn incense or present any burnt of-ferings at the sanctuary to the God of Israel. Therefore, the anger of the LORD has fallen on Judah and Jerusalem; he has made them an object of dread and horror and scorn, as you can see with your own eyes. This is why our fathers have fallen by the sword and why our sons and daughters and our wives are in captivity. Now I intend to make a covenant with the LORD, the God of Israel, so that his fierce anger will turn away from us. My sons, do not be neg-ligent now, for the LORD has chosen you to stand before him and serve him, to minister before him and to burn in-cense." (NIV)

C. Romans 3:21-26, But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God




comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus. (NIV)

D. Ephesians 2:1-10, As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the king-dom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature ob-jects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (NIV)

Reaffirmation of Faith

Psalm 56:8-11, Record my lament; list my tears on your scroll —are they not in your record? Then my enemies will turn back




when I call for help. By this I will know that God is for me. In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise- in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? (NIV) Psalm 56:8, Record my lament; list my tears on your scroll —are they not in your record? (NIV) I. God is here being implored to keep in mind the psalmist’s righteous plea and to act on it appropriately.

A. The memory of his tears should cause God’s mercy to be forthcoming.

Psalm 56:9, Then my enemies will turn back when I call for help. By this I will know that God is for me. (NIV) I. The psalmist expresses his faith that God’s remembrance of his suf-fering will cause Him to act so that he will know that God is with him. Psalm 56:10,11, In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise- in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? (NIV) I. “God” (10a) and “LORD” (10b) combined declare His mighty power and His covenant relationship with Israel.

A. Verse 11 is almost identical to verse 4.

1. Psalm 56:11, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? (NIV)

2. Psalm 56:4, In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me? (NIV)




Response to Deliverance Psalm 56:12-13, I am under vows to you, O God; I will present my thank offerings to you. For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life. (NIV) Psalm 56:12, I am under vows to you, O God; I will present my thank offerings to you. (NIV) I. “Thank offerings” when connected with vows were called votive of-ferings.

A. When God had fulfilled his part of the vow, the one who vowed was expected to offer thank offerings as an expression of his thankfulness for God’s acting on his behalf.

Psalm 56:13, For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life. (NIV) I. It is problematic whether deliverance is a past occurrence or is only anticipated.

A. The latter is more likely.

B. The deliverance is from the death plotted against him by his enemies.

C. The stumbling is from the false words trumped up by his foes.

D. The result is that his life is preserved so that he may con-tinue in fellowship with God.




Application: I. Fear in the midst of foes can be overcome by a steadfast trust in the goodness and grace of God. II. Regardless of the apparent power of a mighty host of enemies, the believer should remember that God is the Almighty one who is creator and sustainer. III. Fellowship with Him assures one of ultimate deliverance from wrongdoers.




Questions

Psalm 56:1-13

(Questions based on NIV text.) 1. What was the historical setting in regard to which Psalm 56 was written? Who wrote this psalm? _____________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. The words of this psalm _____________________________ be-tween___________________ of _____________________ because of ________________________ and _______________________ of ________________________, with the latter predominating. 3. According to Ash give the outline/contents of Psalm 56. ________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. What is the significance of the use of repetitions in Psalm 56? ____ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. “Be __________________ to me, O God, for _________________ __________________ _________________ me; _________________




_________________ _________________ they _________________ their ________________. My _______________ ________________ me _________________ _________________ _________________; many are ___________________ me in their __________________.” 6. In what ways were the psalmist’s enemies attacking him? What led to these attacks? Did the psalmist feel he could deal successfully with his enemies by himself? Give reasons for your answer. ___________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. When did the psalmist trust in God? Does this leave something to be desired? ______________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. What can mortal man do to you? ___________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 9. The psalmist __________________ in __________________ and ____________________ his _____________________. Therefore, he would not be _______________________. 10. Was the author of Psalm 56 a brave man? Was he fearful on occa-sion? If so, what was the anecdote for this fear? _________________




________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 11. “All _______________ _______________ they ______________ my _______________; they are _______________ _______________ to ____________________ ____________________.” 12. Has this ever happened to you? If so, give details. ____________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 13. The author’s enemies further _____________________________, _________________, _________________ his _________________. They were _____________________ to _____________________ his ______________________________. Define steps as used in verse 6. 14. How determined were the psalmist’s enemies? _______________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 15. Give biblical examples of God’s wrath being turned on the wicked. _________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________




________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 16. Was the psalmist’s prayer in verse 7 in keeping with God’s will? Did he manifest a godly attitude? _____________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 17. What is the basis of the biblical teaching related to propitiation and atonement? ___________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 18. Define atonement and propitiation. ________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 19. Give evidence that God keeps a record of every unforgiven thing humans do. ______________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________




20. How would the psalmist know that the Lord was on his side, for him? How can we know God is on our side? Is it more important for God to be on our side or for us to be on God’s side? Explain. _____ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 21. What are votive offerings? How are they related to what is said in Psalm 56? _______________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 22. The psalmist presented _________________ _________________ to God because he had ______________________ the psalmist from _____________________ and had kept his _________________ from _________________. The psalmist promised to _________________ before _____________ in the _______________ of ______________. 23. What applications do you see in Psalm 56 to benefit your life? __ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 24. Define miktam. ________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________




________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 25. Give the words and describe the tune of “A Dove on Distant Oaks.” How does this song relate to Psalm 56? _________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________



trust in the midst of conspirators psalm...

Documents