The Lord lives! Blessed be my Rock! Let the God of my salvation be exalted. It is God who avenges me, and subdues the peoples under me. He delivers me from my enemies. You also lift me up above those who rise against me … Therefore I will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the Gentiles, and sing praises to Your name. Great deliverance He gives to His king, and shows mercy to His anointed, to David and his descendants forevermore. (Psalm 18:46-50)
Before David passed away, through the prophet Nathan, God made a promise to David — that is, the throne which had been given him would be preserved through the generations. As it is written, “I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever” (2 Samuel 7:12-13).
Moreover, God promised that His mercy would remain with David’s descendants as it had remained with him. And so, as the end of his life approached, David had much to be thankful for. God had empowered him to triumph over his enemies whether it was a bear, a Philistine or a jealous father-in-law. Furthermore, he could rest in peace knowing that the same God who had allowed him to rise over his enemies would preserve his descendants after him.
Jewish commentators take note of the fact that David referred to himself in three different ways — “the king,” “His anointed” and “David” — corresponding to the three different periods in David’s life. David celebrated the fact that God was with him in the pinnacle of his life as Israel’s ruler but also that He was with him before that — when he was anointed by Samuel but not yet crowned. But he doesn’t forget to mention that God was also gracious to him when he was merely a poor shepherd, almost overlooked in comparison to his brothers.
The point is, David felt it necessary to recount the wonderful life he had enjoyed — even with the difficulties — because God delivered him, exalted him and promised him that God’s mercy would be extended to those who came after him. He could not help himself from singing praises to God before all men, including those who were of the nations. As David said, “The LORD lives! Blessed be my Rock!”
When was the last time you took a few moments to consider the goodness of God in your life? I ask because, if you’re like me, it is way too easy to meditate and even obsess over the not-so-good things that happen in life. How very quick we are to dedicate copious amounts of time to things that afflict and oppress us, including things that we have no power over. If anyone had reason to fixate on these kind of things, David certainly did. Actually, there are times that he obviously did just that, however, he also countered that impulse with a commitment to exalt the God of his salvation — to sing praises to His Name in good times and in bad.
We all know this is how it should be but, unfortunately, it is far too often not what we choose to do. Let’s amend our ways in that regard and remember that, throughout our life, God has been good to us. He has watched over us even when we were unaware, and because He is good, He will keep watch on those we love even after we have departed this life. For this, let us always be quick to give Him thanks and proclaim that He is our Rock!
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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