Let us turn again to God's Word
in the book of Psalms in the 18th Psalm and reading at verse
35 Psalm 18 and verse 35 Thou hast also given me the shield
of thy salvation and thy right hand hath olden
me up, and thy gentleness hath made me great." In Psalm 18 and
verse 35 and in particular that final clause in the verse, thy
gentleness hath made me great. Thou hast also given me the shield
of thy salvation, and thy right hand hath holden me up, and thy
gentleness hath made me great." First of all, let us observe
something of the context, the historical setting of this particular
psalm. The psalm bears a title, and
I'm sure you're aware that the titles are in fact a part of
the inspired word of God so when we read the Psalms we should
read and take account of the titles of the Psalms and here
we read to the chief musician Psalm of David the servant of
the Lord who spake unto the Lord the words of this song in the
day that the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies
and from the hand of Saul and he said I will love thee O Lord
my strength the Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer
and and so forth and you will immediately observe that in fact
It is the same as we read there in the 22nd chapter of the 2nd
book of Samuel. David spake unto the Lord the
words of this song in the day that the Lord had delivered him
out of the hand of all his enemies and out of the hand of Saul. And he said, The Lord is my rock
and my fortress and my deliverer, the God of my rock. In him will
I trust and so forth. In fact, if we compare the two portions,
we see that really it is the same. There might be slight variations,
but they're very slight, and the general content that we find
here in Psalm 18 is much the same as that that we have recorded
in that 22nd chapter of 2nd of 2 Samuel and there is some
significance is there not in that when we think that God is
pleased in this manner to repeat himself we know that there's
no idle words anywhere in Holy Scripture was the Lord Jesus
Christ himself who declared that men must give an account for
all their idle words When God is pleased to repeat a thing,
we do well to observe it. In His great goodness, of course,
has granted to us a fourfold gospel. What a great mercy that
is that we should have recorded by four evangelists that detail
concerning the coming into this world of the Lord Jesus Christ,
His birth. and his ministry, his death,
his resurrection, how God so emphasizes the blessed truths
of the doings of the Lord Jesus Christ, and all that work, of
course, was necessary to the accomplishment of the salvation
of his people. And so here with David, we are
to recognize that there is some significance in the repetition
that we have at the end of 2 Samuel and then again here in Psalm
18. Remember how there in the following
chapter in 2 Samuel 23 we come to Those last words of David,
these be the last words of David. David, the son of Jesse, said,
The man who was raised upon high, the anointed of the God of Jacob
and the sweet psalmist of Israel, said, The Spirit of the Lord
spake by me, and his word was in my tongue. What we have here
is not so much then the words of a man of David, this is the
word of God. It is the Holy Ghost himself
who inspired the writing of these things. Well, look then at the
historical context. David has now come to the end
of his days and he reviews his life and remembers all that way
wherein the Lord had led him. He goes on, does he not, there
in that 23rd chapter to speak of the confidence that he had
in that everlasting covenant that was ordered in all things
and sure it was all his salvation he said all his desire he understood
that nothing that came into his life came merely by chance but
all those things that happened to him were under the sovereign
hand of God and they were ordered in that gracious covenant And
so here in the psalm he is remembering how the Lord was the one who
had delivered him. He spoke unto the Lord the words
of this song in the day that the Lord delivered him. from
the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. Remember how in his early history,
even after he had been anointed by the Prophet Samuel, he was
the one who was the chosen successor to King Saul, and yet we see
how that subsequent to his anointing, though for a period the is there
in the royal palace and is serving the king how Saul turns against
him and we have the record of Saul's rages and his determination
to destroy David and so in the first book of Samuel we read
his history many times he speaks of how he reckoned that death
was so certain In 1 Samuel 20 and verse 3 it says there is
but a step between me and death. My very next step will be the
last step. And that will be the end of things.
So great was the persecution of Saul. I shall now one day
perish, he says, by the hand of Saul. And so, in other Psalms,
in the 119th Psalm, for example, he speaks of how his life was
constantly in great danger. Psalm 119 and verse 109 he says,
My soul is continually in my hand. In other words, I could
so easily lose it. The thing that we hold in our
own hands, so often it's a very unsafe place to keep a thing,
is it not? David was fearful that sometime
ere long he would lose his life. Such was the persecution of Saul. And so here, as he reflects on
these things, what does he say in verse 6? In my distress I called upon
the Lord and cried unto my God. He heard my voice out of his
temple. My cry came before him even into
his ears. Then the earth shook and trembled
the foundations also of the hills moved and was shaken because
he was wroth." Verse 9, "...he bowed the heavens also and came
down." How he was brought, you see, to turn from all else and
to put his trust all together in God. He's crying to God. He's
calling upon God to come and grant him deliverances. And God
heard his prayer And God was pleased to answer his cry. As he goes on to say later in
Psalm 65, "...by terrible things in righteousness will thou answer
us, O God of our salvation, who art the confidence of all the
ends of the earth, and of them that are afar off upon the sea."
All by terrible things God did answer him. God heard him. he
came to realize how that God is able, able to do all things,
able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think. And so here in the words that
we read, as our text if we observe the alternative reading here
in the margin the text says thy gentleness hath made me great
and in the margin we have this alternative with thy meekness
thou hast multiplied me and he goes on thou hast enlarged my
steps under me that my feet did not sleep. Oh, it was God, you
see, who appeared for him. It was God who made a way for
him. And so his life was not snuffed out by the persecutions
of King Saul. God watched over him. God directed his steps, made a way
for him. And so, in due course, of course,
he came to be not only anointed but proclaimed as the King at
Hebron. The historical context, and it
has to do with David, it has to do with the way in which the
Lord appeared for him so many times, hearing his prayers, answering
his cries, granting him deliverances. But also this psalm is a messianic
psalm. It doesn't just speak of King
David, it also speaks of David's greatest son, it speaks of the
Lord Jesus Christ. And I want us then, in the second
place, to consider something of the prophetic content of the
psalm. Here at the end of the Psalm,
in verse 49, we read these words, Therefore will I give thanks
unto thee, O Lord, among the heathen, and sing praises unto
thy name. Now the significance of that
is that this very verse is taken up by Paul writing in the New
Testament. And Paul specifically applies
those words to Christ. You turn to Romans chapter 15
and verses 8 and 9 Paul writing says,
Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision
for the truth of God to confirm the promises made unto the fathers
and that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy as it is written
For this cause I will confess to thee among the Gentiles, that
is, the heathen, and sing unto thy name." And where is that
written? It's written in Psalm 18. It's
found here in the words of verse 49. That's the cross-reference,
as you'll see from your own Bible margins. Paul then clearly understands
Psalm 18 in terms of the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. And
so when we come to the psalm and we examine the psalm, we
should seek to see something of Christ here. How many of the
psalms are messianic? How many of them speak to us
of the Lord Jesus Christ? He himself said to the Jews,
of course, search the Scriptures. They testify of mine. Well, when
we read this book, are we those who are diligently seeking and
searching after Christ? We want to find the Lord Jesus
himself. Now, we see him quite clearly
in this psalm. What does he say in verse 43,
for example? Thou hast delivered me from the
strivings of the people, and Thou hast made me the head of
the heathen. The people whom I have not known
shall serve me." In the game it's a prophecy of the calling
of the Gentiles, but here also do we not see something of the
headship of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. He is that One who is
the head of the body. As Paul says there at the end
of Ephesians chapter 1 that God has put all things under his
feet and gave him to be the head over all things to the church
which is his body, the fullness of him that filleth all in all. He is that one who is exalted
to be the head. He is that one who rules in Zion. He is David's greatest son. David
was the king The Lord Jesus Christ is that One who is the King of
Kings and the Lord of Lords and the Father has put all power
into His hands. When He gives that Great Commission
to His disciples at the end of Matthew, He declares it, does
He not? He has all power in heaven and
in earth. He says, Go ye therefore and
teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. He is that One who is
the Head. And how is it that this One has
been so highly exalted? Well, look again at the words
that we have in the text. Isn't this the word of the Lord
Jesus Himself addressing His Father? Thy gentleness hath made
me great. Thy gentleness, God has made
him great. He is, of course, when we consider
Him in His very person, He is God. He is God's eternal Son. He is equal to the Father, equal
to the Holy Spirit. But in terms of that great work
that He undertook in the covenant, we see Him as God's servant.
and as he serves the will of God so God is pleased to exalt
him this is the consequence, this is the reward of all his
obedience It's interesting, John Trapp,
as this alternative reading here, he says, By humbling thou hast
magnified me. By humbling thou hast magnified
me. And now the Lord Jesus is that
one who did truly humble himself. He humbled himself in the covenants,
when he who is the eternal Son of God became God's servant,
God's elect, He humbles himself, of course, in the incarnation. He humbles himself in the course
of his earthly life. He humbles himself in his death.
These are the things that we read of, are they not, in Philippians
chapter 2? Paul says, let this mind be in
you which was also in Christ Jesus, who thought it not robbery
to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation, took
upon him the form of a servant, was made in the likeness of man,
and being found in fashion as a man. He humbled himself and
became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore,
God also has highly exalted him, and given him a name which is
above every name. Oh, he is that one who is great,
who is glorious. By humbling thou hast magnified
me, says the old Puritan John Trapp. This is the great mystery
that we witness, is it not, in the coming of the Lord Jesus
Christ. How he has humbled himself. Behold,
from what beginning small our great salvation rise. The strength of God is known
by all. But do His weakness knows? His
weakness. He's no less almighty at His
birth than on His Father's throne. His shoulders held up heaven
and earth, whilst Mary held up Him, says Joseph Hart. Even there
is that little child in the incarnation. He is never anything less than
true almighty God. That little babe, so dependent
in his human nature upon his mother, is the one who holds
up all creation. It's the great mystery, is it
not? His weakness. when he comes to the end of his
life when he comes to his death we see it further there in 2nd
Corinthians 13 Paul declares he was crucified through weakness
remarkable statement because he is God he is the one who has
all power and all authority and yet he is crucified through weakness
The strength of God is owned by all, but do His weakness? No. Or do we understand these
things concerning the Lord Jesus Christ and that ministry that
He exercises? His humility, His meekness, gentleness. My gentleness hath made me great. Look at what David said previously
here in the psalm. There at verse 20 following we
read, The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness, according
to the cleanness of my hands, as he recompensed me. For I have
kept the ways of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from
my God. for all his judgments were before
me, and I did not put away his statutes from me. I was also
upright before him, and I kept myself from mine iniquity. Therefore
hath the Lord recompensed me according to my righteousness,
according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight." Now of
whom is the prophet? Of whom is David speaking in
these words? Is he not speaking of the Lord
Jesus Christ? and His righteousness. He could
say quite clearly all His judgments were before me. I did not put
away His statutes from me. He came down from heaven not
to do His own will but the will of Him who had sent Him. He is
that One who is obedient, obedient to all of the Father's will.
coming to accomplish that great work of redemption that the Father
had committed into His hand. Holy, harmless, undefiled, separate
from sinners, made higher than the heavens. It is the Lord Jesus,
I say, that is set before us in the Psalms. And is it not
here in our text something of the ministry of the Lord Jesus
Christ that we are to recognize, Thy gentleness hath made me great. When the Lord Jesus Christ deals
with us, does he not deal with us in a tender fashion? Is he not that one who is so
kind and so gracious in all his dealings? We are told in the
Gospel that he doesn't break the bruised reed, he doesn't
quench the smoking flax, he deals so kindly. Look at those words
that we find then in Matthew chapter 12. Here is the evangelist Matthew
referring to the book of the prophet Isaiah. those words in
Isaiah 42 that we're so familiar with concerning God's servants
and what does he say as he quotes the passage verse 19 in Matthew
12 he shall not strive nor cry neither shall any man hear his
voice in the street a bruised reed shall he not break and smoking
flack shall he not quench till he send forth judgment unto victory
and in his name shall the Gentiles trust way of the gentiles as
we come to trust in him do we not discover something of the
tenderness of his wives he is that friend that friend that
sticketh closer than a brother how tender he is as he comes
and ministers to us oh yes there is that that must be first wrought
in the soul of the sinner when the sinner is brought to feel
the reality of his sin when he knows that awful work of conviction
in his soul and he feels himself to be deserving of the wrath
of God but how this is but preparatory, is it not? how the law is that
schoolmaster to bring us to Christ and how we see that kind, compassionate
ministry of Christ It's recorded for us in the Gospel, and there
it's recorded, of course, for our learning. That we, through
patience and comfort of the Scriptures, might have hope. They say it
is the Lord Jesus, then, that we see here in the psalm. It's
a messianic psalm. It points to Him. It points to
Him in His incarnation, how He humbles Himself. It points to
Him in the course of that holy, righteous, obedient life that
He lives. points to him in his crucifixion,
the end of his life, the very depths of his humility, and yet
the outcome is that he is that one who is highly exalted. He is made great. He is truly
that great and gracious Saviour. And so, having said something
with regards to the the context, the historical setting. It's
David who's writing the psalm, yes, and writing under the ministry
of the Holy Ghost and reflecting upon his life and God's dealings
with him. But it's David also as that one
who is the Lord's prophet, that one who is speaking of his greatest
son, the Lord Jesus Christ. But then thirdly, this morning,
how do these things relate to us? I was struck again recently reading
a short extract from that gracious minister from the 19th century
Bernard Gilpin where speaking of his own experience and at
one stage he was an evangelical clergyman in the Church of England
and yet he acknowledges that he really knew nothing of a true
experience of the grace of God and he said that in those days
when his religion was all simply, as we say, in the letter of the
word of God. And he had no real experience.
He says that the book of Psalms in many ways was a mystery to
him. He says this, he says you can only understand the Psalms
by experience, by the experience of the grace of God and then
how this blessed book becomes so real because here of course
we are reading of the experiences of the godly and how there is
so much that is paradoxical in the experiences of the children
of God. As I say, here in the margin
we have an alternative reading. We see that the word that's rendered
gentleness really has the idea of meekness or humility. Isn't that a strange statement
then? How that out of humility springs
greatness. That's what's being said in this
verse. Thy gentleness hath made me great. Humility, meekness
leads to greatness. Now, there is paradox, of course,
in the accomplishment of salvation. We see it in another Psalm, Psalm
85 Speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ
and His death upon the cross, we have that statement, mercy
and truth are met together, righteousness and peace have kissed each other. And when we consider Christ on
the cross and His experiences there, now we see all of the
attributes of God harmonizing. In the death of the Lord Jesus
we see that God is a just God and a righteous God. that God
can by no means clear the guilt that there must be that visitation
of punishment upon the sinner but there we also see the great
mercy of God and we see it in the provision of Christ because
that awful judgment against sin is visited upon the Lord Jesus
as a substitute because God is merciful to sinners mercy and
truth meeting together, righteousness and peace kissing each other. God is just in the punishment
of sins, but God is also the justifier of him that believeth
in Jesus. We see it then there, I say,
in the accomplishment of salvation, the paradox. But we see it also
when it comes to the application, when God brings salvation into
the soul of his people, when they come to experience that
great deliverance that was wrought by the Lord Jesus Christ, isn't
there something paradoxical? God humbles sinners. He humbles
sinners, but he does that in order to exalt the sinner. That's the way of God, is it
not? He humbles in order that he might lift up the sinner. Remember the setting that we
have there in that great Christological portion in Philippians chapter
2. It's a very practical chapter, as I said recently when we were
looking at verse 8 in that chapter. It's let this mind be in you,
which was also in Christ Jesus. who, being in the form of God,
thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself
of no reputation. As there is that in Christ's
experience, Christ humbled, therefore God highly exalting him, so too
in the experiences of those who know the Lord Jesus Christ. They
have to be humbled. They have to be humbled to the
very dust, they have to be brought to the end of themselves. that
they too in due time might be exalted in the salvation of their
souls. And so we have the exhortation
in Peter, Be clothed with humility, for God resisteth the proud,
but giveth grace unto the humble. Humble yourselves therefore unto
the mighty hand of God, that ye might be exalted in due time. Oh God, God will humble his children
in order that they might be exalted in salvation. They have to be
brought, you see, to the end of themselves. They have to fix
all their confidence only in the Lord God Himself. Thy whole
dependence on me fix, nor entertain the thought thy worthless schemes
to mix with mine but venture to be naught. Oh, that's the
venturing of faith, is it not? That venturing to be nothing
at all, to be brought to the end of ourselves. And this is
how God deals with us, you see. Thou turnest man to destruction
and sayest, return ye children of men brought to the end of
self. All weakness in self. Now observe here with regards
to what David is saying in this particular psalm, because he
mentions two things in particular in his own experience as God
is dealing with him. Thy gentleness hath made me great,
with thy meekness thou hast multiplied me, it says in the margin. What
are these two things that we observe in the psalm with regards
to David and the experiences of David? First of all, here
is a man who was made to feel his sins. And here is a man who
was made to sorrow over those sins. Verses 4 and 5, he says,
the sorrows of death compassed me. And the floods of ungodly
men made me afraid. The sorrows of hell compassed
me about. The snares of death prevented
me. It's the old-fashioned meaning,
of course, of the word prevent to go before the snares of death
went before him and he is distressed this realization of what sin
is how it distresses David how he feels it and it's not just
David I know we often speak of the Psalms as the Psalms of David
but David was not the only man who wrote Psalms many of them
were written by David but some were written by Asaph, and Psalm
73 is a Psalm of Asaph, and look at what Asaph says there at the
end of verse 22. He says, I was as a beast before... I was as a beast before... This is how he feels himself
to be before the Holy God. He's not worthy the name of a
man. He feels himself to be like a
brute beast. But the interesting thing there
is that that little word as is in italics. In other words, it's
one of those words that's been introduced in the translation.
You know the significance of the italics here in the authorized
version. And so, it's not really a simile
that we have there. That's how it appears in our
authorized version. I was as a beast before them. But it's much stronger than that.
It's a statement of fact. I was a beast, he says. I was
a beast before them. That's how he felt himself to
be. That's Asaph's experience. He feels What he is as a sinner,
his sorrows over, is he not worthy to be called a man? Ah, but thank
God there's another. In Psalm 22, can speak of himself
as a worm, but no man. The Lord Jesus Christ is that
one who has come, you see, where the sinner is. God hath made him to be sin for
us, who knew no sin." Well, that's this poor man's comfort, is it
not? Though he feels himself to be so below God's notice. A man who is really grieving
over his sins. It's not just the experience
of David then, it's the experience of Isa. But it's David that we
read of here in Psalm 18, is it not? Now he he grieves how
he sorrows the sorrows of death compass me the sorrows of hell
compass me about he feels his sin we see it so
many times in what he writes in others of the Psalms in Psalm
51 we are familiar with the words are we not of that great penitential
Psalm when David was guilty of grievous sins he was a murderer
He was an adulterer. But what does he say? I acknowledge
my transgressions. My sin is ever before me against
thee, thee only have I sinned. And on this evening thy side
that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear
when thou judgest. This is the experience of a godly
man, you see. He recognizes what his sin is. His sin is that that has been
committed against the Holy God. Again in the 38th Psalm, the
Psalm of David to bring to remembrance, he says, There is no soundness
in my flesh because of thine anger, neither is there any rest
in my bones because of my sin for mine iniquities are gone
over my head as a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me. My
wounds stink and are corrupt because of my foolishness, I
am troubled. I am bowed down greatly, I go
mourning all the day long. For my loins are filled with
a loathsome disease and there is no soundness in my flesh.
I am feeble and sore broken. I have wrought my reason of the
disquietness. of my heart what remarkable words
here is David he feels his sin and his sorrows over his sin
he goes on there in that psalm to say I will declare mine iniquity
I will be sorrowed for my sin this is how David speaks and
here in the psalms his experience but not only do we see him feeling
and sorrowing over his sins but we see him acknowledging his
complete and utter dependence upon God and his dependence is
upon God and God alone again look at what we read previously
in the psalm verse 16 he sent from above speaking of God you
see sent from above he took me he
drew me out of many waters he delivered me from my strong enemy
and from them which hated me for they were too strong for
me verse 34 he teaches my hands to war verse 47 it is God that avenges
me and subdueth the people under me. He delivereth me from mine
enemies. Yea, thou liftest me up above
those that rise up against me. Thou hast delivered me from the
violent man." Now, he is constantly acknowledging all the time it's
God. It's God who has done it all for him. It's all of God. It's all of the grace of God. And is that not a blessed truth,
friends? It's salvation. And salvation in all its parts. Salvation in every part is the
great work of God. This is what Jonah is brought
to acknowledge and to confess from the fish's bellies. When my soul fainted within me,
he says, I remembered the Lord, and my prayer came in unto thee,
into thine holy temple. They that observe lying vanities
forsake their own mercy, but I will sacrifice unto thee with
the voice of thanksgiving. I will pay that that I have vowed
salvation is of the Lord. Salvation is of the Lord. It is the Lord who has accomplished
that salvation. It is the great work of the Lord
Jesus Christ here upon the earth, that life that He lives, that
death that He's died, His obedience unto death, even the death of
the cross, He has accomplished it. In that sense, salvation
is of the Lord. It's of the Lord also, is it
not, with regards to the application of it. when he comes into the
soul of the sinner, where there is that great work of conversion,
whose work is it? A man can receive nothing, says
John the Baptist, except it be given him from heaven. A man
must be born again. He must be born from above, it's
the work of God. Salvation then, when he comes
to the application And then also that salvation when he comes
to the believer's life, and his experiences, and his conflict. And David is speaking, you see,
of his experiences. He's reflecting on his life.
And we're right, are we not, to spiritualize what David is
saying here in the psalm. He had very real, literal enemies
like Saul and others. But the believer, the child of
God, has his enemies. is involved in the fights, the
good fight of faith. And how in all of that conflict,
that spiritual conflict, that wrestling not against flesh and
blood but against powers and principalities and the rulers
of the darkness of this world and spiritual wickedness in high
places, do we not have to constantly prove that salvation even here
is of the Lord? It's all of the Lord, it's application,
and then that subsequent conflict that the believer has with sin
and with satan and not only do we dive in but
when we come to the new testament we see it in Paul or we see it
so plainly in that one a pattern to them which should hereafter
believe he says of himself God says to him remember the words
that we have there in the 12th chapter of 2nd Corinthians God
says my strength is made perfect in weakness and here is here
is this man this apostle with this thorn in the flesh and he
feels it and he feels himself to be but nothing though I be
nothing he says he's all weakness he can do nothing all he can
do is plead and pray and cry and call But God tells him, my
strength is made perfect in weakness. And what's Paul's response? When
I am weak, then am I strong. All weakness in himself, all
but all his strength must come from the Lord. The guy at the
end of Romans 7, all wretched man that I am, who shall deliver
me from the body of this death? He cries out. He feels it. The
old man of sin. The good that I would, I do not.
The evil that I would, not that I do. All his wretchedness. Who shall deliver me? And he
goes on, I thank God. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. That's what he's brought. It's
all of Christ. It's all of the grace of God. And as with Paul, so with David. And how the Lord dealt with him.
But all the gracious ways of the Lord, the tender ways of
the Lord, thy gentleness, he says, hath made me great. With thy meekness thou hast multiplied
me. Thou hast enlarged my steps under
me. that my feet did not see or friends
that we might be those who know something of David's experience
that we might be those who do understand something of the book
of Psalms that we can draw some real comfort from what is written
ultimately of course we must recognize that it is Christ who
is set before us here It's a prophetic psalm, it's a messianic psalm.
Whilst it deals with the experiences of the godly, oh but thank God
it ever always directs us to Him who is the only Saviour of
His people, even the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. Might we know
then today something of that gracious ministry, the tenderness
of the Lord Jesus Christ, thy gentleness, says David, hath
made me great. Amen. His heart is made of tenderness,
his bowels melt with love. Hit number 120.