PSALM 62

1 To the Chief Musician. To Jeduthun. A Psalm of David. Truly my soul silently [waits] for God; From Him [comes] my salvation. 2 He only [is] my rock and my salvation; [He is] my defense; I shall not be greatly moved. 3 How long will you attack a man? You shall be slain, all of you, Like a leaning wall and a tottering fence. 4 They only consult to cast [him] down from his high position; They delight in lies; They bless with their mouth, But they curse inwardly. Selah 5 My soul, wait silently for God alone, For my expectation [is] from Him. 6 He only [is] my rock and my salvation; [He is] my defense; I shall not be moved. 7 In God [is] my salvation and my glory; The rock of my strength, [And] my refuge, [is] in God.

PSALM 62:1-7

GOD ALONE

David lived among nations that had a plurality of gods. If the people didn’t get what they wanted, they would ask a different god. They might try and play the god’s off of one another or they would try and increase their opportunities by bringing offerings to multiple gods. When “magic” was involved they would try and get the names of higher powered ‘gods’ to manipulate the lower powered gods or vise versa to come as an intermediary for a request. (We’ve seen that enter parts of Catholicism where folks pray to Mary or a saint who will talk to Jesus on their behalf. As one of my friends put it, “Mary is Jesus’ mother, he has to listen to her!”)

The God of the bible is different than all of those other gods. He is real. He isn’t dependent upon the offerings we bring, we are dependent upon him. He cannot be manipulated or cajoled into doing something for us. He is God alone and the only way to come to him is as God alone. We don’t pray to God and all the angels or apostles or saints. We don’t make offerings to creation (the tings he has made). We go to God alone. We deal with him alone.

God alone is the only one who can save us from our enemies. Not God and Pharaoh’s army or God and the Philistine chieftains. God alone is the one who saves. Sometimes he divides the water where we can walk through on dry land and drown Egyptian armies, or thunderstorms to bog down chariots, or trumpets, clay jars, torches and confusion, or even just rumors from back in Assyria. Whenever God saves, is is God alone who saves and so David waits for God alone.

David learned early on that God was the only safe place to go when the battle got strong and the enemy appeared even stronger. When David faced Goliath he didn’t go with his confidence in God and Saul’s armor. He went with God alone and trusted that God could use a small sling to put down a big giant.

PRAYER

Father, Thank you that you alone are our refuge and our strength. We don’t need horses and chariots or the flashy things of this world, all we need is you. Thank you for being the fortress that we find shelter. You are a firm foundation, a rock, a solid and unmovable place. We put all our hope in you. Not in our strength or our pawer, but in you alone. Thank you for your grace. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

I’m reading and blogging the Psalms Through The Summer. I’d love for you to join me. You can find out a little more here.