Psalm 9:1-3 and 19-20 - I will praise you, O LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders. I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High. My enemies turn back; they stumble and perish before you.
Arise, O LORD, let not man triumph; let the nations be judged in your presence. Strike them with terror, O LORD; let the nations know they are but men. "Selah"
David’s beautiful words of pure joy are wonderful to hear amidst the many cries of pain and grief David recorded in many of the Psalms. These great words may have been written after a victory over the Philistine army…so says my Life Application Bible Commentary. His heart was so full of thanks to God for the victory over an army that mocked God’s name unmercifully. He was so proud to be called a follower of God …the pride he felt from God’s act of justice ….overflowing in what had to be a huge smile that lasted for weeks.
The victory God provided that day…gave him confirmation of the mission God had given him to do. Every trouble he may have had before the battle disappeared somewhere in the feelings of joy he experienced. All sadness melted away as the spark of joy multiplied inside his heart…and bubbled over into a full blown celebration of God’s glory and protection that comes when we let him hold the reins to our decisions.
David’s praise shows his motives for loving God in the first place. He gave all the praise to God….telling everyone in that moment who wouldn’t run away from his voice… that God was his strength and victor. He told them all to call on God for the help that they needed…and wait on him to provide a great victory for them when the time was right.
We have to be careful….not to let our motive be saving ourself. Those promises we sometimes make when things are at their worst….those deals we make with God because we don’t see another way out…mean we have sold out to the world. I have news for you…God doesn’t make deals…that is the way satan works. God expects us to have faith…and trust…and feel the hope he plants in our hearts and souls grow into a full relationship with him.
The truth is that we are all just puny men. David told us that already. David’s last words from this chapter describe the two choices we have when we realize the truth of this knowledge. I loved the way my Life Application Bible commentary put it.... puny men who love God become mighty…victorious men of a great God….but puny men who allow the world to trick them into staying sinners are just puny men.
Father…thank you for these great words from David’s Psalms. Help me to never settle for being just a puny man ever again. Help me to find the strength and faith to become a mighty woman of God’s work…so I can feel the inner strength and joy that David felt in this moment. Clarify the work you have put me here to do….help me to walk the right direction so I can stumble on your path for me a quickly as possible. Let the joy that overflows from my heart be a constant witness to the healing power of your love for all of us. Amen.
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