Psalms 27: [A Psalm] of David. The LORD [is] my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD [is] the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?When the wicked, [even] mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell. Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this [will] I [be] confident. One [thing] have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple. For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock. And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round about me: therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy; I will sing, yea, I will sing praises unto the LORD. Hear, O LORD, [when] I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me.[When thou saidst], Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek. Hide not thy face [far] from me; put not thy servant away in anger: thou hast been my help; leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation.When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up. Teach me thy way, O LORD, and lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies.Deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies: for false witnesses are risen up against me, and such as breathe out cruelty.[I had fainted], unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.
As we will see in our series, King David addresses many of the same issues that each and every one of us faces when we are in the midst of the most difficult, fearful situations of life. May the Lord honor this study in His Word, by granting to us the truths of this Psalm and their practical application to our life.
EXPOSITION:
David now begins to bring his requests before the Lord…
Psalms 27:7 Hear, O LORD, [when] I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me.[When thou saidst], Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek.
The first appeal to the Lord that is made is for the Lord’s gracious acceptance of the requests he is about to make…
Hear, O LORD, [when] I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
Request #1: David now asks the Lord to “hear” his requests.
The idea of “hear” involves not only perceiving his requests but placing His attention upon them. It is one thing to hear a request, it is another thing to really pay attention to it, consider it, and act accordingly upon it. David understood he did not deserve for the Lord to hear nor actively consider his requests. The Lord owed him nothing. And yet, David also understood the Lord’s love, mercy and grace. He knew that the Lord, as a loving heavenly Father, would accept his requests and act in his best interest.
David’s requests would be in the form of a “cry”. In the Hebrew language the word translated “cry” means “to address by name”. In other words, as David presented his appeals to the Lord, he would be crying out to God by His name (Jehovah, Deliverer, Merciful One, Defender, Almighty, etc etc). He would be recognizing who He was and what He has done for His people. have mercy also upon me,
Request #2: The Lord’s mercy to be shown to David
Now we see that David asks the Lord to show him His mercy. David understands that he does not deserve for his requests to be granted. That is why he asks the Lord to intervene in his life by His mercy. What does mercy mean? The most basic definition of “mercy” throughout both Old and New Testaments is the idea of withholding something harmful to those who deserve to be harmed. The greatest example of this is the Lord withholding the Lake of Fire to each one of us (as sinners who deserve to be punished eternally). So too, is this case. David is saying that, because he is a sinner by nature and choice, he deserves to live in a fallen world that is filled with trials, difficulties, sorrows and fears. The Lord could very justly allow David to face these evils unaided and without any divine intervention. His only option is to plead for the mercy of the Lord to intervene in this situation and come to his aid and defense. and answer me.
Request #3: The Lord to answer the requests of David
David asks that the Lord might intervene in such a way that David can perceive the workings of the Lord in his midst. We all know what it feels like to come before the Lord with our requests and not sense His presence and intervention in our situation. We feel as if we are all alone and He has left us.
Although every Christian, by faith, understands that the Lord will never leave nor forsake us, and He ALWAYS answers our prayers, we still desire to sense the Lord is at work in our lives during troublesome times. This is what David is requesting of the Lord.
[When thou saidst], Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek.
David’s declaration of submission to His will.
David, as he brings his requests to the Lord, he verbally proclaims the submissive spirit that lies within him. He simply explains that he is acting according to the revealed will of God for his life. The Lord has told us in His Word to seek His face and that is what David is attempting to do. May we all be in submission to His will as we bring our requests before Him.
May we all be able to say to the Lord “not my will but thine be done” just as Christ set the example for us at Gethsemane.
APPLICATION: As David begins to bring his requests before the Lord, he takes the time to humbly ask His Lord to hear his requests, show him His mercy, and to reveal himself to the Lord. As he approached the Lord he retained a spirit of submission to the Lord’s will and a willing to do whatever the Lord may desire for His life. May we all make sure that our attitude aligns itself with that of King David as we bring our requests before our loving, merciful Lord.
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