As with Psalm 4, Psalm 5 opens with a call to God to listen and David puts himself forward as a person in need of help. It’s a humble prayer. I love the sense of trust that comes in verse 3:
“In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly” (NIV)
He follows it up by pointing out that there is no place for evil in the presence of God and this serves to highlight David’s reverent and humble sense of privilege at his own closeness to God. He delighted in having access to the house of God.
David trusted God to lead him (v8) and as is common in David’s Psalms, verse 8 calls on God to judge his enemies. Just like the previous Psalms, David is obviously troubled by his enemies and wants God to act in his favour. In the face of such opposition David finds solace in God and verses 11 and 12 use words like ‘refuge, protection, and shield.’ In David’s view safety is found in God for all who seek it.
In hearing that, naturally I’m with David, I want those things in my life that cause me trouble to be judged, dealt with and stopped. So often those desires from me get expressed without a lot of grace, in the morning when I put my requests before God and hope like anything that some of what I ask for will happen. I’m probably not too dissimilar from my 6 year old daughter who often pleads for stuff with no idea about anything related to those things except her desire for something to happen. This would fit within Richard Foster’s category of ‘Simple Prayer’ a very real part of what it means to pray.
Whilst David brought these requests before God, as we should too, it didn’t mean that the circumstances changed, but its clear that David’s response and sense of peace in the midst of those circumstances was dictated by his proximity to God.
Life will throw curve balls and circumstances that could and will unsettle us. In those times, where do we turn? Do we let those circumstances drag us down or do we find peace in a refuge that sits beyond and above our present circumstances?
We, by his great love, can come into his house and bow in reverence knowing that he gives us refuge no matter what circumstances are raging around us. I know it’s easy to say sitting at a computer in an air conditioned office building in New Zealand, but it’s not just a truth spoken by me, it was a truth spoken by David who faced extremely difficult circumstances. Your story may not be the same as mine or his, but that truth is there for you too.
May we be people who find refuge in God and may his protection be spread over us no matter what life may throw our way.
Read more of my reflections on the Psalms.
Here’s why I’m walking this journey through the Psalms.