David Cries Out to God For Deliverance

Psalms 18:13–24
» View this passage in NIV (Bible Gateway)

This Psalm is a song of thanksgiving that rehearses God’s deliverance of David from all his enemies. David had experienced some stormy years, yet God rescued him and upheld His dedicated servant. David knew that God alone had rescued him when he was defenseless. When you wish that God would deliver you from your troubles, remember that He can either deliver you or be your support as you go through them (v. 18). When reading this account, one cannot help but think of the events that took place at the crucifixion of our Lord. David explains how that by such an intervention the Lord rescued him. In rehearsing his deliverance, he gives all the credit to God who delivered him from this impossible enemy (vv. 16-19). When the storms come, remember that God is greater that the storms and will help you see the rainbow.

David had obeyed God’s Word and accomplished God’s will, so God rewarded him. We find the reason God saved David was that “He delighted in him” (v. 19). By faith he had kept his righteousness (integrity) (vv. 20,24). (Some might accuse David of arrogance and proud self-righteousness when he says, “The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness.” But we must remember that ultimate righteousness comes from trusting God, which David had done. What was the secret of David’s upright living? David tells over and over why God dealt so generously with him. The key was his study of the Scriptures. “I did not put away His statues from me” (v. 22). 

Application

Have I ever had a time in my life when forces were pressing in on me from every side? What did I do? It is so easy to try to work everything out myself when the best thing I can do is to cry out to God and then watch Him work it out. It’s been said, “our extremities are God’s opportunities.” When my life was threatened by two masked men with a gun and a handful of rope on a back road in Papua New Guinea all I could do follow their commands and trust the Lord completely.