In You, O Lord, I put my trust; let me never be put to shame. Deliver me in Your righteousness, and cause me to escape; Incline Your ear to me, and save me. Be my strong refuge, to which I may resort continually; You have given the commandment to save me, for You are my rock and my fortress. (Psalm 71:1-3)
It is said that this psalm is essentially a continuation of the previous one which was written in regard to David’s flight from Absalom. Commentators also suggest that, in this psalm, David’s prayer is not so much for himself personally as it is for the sake of his throne. Apparently, he was conscious of the fact that consequences for his sin involving Bathsheba would continue to dog him, particularly as it involved Absalom. As Nathan had prophesied, “Behold, I will raise up adversity against you from your own house” (2 Samuel 12:11). But David had been promised that he would not die for this sin. Instead it would give occasion for God’s enemies to blaspheme and ridicule, which it might be argued, is in some ways worse than death.
Years before, when David had fled from Saul as a youth, he appealed to God that he might live a long life and fulfill his commission to serve as king over Israel. But as he grew older and the specter of death loomed before him, his primary concern wasn’t for his personal safety, but for his throne. He wanted to fulfill his purpose as Israel’s king with dignity and strength rather than succumbing to death when there was so much turmoil in the land under his watch. In other words, he was concerned about the sanctity and preservation of his throne in light of the promise and purpose God had assigned to him.
Let’s consider the situation from this perspective: how many servants of God have there been who were devoted to God for most of their existence, but unfortunately stumbled and floundered toward the end of their life? David didn’t want that to happen to him and so he prayed to God, “Let me never be put to shame. Deliver me in Your righteousness … and save me. Be my strong refuge.” David realized that death, which is a certainty for all, is not the worst thing that can befall us. Rather, facing death without fulfilling God’s purpose is a far more painful and undesirable scenario.
So may it be that we all — and especially those of us who have more years behind us than we have in front of us — recommit ourselves to finishing strong. The God who preserved us in our youth can sustain us until the end, and so with David we proclaim, “In You, O Lord, I put my trust … You are my rock and my fortress.”
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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