Psalm 109: A Secure Stronghold

Key Verse
21 But you, O God my Lord, deal on my behalf for your name's sake; because your steadfast love is good, deliver me!... 27 Let them know that this is your hand; you, O Lord, have done it!
 
Meditation
God’s sovereign care is a stronghold and safe place during seasons of attack. 
 
The context behind today’s reading is easy to assess: David was assaulted and slandered, shaved down into shadow and shell of himself (v. 23). Encircled by hatred and attacked without cause (vv. 2-3), David turned to the Lord for strength. Yes, David prays curses upon his antagonists (see also Jeremiah 18:19-23), but this does not detract from his hope in the Lord.
 
David was degraded. God was exalted (v. 1). While David was put down, he lifted his heart in prayer (v. 4). David trusted the Lord to “deal on (his) behalf for (God’s) name’s sake, because (God’s) steadfast love is good” (v. 21), and to do so decisively that his enemies would know “this is Your hand; you, O Lord, have done it!” (v. 27). David is dependent on God to deliver and looks to God alone to save him (v. 26).
 
David’s confidence is so great that he prays in past tense- “Oh Lord, you have done it!” (v. 27) David lived in confidence, knowing the venom of enemies is nothing compared to the victory of the Lord (vv. 28-29). The mouths of David’s enemy curse. David commits his mouth to “give thanks to the Lord, to praise him” (vv. 30-31). In these ways, David points to his greater Son, Jesus Christ. Through the work of King Jesus, believers are secure when we are slandered and attacked, knowing we can trust the steadfast and sovereign care of the Lord. God is our stronghold and safe place. We find security in God’s steadfast love!
 
Today’s Reading
Be not silent, O God of my praise!
2 For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me, speaking against me with lying tongues.
3 They encircle me with words of hate, and attack me without cause.
4 In return for my love they accuse me, but I give myself to prayer.
5 So they reward me evil for good,
and hatred for my love.
6 Appoint a wicked man against him; let an accuser stand at his right hand.
7 When he is tried, let him come forth guilty; let his prayer be counted as sin!
8 May his days be few;
may another take his office!
9 May his children be fatherless
and his wife a widow!
10 May his children wander about and beg, seeking food far from the ruins they inhabit!
11 May the creditor seize all that he has;
may strangers plunder the fruits of his toil!
12 Let there be none to extend kindness to him,
nor any to pity his fatherless children!
13 May his posterity be cut off;
may his name be blotted out in the second generation!
14 May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord,
and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out!
15 Let them be before the Lord continually,
that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth!
16 For he did not remember to show kindness,
but pursued the poor and needy
and the brokenhearted, to put them to death.
17 He loved to curse; let curses come upon him!
He did not delight in blessing; may it be far from him!
18 He clothed himself with cursing as his coat;
may it soak into his body like water, like oil into his bones!
19 May it be like a garment that he wraps around him,
like a belt that he puts on every day!
20 May this be the reward of my accusers from the Lord,
of those who speak evil against my life!
21 But you, O God my Lord,
deal on my behalf for your name's sake;
because your steadfast love is good, deliver me!
22 For I am poor and needy, and my heart is stricken within me.
23 I am gone like a shadow at evening; I am shaken off like a locust.
24 My knees are weak through fasting;
my body has become gaunt, with no fat.
25 I am an object of scorn to my accusers;
when they see me, they wag their heads.
26 Help me, O Lord my God!
Save me according to your steadfast love!
27 Let them know that this is your hand; you, O Lord, have done it!
28 Let them curse, but you will bless! They arise and are put to shame, but your servant will be glad!
29 May my accusers be clothed with dishonor; may they be wrapped in their own shame as in a cloak!
30 With my mouth I will give great thanks to the Lord;
I will praise him in the midst of the throng.
31 For he stands at the right hand of the needy one, to save him from those who condemn his soul to death.
 
Richly Dwelling
-What is your reaction when you are attacked, assaulted, or slandered? Where do you turn?
 
-David turns to the Lord and in process points to the teaching of Jesus that commands us to turn the other cheek. Why does this sort of step take a greater strength than retaliation? Where can David’s prayers be yours?
 
-We can trust the security of God’s steadfast love because of the finished work of Jesus. Jesus guarantees the love of God is our stronghold and safe place, security when we are slandered. How, specifically, can you turn to Him? 
 
Key Verse
21 But you, O God my Lord, deal on my behalf for your name's sake; because your steadfast love is good, deliver me!... 27 Let them know that this is your hand; you, O Lord, have done it!