Timeless Biblical Truth.
Believers may pray confidently for deliverance from their powerful foes because He is compassionate and will help in their afflictions.
- Believers in distress know that God is gracious and so pray expectantly for help (1-7).
- Believers in distress may pray for God’s protection and joy (1-4).
- Believers appeal to God on His gracious, forgiving character (5).
- Believers expect that God will answer their prayers (6-7).
- Believers praise God for His power and pray for instruction that they may serve Him wisely (8-13).
- Believers praise the incomparable God who is worthy of praise (8-10).
- Believers pray for instruction that they may honor Him completely (11-13).
- Believer pray for strength against their foes and for a sign of His help (14-17).
- Believers tell God of their situation against ungodly foes (14).
- Believers praise God for His grace and faithfulness (15).
- Believers pray for strength and a sign of God’s favor to confound their enemies (16-17).
Questions for Second Milers
- What does David request? List his reasons for being confident that God will answer His prayers.
- What are your needs? What resources of God correspond to each of your needs?
- How has David learned about these characteristics of God?
- What is the basis of David’s faith in God?
- To what extent do you feel in fellowship with God? Why?
- For what can you thank God?
- Choose parts of this prayer to use as you pray today. Why will God answer?
- Give your own short title to this psalm.
“The most obvious element of literary unity in the Bible is that it tells a story. It is a series of events having a beginning, a middle and an end. Even the eternal shapeliness of the Bible is remarkable (creation-consummation) . . . The overall story of the Bible has a unifying plot conflict. It is the great spiritual and moral battle between good and evil. . . . The presence of the great spiritual conflict makes choice on the part of biblical characters necessary.” Leland Ryken, How to Read the Bible as Literature, pp. 177-178.
“Bible study is the metal that makes a Christian. This is the strong meat on which holy men are nourished. This is that which makes the bone and sinew of men who keep God’s way in defiance of every adversary.” Charles Haddon Spurgeon: Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, 26:155.
Lanny Tanton is the Pastor at The Bible Church of the Lakes in Horseshoe Bay, Texas – just outside of Marble Falls. Pastor Tanton welcomes you to our website and hopes that you’ll enjoy reading these insightful blog posts. Please contact us if you have further questions!!
