Day 99

Praise for Deliverance

Read: 2 Samuel 21-22

These chapters are apparently appendixes describing long-past events.

The ideas of justice here are hard for us to understand. One help is to realize the concept of “the corporate” in the Bible. Today we emphasize individualism. But the Bible teaches that we are part of a people, and that the sins of one have a tragic effect on others in the group. This is still true today. The lives and actions of the fathers affect the children for generations. When we sin we not only hurt ourselves; we hurt others.

Having won a victory over enemies early in his reign, David wrote this psalm in this passage. In it he praises the Lord. He sees the Lord as the One who has delivered him. He does not take the credit to himself but recognizes that the Lord has helped him in his times of desperation. He uses vivid poetic language to help us understand how great God is. Among the many praises he offered to God, he said, “This God—his way is perfect; the promise of the LORD proves true” (22:31). May God give us this same outlook. May we recognize how great he is and how good he has been to us, and as a result we praise him from the heart and with our mouths. The scope of David’s psalm reminds us that through missionary work God not only saves the lost, but also prompts us to praise him: “For this I will extol thee, O LORD, among the nations” (22:50).

PRAYER
Father, enable us to see the truth, that all our blessings come from you. For Jesus’ sake. Amen.