THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION

Psalms: God's Nurture Of The Inner Man In The Life Of Faith

LXIII: Learning The Lesson Of Life's Bleak Landscapes

(Psalm 63:1-11)

I. Introduction

A. Life at times can present one with the bleak landscape of harshness, loneliness, affliction and/or oppression, a time when few if any blessings of life seem to come one's way, when the believer is tempted to be downcast.

B. God has a big lesson for His people in such times, and Psalm 63:1-11 offers it for our insight and edification:

II. Learning The Lesson Of Life's Bleak Landscapes, Psalm 63:1-11.

A. The introductory remarks in the English Bible comprise the first verse in the Hebrew text (Kittel, Bib. Heb., p. 1028), so we stay with the verse numbering system of the English Bible for clarity with this lesson.

B. We thus translate Psalm 63:1-11 as follows:

1. "O Elohim, You are my Elohim; earnestly I seek You; my life principle thirsts for You; my flesh longs for You in a dry and weary land where there is no water," Psalm 63:11.

2. "Accordingly, I have seen You in the sanctuary and beheld Your power and Your glory," Psalm 63:2.

3. "Because Your loyal love is better than life, my lips will glorify You," Psalm 63:3.

4. "Accordingly, I will praise You as long as I live; in Your Name will I lift up my hands," Psalm 63:4.

5. "My life principle will be satisfied as with the richest of foods, and with singing lips my mouth will praise You," Psalm 63:5.

6. "When I am on my bed I will remember You; I think of You through the night watches," Psalm 63:6.

7. "Because You exist as my Help, then I sing in the shadow of Your wings," Psalm 63:7.

8. "My life principle clings to You; Your right hand upholds me," Psalm 63:8.

9. "Now behold, those who seek my life principle will be destroyed; they will go down to the depths of the earth," Psalm 63:9.

10. "They will be given over to the sword and will become food for jackals," Psalm 63:10.

11. "But the king will rejoice in Elohim; all who swear by His Name will praise Him because the mouths of those who speak lies will be stopped," Psalm 63:11.

C. We note significant observations and applications of this psalm (as follows):

1. The introductory notes that comprise the first verse in the Hebrew text reveal David authored this psalm when he was hiding from Saul in the bleak, waterless wilderness of Judah. As such, he felt estranged from home, from many living in Israel and from the blessings of being free to attend the tabernacle meetings. This "barrenness" experience David likened to the barren wilderness land where he hid from Saul, verse 1.

2. Yet, even in this bleak setting, David revealed he found fulfillment by fellowship with God, Psalm 63:1-11. The Lord thus became "the desire of his being (vv. 1-4), the delight of his soul (vv. 5-8), and the defense of his life (vv. 9-11)," Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978, ftn. to Psalm 63.

3. The lifting up of one's hands (v. 4) in David's era referred to prayer (cf. 2 Chron. 6:12-14), and in Psalm 63:4, it alluded to the prayer of thanksgiving (Joseph A. Alexander, The Psalms, 1975, p. 272). David anticipated God's future blessings due to God's loyal love to him in spite of his wilderness experience.

4. Of particular application is David's word about his enemies, v. 9-11. When the believer faces unsavory trials from his foes, he needs to seek God alone for abundant blessing in the inner man. We know that David had to flee from Saul's presence and away from even his beloved, supportive friend Jonathan due to Saul's unjust jealousy and hatred of David (1 Samuel 20:1-42 with 18:6-9), so fellowship with God is the solution to the inner barrenness of the soul if one is alienated in relationships due to persecution by foes.

5. In view of David's future reign as king, when, according to Deuteronomy 17:14-20, the king was to rely on the Lord alone for blessing as king, we see this "bleak landscape" experience as a training ground for David to become dependent upon the Lord alone for fulfillment, what would make him a good, effective king with God's rich blessing. May we thus similarly learn the lesson of life's bleak landscapes in our day as they are the training grounds for future service functions for the Lord.

Lesson: Confronted with the bleak landscape where he hid from Saul in the wilderness of Judah, what mirrored the trials he faced in his relationships, David learned to rely on God alone for peace in training to become king.

Application: May we learn in life's bleak landscapes to find fulfillment in fellowship with God for future blessing.