Psalm 39.
But first, let’s backtrack to Psalm 38: 12 – 22. David is under chastisement for a sin he committed and these verses show that he is not concerned in the least bit about his enemies even though they’re laying snares for him, speaking mischievous things and imagining deceits all the day long. Usually, David goes ham against his enemies but during this time, when God is dealing with him, he chooses to put all his focus and attention on making things right with God. I found that it’s easy to lightly esteem the consequences of sin. Between the distractions of daily life, the voices of comforters saying things like, “it’s okay, God understands!” and our own hearts shouting, “I just want to feel better already; I don’t want to hurt anymore!”, we can miss the point of a crisis— true repentance and deeper fellowship with God.
Sometimes we do learn our lesson, but because of the distractions, the sting is so minimized that we readily return to our own vomit. That’s partially why I don’t understand this new age church doctrine that tells us that shame and guilt come from Satan exclusively and is not a part of repentance. I don’t understand how it’s possible to sin and not feel those two things.
In Chapter 39, verse 1, David begins to unwrap the gift of silence during trial. He tells us that he will watch himself closely, so that he would not sin with his tongue. In verse 4, he asks to know how much time he has left on the earth so that he will not continue to be careless. Whether with friend or foe, whether on things worthy of comment or on things not, David remains silent. In verse 9, we learn that it’s actually God who has muted David. Through my personal experiences, I have learned that David’s silence is the right response when under chastisement. Again, so many of us go running to friends and family to find relief from God’s chastisement. But there’s a reason why David says in Psalm 51, “against You and only You have I sinned.” Go before the One you offended and let Him be the one to remove that weight from your shoulders.
Chastisement also brought wisdom to David. He sees that most of what humankind engages in is vanity. In vain, we puff about in self-importance. In vain, we worry. In vain, we build up wealth with no clue who will inherit it after we are gone. In other words (especially if you read the footnote verse in 1 Corinthians 7:31), David learns that nothing should have his attention more than God. He decides that it is better to just hope in the Lord and to wait on Him and His deliverance.
Verses 11 – 13 is where it spins out in a way I didn’t expect. In fact, these verses show the health of David’s mind, faith and relationship with God. If I knew God was chastising me, I would never say, “hold not thy peace at my tears.” I would just suck it up and endure. But David understood the love and mercy of God. So did Abraham when he negotiated on behalf of Sodom and Gomorrah. Knowing this, David intercedes for himself in the middle of chastisement and asks for his sentence to be commuted. It’s like a child negotiating with the parent in the middle of the belt. “Can we stop after this one? I’ve learned my lesson.” And the parent is like, “sure why not.”
It seems laughable but this happens all the time throughout the Bible, sometimes with God initiating the conversation! For some reason though, I didn’t see it clearly until this Psalm. I guess I separated prayer and intercession—the former as the thing I do for myself and the latter as the thing I do for others. I don’t know why. For me, it was powerful to see David intercede for himself. David is not saying, “I don’t want to repent or come to terms with what I’ve done.” David is not avoiding or lightly regarding his actions. David is saying, “I have sat with myself and now I understand. I repent. I ask that in your mercy, You would let me get back on the path I was on before I sinned sooner than You intended.” At least that’s my opinion.
What are your thoughts when you read Psalm 39?