Messiah’s Dependent Prayer (Psalm 3) ~ 20230723 ~ Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org
07/23 Messiah’s Dependent Prayer (Psalm 3); Audio available at: http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20230723_psalm-3.mp3
We are going to look at Psalm 3 today. To bring you up to speed, the last two weeks we looked at Psalm 1 and 2, which together serve as the introduction to the collection of Psalms.
Psalm 1 speaks of the blessed man, the happy man, the righteous one, who is planted by streams of water, who is rooted and delights in the instruction of the Lord, who prospers in everything he does, who bears much fruit. He is contrasted with the wicked, who are like empty chaff blown away by the wind.
Psalm 2 points us to YHWH and his Anointed; that when wicked men plot against his anointed, they plot in vain; he who sits in heaven laughs. The Lord has set his king on Zion his holy hill. His only begotten Son will strike them with a rod of iron and shatter them like pottery. He warns all to submit to his son or suffer the consequences; all who take refuge in him are blessed.
The Cry of The Anointed
Psalm 3 begins with a desperate cry of the anointed to the Lord, because his enemies are multiplying and many are saying he is beyond rescue from God.
Psalm 3:1 O LORD, how many are my foes! Many are rising against me; 2 many are saying of my soul, there is no salvation for him in God. — Selah
If Psalm 1 and 2 are true, why pray Psalm 3? How can the Lord’s anointed even be in this situation? Let’s take a moment to orient ourselves to the historical context.
Historical Context of David and Absalom
This Psalm begins with a superscript or title, which in the Hebrew manuscripts was included as verse 1: ‘A psalm of David, when he fled from Absalom his son.’
If you are not familiar with the story, which is found in 2 Samuel chapters 13-18, here’s a summary. David’s firstborn Amnon, consumed with lust for his half-sister Tamar, raped her and then rejected her. Tamar was Absalom’s sister. Absalom brought the disgraced Tamar into his home, and for two years Absalom plotted and then had his half brother Amnon murdered. Absalom fled to live with his grandfather King Talmai in Geshur (2Sam.3:3). After three years, Joab, commander of David’s army, convinced David to allow Absalom to return to Jerusalem, and David allowed him to return, but refused to see him for two years. After an apparent reconciliation and regaining his father’s trust, Absalom began to intercept those who were coming to the king for justice; he undermined David’s goodness, and stole the hearts of the people. After about four years, Absaolm went to Hebron, consolidated a coup, and proclaimed himself king. David, together with his loyal followers, recognizing the momentum of the conspiracy, left Jerusalem and fled for his life into the wilderness.
2 Samuel 15:12 ...And the conspiracy grew strong, and the people with Absalom kept increasing. 13 And a messenger came to David, saying, “The hearts of the men of Israel have gone after Absalom.” 14 Then David said to all his servants who were with him at Jerusalem, “Arise, and let us flee, or else there will be no escape for us from Absalom. Go quickly, lest he overtake us quickly and bring down ruin on us and strike the city with the edge of the sword.”
...23 And all the land wept aloud as all the people passed by, and the king crossed the brook Kidron, and all the people passed on toward the wilderness.
When the priests and Levites came carrying the ark of the covenant out of the city to accompany David,
2 Samuel 15:25 Then the king said to Zadok, “Carry the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the eyes of the LORD, he will bring me back and let me see both it and his dwelling place. 26 But if he says, ‘I have no pleasure in you,’ behold, here I am, let him do to me what seems good to him.”
This was a dark day for Israel, and for the Lord’s anointed.
2 Samuel 15:30 But David went up the ascent of the Mount of Olives, weeping as he went, barefoot and with his head covered. And all the people who were with him covered their heads, and they went up, weeping as they went.
Even Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth, whom David had shown great kindness, was reported to have turned against him (2Sam.16:3).
2 Samuel 16:5 When King David came to Bahurim, there came out a man of the family of the house of Saul, whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera, and as he came he cursed continually. 6 And he threw stones at David and at all the servants of King David, and all the people and all the mighty men were on his right hand and on his left. 7 And Shimei said as he cursed, “Get out, get out, you man of blood, you worthless man! 8 The LORD has avenged on you all the blood of the house of Saul, in whose place you have reigned, and the LORD has given the kingdom into the hand of your son Absalom. See, your evil is on you, for you are a man of blood.”
Prayer and the Promises of God
Psalm 3:1 O LORD, how many are my foes! Many are rising against me; 2 many are saying of my soul, there is no salvation for him in God. — Selah
What happened to Psalm 1, where the righteous man whose delight is in the law of the LORD is like a tree planted by streams of water, while David crosses the wadi Kidron to flee to the wilderness?
We could raise legitimate questions about David’s righteousness, and criticize David’s parenting (or lack thereof); no doubt all of these things were flooding through David’s own mind as he went out in shame and willingly received the cursing as his own son had turned against him. But despite all his failures, David was the Lord’s anointed.
What happened to Psalm 2, where the peoples plot in vain against YHWH and his anointed? What happened to the Lord speaking to them in his wrath and terrifying them in his fury, saying ‘As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill’? How can the Lord’s anointed even be in this situation? If Psalm 1 and 2 are true, why pray Psalm 3?
Does it make sense to say ‘God will be faithful to his promises, so I don’t need to pray, so I won’t run to him or bring my needs to him in times of trouble’? Doesn’t it make more sense to say ‘God is faithful to all his promises, so I can confidently run to him in times of trouble, and boldly approach the throne of grace to access that help he has promised’? Is it right to assume that because he has given us precious and very great promises that we will safely avoid the valley of the shadow of death? God promises to be with us through the valley, not exempt us from the valley. And God often keeps his promises in response to his people’s prayers.
How Many?
David is in a deep and dark valley. One observation; he repeats the ambiguous word ‘many’ three times. In reality ‘many’ were against him, but ‘many’ were also with him. It seems common for the critic to say ‘many people are concerned… many don’t agree with the decision… many people are talking. Who? How many? Ambiguous words can inflate the situation, and often are a cover for a vocal minority. ‘How many are my foes’ is an exclamation, but it is also a valid and clarifying question.
Selah
Verse 2 ends with the Hebrew word Selah. We don’t know exactly what this word meant or how to translate it. It seems to be a musical term, possibly a rest or pause, an interlude to reflect on what has been said. It may be related to the word ‘raise’ or ‘lift up’ as in ‘lift up your voices’ or ‘raise the volume’.
YHWH is my Shield, my Glory, the Lifter of my Head
Upon reflection, David responds in verse 3 with a contrast to the many voices who are against him; But you YHWH. Regardless of how many, YHWH is forever the majority. YHWH is a shield, YHWH is my glory in the midst of earthly cursing and shame, YHWH is the lifter of my head, when I am weeping, barefoot, head covered in shame.
Psalm 3:3 But you, O LORD, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head. 4 I cried aloud to the LORD, and he answered me from his holy hill. — Selah
In contrast to the many voices who are saying there is no salvation for him, one voice, the voice of the anointed one, cries aloud to the LORD in prayer. Remember, David had sent the Ark back to Jerusalem. David was separated from the physical representation of God’s presence among Israel. But even in a deep valley, across the Kidron, David could cry out to the LORD, and the LORD answered him from his holy hill. Physical distance is no barrier for the omnipresent LORD of hosts!
Sleep and the LORD’s Sustaining
After another moment of reflection, David took radical action. On the run for his life, hunted, in danger at every turn, unsure of who his enemies really were, where every moment could change history, David did something radical. He lay down and slept. Have you ever been on the run for your life, adrenaline pumping, hearing intensified, thoughts racing, contemplating contingencies? Every sense on high alert? The assumption is that by our diligence we will be able to preserve our own life. In a radical act of faith, David lays down and goes to sleep. The next Psalm (4:8) also embraces this truth: ‘In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.’ My safety is not enhanced by my worry. The LORD alone makes me dwell in safety. Sleep can be a radical statement of your utter dependence on the LORD.
Psalm 3:5 I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the LORD sustained me. 6 I will not be afraid of many thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around.
Prayer for Deliverance
In verse 4, David says that he cried aloud to the LORD, but in verse 7 comes his actual prayer.
Psalm 3:7 Arise, O LORD! Save me, O my God!
Many were rising up against him, but only one rising up in his defense is greater than the many, if that one is the LORD. This is a simple prayer. Arise, stand in my defense, come to my aid, take action to rescue me! This is a prayer that the LORD still loves to answer, and I would invite you to pray it right now today, in whatever circumstance you find yourself in. In simple dependence on him, out of your need, when none of your own plans and scheming can help, call on him to spring into action on your behalf. Arise, O YHWH! Save me, O my God!
Justice for the Wicked
Psalm 3:7 Arise, O LORD! Save me, O my God! For you strike all my enemies on the cheek; you break the teeth of the wicked.
The wicked are like chaff. They will not stand in the judgment. The way of the wicked will perish (Ps.1:4-6). The Lord will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury (Ps.2:5). ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay’ says the Lord (Rom.12:19). In the midst of the raging and plotting, it may seem that the many are prevailing, but the LORD will have the final word. We can trust his absolute justice.
Salvation and Blessing
Psalm 3:8 Salvation belongs to the LORD; your blessing be on your people! — Selah
Salvation does not belong to the strength of the horse or the strength of a man; rescue does not come with superior intelligence or strategic advantage or advanced weaponry. Salvation could come in the form of and oak entangling the proud locks of a man (2Sam.18:8-9); salvation belongs to the LORD. The majority may have been swayed to desire something different, but the LORD’s salvation secures bountiful blessing for his people.
Messiah’s Dependent Prayer
Psalm 3 was written by David, birthed out of his own painful circumstance, his own experience of the LORD’s deliverance. But as we saw with the first two Psalms, this goes far beyond David, to David’s greater Son, to YHWH’s Only Begotten, his Anointed Messiah, the only Righteous man. Like David, his victory is sure, but it comes after deep sorrow and suffering, betrayal and abandonment. Like David, he was betrayed by one close to him. Like David he crossed the Kidron with his faithful followers in great mourning and turmoil of soul.
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Psalm 3:1 O LORD, how many are my foes! Many are rising against me; 2 many are saying of my soul, there is no salvation for him in God. — Selah
-Matthew 27:42 ...let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. ...
Psalm 3:3 But you, O LORD, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head.
-Acts 2:32 This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses.
Psalm 3:4 I cried aloud to the LORD, and he answered me from his holy hill. — Selah
-Matthew 27:46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Psalm 3:5 I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the LORD sustained me.
-Acts 2:31 he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption.
Psalm 3:6 I will not be afraid of many thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around.
-John 18:3 So Judas, having procured a band of soldiers and some officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, went there with lanterns and torches and weapons. 4 Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to him, came forward and said to them, “Whom do you seek?”
Psalm 3:7 Arise, O LORD! Save me, O my God! For you strike all my enemies on the cheek; you break the teeth of the wicked.
-1 Corinthians 15:54 ... “Death is swallowed up in victory.” 55 “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
-Romans 8:37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
Psalm 3:8 Salvation belongs to the LORD; your blessing be on your people! — Selah
-Acts 4:10 ...by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead… 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
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2023.07.23 Sermon Notes
Psalm 3; Messiah’s Dependent Prayer
Psalm 1: The happy man is rooted in the instruction of the LORD and flourishes; the wicked blow away like chaff.
Psalm 2: Those who plot against the Lord’s Anointed will be crushed, but those who take refuge in him are happy.
Psalm 3: David the anointed flees from his son Absalom
(2 Samuel 13-18)
If God is faithful to all his promises, then why pray?
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The voices of the many vs. the opinion of the One
Psalm 3:1-2 vs. Psalm 3:3
The voices of the many vs. the prayer of the One
Psalm 3:1-2 vs. Psalm 3:4
A radical act of faith; I lay down and slept
Psalm 3:5; 4:8
Many rise up vs. One who arises
Psalm 3:1-2 vs. Psalm 3:7
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Psalm 3:1-2 – Matthew 27:42-43
Psalm 3:3 – Acts 2:32
Psalm 3:4 – Matthew 27:46
Psalm 3:5 – Acts 2:31
Psalm 3:6 – John 18:3-4
Psalm 3:7 – 1 Corinthians 15:54-57; Romans 8:37
Psalm 3:8 – Acts 4:10, 12
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Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org