by Samuel A. Matthews<\/p>\n
“Lord, how are they increased that trouble me! Many are they that rise up against me. Many there be which say of my soul, There is no help for him in God. Selah. But thou, O Lord, art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head. I cried unto the Lord with my voice, and he heard me out of his holy hill. Selah. I laid me down and slept; I awaked; for the Lord sustained me. I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people, that have set themselves against me round about. Arise, O Lord; save me, O my God: for thou hast smitten all mine enemies upon the cheek bone; thou hast broken the teeth of the ungodly. Salvation belongeth unto the Lord: thy blessing is upon thy people. Selah<\/em>” (Psalm 3:1-8).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Loved ones, the third Psalm by “the sweet singer of Israel” is said to be “A Psalm of David when he fled from Absalom his son.” Scripture vividly records David’s sad flight from his palace in Jerusalem in the dead of night (see II Samuel 15-18). With naked feet and his head covered, he forded the brook Kidron, with a few faithful followers, to hide himself for a while from the fury of his rebellious son. There surely is no greater trial to anyone than the ingratitude of a son when he seeks the life of his own father. Indeed, it is a time to look to God for help. So this Psalm is called by many expositors ‘The Morning Hymn,” while others call it “The Saint Telling His Grief To His God.” It is a Psalm of peril and prayer and victory.<\/p>\n
The Psalm Divided<\/h2>\n
The third Psalm can be naturally divided into four equal portions of two verses each:<\/p>\n
\n
- In the first two verses, David makes a complaint to God concerning his enemies, that many enemies had arisen against him;<\/li>\n
- In verses 3 and 4, he declares his confidence in the Lord, in the midst of his troubles;<\/li>\n
- In verses 5 and 6, he sings of his safety in sleep, as he could lie down calmly, sleep, and arise again in the morning; and<\/li>\n
- In verses 7 and 8, he comforts and strengthens himself for future conflicts, calling on God to arise and save him.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
The Enemies’ Decree (Psalms 3:1-2)<\/h2>\n
At the beginning of the psalm, we see the brokenhearted king complain about the multitude of his enemies. The Bible says, “And the conspiracy was strong; for the people increased continually<\/em>” (II Samuel 15:12).<\/p>\n
“Lord, how are they increased that trouble me! Many are they that rise up against me<\/em>” (Psalms 3:1). He seems to be saying, “My darling son, Absalom, is in rebellion against me, and it is enough to break my heart. Ahithophel hath forsaken me. My faithful counselors have turned their backs on me. Oh, Lord, what can I do?”<\/p>\nYet the bitterest of all afflictions was to be told that there was no help for him from his God. He laments, “Many there be which say of my soul, There is no help for him in God<\/em>” (Psalms 3:2).
\nIt is always a joy to sinners to taunt the people of the Lord in their trials with the ridicule that they are God-forsaken. Our blessed Savior endured many afflictions. He was “despised and rejected of men<\/em>” (Isaiah 53:3). Once “many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him<\/em>” (John 6:66). And while on the cross, bearing “our transgressions<\/em>” and “our iniquities<\/em>,” He cried out, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?<\/em>” (Mark 15:34).\nHere, at the end of Psalm 3:2, we meet\u00a0the word “Selah<\/em>” for the first time in the Psalms. (It occurs 73 times in the Psalms). What does it mean? The best information we have is that it is a musical pause, a rest, or a stop.<\/p>\n
God Is My Shield (Psalms 3:3-4)<\/h2>\n
David avows his confidence in God. He never lost faith. He thought, “My enemies may be great, ‘But thou, O Lord, art a shield for me’<\/em>” (Psalms 3:3). The shield meant a protection to surround him. God is a shield for His people.\u00a0Also, David said, “Thou art my glory, and the lifter up of mine head<\/em>.”\u00a0He believed God would exalt him.<\/p>\n
Also, David “cried unto the Lord” (Psalms 3:4) with his voice, not in silence, and the Lord heard him. In times of danger, God’s children should pray. The Lord always hears the prayers of the righteous (I John 5:14-15).<\/p>\n
Truly, the Christian can sing: “What a friend we have in Jesus. All our sins and griefs to bear. What a privilege to carry, everything to God in prayer.”<\/p>\n
The Hebrew writer, after speaking of Christ as the Christian’s High Priest who has “passed into the heavens<\/em>,” encouraged the brethren to pray in these words: “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in the time of need<\/em>” (Hebrews 4:16).<\/p>\n
A Sweet Night’s Rest (Psalms 3:5-8)<\/h2>\n
Here we see David’s faith in God. He could lie down and sleep (Psalms 3:5). He could sleep in the midst of troubles, though surrounded by foes (cf. Acts 12:6). Like Abram, He could depend upon his Lord to protect him (Genesis 15:1). When he awoke, he awoke in safety, for the Lord, by His grace, had sustained him. God had preserved him. Jesus taught His disciples not to be filled with worry and anxiety, but to trust in God’s care (Matthew 6:25-34).<\/p>\n
David realized that if more trials were ahead, he could sing, “I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people that have set themselves against me round about<\/em>” (Psalms 3:6). “They shall not hurt me<\/em>,” he says. Oh, what faith in God’s protecting care! Great trust in the Lord can say, under adverse circumstances, “I am God’s child, and I will not be afraid; nothing can separate me from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus” (cf. Romans 8:31-39; I Peter 5:7).<\/p>\n
The Christian can sing:<\/p>\n
“Anywhere with Jesus I can safely go,
\nAnywhere He leads me in this world below;
\nAnywhere without Him dearest joys would fade;
\nAnywhere with Jesus I am not afraid.\n“Anywhere with Jesus I can go to sleep,
\nWhen the dark’ning shadows round about me creep,
\nKnowing I shall waken never-more to roam;
\nAnywhere with Jesus will be home, sweet home.”<\/blockquote>\nDavid again expresses his strong confidence in God: he knows the Lord hath but to “arise,” and he is saved (Psalms 3:7). He compares his enemies to wild beasts and declares that God hath broken their jaws, so that they cannot injure him. Today, man needs faith in God that He will likewise take care of him.<\/p>\n
“Be not dismayed what’er betide,
\nGod will take care of you;
\nBeneath His wings of love abide,
\nGod will take care of you.”\n“No matter what may be the test,
\nGod will take care of you;
\nLean, weary one, upon His breast,
\nGod will take care of you.\n“God will take care of you,
\nThro’ ev’ry day,
\nO’er all the way;
\nHe will take care of you,
\nGod will take care of you.”<\/blockquote>\nPsalm 3:8 is a beautiful conclusion to the Psalm. “Salvation belongeth unto the Lord<\/em>.” Indeed, it does. It is true also of spiritual deliverance. Salvation is by the grace of God (I Corinthians 15:10; I Timothy 1:12-16). However, salvation is not by grace alone (Ephesians 2:8-9). Man’s obedient faith is his part (Matthew 7:21; Acts 10:34-35; Romans 6:16-17; Hebrews 5:9).<\/p>\n
God, by His grace, lovingly provides for man’s salvation and offers it as His free gift; but man, by faith, must accept it upon the terms of the gospel. Man must hear the gospel, believe in Christ, repent of his sins, confess faith in Christ, and be baptized for the remission of his sin (Mark 16:15-16; Acts 2:38; 8:35-38; 17:30; 18:8). Then as a child of God, he must remain faithful to the end of life’s earthly journey to inherit eternal life (Romans 6:23; Revelation 2:10). The old Calvinistic doctrine of “salvation by grace only” therefore, is false.<\/p>\n
“Thy blessing is upon thy people<\/em>,” said David. The blessing of the Lord is not upon any one nation or class of people, but upon all the blood-bought, redeemed people of God, the wide-world over, wherever they may be. Today all “spiritual blessings<\/em>” are “in Christ<\/em>” (Ephesians 1:3), and available only to those who are “in Christ<\/em>.” The believing penitent is “baptized into Christ<\/em>” (Romans 6:3; Galatians 3:27). To be one of the blessed dead, one must “die in the Lord<\/em>” (Revelation 14:13).<\/p>\n
Christians enjoy God’s blessings, which they seek to share with all the people of the world. They pray for the salvation of all men (Romans 10:1), for God would “have all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth<\/em>” (I Timothy 2:4). The Lord does not want anyone to be lost (II Peter 3:9).<\/p>\n
Conclusion<\/h2>\n
This Psalm teaches that the redeemed are safe and secure under divine protection. God is their shield. He does cover them on every side.<\/p>\n
Thus, David, as he began the Psalm with a complaint about the strength and malice of his enemies, concludes with exultation in God’s power and salvation. “Thy blessing is upon thy people<\/em>.” What a marvelous thought!<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Samuel A. Matthews “Lord, how are they increased that trouble me! Many are they that rise up against me. Many there be which say of my soul, There is no help for him in God. Selah. But thou, O Lord, art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[186,516],"class_list":["post-98388","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-protection","tag-psalms"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":31874,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/do-you-support-conscientious-objection\/","url_meta":{"origin":98388,"position":0},"title":"Do you support conscientious objection?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 19, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Do you or your church support selective conscientious objection and conscientious objection? Answer: Registering for the draft is a government law that does not violate any teaching of God. \"Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1296,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-are-boy-girl-relationships-not-advisable-at-a-young-age\/","url_meta":{"origin":98388,"position":1},"title":"Why are boy-girl relationships not advisable at a young age?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 3, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Why are boy-girl relationships not advisable at a young age Answer: Youth is a time of impatient desires. They want the things available to adults, but adulthood seems so far away. The typical teenage boy enters puberty around the age of 11. The typical teenage girl enters puberty around\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":37138,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/we-lost-the-surprise-somewhere\/","url_meta":{"origin":98388,"position":2},"title":"We Lost the Surprise Somewhere","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 10, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton I remember watching Mayberry RFD and related shows most of my childhood. Poor ignorant Gomer Pyle who worked as an auto mechanic was a notable character. But I can still recall my shock when I found out that Jim Nabors, who played Gomer, could sing --\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/Gomer.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":32196,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-it-a-sin-to-take-out-insurance\/","url_meta":{"origin":98388,"position":3},"title":"Is it a sin to take out insurance?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 20, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Is it a sin to take out medical insurance or legal insurance? Are we rather expected to put our faith in the Lord to take care of those things? Answer: We were taught to pray, \"Give us this day our daily bread\" (Matthew 6:11), but God still commands us\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":61889,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-book-of-my-life\/","url_meta":{"origin":98388,"position":4},"title":"The Book of My Life","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 23, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Job 19:23-27 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Each week the paper publishes its list of top selling books \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Sometimes the books are biographies, fictional stories, or fiction placed in historical settings. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0They hope that others will also purchase the books, if for no other reason than curiosity. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0C.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Many author\u2019s\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6988,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/are-there-passages-that-refer-to-the-lords-supper\/","url_meta":{"origin":98388,"position":5},"title":"Are there passages that refer to THE Lord’s Supper?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 2, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: We have been studying the Lord's supper issues and one of our main concerns is about a second offering in which only a few partake, for the reasons you listed in your article (not doing it together). We have been questioning the idea of everyone taking it a second\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98388","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=98388"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98388\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":98391,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98388\/revisions\/98391"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=98388"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=98388"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=98388"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}