Trust in the Lord's Salvation, Yeshuah

Continuing a chronological Bible study:

(Psalm 20:1) (To the chief Musician, a Psalm of David) The Lord hear you in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend you.

David had just succeeded in many battles, enlarging Israel's territory, subduing enemies, and making them tributaries.  It is reasonable to think he may have composed such a psalm as this at that time.  Just as He had done for him, I think David's prayer was that the Lord hear His people in the day of their trouble and defend them.  God Himself, who is named the God of Jacob, whom Jacob called upon and trusted in as his God, who answered him in the day of his distress, may that same God defend them.

Adam Clarke, in his Commentary on the Bible, suggested that the psalm was written, "on the occasion of David’s going to war, and most probably with the Ammonites and Syrians, who came with great numbers of horses and chariots to fight with him."  That would place it before the events of the last post.  In either case, David had witnessed the Lord coming to his aid in times of trouble and surely continually desired that for him and for his people.

(2) Send you help from the sanctuary and strengthen you out of Zion.

May the Lord send help from the sanctuary, or the holy place where God was worshipped and where He was supposed to reside, and strengthen His people from His place in Zion.

(3) Remember all your offerings and accept your burnt sacrifice. Selah.

May the Lord remember all His people's offerings, freewill offerings of praise and thanksgiving, as opposed to mandated sacrifices.  May those sacrifices also be acceptable to the Lord.  Selah meant a pause for reflection.

(4) Grant you according to your own heart and fulfill all your counsel.

May the Lord grant the people their hearts' desires and fulfill their plans to execute their purposes.

(5) We will rejoice in Your salvation, and in the name of our God we will set up banners; the Lord fulfill all your petitions.

All God's people will rejoice in His salvation.  I can't believe that this is the first time I have noticed the original word that was translated as "salvation."  It's "yeshuah", Jesus's very name, Salvation!  I believe the sense of banners is that they are banners of victory emblazoned with the name of God.  May the Lord grant all those petitions!

(6) Now I know that the Lord saves His anointed; He will hear him from His holy heaven with the saving strength of His right hand.

David was confident that the Lord saved His anointed ones, those called by Him to fulfill His will.  He would hear them from heaven and save them by His mighty hand.

(7) Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we will remember the name of the Lord our God.

Some people trusted in chariots and in horses, in objects of strength and defense, but the people of God would remember and trust only in their Lord God.

(8) They are brought down and fallen, but we are risen and stand upright.

Those who had trusted in chariots and horses had been brought down, but those who trusted in the Lord were raised up in victory and stood upright.

(9) Save, Lord! Let the King hear us when we call!

David prayed for the Lord to save, "yasha."  May Jesus Christ, Yashuah, the King of kings, hear His people when they called.

Although it was written by David, this psalm probably became a song of the people of Israel for their kings.  They sent them forth, wishing them victory in their endeavors for Israel.

David's Kindness to Mephibosheth, and He Defeats Ammon and Syria

Continuing a chronological Bible study:

(2 Samuel 9:1) And David said, "Is there yet any who is left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan's sake?"

When Saul and his sons had been killed, David was not aware of any other descendants of Saul.  However, he had promised his dear friend Jonathan, one of Saul's sons, that he would not cut off his kindness from Jonathan's (Saul's) house forever (1 Samuel 20:15).  He wondered now if there was anyone left in the house of Saul to whom he could show kindness for the sake of his vow to Jonathan.

(2) And of the house of Saul there was a servant whose name was Ziba. And when they had called him to David, the king said to him, "Are you Ziba?" And he said, "Your servant." (3) And the king said, "Is there not yet any of the house of Saul that I may show the kindness of God to him?" And Ziba said to the king, "Jonathan has yet a son, lame of feet."

There was a servant who had been in the house of Saul named Ziba.  David called for him and asked if he knew of anyone left in the house of Saul to whom he might show kindness.  Ziba told him about Jonathan's son who had been crippled in his feet.

(4) And the king said to him, "Where is he?" And Ziba said to the king, "Behold, he is in the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, in Lodebar."

David asked Ziba where this son of Jonathan was, to which Ziba replied that he was in the house of a man named Machir, the son of a man named Ammiel, in a place called Lodebar.

(5) Then King David sent and fetched him out of the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, from Lodebar. (6) Now when Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, had come to David, he fell on his face and did reverence. And David said, "Mephibosheth." And he answered, "Behold your servant!"

David sent for Mephibosheth and brought him out of the house of Machir to himself.  When Mephibosheth came to David, he fell on his face in reverence to the king.  When David acknowledged him, he called himself the king's servant.

(7) And David said to him, "Fear not, for I will surely show you kindness for Jonathan your father's sake and will restore you all the land of Saul your father, and you shall eat bread at my table continually."

David told Mephibosheth not to be afraid for he only meant to show kindness to him for the sake of his father, Jonathan.  He told him he would restore to him all the land of his grandfather Saul and that he would be David's personal guest at his table for as long as he lived.

(8) And he bowed himself and said, "What is your servant that you should look upon such a dead dog as I?"

Mephibosheth bowed himself in humility and gratitude and asked David how it was that he could show such favor to someone as lowly as himself.

(9) Then the king called to Ziba, Saul's servant, and said to him, "I have given to your master's son all that pertained to Saul and to all his house. (10) You therefore, and your sons, and your servants, shall till the land for him, and you shall bring in the fruits that your master's son may have food to eat, but Mephibosheth your master's son shall eat bread always at my table." Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

David then called Ziba, Saul's servant, and told him that he had given Mephibosheth all that had belonged to Saul.  He put him, his fifteen sons, and his twenty servants, all back to work tilling and harvesting Saul's land for Mephibosheth and his household.  However, Mephibosheth would always be a guest at David's own table.

(11) Then Ziba said to the king, "According to all that my lord the king has commanded his servant, so shall your servant do." As for Mephibosheth, "he shall eat at my table, as one of the king's sons."

Ziba agreed to do all that David had commanded of him.  Then he either quoted the words of David, or perhaps they were again the words of David, repeating that Mephibosheth would always eat at his own table as if he was one of his sons.

(12) And Mephibosheth had a young son whose name was Micha. And all who dwelt in the house of Ziba were servants to Mephibosheth. (13) So Mephibosheth dwelt in Jerusalem, for he ate continually at the king’s table. And he was lame in both his feet.

Mephibosheth had a young son named Micha.  Albert Barnes, in his Notes on the Bible, observed that, "Mephibosheth was five years old at Saul’s death. He may have been thirteen at David’s accession to the throne of Israel. In the eighth year of David’s reign over all Israel he would have been twenty-one. His having a son at this time indicates that we are about the 10th year of David’s reign."

All who dwelt in the house of Ziba were servants to Mephibosheth.  However, he dwelt in Jerusalem, at or near the king's palace, as he ate continually at the king's table.  It is added again that Mephibosheth was lame in both feet, possibly to note that even though he was unable to perform any public office because of his disability, he was still treated by the king with the utmost respect and affection.

(2 Samuel 10:1) And it came to pass after this that the king of the children of Ammon died, and Hanun his son reigned in his stead. (2) Then David said, "I will show kindness to Hanun the son of Nahash, as his father showed kindness to me." And David sent to comfort him by the hand of his servants for his father. And David's servants came into the land of the children of Ammon.

Sometime after this, the king of the Ammonites died.  His son Hanun then reigned in his stead.  David decided to show kindness to Hanun because of the kindness his father had shown him.  The Bible does not record any instance of Nahash’s kindness to David, but the enmity of the house of Nahash against Saul may have disposed him favorably toward Saul’s enemy David.  When David was persecuted by Saul, he may have sent him aid and invited him into his country for protection, although it would not have been out of real love and friendship to David but in enmity to Saul.  Regardless, David sent his servants into the land of the Ammonites to comfort Hanun for the death of his father.

(3) And the princes of the children of Ammon said to Hanun their lord, "Do you think that David honors your father that he has sent comforters to you? Has not David sent his servants to you to search the city to spy it out and to overthrow it?"

However, the princes of the Ammonites could not believe that David was sincere and told Hanun they rather believed he was sending the "comforters" as spies to spy out their city in order to overthrow it.

(4) Therefore Hanun took David's servants and shaved off one half of their beards and cut off their garments in the middle to their buttocks and sent them away.

Hanun accepted the word of his princes as true and had half the beards of David's servants shaved off, which was shameful enough as the Israelites' beards were highly respected, but he then went on to have their garments cut off at their buttocks.  Because their garments were so long, they were not accustomed to wearing pants under them, so that act exposed them to much embarrassment and ridicule as they were sent away like that.

(5) When they told it to David, he sent to meet them because the men were greatly ashamed, and the king said, "Tarry at Jericho until your beards are grown, and then return."

When David heard what had happened to his servants, he went out to meet them because they were too ashamed to come into his court.  He surely took them new garments, and he told them they could wait at Jericho for their beards to grow back and then they could return.

(6) And when the children of Ammon saw that they stank before David, the children of Ammon sent and hired the Syrians of Beth Rehob and the Syrians of Zobah, twenty thousand footmen, and of the king of Maacah a thousand men, and of Ish Tob twelve thousand men.

When the Ammonites realized they had made themselves repulsive to David and that he was incensed against them, they enlisted the help of the Syrians of Beth Rehob and Zobah, receiving twenty thousand foot soldiers.  He also received help in the form of another thirteen thousand men from Maacah and Ish Tob.

(7) And when David heard of it, he sent Joab and all the host of the mighty men.

When David heard of the preparations the Ammonites were making to fight the Israelites, he sent Joab out with his army of mighty men.

(8) And the children of Ammon came out and put the battle in array at the entering in of the gate, and the Syrians of Zobah and of Rehob and Ish Tob and Maacah were by themselves in the field.

The Ammonites came out and arrayed themselves for battle at the gate of their city, and the Syrians who were helping them were outside the city in a field.

(9) When Joab saw that the front of the battle was against him before and behind, he chose of all the choice men of Israel and put them in array against the Syrians.

Whatever way the Ammonites and the Syrians were arrayed, it seems they had positioned themselves so that they were both in front of and behind Joab's army.  Joab then put his choicest soldiers in array against the Syrians.

(10) And the rest of the people he delivered into the hand of Abishai his brother, that he might put them in array against the children of Ammon.

The rest of Joab's soldiers he put under the command of his brother Abishai that they might be put in array against the Ammonites.  Thus, as his enemy had two armies, he divided his army into two parts that he might better attack them.

(11) And he said, "If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me, but if the children of Ammon are too strong for you, then I will come and help you. (12) Be of good courage and let us play the men for our people and for the cities of our God, and the Lord do that which seems Him good."

Joab told Abishai that if the Syrians were too strong for him and his men, then Abishai and his men should come and help him, but if the Ammonites were too strong for Abishai, then Joab would go and help him.  Joab then gave words of encouragement to Abishai and both their armies that they were fighting a worthy battle for their people and for the cities of God, and the battle was the Lord's to do as He saw right and good.

(13) And Joab drew near, and the people who were with him, into the battle against the Syrians, and they fled before him.

When Joab and his army advanced toward the Syrians, they fled from before them.

(14) And when the children of Ammon saw that the Syrians had fled, then they fled also before Abishai and entered into the city. So Joab returned from the children of Ammon and came to Jerusalem.

Then when the Ammonites saw that the Syrians had fled, they too fled before Abishai's army, and went back into their city.  Thus Joab returned to Jerusalem in victory without having to engage with the Ammonites.

(1 Chronicles 19:1) Now it came to pass after this, that Nahash the king of the children of Ammon died, and his son reigned in his stead.

1 Chronicles 19 also told of the events of 2 Samuel 10.  Nahash, the king of the Ammonites had died, and his son, Hanun (2 Samuel 10:1), reigned in his stead.

(2) And David said, "I will show kindness to Hanun, the son of Nahash, because his father showed kindness to me." And David sent messengers to comfort him concerning his father. So the servants of David came into the land of the children of Ammon to Hanun to comfort him.

David sent messengers to comfort Hanun for the death of his father because he felt his father had shown kindness to him in the past.

(3) But the princes of the children of Ammon said to Hanun, "Do you think that David does honor your father that he has sent comforters to you? Are not his servants come to you for to search and to overthrow and to spy out the land?"

The Ammonite princes convinced Hanun that David was deceiving him and that his intention was to have his servants spy out their land to overthrow them.

(4) Therefore Hanun took David's servants and shaved them and cut off their garments in the midst hard by their buttocks and sent them away.

Hanun took David's servants and shaved just half their beards according to the account in 2 Samuel 10, no doubt vertically down the middle, and cut off their long garments at their buttocks and sent them away in disgrace and shame.

(5) Then there went some and told David how the men were served. And he sent to meet them, for the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said, "Tarry at Jericho until your beards are grown and then return."

When David heard how his servants had been treated, he went out to meet them to save them the embarrassment of having to come into his court in their condition.  He told them they could wait in Jericho until their beards had grown out, and then they could return.

(6) And when the children of Ammon saw that they had made themselves odious to David, Hanun and the children of Ammon sent a thousand talents of silver to hire them chariots and horsemen out of Mesopotamia and out of Syria Maachah and out of Zobah. (7) So they hired thirty-two thousand chariots, and the king of Maachah and his people, who came and pitched before Medeba. And the children of Ammon gathered themselves together from their cities and came to battle.

When the Ammonites realized they had made David angry, they hired chariots and horsemen out of Mesopotamia, Syria Maachah, and Zobah.  They paid a thousand talents of silver to them which had not been recorded in the account in 2 Samuel 10.  That was an enormous amount of money, a talent weighing about 75 pounds.  I don't believe they got their money's worth!  Also this account says that they hired 32,000 chariots; the account in 2 Samuel 10 just mentioned men or soldiers.  With the thousand men of Maachah (2 Samuel 10:6), the number of soldiers does agree, at 33,000.  We are told in this account that the Ammonite army pitched before the city of Medeba.

(8) And when David heard, he sent Joab and all the host of the mighty men. (9) And the children of Ammon came out and put the battle in array before the gate of the city, and the kings who had come were by themselves in the field.

When David heard how the Ammonites were preparing themselves for battle, he sent Joab and his army of mighty men.  The Ammonites positioned themselves for battle before the gate of Medeba, and the kings of the other nations positioned their troops in the field.

(10) Now when Joab saw that the battle was set against him before and behind, he chose out of all the choice of Israel and put them in array against the Syrians. (11) And the rest of the people he delivered into the hand of Abishai his brother, and they set themselves in array against the children of Ammon. (12) And he said, "If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me, but if the children of Ammon are too strong for you, then I will help you. (13) Be of good courage and let us behave ourselves valiantly for our people and for the cities of our God, and let the Lord do good in His sight."

When Joab saw that there were two different troops set against him, he divided his men into two troops, setting one against the Syrians in the field, and the other with Abishai against the Ammonites.  He instructed Abishai to help him if the Syrians proved too strong for him, and he would likewise help Abishai if the Ammonites were too strong for him.  He gave words of encouragement and called on the Lord's will to be done.

(14) So Joab and the people who were with him drew near before the Syrians to the battle, and they fled before him. (15) And when the children of Ammon saw that the Syrians had fled, they likewise fled before Abishai his brother and entered into the city.  Then Joab came to Jerusalem.

When Joab and his army advanced toward the Syrians, they fled; and when the Ammonites saw that the Syrians had fled, they too fled into the city; and Joab went back to Jerusalem.

(2 Samuel 10:15) And when the Syrians saw that they were defeated before Israel, they gathered themselves together.

It seems that when the Syrians realized how easily they had been defeated by David, they gathered themselves together to try again.

(16) And Hadarezer sent and brought out the Syrians who were beyond the river, and they came to Helam; and Shobach the captain of the host of Hadarezer went before them.

It appears that the same Hadarezer whom David struck in 2 Samuel 8, from whom he had taken chariots and men, brought out Syrians who were beyond the Euphrates River, and they came to an unknown place called Helam.  Shobach, the captain of Hadarezer's army went before all of them of the combined armies.

(17) And when it was told David, he gathered all Israel together and passed over Jordan and came to Helam. And the Syrians set themselves in array against David and fought with him.

When David heard that the Syrians gathered against Israel, he gathered his vast army and crossed over the Jordan River to Helam.  The Syrians set themselves in array against David's army and attacked them.

(18) And the Syrians fled before Israel, and David killed seven hundred charioteers of the Syrians and forty thousand horsemen and struck Shobach the captain of their host who died there.

The Syrians again wound up fleeing from Israel, but not before David and his army had killed 700 charioteers and 40,000 men, including Shobach, the captain of the armies.

(19) And when all the kings who were servants to Hadarezer saw that they were defeated before Israel, they made peace with Israel and served them. So the Syrians feared to help the children of Ammon anymore.

When the kings of the other Syrians who gathered to help Hadarezer saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with Israel and became tributaries.  They were afraid to help the Ammonites any further.

(1 Chronicles 19:16) And when the Syrians saw that they were put to the worse before Israel, they sent messengers and drew forth the Syrians that were beyond the river; and Shophach the captain of the host of Hadarezer went before them.

1 Chronicles 19 also tells of the Syrians regrouping to fight Israel.  This account calls the captain of the army Shophach instead of Shobach.

(17) And it was told David, and he gathered all Israel and passed over Jordan and came upon them and set the battle in array against them. So when David had put the battle in array against the Syrians, they fought with him. (18) But the Syrians fled before Israel, and David slew of the Syrians seven thousand charioteers, and forty thousand footmen, and killed Shophach the captain of the host. (19) And when the servants of Hadarezer saw that they were put to the worse before Israel, they made peace with David and became his servants; neither would the Syrians help the children of Ammon anymore. 

David again defeated the Syrians, as told in 2 Samuel 10, except that this account stated he killed 7000 charioteers, whereas 2 Samuel 10:18 said it was 700.  The Syrians wound up making peace with David and becoming his tributaries.

Happy People Whose God is the Lord

Continuing a chronological Bible study:

(Psalm 144:1) (A Psalm of David) Blessed the Lord my strength who teaches my hands to war, my fingers to fight.

Psalm 144 begins with the same sentiments and even some of the very same words as Psalm 18 and David's song from 2 Samuel 22, so it is reasonable to think he may have composed it around the same time.  David began by praising the Lord whom he credited with being his strength and the one who brought him from a poor shepherd to be a valiant warrior and mighty conqueror. 

(2) My goodness and my fortress, my high tower and my deliverer, my shield and in whom I trust, who subdues my people under me.

The Lord was everything to David!  Not only was He his strength, but his goodness; all good things come from the Lord, and in Him and by following His commandments, we can be good.  The Lord was David's fortress, his refuge and protection, and his high tower where the Lord lifted him up out of reach of his enemies.  He was his deliverer and his Savior, and His salvation and favor was a shield to him, protecting him from danger and evil.  He trusted in his Lord alone, not in men or princes (Psalm 118:8-9), the Lord who subdued his people under his reign, the Israelites and the surrounding nations who were tributaries to him.

(3) Lord, what is man, that You take knowledge of him? Or the son of man that You make account of him?

This is a thought David had pondered before in Psalm 8.  He marveled that the Lord should take notice of one such insignificant person.  Even more incredible was that He should regard the eventual sons of man who would seem even more insignificant at the present time.

(4) Man is like vanity, his days like a shadow that passes away.

Man is utterly vain and empty, nothing, a shadow that has no substance that quickly and easily passes away, yet the Lord was mindful of him.

(5) Bow Your heavens, O Lord, and come down; touch the mountains and they shall smoke. (6) Cast forth lightning and scatter them; shoot out Your arrows and destroy them.

The heavens are subject to God's will.  He can bow them down and come in a dreadful force of nature with storm clouds, thunder, and lightning.  He can make the mountains smoke, and He can scatter and destroy men, specifically His enemies.

(7) Send Your hand from above; rid me and deliver me out of great waters, from the hand of strange children, (8) Whose mouth speaks vanity, and their right hand a hand of falsehood.

David prayed that the Lord send from heaven deliverance and rid him of his great afflictions and from the hand of foreigners and pagan nations who spoke only vain things, false things, things not real and true; they performed only deceits and falsehoods.

(9) I will sing a new song to You, O God; upon a psaltery, an instrument of ten strings, will I sing praises to You.

David determined to sing a new song to the Lord, a song specially composed for this occasion, expressing the special feelings appropriate for the divine goodness and mercy of the Lord.  He would play upon a psaltery of ten strings to sing praises to his Lord.

(10) He who gives salvation to kings, who delivers David His servant from the hurtful sword.

David would sing praises to the One who gave salvation to kings.  It is only by Him that kings were able to reign, and He had delivered David from being killed by his enemies to bring him to the throne of Israel.

(11) Rid me and deliver me from the hand of strange children whose mouth speaks vanity, and their right hand a right hand of falsehood.

David repeated his plea that God rid him and deliver him from the hand of foreigners and pagan nations who spoke only vain things and false things, and whose hands performed only deceits and falsehoods.

(12) That our sons may be as plants grown up in their youth, that our daughters may be as corner stones, polished after the similitude of a palace.

David prayed these things not only for his sake, but for the sake of the nation, its people, and their children.  He desired that their sons might be like strong, well rooted young plants, which promised great things.  He desired that their daughters be strong and beautiful.

(13) Our garners may be full, affording all manner of store; our sheep may bring forth thousands and ten thousands in our streets.

David prayed that their granaries always be full of every sort of produce or grain, and that their sheep herds increase to tens of thousands.

(14) Our oxen may be strong to labor, no breaking in nor going out, no complaining in our streets.

He prayed that their oxen be strong for all their needs, that there would be no enemies breaking in nor any of their people going out captive, and that the people would be content because there would be no famine, pestilence, violence, or oppression, to make them cry out and complain.

(15) Happy people who are in such a case, happy people whose God is the Lord.

Such blessings of the Lord produced happy people.  The people whose God is the Lord are happy people because His truth and His laws are the only way to blessings and life.  As the Lord said through Moses in Deuteronomy 30:19-20, "...I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live, that you may love the Lord your God, and that you may obey His voice, and that you may cleave to Him, for He is your life..." 

David's Psalm of Deliverance

Continuing a chronological Bible study:

(Psalm 18:1) (To the chief musician, of David, the servant of the Lord, who spoke to the Lord the words of this song in the day the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. And he said,) "I will love You, O Lord, my strength."

The song that David spoke to the Lord in 2 Samuel 22, after the Lord had delivered him from his enemies round about and preserved him as he enlarged his kingdom, became the 18th Psalm.  David prefaced it by first declaring his love for his Lord whom he considered his very strength.  He could not have accomplished his victories without Him.

(2) The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust, my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower.

The Lord was David's rock, his unmoving support, his fortress and defense and protection, and also his deliverer, delivering him out of the hands of danger and his enemies.  He would trust in the Lord, his very strength, his shield, and the horn of his salvation as the horn of a wild beast that pushes, scatters, and destroys its enemies, and saves him.  He was his high tower, not only his place of defense, but out of reach of his enemies and where he could easily see danger approaching.

(3) I will call upon the Lord to be praised; so shall I be saved from my enemies.

David would call upon his Lord in times of need, the Lord who was worthy to be praised because of His goodness and mercy, and He would save him from his enemies.

(4) The sorrows of death compassed me, and the floods of ungodly men made me afraid.

Dangerous and deadly troubles surrounded David, and ungodly men came upon him like a flood and made him afraid.

(5) The sorrows of hell compassed me about; the snares of death prevented me.

As explored in the song in 2 Samuel 22, the word translated as "sorrows" meant more specifically "cords" and by implication, might indicate "sorrows."  But the meaning is more like the cords of hell were pulling David down, and the snares of deadly traps confronted him.

(6) In my distress I called upon the Lord and cried to my God; He heard my voice out of His temple, and my cry came before Him into His ears.

When in distress, David had called upon his Lord who heard him from His heavenly temple.

(7) Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations also of the hills moved and were shaken because He was angry.

Then God in His anger appeared on David's behalf in a glorious manner, to the terror and confusion of all his enemies, which is compared to an earthquake.

(8) There went up a smoke out of His nostrils, and fire out of His mouth devoured; coals were kindled by it.

All these seem to be figurative expressions denoting the greatness of God's anger.

(9) He bowed the heavens also and came down, and darkness was under His feet.

By producing thick and dark clouds, the heavens would seem to come down to the earth.  The Lord would be enveloped in the darkness as no one is able to see Him, but His presence would undoubtedly be known.

(10) And He rode upon a cherub and did fly; yea, He did fly upon the wings of the wind.

God rode upon His cherubs, elsewhere called His chariots (Psalm 68:17).  I believe the sense is that He used His thousands of angels to exact His will, and everything is at His disposal as is the wind.

(11) He made darkness His secret place; His pavilion round about him were dark waters and thick clouds of the skies.

Again, the Lord was enveloped in the darkness, thick clouds and dark watery fog, as no one is able to see Him.

(12) At the brightness before Him, His thick clouds passed, hail and coals of fire. (13) The Lord also thundered in the heavens, and the Highest gave His voice, hail and coals of fire.

The Lord is pictured as coming in a violent storm.  He was enveloped in darkness and then shot out bright lightning.  He thundered in the heavens and rained down hailstones and coals of fire.

(14) Yea, He sent out His arrows and scattered them, and He shot out lightnings and discomfited them.

The Lord sent out His thunderbolts and lightning and confused and scattered His enemies.

(15) Then the channels of waters were seen, and the foundations of the world were discovered at Your rebuke, O Lord, at the blast of the breath of Your nostrils.

The unseen places were revealed when the Lord blasted His rebuke.

(16) He sent from above, He took me, He drew me out of many waters. (17) He delivered me from my strong enemy and from those who hated me, for they were too strong for me.

David gave all credit to the Lord for lifting him out of his troubles and delivering him from his enemies, for he knew they were too strong for him to have done it on his own.

(18) They prevented me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my stay.

David's enemies had confronted him and intercepted his way in his time of distress, but the Lord was his support.

(19) He brought me forth also into a large place; He delivered me because He delighted in me.

The Lord brought David into a wide open place of freedom from his straits.  It pleased the Lord to deliver David, the man He had chosen to lead His people, the man after His own heart.

(20) The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands has he recompensed me. (21) For I have kept the ways of the Lord and have not wickedly departed from my God. (22) For all His judgments were before me, and I did not put away His statutes from me. (23) I was also upright before Him, and I kept myself from my iniquity. (24) Therefore has the Lord recompensed me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in His eyesight.

David made it sound like it was because of his own goodness that the Lord rewarded him and delivered him.  It was not because of David's works but because of his heart that wanted to follow his Lord; that is what the Lord rewarded.  However, I give David a little leniency here because before Jesus, all people had was God's law and His commandments to obey them, and he desired to do that because he loved his Lord, and that was what pleased the Lord and made Him delight in saving him.

(25) With the merciful, You will show Yourself merciful; with an upright man You will show Yourself upright. (26) With the pure You will show Yourself pure, and with the froward, You will show Yourself froward.

The Lord metes to everyone the same measure which he metes out to others (Luke 6:38), and therefore He will perform mercy and truth to those who are merciful and true to others.  However, that means He will also be contrary to those who are contrary to Him.

(27) For You will save the afflicted people but will bring down high looks.

The Lord saves the afflicted and oppressed, but He hates the proud (Proverbs 6:16-17, 16:5), and He will bring them down.

(28) For You will light my candle; the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness.

The Lord would light David's candle as He was the light of his life.  He would enlighten his darkness, shedding light on his paths, imparting His light to David's understanding.

(29) For by You I have run through a troop, and by my God I have leaped over a wall.

I believe the sense is that David had been able to break through the armed troops of his enemies and to scale the walls of their strongest fortresses because God had led and enabled him.

(30) God, His way is perfect; the word of the Lord is tried; He is a buckler to all those who trust in Him.

The Lord's way is perfect and just.  His word has been tried and tested throughout the ages and has been proven to be true.  Therefore, it is easy to have full trust in Him, and He is a shield and defense and protection to all those who do trust in Him.

(31) For who is God, save the Lord? Or who is a rock, save our God? (32) God, who girds me with strength and makes my way perfect.

David asked the rhetorical question about who was the one true God of the universe?  It could be no one except his Lord Jehovah.  No one else was the solid rock of shelter and protection.  It was only God who gave him strength and made his ways perfect.  No other silly god could do what his God, the one true God, could do.

(33) He makes my feet like hinds' and sets me upon my high places. (34) He teaches my hands to war so that a bow of steel is broken by my arms.

The Lord had made David's feet as swift and sure as deer's feet and set him on high out of reach of his enemies.  He taught him how to war against his enemies, leading him in the way of the Lord who would achieve victory for him.

(35) You have also given me the shield of Your salvation, and Your right hand has held me up, and Your gentleness has made me great.

The Lord had shielded David and saved him.  In a larger sense, He gave him the salvation that meant eternal life.  The Lord had sustained David in times of trouble, and His kindness, gentleness, and patience, had made David great.  He had brought him up from a low estate to be king of Israel.

(36) You have enlarged my steps under me, that my feet did not slip.

The Lord had made ample room for David's feet to walk without hindrance or obstruction.

(37) I have pursued my enemies and overtaken them; neither did I turn again till they were consumed. (38) I have wounded them that they were not able to rise; they are fallen under my feet.

David had pursued his enemies and overtaken them.  He did not turn back until they were destroyed.  Whether he killed them or just wounded them, they were no longer able to rise up against him.  They had fallen under him.

(39) For You have girded me with strength to the battle; You have subdued under me those who rose up against me. (40) You have also given me the necks of my enemies that I might destroy them who hate me.

David gave all credit to the Lord for giving him strength for the battles and for subduing his enemies.  The Lord Himself had given David the necks of his enemies, either to kill them or to put a yoke upon their necks to make them tributaries.

(41) They cried but none to save, to the Lord but He did not answer them.

David's enemies had cried out to their gods, but there were none who could save them.  They even tried crying out to David's God, the one true God, but He would not answer them.

(42) Then I beat them small as the dust before the wind; I cast them out as the dirt in the streets.

David beat his enemies and scattered them like dust in the wind.  He cast them out as dirt in the streets, disorganized, scattered, and left to be trodden down.

(43) You have delivered me from the strivings of the people; You have made me the head of the heathen; a people I have not known shall serve me.

The Lord had delivered David from the strivings of his own people.  He had united Israel again under David.  He had made him the head of the nations surrounding Israel; as tributaries, people he had never known would serve him.

(44) As soon as they hear of me, they shall obey me; the strangers shall submit themselves to me. (45) The strangers shall fade away and be afraid out of their close spaces.

As soon as his tributaries understood David's command, they would instantly comply with it.  Foreign nations would fear David and diminish in numbers and in power until they completely faded away.

(46) The Lord lives, and blessed, my Rock, and let the God of my salvation be exalted.

The Lord Jehovah lives and is to be praised and blessed.  He was David's rock, his refuge and protector, the source of all his help and salvation.  He alone should be exalted above all.

(47) God who avenges me and subdues the people under me, (48) He delivers me from my enemies; yea, You lift me up above those who rise up against me; You have delivered me from the violent man.

God alone was the one who avenged David and subdued the people under him.  He delivered him from his enemies, lifting him up out of reach of those who rose up against him.  He delivered him from the violent man, which being singular, might mean the one behind all the enemies of David, Israel, and the Lord, Satan.

(49) Therefore will I give thanks to You, O Lord, among the heathen, and sing praises to Your name.

Because of all the great and wonderful things his Lord had done, David would sing His praises to all, even the heathen.  This may be prophecy about Jesus Christ that the apostle Paul would later quote as being proof that the calling of the Gentiles (the heathen) was predicted, and that what then took place during his time was the fulfillment of that prediction.

(50) Great deliverance He gives to His king and shows mercy to His anointed, to David, and to his descendants forevermore.

The Lord had given David deliverance and continued to show mercy to the one He had chosen to be king of Israel, David.  He would continue to show that mercy to his descendants forevermore as He promised him in 1 Chronicles 17:14.

This psalm was the same song of David from 2 Samuel 22 with very few differences.  The Jewish rabbis have counted 74 differences between the two, most of them very minute.  It is supposed that David himself may have changed it slightly when he sent this psalm to the chief musician.

David's Song of Deliverance

Continuing a chronological Bible study:

(2 Samuel 8:15) And David reigned over all Israel, and David executed judgment and justice to all his people.

David now reigned over all of Israel.  The past few posts named David's mightiest warriors as he was their commander-in-chief.  Here begins a description of his officials.  He was a just ruler.

(16) And Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the host; and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder;

Joab, the son of David's sister Zeruiah, was the general over David's army of mighty men.  Jehoshaphat was the recorder, the one who kept the minutes, so to speak, the chronicler of events.

(17) And Zadok the son of Ahitub, and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar, were the priests; and Seraiah was the scribe;

Zadok and Ahimelech were the priests, and Seraiah was the scribe, akin to the secretary of state.

(18) And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over both the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David's sons were chief rulers.

The historian Josephus wrote that the Cherethites and the Pelethites were the king's bodyguards.  Indeed 1 Chronicles 11:25, in the list of David's mightiest men, named Benaiah as head of David's guard.  David's sons, as princes, were the chief ministers and managers of the king's court.

(1 Chronicles 18:14) So David reigned over all Israel and executed judgment and justice among all his people. (15) And Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the host; and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, recorder. (16) And Zadok the son of Ahitub, and Abimelech the son of Abiathar, were the priests; and Shavsha was scribe; (17) And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and the sons of David were chief about the king.

1 Chronicles 18 recorded the same officials, except that here the priest was called Abimelech instead of Ahimelech, and the scribe was called Shavsha instead of Seraiah. 

(2 Samuel 22:1) And David spoke to the Lord the words of this song in the day the Lord had delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies and out of the hand of Saul.

According to Albert Barnes, in his Notes on the Bible, this song "belongs to the early part of David’s reign when he was recently established upon the throne of all Israel, and when his final triumph over the house of Saul, and over the pagan nations, Philistines, Moabites, Syrians, Ammonites, and Edomites, was still fresh."

(2) And he said, "The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer."

David declared that the Lord was his rock, his foundation, his sturdy support.  He was his fortress, his defense, and his deliverer, as He had delivered him from all his enemies and brought him to the throne.

(3) "The God of my rock, in Him I will trust; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my high tower and my refuge, my Savior, You save me from violence."

David found further words to say the same thing.  The Lord God was the foundation and support for his stand, and he would put all his trust in Him.  He was his defense as a shield and as the horn of a horned beast might save him.  He was his high tower, his fortress, defense, and refuge, but high above the reach of his enemies.  The Lord was his Savior who saved him from his enemies and all violence.

(4) "I will call on the Lord, worthy to be praised; so shall I be saved from my enemies."

Just because of who He is, the perfect, holy, just, gracious, loving, and merciful God of the universe, He was to be praised.  David knew that he just needed to call on Him, and he would be saved from his enemies.

(5) "When the waves of death compassed me, the floods of ungodly men made me afraid, (6) The sorrows of hell compassed me about, the snares of death prevented me, (7) In my distress I called upon the Lord and cried to my God, and He did hear my voice out of His temple and my cry to His ears."

David spoke of times when ungodly men and deadly situations came upon him like a flood.  The original word that was translated as "sorrows" was "chebel" and literally meant "a rope or a noose" which by implication could mean "sorrows."  Just as the snares of death confronted David, so did the snares of hell seek to pull him in.  When all those things happened, David cried out to the Lord, and He heard him from His temple, His dwelling place in heaven.

(8) "Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations of heaven moved and shook because He was angry."

Then the wrath of the Lord was kindled, and He rose up like an earthquake that shook the earth and the very foundations of heaven.

(9) "There went up a smoke out of His nostrils and fire out of His mouth devoured; coals were kindled by it."

Expressing the Lord's anger as a devouring fire denoted just how fierce it was.

(10) "He bowed the heavens also and came down, and darkness under His feet."

The Lord seemed to bend the heavens toward the earth, and He descended in the dark clouds of a storm.

(11) "And He rode upon a cherub and did fly, and He was seen upon the wings of the wind."

I believe the sense is that the Lord used His angels to bring the wind and the storm.

(12) "And He made darkness pavilions round about Him, dark waters, thick clouds of the skies."

The Lord was covered in darkness, dark clouds and fog, as He cannot be seen by the naked eye, but He is ever present.

(13) "Through the brightness before Him were coals of fire kindled."

The brightness before Him even though He was in dark clouds might refer to lightning darting out from Him.

(14) "The Lord thundered from heaven, and the Most High uttered His voice."

It reasonably follows that the Lord's voice in thunder followed the lightning.

(15) "And He sent out arrows and scattered them, lightning, and He discomfited them."

The Lord sent out lightning as arrows and confused and scattered His enemies.

(16) "And the channels of the sea appeared, the foundations of the world were discovered, at the rebuking of the Lord, at the blast of the breath of His nostrils."

The sense is that the hidden and covered things were uncovered and revealed at the anger and rebuke of the Lord.

(17) "He sent from above, He took me, He drew me out of many waters; (18) He delivered me from my strong enemy, from them who hated me, for they were too strong for me."

The Lord plucked David out of the floods of ungodly men and snares of death all around.  He delivered him from his enemies for they were too strong for David to save himself.

(19) "They prevented me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my stay."

David's enemies confronted him in what would appear to be the day of his destruction, but the Lord was his support.

(20) "He brought me forth also into a large place; He delivered me because He delighted in me."

The Lord brought David out of his narrow straits and difficulties into a broad state of freedom and comfort.  He had delivered him because it delighted Him to do so, not because of anything David had done to deserve it.

(21) "The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands has He recompensed me."

David appears to say that it was because of his own righteousness and good behavior that the Lord had rescued him.  I suppose it could be David's way of saying that he had strived to follow God's leading, and he had done no wrong to his fellow men who were trying to kill him undeservedly, and he felt the Lord had blessed and delivered him.  And it is true that God saw him as a man after His own heart (Acts 13:22).

(22) "For I have kept the ways of the Lord and have not wickedly departed from my God. (23) For all His judgments were before me, and His statutes, I did not depart from them. (24) I was also upright before Him and have kept myself from my iniquity. (25) Therefore the Lord has recompensed me according to my righteousness, according to my cleanness in His eyesight."

David had strived to follow the ways of his Lord; he did not depart from His commandments.  He felt he was upright before the Lord and had kept himself from iniquity.  And I suppose in the Old Testament, before Jesus, that was the best that people could do to be seen as righteous before God.  Indeed, the Lord had seen fit to deliver David from his enemies.

(26) "With the merciful You will show Yourself merciful, with the upright man You will show Yourself upright. (27) With the pure You will show Yourself pure, and with the froward You will show Yourself unsavory."

The Lord metes out to people the same measure which they mete out to others (Luke 6:38).  Therefore, He would be merciful, upright, and pure to those who were merciful, upright, and true to others.  However, He would be contrary to those who were contrary to Him.

(28) "And the afflicted people You will save, but Your eyes are upon the haughty You may bring down."

The Lord will save the poor and afflicted, but He hates the proud and haughty (Proverbs 6:16-17, 16:5), and He will bring them down.

(29) "For You are my lamp, O Lord, and the Lord will lighten my darkness."

The Lord was David's light; He would shine the light of truth and righteousness and light his paths.  The Lord would bring him out of the darkness with His light.

(30) "For by You I have run through a troop; by my God have I leaped over a wall."

David's meaning was that he had been able to break through the armed troops of his enemies and to scale the walls of their strongest cities because God had led and enabled him.

(31) "God, His way is perfect; the word of the Lord is tried; He is a buckler to all those who trust in Him."

God's way is perfect, and His word has been tried and proven.  No other book in history has been challenged and picked apart as much as the Bible, and yet it still stands true and proven.  The Lord is a shield and a protector to all those people who trust in Him and His word.

(32) "For who is God, save the Lord? And who is a rock, save our God?"

David asked the rhetorical question of who the one true God could possibly be, except for Jehovah, the Self-existent eternal Lord.  There is no one else who could be that steadfast defense and protection, that rock.

(33) "God my strength and power, and He makes my way perfect."

It was only through God that David had his strength and power, and it was God who led him in His perfect way and gave David success.

(34) "He makes my feet like hinds' feet and sets me upon my high places."

The Lord made David's feet as light and swift as the feet of a deer to set him on high places of refuge and safety.

(35) "He teaches my hands to war so that a bow of steel is broken by my arms."

David acknowledged that it was the Lord who gave him the skill and the strength to succeed in his battles.

(36) "You have also given me the shield of Your salvation, and Your gentleness has made me great."

The Lord had saved David, and he could have become proud and haughty, those things the Lord hated.  However, the Lord's loving and merciful ways had taught David humility and made him a great king.

(37) "You have enlarged my steps under me so that my feet did not slip."

David had been before straitened and hindered in his goings, but now that the Lord had removed the obstacles in his way, he could walk freely and not stumble.

(38) "I have pursued my enemies and destroyed them and did not turn back until I had consumed them. (39) And I have consumed them and wounded them that they could not arise; yea, they are fallen under my feet."

David had been able to pursue his enemies and destroy them.  He had been given the strength to not turn back, but to persevere, until he finished them, killing them or wounding them so that they would not be able to rise up again.

(40) "For You have girded me with strength to battle; those who rose up against me You have subdued under me."

David gave all the credit to the Lord as He was the one who gave David the strength to battle his enemies.  It was the Lord who had subdued his enemies under his feet.

(41) "You have also given me the necks of my enemies that I might destroy them who hate me."

The Lord had given David the necks of his enemies that he might destroy them, meaning that he might break their necks and kill them, or in other cases, he might put a yoke upon their necks to make them tributaries.

(42) "They looked, but none to save, to the Lord, but He did not answer them."

David's enemies looked around them for someone to save them, probably crying out to their gods who could not save them.  They even cried out to the one true God, but He would not answer them.

(43) "Then I beat them as small as the dust of the earth; I stamped them as the mire of the street and spread them abroad."

David had beaten his enemies to pieces and scattered them so that they were no more.

(44) "You also have delivered me from the strivings of my people; You have kept me head of the heathen; a people I knew not shall serve me. (45) Strangers shall submit themselves to me; as soon as they hear, they shall be obedient to me. (46) Strangers shall fade away, and they shall be afraid out of their close spaces."

The Lord had saved David from the strife of his own people; He had united Israel again.  He had also made him head of the nations round about Israel; people he had not known would be in subjection to him and obedient to him.  Those nations would fade away as their people would fear to come out of their safe spaces.

(47) "The Lord lives, and blessed my Rock! And exalted be the God of the rock of my salvation!"

The Lord Jehovah lives, and David ascribed blessing, honor, and glory to his Protector, and wished his Savior to be exalted above all others.

(48) "It is God who avenges me and who brings down the people under me, (49) And who brings me forth from my enemies; You also have lifted me up on high above them who rose up against me; You have delivered me from the violent man."

David acknowledged that it was God who avenged the wrong done to him and subdued his enemies.  God alone delivered him from his enemies as he triumphed over those who rose up against him.  He alone lifted David up to the throne when all odds were against him.  He alone had delivered him from the violent man, any man who had been his enemy at the time, or perhaps his meaning was that all his enemies were under the influence of one particular violent man, Satan.

(50) "Therefore I will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the heathen, and I will sing praises to Your name."

For all the marvelous things the Lord had done for David, he was happy to give thanks and sing praises to Him among all nations.  This could be an allusion to Christ, as in the New Testament, Paul cited scripture very similar to this and ascribed to it prophecy of Christ calling the heathen, the Gentiles (Romans 15:9).

(51) "The tower of salvation for His king, and shows mercy to His anointed, to David, and to his descendants forevermore."

The Lord was David's tower, his rock, his very salvation, and He showed great mercy to him and had promised to do so to his descendants forevermore (2 Samuel 7:13, 1 Chronicles 17:14).

This song of deliverance sung by David was one of those songs of praise David vowed to sing to his Lord, and it would become one of his many psalms, specifically Psalm 18, studied in the next post.

List of David's Mighty Men Ends

Continuing a list of David's mightiest men started and continued in the previous posts:

David's Mightiest Men

The List of David's Mighty Men Continues

(1 Chronicles 11:44) Uzzia the Ashterathite, Shama and Jehiel the sons of Hothan the Aroerite, (45) Jediael the son of Shimri, and Joha his brother, the Tizite, (46) Eliel the Mahavite, and Jeribai, and Joshaviah, the sons of Elnaam, and Ithmah the Moabite, (47) Eliel, and Obed, and Jasiel the Mesobaite.

This account in 1 Chronicles 11 added several more names to the 37 named in 2 Samuel 23.  It might be because though they were not among David's thirty mightiest men, they were still men of great valor and renown among David's commanders.  It could also be that when some of the mightiest were killed, others moved up to take their place.  Whatever the reason, they were all mighty men of David who had the honor of having their names recorded forever in the Bible.

The List of David's Mighty Men Continues

Continuing a chronological Bible study and continuing a list of David's mightiest men started in the last post:

David's Mightiest Men

(1 Chronicles 11:35) Ahiam the son of Sacar the Hararite, Eliphal the son of Ur,

The account in 2 Samuel 23 named another Shammah said to be a Hararite along with Ahiam from the same tribe.  Ahiam's father's name varies a little, Sacar instead of Sharar.  Eliphal would seem to be a variant of Eliphelet from the Samuel account, except that there his father was said to be Ahasbai.  

(36) Hepher the Mecherathite, Ahijah the Pelonite,

From here on the list varies a lot from the list in 2 Samuel 23.  Eliam was skipped and two new names were added.

(37) Hezro the Carmelite, Naarai the son of Ezbai,

These appear to be variants of Hezrai and Paarai.

(38) Joel the brother of Nathan, Mibhar the son of Haggeri, 

Igal and Bani were skipped and Joel and Mibhar added.  However, Igal was said to be the son of Nathan, and Joel is Nathan's brother, so it is very likely that one family member died early and the other took his place.  The same might be the case of Bani and Mibhar, as the list returned to the same names after those.

(39) Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Berothite, the armorbearer of Joab the son of Zeruiah, (40) Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite, (41) Uriah the Hittite, Zabad the son of Ahlai, 

The list in 2 Samuel 23 ended with Uriah, 37 mighty men in all.  This list continued with additional mighty men of David beginning with Zabad.

(42) Adina the son of Shiza the Reubenite, a captain of the Reubenites, and thirty with him, (43) Hanan the son of Maachah, and Joshaphat the Mithnite, 

Once again, because Blogger only allows twenty labels per post, this list of David's mightiest warriors ends on one last post:

List of David's Mighty Men Ends

The Rest of David's Mighty Men

These are some of David's most mighty men, a list started in previous posts.  Because Blogger only allows 20 labels per post, these names have been placed on a separate page:

(2 Samuel 23:33) Shammah the Hararite, Ahiam the son of Sharar the Hararite, (34) Eliphelet the son of Ahasbai, the son of the Maachathite, Eliam the son of Ahithophel the Gilonite, (35) Hezrai the Carmelite, Paarai the Arbite, (36) Igal the son of Nathan of Zobah, Bani the Gadite, (37) Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite, armourbearer to Joab the son of Zeruiah, (38) Ira an Ithrite, Gareb an Ithrite, (39) Uriah the Hittite, thirty-seven in all.

Only 36 mighty men were listed, but their general was Joab, who most certainly would have been counted as one of David's most mighty men, and would bring the number to 37, two groups of three, then thirty, and Joab their general.

Go back to the previous post, David's Mightiest Men