Psalm 25: whispers from heaven

Psalm 25
Of David

(1) In you, LORD my God, I put my trust.

(2) I trust in you; do not let me be put to shame, nor let my enemies triumph over me.
(3) No one who hopes in you will ever be put to shame, but shame will come on those who are treacherous without cause.

(4) Show me your ways, LORD, teach me your paths.
(5) Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.
(6) Remember, LORD, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old.
(7) Do not remember the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you, LORD, are good.

(8) Good and upright is the LORD; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.
(9) He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way.
(10) All the ways of the LORD are loving and faithful toward those who keep the demands of his covenant.
(11) For the sake of your name, LORD, forgive my iniquity, though it is great.

(12) Who, then, are those who fear the LORD? He will instruct them in the ways they should choose.
(13) They will spend their days in prosperity, and their descendants will inherit the land.
(14) The LORD confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them.
(15) My eyes are ever on the LORD, for only he will release my feet from the snare.

(16) Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted.
(17) Relieve the troubles of my heart and free me from my anguish.
(18) Look on my affliction and my distress and take away all my sins.
(19) See how numerous are my enemies and how fiercely they hate me!

(20) Guard my life and rescue me; do not let me be put to shame, for I take refuge in you.
(21) May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope, LORD, is in you.

(22) Deliver Israel, O God, from all their troubles!

A psalm of David. David is pictured in this psalm as a faithful miniature. His holy trust, his many conflicts, his great transgression, his bitter repentance, and his deep distresses are all here; so that we see the very heart of “a man after God’s own heart.”

Charles Spurgeon, English preacher, 1834-1892

David faced many crises in his life as young man and as king, so it is hard to identify at what point this was written. Although he does speak of “the sins and rebellion” of his youth, so we can maybe assume this was written sometime later in his life.

Psalm 25 is an acrostic poem, which means each line begins with a letter from the Hebrew alphabet and follows the appropriate order- like A to Z. There are 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet and 22 verses in this psalm.

Why?

To bring beauty and poetry to the Bible? God created beautiful things, including poetry, why wouldn’t He want to include some in His Bible?

To help with memorization? Charles Spurgeon calls Psalm 25, “an alphabet song.”

Whatever the reason, it was clearly intentional. What a wonderful reminder that every word and story in the Bible is true and deliberately placed there by the hand of God.

In you, LORD my God, I put my trust.
I trust in you
Psalm 25:1-2a

Do you think David was reminding God who he (David) trusts in? Or do you think David was reminding himself? Sometimes, especially in moments of weakness, we just have to say it over and over again. And hope that it will sink in.

Have there been times in your life when you’ve cried out these words to the Lord? “I do trust you, Lord, even when I don’t feel it.” Maybe you said it over and over again.

Making this statement out loud, claiming God’s faithfulness, during times of crises is so important. We must call on the name of the Lord, in whom we trust, who knows all and loves without pause. We must boldly call on the name of the Lord- always- even when we feel distant and even when we doubt.

But in that cry to our loving Father there is a tender caress of the heart, a surrender of all that is painful and of this world, the small voice of the Father’s Spirit . . . “yes, let it go. I am here. I am trustworthy.

Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the LORD.
Psalm 32:10

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
Proverbs 3:5-6

Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD.
Jeremiah 17:7

Jesus reminds us of this very thing in the New Testament, when the leader of the synagogue, Jairus, begged Him to heal his very sick daughter. Do you know the story? Jesus got sidetracked (or did He?) along the way by the woman who desperately wanted to touch His cloak and be healed. Jairus must have been a wreck and agonizing with fear for his daughter, after all he had fallen at Jesus’s feet to beg for help. That certainly did not happen often with the leader of the synagogue. In that society, he would’ve been a powerful man. Then to have Jesus not walk fast enough. And then to get sidetracked by that woman. But Jesus knew. He knew how Jairus felt.

While Jesus was still speaking, some people came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue leader. "Your daughter is dead," they said. "Why bother the teacher anymore?" Overhearing what they said, Jesus told him, "Don't be afraid; just believe."
Mark 5:35-36

Can’t you just imagine- Jesus placed a hand on the trembling man’s shoulder, looked him in the eye, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.”

Just believe. Have faith.

That’s what this entire psalm is about- faith. David knew to call on the name of the Lord when he was afraid.

Make me to know your ways, O LORD; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long.
Psalm 25:4-5 ESV

David calls often upon his salvation. He had clearly given his life over to the Lord as a young boy, and then regularly throughout his life, as we see in the psalms. He speaks of his salvation. David speaks of his eternal salvation. But he also speaks of the comfort and saving grace a relationship with the God of the universe brings.

King David continues by asking God to remember his mercy and kindness of old. But he says it in an interesting way. If you have access on the Bible app, compare versions of verse 6. It gives a bigger picture of David’s meaning in this verse.

Remember, O LORD, thy tender mercies and thy lovingkindnesses for they have been ever of old.
Psalm 25:6 KJV

Lovingkindness is an all-encompassing word to describe the character of God. But David says “lovingkindnesses” in plural. Then he went on to claim these wonderous deeds as “ancient” or “of old”- from the beginning. What does he mean?

The Hebrew word for lovingkindness is hesed. Hesed speaks of God’s covenant love to His people. There is no English word that directly translates the meaning of hesed (or chesed). Bible translations use lovingkindness, mercy, steadfast love, unfailing love, etc. It is love without strings attached. You are not loved by God because of anything you have done. You are loved by God because of who He is. This is the love that is hard to understand, hard to explain, and impossible to reciprocate. Hesed.

David continued with a plea for God to remember His own faithfulness, these great lovingkindnesses that have come, not only all his life, but since the beginning of time. David clings, with faith, to God’s goodness and faithfulness forever. And he begs God not to forget His faithfulness to him.

A more correct translation would be “from eternity.” David was a sound believer in the doctrine of God’s eternal love. the Lord’s lovingkindnesses are no novelties.

Charles Spurgeon, English preacher, 1834-1892

Interestingly, after David pleads for God to “remember,” he begs God to forget.

Do not remember the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you, LORD, are good.
Psalm 25:7

David’s sins weighed upon his heart. He cried out to God here to forgive him and to remember him. “Please, Father, don’t turn your back on me. Remember me, not my sins. Remember me in your goodness and faithfulness and great, great hesed love.”

Thankfully, God remembers us despite our sin and despite the evil in this world. He does not turn His back on us, not because of our own goodness, but because of His. He is faithful, always. Of old.

Good and upright is the LORD; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways. He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way. All the ways of the LORD are loving and faithful toward those who keep the demands of his covenant.
Psalm 25:8-10

David was not perfect. He was a sinner, and his sins are plastered on the pages of the Bible for generations upon generations to read. But David knew he was sinner; he also knew that God was faithful to him, despite his sin. That, my friends, is a humble heart, and what God expects of us.

Thankfully God does not expect perfection.

God expects a humble heart.

Meek spirits are in high favor with the Father of the meek and lowly Jesus, for he sees in them the image of his only begotten Son.

Charles Spurgeon, English preacher, 1834-1892

For the sake of your name, LORD, forgive my iniquity, though it is great.
Psalm 25:11

Our sins are great. David’s sins were many.

David seems to know the freedom and peace that comes from saying, “LORD, I know that I am a great sinner, but you are an even greater Savior. I humbly submit myself to you and ask you to pardon my sins and shortcomings.”

As if this psalm couldn’t get any better, let’s look at verse 14 in a couple different translations:

The Lord confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them.
Psalm 25:14

The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him; and he will show them his covenant.
Psalm 25:14 KJV

The friendship of Jehovah is with them that fear him; and he will show them his covenant.
Psalm 25:14 ASV

Translation- God will teach us stuff. He will reveal things to us. We draw near to Him, and He will pull us even closer to His side. Whether it’s a “secret” or a “friendship” with confidence, that place sounds like a good place to be.

The reward for drawing near to the Lord with a humble heart that fears Him is a secret whispering friendship with Him.

The rest of Psalm 25 reminds us that king David was in distress, something was happening, and he was calling out for help from his heavenly Fathe. His feet were caught in a snare.

But though his feet were caught, and his world felt like it was falling around him, David knew what he needed most was God.

Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted. Relieve the troubles of my heart and free me from my anguish. Look on my affliction and my distress and take away all my sins. See how numerous are my enemies and fiercely they hate me! Guard my life and rescue me; do not let me put to shame, for I take refuge in you. May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope, LORD, is in you.
Psalm 25:16-21

David had many enemies, even within his own house, but the thing that David feared most was that God would turn His back on him.

That is faith.

What a blessing this little alphabet psalm is. What a gem.

Father in heaven, may we have faith like David. May we call upon you in good times and bad. May we seek you, fear you, and trust in you when all the world seems to fall around us. When we fear for tomorrow, may we cry out to you and seek you. The more the world screams around us, the more we must seek you and your whisper from heaven. Thank you, Father, that in the midst of chaos and sickness, division and fear, you never change; you remain steadfast and true. Strengthen us by your mighty hand and great love. Amen.

Heidi xoxo