Monday after Oculi
Posted on March 8, 2021 by under
Scripture: 2 Samuel 22:1-7 (NKJV)
22:1 Then David spoke to the Lord the words of this song, on the day when the Lord had delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul. 2 And he said:
“The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer;
3 The God of my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge; My Savior, You save me from violence.
4 I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; So shall I be saved from my enemies.
5 “When the waves of death surrounded me, the floods of ungodliness made me afraid.
6 The sorrows of Sheol surrounded me; The snares of death confronted me.
7 In my distress I called upon the Lord, and cried out to my God; He heard my voice from His temple, and my cry entered His ears.
Devotion
King David’s song declares how God had proved Himself faithful, delivering him in the midst of all the twists and turns of his life. By means of a rapid-fire list of titles, David is holding forth the various acts which God has performed. The Lord is a rock, a fortress, a deliverer, a strength, a shield, a horn, a stronghold, a refuge, and a Savior. Each one of these titles could serve as an entire devotion revealing who God is.
However, in this devotion I wish to draw your attention to the first-person pronouns and adjectives. David is not merely saying that God is a rock who serves as an immovable protection from enemies. David is declaring that God is “my” rock. When David’s enemies came against him and Saul set out to destroy him, God was David’s rock, a firmness of safety. David includes the word “my” with every title. This word is illustrative of David’s faith and the acknowledgement that God gets the credit for all of David’s earthly deliverance and eternal salvation. When David says, “I will call upon the Lord,” this is not simply a reference to prayer. David is trusting in the Lord to save him.
As a believer in Jesus Christ for salvation, David’s song becomes “my” song, and your song. David’s “my” is to be my trust as well. When I sing David’s song, I apply the first-person pronouns to myself. Through faith in Christ, I call upon the Lord because I know He is my Deliverer and Savior.
Prayer: We beseech Thee, Almighty God, look upon the hearty desires of Thy humble servants and stretch forth the right hand of Thy majesty to be our defense against all our enemies, through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
