Psalms 56 (Part III)

¹⁰ In God, whose word I praise,
    in the Lord, whose word I praise—
¹¹ in God I trust and am not afraid.
    What can man do to me?

"On the day when I cry unto You, then shall my enemies turn back, of this I have knowledge, for God is for me."  I know this because You, my God, have told this to me.  It is written and You have made it known in my heart.  Because of this, "In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise."  I praise Your Word because Your Word says You are for me and I know when You enter my life, my enemies turn back.  Who can stand before the Lord?  This is a re-write of verses 3 and 4.

"In God I trust and am not afraid."  I think it would do me well to reassure myself every morning with these words.  It is important to have these words near our lips during the day so we can be assured immediately when that unknown pressure or event threatens.  "In God I trust and am not afraid."  This is standing before Satan and hell and declaring your faith.  This is standing at the foot of God and declaring that you are His. 

"When I am afraid, I put my trust in You. ... On the day when I cry unto You, then shall my enemies turn back, of this I have knowledge, for God is for me. ...  In God, whose word I praise -  in God I trust and am not afraid.  What can mere mortals (man) do to me?"

This is great spiritual logic.  Sometimes faith seems so opposite of logical, but here it is very deductive.  Let's follow it.  I'm weary from battle and afraid.  I shouldn't be afraid.  So, I put my complete trust in my all knowing, all seeing, all powerful God.  I know that when I cast my cares upon Him trusting upon Him and Him alone that my enemies will turn away because they too know who my God is and that He is for me, lest they should have to battle against Him.  I praise His Words that declare His love for me.  I trust in God and am not afraid.  Because He is for me, what can a man do to me?

¹² I am under vows to You, my God;
    I will present my thank offerings to You.
¹³ For you have delivered me from death
    and my feet from stumbling,
    that I may walk before God
    in the light of life.

I declare my life as a son to my God, thanking Him for being my Lord.  He delivers me from Satan and hell.  The Jewish Bible states the next sentence as, "Will not You deliver my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living?" It is a prayer to the Lord asking Him to help David with the daily walk so he might be righteous before God. 

So many years before Jesus, and David writes on a level of understanding that Jesus so often taught.  "Do not worry about tomorrow ... each day has enough trouble of its own" (Matt 6:34); "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (John 8:12); "The one who believes in Me will live" (John 11:25); "I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in Me should stay in darkness." (John 12:46).  When I think of light as it is used in the Bible, I think of Jesus and his many references, not David.  Yet, David clearly was writing in the mind that the only life comes from God and it is as a light in a dark world.

I am so thankful, as David was, to be delivered from death.  I pray that the Lord will keep my feet from stumbling so I might not only kneel before Him proclaiming His Lordship, but walk before Him as His son.