Psalm 17: Faith & Justice!!!
Both the matters of faith and of justice are laden with theological and philosophic undercurrents that impact on a person’s understanding and application of those concepts.
Faith is a matter of everyday life, and it doesn’t necessarily mean something related to a belief in a divine being/s. We get into our cars and drive our families around with the faith that the car isn’t going to break down, or that the other drivers on the road aren’t going to drive in a way that endangers everyone else. We have a level of faith that when we buy a product it does what it claims to do. However, real faith is believing and hoping for that which you cannot see. Thus the divine must enter the arena of discussion.
Our notion of justice on the other hand, is significantly influenced by which socio-cultural and ethnic groups we have grown up in. These frameworks influence how we want to see justice handed out when we are wronged, or even when we have done the harm. However, across many cultures - what we think‘Justice’ is - is actually retribution. We want whomever harmed us, or wronged us, to feel like we do. We want them to feel the loss that we feel…we want them to feel the horror we feel…we want them to feel the pain and suffering we feel. But do we actually consider divine justice, and divine judgement? Do we look at the wrongs we have received at the hands of others and do we give them to God to sort out - because his justice is fair but eternal?
In Psalm 17, King David explores both the concepts of faith and justice. He looks at them from his own perspective, whilst acknowledging that God is actually the one in control of these things.
Psalm 17 says…
Verse 1-2: “O Lord, hear my plea for justice. Listen to my cry for help. Pay attention to my prayer, for it comes from honest lips. Declare me innocent, for you see those who do right.”
King David begins this psalm by calling out in prayer and petition to God.
He asks for help and for justice in his situation.
David is trying to ask God to see him as righteous, as someone who is trying to do good.
David knows that when we approach God we need to have already repented for our sins, and we must also be acting in a righteous and godly manner.
Verse 3-5: “You have tested my thoughts and examined my heart in the night. You have scrutinised me and found nothing wrong. I am determined not to sin in what I say. I have followed your commands, which keep me from following cruel and evil people. My steps have stayed on your path; I have not wavered from following you.”
I am not sure that most of us want God to actually test our thoughts. We are all corrupt sinful people, and our thoughts betray the state of our heart.
Here is a point of consideration for you - If you would not want God to examine your thoughts (not that you can stop HIM) - perhaps you have not taken captive your thoughts and shaped them to that of the Holy Spirit, but rather you have let your thoughts be moulded by the patterns of this world. Just something for you (and I) to think about, to pray about, and to repent for.
Yet here, David is saying that he has followed all of God’s commandments, and that he has walked the path of righteousness and godliness. This is David’s way of gaining the moral high ground in regard to those who are committing injustice towards him. He was separating out their behaviour from that of those who stood against him.
Verses 6 - 9: “I am praying to you because I know you will answer, O God. Bend down and listen as I pray. Show me your unfailing love in wonderful ways. By your mighty power you rescue those who seek refuge from their enemies. Guard me as you would guard your own eyes. Hide me in the shadow of your wings. Protect me from wicked people who attack me, from murderous enemies who surround me.
David knows the power of prayer. He knows that God answers prayers according to his will and plan for our lives.
It is interesting that David even present can intimate view of God leaning in to hear David’s pray to HIM - just like a father or mother, bends down to listen to what their child is about to say. God is like that if we allow HIM to be. HE is not a distant malevolent divine deity - rather he is a caring and compassionate GOD, the great I AM - and he not only hears our prayers but he answers them.
It is into that space that David moves for emotional and spiritual refuge. This world provides no refuge from the evils and the troubles we face on a daily basis. We can only truly try to find refuge and solace in the presence of God.
David pleads with God to protect him from those who seek to do him harm and who seek to destroy him. This too, is a prayer we can offer up to God.
Verses 10 - 12: “They are without pity. Listen to their boasting! They track me down and surround me, watching for the chance to throw me to the ground. They are like hungry lions, eager to tear me apart— like young lions hiding in ambush.
David moves on from his petitioning of God to describing how he sees those who oppose him. He describes them in particularly gruesome detail.
Not only does he describe them as people who are deceptive and cunning, but also prideful and violent.
But it is his use of lion imagery that brings the focus to the savagery that his enemies seek to inflict upon him. Lions overwhelm their prey, crush their throat and can often start gorging themselves on the still living animal.
This is precisely what the spiritual forces arrayed against us is trying to do. 1 Peter 5:8 reminds us to “ Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.” - those who are doing the bidding of Satan, then it is no wonder that they copy his intent and his actions.
If people around you - family, friends, co-workers, church people or just everyday folk - are acting like this then it is highly likely that they are being influenced by what is ungodly and the spiritual side is trying to derail your faith and your fruitfulness.
Verses 13 - 15: “Arise, O Lord! Stand against them and bring them to their knees! Rescue me from the wicked with your sword! By the power of your hand, O Lord, destroy those who look to this world for their reward. But satisfy the hunger of your treasured ones. May their children have plenty,
leaving an inheritance for their descendants. Because I am righteous, I will see you. When I awake, I will see you face to face and be satisfied.”
King David finishes off Psalm 17 with a flurry and with some power.
Again he cries out to God for justice…he pleads for rescue and he asks that God destroy those who are seeking to destroy him.
It is also interesting to note that David asks God to destroy those who turn to the things of this world for their reward - this means all the physical, emotional and social pleasures and leisure that they chase after. Perhaps this should be a warning for us not to seek those things for they very well may lead to our destruction.
After this plea, David turns his attention to those (including himself) who follow God and try to live righteously. He asks on their behalf (and his) that they enjoy plenty, times of peace and prosperity.
It is interesting to note though that the final statement in this psalm by King David is about his death. He says “Because I am righteous, I will see you. When I awake, I will see you face to face and be satisfied” - He is not talking about when he wakes in the morning each and every day, for no-one can see the face of God and live (Exodus 33:20). Rather, he is already talking about a future eternity spent in the presence of God, and it is that (not necessarily the salvation from his enemies) which is the dominant cornerstone of the hope he has. This should be our hope too.
Just think about King David’s psalms, many of which express deep anxieties, stress and emotional turmoil all because of the circumstances he was going through. In the midst of these trying circumstances, David knew that his only course of action was to turn to God and pray and petition for God’s divine action in his life. If David, king of Israel, mighty warrior and slayer of the giant Goliath feels like this - then it is perfectly normal for us to feel the same, and to do the same. It also shows us that if someone of King David’s stature can go through some very difficult times, then we should expect no less in our own lives. To get through these hard days that we are in, we must have faith in God - faith that not only will he hear our prayers and acts on them, but that he will act justly against those evildoers that come against us. Faith and justice are both found within the nature and character of God.