But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their strength in the time of trouble. And the Lord shall help them and deliver them; He shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them because they trust in Him. (Psalm 37:39-40)
The words that David used to close out this psalm repeat a theme we see in this and so many other of his psalms. He continually reminds us all that we should not succumb to the lure of the seeming success of the wicked nor should we buckle under their threats and accusations. It is inevitable that the righteous will encounter hardship, but the Lord will be our source of strength in whatever situation we may face. Thus, his words are meant to encourage all of God’s people to continue to walk before the Lord faithfully knowing that, in the end, He will deliver us from the wicked of this world.
Why did David find it necessary to keep repeating this over and again throughout the psalms? For that matter, why is this repeated so often throughout Scripture? I would suggest it is due to our inclination to be very short-sighted. When we find ourselves in the midst of troubles, which is often, it is difficult for us to see beyond the here and now. But God always has His eye on the long term; He has already provided for our salvation and deliverance. In the interim He looks upon His servants to see who will remain faithful in the commitment to Him. So then, knowing we are susceptible to the fears and whims of the flesh, He reminds us to stay focused and stay strong because He has our back.
David knew this; God had delivered him from the lion, the bear, the giant and so many others. Like most of us, he was not unacquainted with failure but, at the same time, he had experienced God’s salvation in seemingly impossible situations. I’m sure there were times that, in spite of what God had already done, he had to remind himself that, if he remained committed, God would preserve him yet again. And so it is with us; all of us can testify of the great things God has already done, and yet, it is needful for us to be reminded that He will do great things for us in the future. He will be our strength and our deliverance; as for us, let us continue to trust Him no matter what comes our way
Blessings and Shalom, Â
BillÂ
I have a question, Does God hear the prayers of unsaved people?
I would say that it is probably dependent upon what the prayer is. Are they praying for mercy and forgiveness? Then obviously He hears that prayer. Are they praying for something that doesn’t acknowledge their disobedience? The Bible says, “One who turns away his ear from hearing the law, wven his prayer is an abomination” (Proverbs 28:9). I can’t play God and tell you what prayers He receives if it doesn’t come from a humble heart. I do know that He will never turn a deaf ear to those who are sincerely, humble and remorseful.