Psalms 63:1

He had been running it through his mind over and over. What could I have done differently? As he asked that question, he came up with endless contemplations of missed opportunities and an ever-growing list of would-haves, could-haves, and should-haves. He wished he wouldn't have said that. He wished he would have done that differently.

Though everyone is ultimately responsible for their own actions, he couldn't help but think that if he had just done things a little bit differently, then his son would not be doing what he's doing now. If he had only spent more time with him, if he had only done that a different way or not done it that way, if he had just been there more, if he had just been a better example of humility, if he had just been a better example of confession and repentance, his son wouldn't be doing this. If he had been a better leader, if he had been a better husband, if he had been a better father, it wouldn't be going like this. His son wouldn't think that this was okay for him to go this way.

Have you been there? Aside from losing a near loved one, a child or a spouse, it may be the most difficult situation that anyone ever has to face. He was back in the wilderness. It was a wilderness that he knew really well. As a child, he grew up in that wilderness as he was a shepherd over the sheep of his father. It was the same wilderness that, as a young man, after being anointed king, the king who was on the throne, a guy by the name of King Saul, would pursue him, chase him, and try to kill him, and he would hide in that wilderness.

It was the same wilderness where, as king, he would find himself fighting battles against the enemies of his nation, such as the Philistines and the Moabites. He knew that wilderness well, and once again, he was back in that wilderness. This time, however, he was being pursued and uncertain about whether or not he would make it. But this time, it was not the mad King Saul. This time, it was not the Philistines who were pursuing him. This time, the pursuer was his own son, coming to track him down with an army at his back, intent on killing him.

What could happen in the mind and heart of a son to want to pursue and kill his father? There he was in the wilderness. The psalm that we are going to look at today is Psalm 63. If you have your Bible, open it to Psalm 63, which is located roughly in the middle of your Bible. If you don't have a Bible, you can raise your hand, and one of our ushers will bring you one.

As you get to Psalm 63, you can read the heading, which states: "A Psalm of David when he was in the wilderness of Judah." As we will see as we go through this passage, the internal evidence of these 11 verses seems to indicate that this time when King David, the author of Psalm 63, was in the wilderness is very likely near the end of his life. He was being pursued by his son, Absalom, who had determined to take the leadership of the nation and become king. As a result, he ran his father out of the kingdom.

It is likely that Psalm 63 was written while David was in that wilderness, corresponding with the book of 2 Samuel, which we will consider in just a moment. There he was, facing an insurrection against his leadership, confronting a rebellious coup, and the one who caused the uprising was his child. Have you been there?

Maybe not in the exact same circumstance, but have you been in a place where someone is coming against you and your leadership, perhaps at your job? Some of you, unfortunately, have been in a situation where your own child, a son or a daughter, has rebelled against you. My children rebel every single day, but they're little, so I just send them to their room. However, some of you have been in that place of being deeply troubled.

This is where David was when he wrote Psalm 63. Would you stand with me as we read beginning at verse 1?

"Oh God, you are my God. Early will I seek you. My soul thirsts for you. My flesh longs for you in a dry and thirsty land where no water is. So I've looked for you in the sanctuary to see your power and your glory. Because your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise you. Thus will I bless you while I live. I will lift up my hand in your name. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness, and my mouth shall praise you with joyful lips. When I remember you upon my bed, I meditate upon you in the night watches. Because you have been my help, therefore, in the shadow of your wings will I rejoice. My soul follows hard after you, and your right hand upholds me.

But those who seek my soul to destroy it shall go into the lower parts of the earth. They shall fall by the sword; they shall be a portion for jackals. But the king shall rejoice in God. Everyone who swears by him shall glory, but the mouth of those who speak lies shall be stopped.

Father, would you speak to us today? Would you comfort the hearts of any who might be in a very similar wilderness right now? Not the exact same thing, but similar—experiencing deep trouble, experiencing turmoil in their mind, in their heart, in their soul.

Because of someone—a friend, a former partner, a co-worker—who has come against them and speaks evil of them, or perhaps they are experiencing the rebellion of a child, a son, or a daughter who has not only decided not to follow them but to spit in their face, they may find themselves in deep trouble. God, would you speak to us? Give us your word and help us to know more of who you are and how great you are, that we would be able to glorify you better and honor you better. We pray this in Jesus' name. And all those that agree said, Amen. You can be seated.

As a young boy, King David, who lived 3,000 years ago, grew up in the wilderness of Judah, or Judea. It is the wilderness that surrounds the city that still stands today, Jerusalem, in the modern state of Israel. All those hills around Jerusalem are part of the wilderness of Judea. David, as a boy, grew up not very far from Jerusalem—just about 8 to 10 miles away in a town called Bethlehem. As the shepherd of his father's sheep, he would take them out into that wilderness, getting to know it really well.

When he was a shepherd boy, the only challenges he faced were the beasts of the field. Unfortunately for him, sometimes those were significant threats. At one point, a lion came against him, and he defended the flock against that lion. When he was 12 or 13 years old, an early teenager, he was anointed by a prophet in the nation, the judge of the nation, a man named Samuel, to be the next king. There was already a king on the throne, his name was Saul.

This created a problem: God had called and anointed a young boy to be king, but there was already a king. For several years, things seemed to be going well. However, there came a point when the people in the nation began to applaud David more than Saul. We know how politicians react to that, don't we? As a result, David found himself on the run. For nearly a decade, he ran for his life in that same wilderness, while King Saul gathered the army of the nation of Israel to pursue him.

Day and night, he pursued him, seeking to kill him. Ultimately, God was faithful, as God is. There came a point where David ascended to the throne, received the crown, and became king. Later, he would pursue others, enemies in the wilderness of Judah.

As time went on during his reign, there came a point later in his life where one of the members of his household, his son Absalom, began to rise to prominence, just as David once did when Saul was king. The story is told to us in the book of 2 Samuel. You don't have to turn there; you can just write it down. You might want to read this passage later. It is found in 2 Samuel chapters 15 through 18.

It is interesting how this story unfolds. For a time, Absalom was estranged from his father. For about four years, he lived in another city far away due to some problems between him and his dad. The issues were, quite frankly, a result of his father's foolishness and sinfulness. Pastor Mark told the story a few weeks ago as he led us through 2 Samuel chapters 11 and 12. There, we see the unfortunate events in David's life where, through the act of his flesh and his fallen nature, he engaged in adultery.

Through that adulterous act, he ultimately had the husband of the woman he committed adultery with killed. He committed murder and then covered it up. Ultimately, it became known by all in the kingdom; everybody knew what had happened in David's household. This scandal completely depleted every ounce of moral capital that King David had.

Shortly thereafter, David's oldest son committed an absolutely egregious and atrocious act. He raped his half-sister. However, David had no moral authority or capital. What could he do? He did nothing. One of David's other sons, who was actually the full brother of the sister who had been assaulted, was completely outraged by it, as he should have been. He was utterly outraged.

He took things into his own hands. He said, "This will not stand," and he killed his brother. What could David do? He had no moral capital. But, of course, it drove a wedge. There was conflict. There were people in the nation advising the king who said, "You need to put your son to death. You need to deal with this." David responded, "I can't do it. I won't do it. What could I do?" He committed adultery. He committed murder. He covered it up. So he did nothing, and there was discord in the kingdom.

However, there were people in the kingdom who were upset and enraged. Ultimately, Absalom was run out, and for a period of time, he lived away. There was heartbreak in the king and heartbreak in the kingdom. But then David sought to reach out, repair, and reconcile, bringing Absalom back to the kingdom. Everything seemed like it would be okay; they were going to move forward, and things were going to be better.

But as we read in 2 Samuel chapter 15, Absalom began to have gatherings with people. He started to talk about the problems in the nation, highlighting some serious issues in their leadership. It is really easy to find a group of people who agree with you when you talk politics. Absalom would say, "There’s some real injustice in our nation." People would respond, "Yeah, you're right. Oh, yeah. You're right. Come, you have to hear this guy talk. He's got some good things to say. There’s some injustice, some problems. We have to deal with this."

In 2 Samuel chapter 15, verse 6, we read that Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel. Just six verses later, David's advisor came to the king and spoke to him. The messenger said, "The hearts of the men of Israel are with Absalom." The beginning of the rebellion, the beginning of the coup had started.

The next thing we see in 2 Samuel chapter 15, recorded at verse 23, is that David has left his palace in Jerusalem, just below where the temple would one day stand. It wasn't there yet, but he left the city of David in Jerusalem. He went outside of his palace, outside of the city, down to the east into what is called the Kidron Valley. He stood at the brook that goes through the Kidron Valley. There, up above him to one side, was his palace and his kingdom. To the other side was the wilderness of Judah.

As he stands there, the high priest of the nation, a man by the name of Zadok, comes down with some of the Levites, the priests, and they are carrying the Ark of the Covenant of God. Yes, that same thing that Indiana Jones got back. You know, that gold box with the angels' outstretched wings over the top of what is called the mercy seat, the lid on that box, which is the physical representation of the presence of God. They bring it out to David.

There he is, the king, standing at a crossroads. There is his kingdom, and there is the wilderness he knew so well. The priest says, "Hey, we'll come with you." David responds to Zadok, saying, "No, take it back up into the temple." The temple is not yet there, so he instructs them to take it back up to the tabernacle. He leaves, crosses the brook, and goes up the Mount of Olives, venturing into the wilderness he knew from his childhood, from when Saul pursued him, and from his battles with his enemies. Now, the enemy pursuing him is his son.

Why did David leave? He could have stayed in his place. He could have remained in the palace and stood his ground. No doubt there were advisors saying, "You need to stay. You need to deal with this punk kid. Who does this guy think he is? You're the king, not Absalom." Absolutely, there were counselors telling him he needed to stay. Yet, David left.

Why did he leave? I think the answer is given to us in 2 Samuel chapter 15. You can turn there if you'd like. It's to the left in your Bible. You will pass a whole bunch of different books: Nehemiah, Ezra, Chronicles, and Kings. Then you will find 2 Samuel chapter 15. Or you can just note it down for later.

In 2 Samuel chapter 15, verse 25, the king said to Zadok, the high priest, "Carry the ark of God back into the city. It's not coming with me. Take it back to the city. I appreciate your kindness, your support, Zadok. I appreciate your friendship, but take it back to the city. If I find favor in the eyes of the Lord, then He, God, will bring me back and show me the ark and the tabernacle. He will bring me back and show me it and His dwelling place."

Verse 26 states, "But if He, God, says, 'I have no delight in you,' then here I am. Let Him do to me as seems good to Him." Why did David leave? He left because he knew that he had sinned greatly. In his mind, he thought, "Maybe God’s done with me. Maybe this is it. This is the result of my failure. This is the result of my adultery, my murder. This is the result of me lying about it. This is the result of me not taking care of and ordering my house."

His son raped his sister, and his other son killed his brother. David thought, "Maybe this is it. Maybe God’s done." He recognized that if God is gracious and finds favor in him, then He can bring him back. But if not, he would leave it in God's hands, saying, "Let Him do to me as seems good to Him."

There is a question that lingers in the minds of many people who read the Bible. They see that David is called a man after God's own heart, yet they also read about his adultery and murder, and how he failed to order his house well. They wonder, "How could it possibly be that he could be a man after God's own heart? This guy's a wicked, sinful man."

That right there is why he is a man after God's own heart. He says, "I'm going to leave it in the hands of the Lord. Lord, I deserve nothing but judgment." And so, he leaves. Some of his closest friends and family members come with him. He goes into the wilderness and hears through counselors. You can read about this in chapters 16 and 17 of 2 Samuel. There are some men still in the palace who are giving him information—spies, if you will. They tell him, "Hey, listen, David, you need to hide because this isn’t good. Absalom is going to gather the entire army of the nation with him, and he’s coming to pursue you. He’s going to find you and kill you. You need to hide."

David could have called out to his allies. He could have said, "Hey, I’ve got the king up there in Syria. He’s a friend; he’ll come and help me." He could have reached out to his mighty men, his generals, and said, "Listen, the army’s with me. You guys are with me. We’ve defeated so many people over time. This guy’s a little punk; he’s got long flowing hair."

He's never seen battle in his life. He's a chump. But he doesn't do that. He goes into the wilderness. As he's there in the wilderness, he prays. Psalm 63 is his contemplative prayer to the Lord. This is how he starts: "Oh, God, you are my God." Have you ever prayed like that? Where you just fall before the Lord and say, "Oh, God," and then, "You are my God"?

At the very beginning, when God called the people of Israel, the nation of Israel, out of Egypt, He came and retrieved them by the leadership of Moses through plagues. It's recorded in the book of Exodus. In Exodus chapter 6, before they are taken out of Egypt, God says, "I will take you as my people, and I will be your God." God is going to establish a covenant with them, a relationship with them: "You will be my people, and I will be your God."

David knew God as his God because he was in that covenant relationship with Him. In fact, at least five times in the Psalms, maybe seven times—because we're not entirely sure whether or not Psalm 118 was written by David, although it seems like it was—David says of God, "You are my God." He knew God as his God and had a relationship with Him.

So he writes, sings, and prays here in Psalm 63: "Oh, God, you are my God. Early will I seek you. My soul thirsts for you. My flesh longs for you in a dry and thirsty land where no water is."

Point number one on your outline, your sermon guide, is in your bulletin: God is your God only if you seek Him. When in times of trouble, when experiencing deep, gut-wrenching, soul-wrenching trouble, the master or the God of your life is revealed by what or who you turn to. That thing that you trust in when you're going through trial, tribulation, or difficulty.

It is revealed what the master or God of your life is by who you turn to or what you turn to in the midst of trouble. That's a challenging thing to consider. The fact is, when we go through trials or difficulties, there are a lot of different things that we turn to. Some people turn to a counselor or a friend. Others might turn to a brother or sister in the church. All of these are well and good. However, some people, when going through very difficult situations, turn to alcohol, drugs, or sexual promiscuity to try and deal with the soul-stirring, wrenching things that are going on.

The master of your life, the God of your life, will be revealed by what you first turn to. Notice here that David is in a soul-wrenching situation. He says, "God, you are my God. Early will I seek you." This doesn't mean that all the people in the first service get up early and are the real spiritual ones. Not so for us late people. "Early" could also mean you are the first one I turn to.

David continues, "Early will I seek you." Why? Because my soul thirsts for you; my flesh longs for you in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water. David is physically in that wilderness, but spiritually and emotionally, he is also in that wilderness. When he says, "My soul thirsts for you; my flesh longs for you," he is expressing that his entire being, everything in him, is looking to God in this situation. His soul and his flesh, all that he is, are turning to God in this dry and weary experience he is going through right now.

We have a wonderful promise in the Scriptures, given by God through the prophet Jeremiah. You can jot it down: Jeremiah 29:13. There, God says, "And you will seek me and find me when you search for me with all of your heart." The promise is that satisfying living water is found by the one who seeks for the Lord with soul and flesh, everything. "I'm going to seek for you, Lord, and you will find me when you seek for me with all of your heart."

David found himself in that dry and thirsty land—physically, emotionally, and spiritually—at this point in his life. His first point of reference was God. He declared, "You are my God, and I'm going to turn to you." As he was in the wilderness, he received word that Absalom was coming, leading the entire army of the nation against him. Those who once stood with him no longer did, and they were coming against him. In that moment, he said, "God, I have nowhere to turn but to you."

The second point is that the Lord will satisfy the seeking soul. We have this sure confidence that the Lord will satisfy the seeking soul. David knew this to be true, which is why he sought the Lord so many times throughout his life. We see this in the very next verse. In verse two, he states, "So I have looked for you." This is in the past tense. He looked for God in the sanctuary to see His power and His glory.

When we are hungry, we know where to turn, right? If you're hungry at home, where do you go? To the kitchen. It's not a trick question; it's simple. We know where to go when we are physically hungry or thirsty. We go to the kitchen, to the refrigerator, and we look inside. We know where to find food and drink.

The question is, where do you turn when, at the soul level, you are thirsting? When you feel parched, dry, famished, or starving, where do you turn? David said, "So I have looked for you in the sanctuary." He knew where to find God—there in the sanctuary.

For David, there was something called the tabernacle. The temple had not yet been built, but there was the tabernacle where he could go. There were priests and Levites, and it had a holy place and the most holy place, along with the Ark of God. It was there that he could witness with his eyes the power and glory of God. He could see it tangibly. He said, "So I have sought you. I've looked for you in the sanctuary. I've seen your power and your glory."

I don't know about you, but sometimes that thought crosses our minds: "Gosh, I wish I had one of those tabernacles," where you could just see God tangibly, because sometimes He seems distant.

And you might think, "Well, David, that's kind of cool that you had that place you could go to where you could see His power and His glory there at the sanctuary." But remember, at this point in David's life, he couldn't go there. We just saw it in 2 Samuel. Zadok brought the ark, and David said, "Take it back." He expressed that if he found favor in the Lord's eyes, then the Lord would bring him back to see it. But at this point, he was in the wilderness. He couldn't return to that place. He was fleeing from Jerusalem, away from all those things that were a steadfast foundation for him.

However, he knew that even without that, God could still be found. It's nice to have a physical place to go to, but we no longer have that. There is no tabernacle, no physical temple that you and I can visit. But it's not essential. David understood that he could still experience the presence, power, glory, and worship of God without the tabernacle or the ark.

How do we know that? Look at the next section, verses 3 through 5: "Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise You. Thus, I will bless You while I live. I will lift up my hands in Your name. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness, and my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips."

Notice that there is a subtle shift in tense from verse 2 to verses 3 and 5. In verse 2, he says, "So I have looked for You in the sanctuary to see Your power and glory." But now, in verses 3 through 5, he states, "My lips shall praise You. Thus, I will bless You while I live. I will lift up my hands in Your name. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness. My mouth shall praise You with joyful lips."

Remember, he does not know whether he will ever see that temple or tabernacle again. He doesn't know if he will ever be able to be in the presence of the ark of the covenant of the Lord. And yet, he declares, "I shall do this." In verse 2, when he says, "I have looked for You in the sanctuary," it is in the perfect tense in Hebrew, indicating an action that is completed.

However, when we get to verses 3 through 5, where he says, "I shall do this," "I will," "I will," it is in the imperfect tense, suggesting an action that is not yet completed and is in the process of being done. Even in the wilderness, he is still worshiping as if he were in the tabernacle, because God does not dwell in tents or tabernacles made with hands.

We don't need to have those things. That's why you can tilt up a building and gather together, or you can be in the wilderness and worship the Lord, as David was at this point in time. Even though he was under pressing circumstances and very troubling things were going on in his life, he said, "My lips shall praise you. I will bless you." Why? Because your lovingkindness is better than life.

Now, think about this. This is David, the king of Israel. Even though it was 3,000 years ago, I imagine that the king of Israel had tasted some pretty good things in his life—experiences, foods, all kinds of different things. He said, "God, your lovingkindness is better than all that. It's better than all of that." Because your lovingkindness is in my life, even though I'm in dire, deep, troubling circumstances, I'm going to bless you. I'm going to praise you with my lips.

Then he has this expectation of coming good things. He says, "My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness." Now, we don't use words like "marrow" and "fatness" too much, I'm assuming. You probably don't use those. So I really appreciate Eugene Peterson, who wrote The Message Bible, because he translates this: "I will, future tense, eat my fill of prime rib and gravy."

Now, if you're a vegetarian or a vegan today, God bless you. Jesus loves you too. But for the rest of us, I don't know about you, but prime rib and gravy sounds good. Marrow and fatness—it's good times. A little bit of horseradish. Sorry, that's not something you do when you're all trapped in a room like this. Talking about food is even worse than the third service because they're all having visions of double-doubles in their minds.

But notice the anticipation, the expectation. "I will, my soul shall be satisfied with marrow and fatness, and my lips shall praise you. My mouth shall praise you with joyful lips." What does that mean? "My mouth shall praise you with joyful lips." Well, if you've ever eaten a good meal, you've had joyful lips. That was good, right? My mouth is going to praise you with joyful lips because you are going to satisfy me. So he verbally praises God, even though he's in terrible circumstances.

He verbally acknowledges and glorifies God for His loving kindness, for His support, and for His continual provision.

Point number three on your outline: those who taste of God's goodness should glorify Him mightily. Whatever circumstance you're going through, even if things are falling apart in your life, we should glorify Him mightily. Why? Because His loving kindness is better than life. The real question is, have you tasted of His loving kindness? Have you experienced that in your life? And if not, why not? What's holding you back from tasting and experiencing that the Lord is good?

David says, "Your loving kindness is better than life. My lips shall praise You. Thus will I bless You while I live. I will lift up my hands in Your name. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness, and my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips."

Then he continues in the next verse, "When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches." Even though David is in a dry and thirsty wilderness at this point, his bed might be just dirt. He has gone from the palace to the pit. Now, here he is laying on the dirt, maybe somewhere in the wilderness. There are guys keeping watch with him; some of his mighty men are still with him, ensuring his protection.

As he goes to sleep, he reflects, "When I remember You upon my bed, even though everything else is closing in on me, I meditate on You in those night watches." His mind is filled with meditations of God's loving kindness and His goodness.

Point number four on your outline: the Lord is worthy of our continual devotion. This means we don't only rejoice in, praise God, and glorify His goodness when everything is good. It's easy to do that, right? When everything is going really well and someone says, "Praise the Lord," you respond, "Amen, yeah, amen. Praise the Lord." But when things are really terrible and everything has hit the fan, and someone says, "Praise the Lord," your first reaction might be different. Yet here, David is in that circumstance.

He says, "I remember you on my bed. I meditate on you. Your lovingkindness is better than life." The Lord is worthy of our continual devotion. No matter the circumstance—whether in the temple or the wilderness, whether in the palace or the pit—He is deserving of our continual praise.

Why? The next verse answers that: "Because you have been my help." As he was there trying to sleep, meditating on the Lord, his mindful reflections on God's lovingkindness lead him to this realization: "You've been my help." He recalls being in the same wilderness when a lion came against the sheep, and God was there to help him.

He remembers being pursued by King Saul in that same wilderness, perhaps in the same cave where he used to hide, the cave of Adullam. Now, here comes his son Absalom, and he reflects on how Saul tried to kill him, yet God protected him. For eight years, God protected him while the entire army of Israel was after him. When he fought against the Philistines or the Moabites or other enemies, he acknowledges, "God, you've been my help."

Because you have been my help, therefore, "in the shadow of your wings, I will rejoice." Now, don't read this verse and think that God has literal wings. This is Hebrew poetry, using an anthropomorphic term that gives us a vivid picture. It's the idea of a hen with her little chicks, or perhaps a better image is that of a mother goose with her goslings. If you've ever seen them, when you try to get close, they run behind Mama, and she protects them.

This is the picture that David is trying to convey to you and me. Because you have been, in the past, my help, therefore, "in the shadow of your wings, I will rejoice." You've taken care of me in the past, and I will find my shelter in you.

In verse 8, he expresses, "My soul follows hard after you," as the King James Version states, "My soul follows hard after you, close behind you."

And your right hand upholds me. David has seen God's power and His glory in the sanctuary, but he has experienced God's loving kindness, protection, shelter, and goodness all throughout his life. When he meditates upon this, in the present terrible circumstances occurring in his life, his household, and his kingdom, everything is falling apart. He realizes that God is the place where he finds joy and rejoicing. So, he decides to run to God and follow closely behind Him. As he follows closely, he knows that God will uphold him.

Point number five on your outline: The Lord will support the seeking soul. We already saw number two, which states that the Lord will satisfy the seeking soul. But now, the Lord will support the seeking soul. As you pursue the Lord and seek after Him, your soul seeks after Him, pursues Him, and holds on to Him.

In contrast, David, in verses 9 through 11, turns away from himself to his enemies. Unfortunately for him at this moment, his enemy is his own son. Notice the contrast, because in the Psalms, Hebrew poets often use parallel ideas, specifically a form called antithetic parallelism, which presents contrasting ideas. In verse 8, David says, "My soul follows hard after You, and Your right hand upholds me." He is determined to pursue God with his soul, and the result is that God will support him.

Now, look at verse 9. "But those who pursue or seek my life, or my soul, to destroy it." While David is pursuing the Lord and being upheld by Him, these people are pursuing David to destroy him. What will happen to them? They shall go into the lower parts of the earth, which refers to hell, destruction, or Sheol. They shall fall by the sword. Jesus said in Matthew 26, verse 52, "For all who draw the sword will die by the sword." Here, David pictures those who are pursuing him with the sword, stating that they will fall by it.

They shall be a portion for jackals. What does this mean? It means that when these pursuers of David die, their bodies, their carcasses will be left in the open as a shame to them.

Unburied. In Middle Eastern culture, if you die, you are buried the same day. This practice continues today. When someone dies, they are buried that day. In Middle Eastern thought, particularly among the Hebrews, to be left unburied at sundown is a shame. This is why the book of Deuteronomy states, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree." If you are left out in the open, exposed and unburied, it signifies that no one loves you or is willing to come and bury you. You are left in shame.

David reflects on this as he speaks of his enemies, his pursuers, who seek to destroy him. He anticipates that they will die and lay in an open area, ashamed. However, he declares that the King shall rejoice in God. David has the expectation and anticipation of returning to his place and rejoicing in God—not in his own power, strength, ingenuity, or army. The King shall rejoice in God, and everyone who swears by God shall glory. But the mouths of those who speak lies shall be stopped.

This is David's prayer. In the midst of his struggles, he cries out, "God, you are my God. Early will I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my flesh longs for you in a dry and thirsty land where no water is." He has looked for God in the sanctuary to see His power and glory. Because God's lovingkindness is better than life, David's lips shall praise Him. "Thus will I bless you while I live; I will lift up my hands in your name. My soul shall be satisfied as with prime rib and gravy, and my mouth shall praise you with joyful lips."

In contrast, David expresses certainty that God will ultimately vindicate His followers. He could have turned to his allies, his army, or any earthly method to try to quell the rebellion and handle it by his own means. Yet, at the end of the day, he stood at a crossroads. He had the choice to return to the palace and do it his way or to cross the brook, go into the wilderness, and trust the situation into God's hands.

David became, even though he was a sinful man like every single one of us. If they would have had Ashley Madsen 3,000 years ago, his name would have been found on the list. Think about it. Even though he was a sinful man, he became a man after God's own heart because he said, "God, I'm going to commit myself into your hands. You do with me as you will. Maybe this is your judgment, but it's in your hands." He trusted that God would ultimately vindicate his followers. That has to be our trust when the enemy comes against us: "God, it's in your hands, and you fight the battle." Amen?

Would you stand with me as we close in prayer?

Father God, thank you for your word to us. I pray that we would commit this to our hearts, that we would even memorize this section of Scripture, to think on it, to meditate upon it, and to be reminded that you are our help. You are our support. You are the one who provides and protects us. We should look to you for all that we need and experience your vindication. We pray this in Jesus' name. And all those that agree said, "Amen." Thank you.