THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION

Psalms: Living By Faith In God

XVIII. Psalm 18: Glorifying God For His Rescues

A. Surviving All Our Conflicts With Others

(Psalm 18:1-3)

Introduction: (To show the need . . .)

We need to know how to survive all the conflicts we have with other people:

(1) We need to know how to survive our conflicts with those who negatively impact our investments in the stock market: "Big swings have been jerking markets around in recent weeks as investors grope to guess how much economic damage Russia's invasion of Ukraine will do" and "(m)any" investors "appear to be smaller-pocketed, 'retail' investors trading on their phones and laptops" who are "often buying shares that big professional investors are selling." ("Stocks jump as oil prices fall sharply," Republican-American, March 10, 2022, p. 1C)

(2) We have a conflict with others over the price of oil: (a) President Biden put "a nationwide ban on imports of Russian oil . . . Yet" his "administration . . . hasn't even pumped the brakes on regulations that will increase the cost of energy and block Americans' ability to use it . . . [Also], 70% of Americans support energy production in the United States – but to do otherwise" like the president is doing puts him "in direct conflict with the well-being of Americans, who get nearly 80% of their energy from oil, natural gas and coal." (Katie Tubb, "Anti-energy policies persist," Ibid., p. 8A) (b) In addition, "'Russian oil contained in tankers under contract to deliver will arrive for the next 45 days" though the president has stopped importing Russian oil, so in the meantime, the price of oil "will depend on the complexities and perceptions of investors at the New York Mercantile Exchange and Wall Street'" says Chris Herb, president of the Connecticut Energy Marketeers Association. (Brigitte Ruthman, "Are you feeling the heat?", Sunday Republican, March 13, 2022, p. 1A) Thus, speculative investors have also added to the cost of oil!

(3) We face a lot of conflict with our governor: A letter by Chris Ubaldi of Middlebury (Ibid., Republican-American, March 9, 2022, p. 9A) claimed, " . . . (S)ince Gov. Lamont has been in office, my taxes have gone up, my quality of life has not improved, and . . . (w)e have . . . lost hundreds of restaurants to COVID-19 restrictions . . . We now have online gambling . . . On creating jobs, Pratt & Whitney is opening a casting facility in Asheville, N. C., in July. I could ask why that facility is not in Connecticut, but that would be foolhardy."

Need: So, we ask, "How can we survive all the conflicts we have with others?!"

I. As the servant of the Lord, David was established to be able to survive all his conflicts with others:

A. The introductory notes to Psalm 18, being part of the divinely inspired Hebrew text, claim that David was "the servant of the Lord." (Kittel, Biblia Hebraica, p. 987; introductory notes in the KJV, NIV, ESV and NASB)

B. In David's era, a master protected his servant while the servant agreed to fight for his master or further his master's interests. (Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible, Volume Five, p. 359)

C. God became David's Master when He sent His prophet Samuel to anoint David king over Israel (1 Samuel 16:1, 12-13), so IF David heeded God's will by fighting for or advancing God's interests in his calling as king, David was assured protection and victory over every foe he faced since his Master was Almighty God!

II. David heeded God in his calling as His servant, so the Lord delivered him from all his foes. To testify of these deliverances, David used eight metaphors in Psalm 18:1-2 to explain the Lord's eight roles in ministering in his behalf. We list those metaphors and refer to events in David's life that illustrate them:

A. God was David's "Strength" (hezeq, B. D. B., A Heb.-Eng. Lex. of the O. T., p. 305), Psalm 18:1: David chased and struck a bear and a lion to free sheep from their mouths, and if they turned on him, he seized their manes and slew them, and David killed Goliath with a sling, for God was his strength, 1 Sam. 17:34-51 NIV.

B. God was David's "Secure Rock Cliff" (sela', Ibid., p. 700-701), Psalm 18:2a: His success as a warrior against the Philistines in 1 Samuel 18:27 when he killed 200 of them may well have come from using a secure rock cliff for typical advantage in combat, and if that was the case, the Lord was David's actual Secure Rock Cliff!

C. God was David's "Stronghold" (mesudah, Ibid., p. 845), Psalm 18:2b: When Saul was pursuing him in the wilderness of Engedi west of the Dead Sea, David appeared to Saul, urging him to stop chasing him, for David did not want to harm Saul, 1 Samuel 24:1-21. Saul agreed to cease chasing David, but David no longer trusted Saul, so he returned to his stronghold there, 1 Samuel 24:22. In reality, God was David's actual Stronghold!

D. God was David's "Deliverer (of escape)" (mepalleti, Piel ptc. of palat, "escape," Ibid., p. 812), v. 2c: When David and his men hurried along one side of a mountain and Saul's men pursued him going along on the other side, closing in on David, God let the Philistines invade Israel, interrupting Saul's pursuit of David since Saul had to counter the Philistine invaders, 1 Samuel 23:25-28. God thus became David's Deliverer of escape!

E. God was David's "Rock" (sur, Ibid., p. 849) of "refuge" (hasah, Ibid., p. 340), Psalm 18:2d: In 1 Samuel 19:18-24 when David fled from Saul to God's prophet Samuel for protection, God forced Saul to prophesy in the Holy Spirit's power instead of harming David, so the Lord protected David as his Rock of refuge.

F. God was David's "Small Handheld Shield (for close combat)" (magen, Ibid., p. 901-902; R. DeVaux, Anc. Israel: Vol. 2: Soc. Insts., 1965, p. 244-245), Psalm 18:2e: When David fought the Amalekites to recover his captured family and the families of his men, God gave him victory in close combat, 1 Samuel 30:1-19!

G. God was David's "Horn (Strength) [qeren, Ibid., B. D. B., p. 901-902] of his salvation, Psalm 18:2f: When David and his men first discovered that the Amalekites had destroyed their town of Ziklag, taking its spoil and their families captive, David's men spoke of stoning him. However, David spiritually strengthened himself in the Lord so that he could lead his men to recover their families and possessions, 1 Samuel 30:1-20.

H. God was David's "Secure Height" (miseggav, Ibid., p. 960), Psalm 18:2g: When God told David that the men of Keilah would betray him to Saul, David and his men fled from Keilah into the wilderness of Ziph, a raised plateau area, and though Saul sought every day for David, God kept Saul from finding him there. (1 Samuel 23:11-14; Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978, ftn. to 1 Samuel 23:14) God became David's real Secure Height!

Lesson: Since David obeyed God in his God-assigned calling to be king as the servant of the Lord, God as his Protective Master granted David deliverance from all the foes he faced in his divine calling.

Application: (1) May we trust in Christ Who died as our Atoning Sacrifice for sin that we might receive God's gift of eternal life, John 3:16; 1 Corinthians 15:1-11. (2) Since God's calling for each believer today involves his use of his God-given spiritual gift for Christian service (1 Timothy 4:14-16; 2 Timothy 1:6-7; 1 Corinthians 12:4-11), may we focus on fulfilling God's assignments in using our spiritual gifts and see God deliver us from all our foes.

Conclusion: (To illustrate the message . . .)

We view Scripture on God's will for us in responding to the conflicts noted in our introduction:

(1) On big stock market swings over Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the West's response to it and the disruptive actions by uninformed, edgy, individual investors, (a) verse 5 in the Ecclesiastes 11:1-6 passage on investing claims that God affects our investments in ways that are far beyond our knowledge! (b) Also, in our current "Mini-Great Tribulation" predicted in Revelation 3:21 with 7:17, God is letting strong trials occur that alarm investors even more than usual since many are ignorant of God's plan, so they make even more erratic moves! (c) We must then precisely keep heeding God's Ecclesiastes 11:1-6 directives on investing or risk great loss! (d) Those directives are (i) to invest boldly (v. 1a) (ii) for the long-term (v. 1b) in (iii) different ventures (v. 2-5) and (iv) keep adding to each one (v. 6).

(2) On the president's policy on oil and speculators who drive up its cost, (a) Joseph in Genesis 41:34-49 saved up 20% of each year's harvest during the 7 bountiful years for use in the 7 lean years. One can thus AIM to save 20% of his income per month to form an emergency fund, and once he has it, invest 5% of his income per month in a regular account to save to offset long-term inflation and invest 15% of his income for retirement. (b) We can also be frugal: Jesus led His men to save the leftovers of the feedings of the 5,000 (John 6:12) and the 4,000 (Matthew 15:35-38), and He later spoke of the 12 smaller wicker baskets (kophinos) used for the leftovers of the 5,000 and of the 7 large, flexible mat-baskets (sphuris) used for the leftovers of the 4,000, a sphuris being so big, one was used to let Paul down from a city wall in Acts 9:25! (Matthew 16:9-10; U. B. S. Grk. N. T., 1966, p. 62; Abbott-Smith, A Man. Grk. Lex. of the N. T., 1968, p. 255, 436) Fewer baskets were used in the feeding of the 4,000, but far more leftovers were saved then than in the feeding of the 5,000 due to the amount each kind of basket held! Jesus frugally noted it!

(3) On the issue of increased taxes, Romans 13:6-8 calls us to pay each tax, what requires budgeting the use of our income. We should never just spend all our income when we get a paycheck but carefully direct how we use it.

(4) On gambling, Proverbs 28:19 NIV claims that he who works his land will have plenty of food where he who follows after vain pursuits will have plenty of poverty. Usually, the only long-term winners in gambling are the businesses that host it, so gamblers typically play a losing game! We must work for a living, not try to gamble for it!

(5) On many restaurant closings, business and job losses and a poor business climate in the state, Proverbs 27:23-27 teaches the value of God's provisions for basic human needs through nature. For income security, God calls us to rely more on income streams that meet ongoing, basic human needs rather than other kinds of income.

May we trust in Christ Who died as our Atoning Sacrifice for sin that we might receive God's gift of eternal life. May we fulfill God's will for us in each conflict we face with others for His protection and blessing.