We read from 2 Samuel and chapter
22 in which David sings a song under his Lord following his
victory over all his enemies. In the 21st chapter we read of
the death of Saul and also of Jonathan. In the preceding chapters
we read of the victories given unto David and David sings this
great song under his God, which forms the 18th Psalm. If you read through, it's largely
identical in wording to what is in 2 Samuel and chapter 22. Psalm 18 is entitled, To the
Chief Musician, a 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, my God, my strength in whom I will trust.
my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. I will call upon the Lord who
is worthy to be praised. So shall I be saved from mine
enemies. 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. In my distress,
I called upon the Lord and cried unto my God. He heard my voice
out of his temple and my cry came before him, even into his
ears. The sorrows of death compassed
me and the floods of ungodly men made me afraid. The sorrows
of hell compassed me. The stares of death prevented
me. In my distress I called upon
the Lord and cried unto my God. He heard my voice out of his
temple and my cry came before him even into his ears. This psalm and this song as recorded
in 2 Samuel 22 is a great outpouring of David's praise
under his God for his deliverance from his enemies. It's one of
the longest psalms and it is so because David is so triumphant
and thankful and relieved in the victory that God has given
him. that his emotions roll forth
and the words that God puts upon his lips flow forth in praise
and adoration of his God. Out comes this vivid description
of the place where David had been, of the trial, of the suffering,
of the tumult. How close to death David had
been, what he had been put through, what his enemies had done to
him. But in the end his cries unto his God from the depths
were heard and were answered and his God gave him victory. and he can't hold back his praise
of his God. So triumphant was that victory,
so wonderful was that victory. He can't hold it back, it bursts
forth from his lips. I will love thee, O Lord, my
strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress
and my deliverer. my God, my strength in whom I
will trust, my buckler and the horn of my salvation and my high
tower. I will call upon the Lord who
is worthy to be praised, so shall I be saved from mine enemies. Oh what triumph and oh what praise And you will only really understand David's sentiments here. You
will only really empathise with him and enter into these things
if you've been somewhere like he's been. If you know what it
is to be in the trial in which he has endured. If you know what
it is to be granted victory over the enemy that David was granted
victory over. If you don't know what he suffered
and if you don't know the victory that he saw in the end, then
these words are but words to you. You may understand them
a little. You may understand them in relation
to David. You may read the accounts of
David's life and see why he would have written these things. You
may understand them in some small measure regarding some small
trial in your life. But really, they're just words
to you. You need to have been where he's
been. Now the child of God in greater
or lesser measure will know much of what David writes. This year
2015 has marked the 70th anniversaries of the victory in Europe and
the victory in Japan and there have been various events and
commemorations in which the nations have been reminded and been thankful
of that victory that they were granted at the end of the Second
World War both in Europe and in Japan. And we look back as
nations thankful for the peace that we've been granted for the
many years since. but we can look back in our generation
upon the history and read about it and know something of it but
really for those of us who weren't there at the time those of us
younger than 70 years those of us who didn't take part it's
hard to understand the joy and the jubilation that must have
been felt by the people of that day. When victory was announced
in Europe over the tyranny of Hitler, and the end of six years
of warfare that engulfed not just Europe but Africa and America
and the Far East practically the whole world truly a war that
affected the whole world when that six years came to an end
firstly in Europe and then finally in Japan the relief The joy,
the emotions that must have been felt by the people of that day
were immense. They had lived on a daily, a
weekly, a monthly, a yearly basis with daily fear. They did not
know whether they would be alive the next day. They did not know
whether their sons, their daughters, their loved ones would be alive. Every day reports were sent home
of those who had fallen in battle. Every day there were reports
of those civilians who were bombed and killed. even the people in
England away from the front line of battle knew what fear was
knew what their enemy was doing to them they went to bed at night
when they should have been able to sleep deprived of sleep because
of the drone of bombers coming overhead and they did not know
whether they would be alive the next morning or who might have
been destroyed. They woke up to find neighbours
had had their houses bombed. Friends were gone. They knew
what war was. They knew what suffering was.
They knew what fear was. And they had to endure months
and years of trying to live normally in some sense. Trying to go about
their normal business when all of this was going on. Millions
died, millions. It's hard to fathom, hard to
comprehend. But those who were there knew. And when victory was announced,
the outpouring of emotion, of relief, of joy, of celebration,
of sorrow at the loss that had passed. The mixtures of emotion
for the people in that day were immense. Immense. But that is just a picture of
what David writes of here. David knew what they knew. David knew what it was to be
at war. David knew what it was to see
friends slain. David knew what it was to go
to bed at night and not know if he'd see the morning. David
knew what sorrow was, what tragedy was. what loss was, what bereavement
was. And David also knew what victory
was. He knew what it was to be delivered
from his enemies. And the joy springs forth from
his heart in this psalm. Those years are over. Those battles
are past. Those enemies are destroyed. Do you know what David knew? Can you praise as David praises? Do you know the God whom David
describes? When you pray to your God does
your heart flow over in praise of that God in the way David's
does? Is your God your rock, your fortress,
your deliverer, your strength, the one in whom you trust, your
buckler, the horn of your salvation, your high tower. Would you describe
him like that? Do you feel him to be that to
you? Is he the fortress in whom you
hide, your high tower? Is he the one in whom you shelter? Is he the one in whom you hide? When trouble comes your way do
you flee to your God in prayer and hide in him? Do you hide
yourself under his wings? Is he your place of refuge? Is he your strength? Or do you
rely on some other strength? You may say he's your strength.
But when troubles come your way, when trials come your way, do
you resort to your own strength? Or do you resort to the strength
of man? Or the strength of the law? Do you resort to some other strength? Or has God, as he did with David,
broken you and brought you to that point where you know that
you have no strength and all your strength is in God. As I said to many, these words
since Psalm 18 are but words. You can try to attain to them.
You can pay lip service to them. You can read David's description
of God and say, yes, that's the God I worship. but is it true? well the child of God the child
of God knows something of this the child of God knows something
of the great cry of victory the great rejoicing the great outpouring
of emotion that he has been delivered from his enemies because he knows
what it is to be at war He knows what it is to endure. He's been
put through a passageway that goes on and on and on. Where his enemy seems to prevail
upon him. Where he feels that he's got
no strength to stand against his enemy. Where his enemy appears
to have the victory. The easy believer knows nothing
of this. Most religion, most of what calls
itself Christianity presents a gospel to those who aren't
that bothered about whether they are saved or not which presents
everything so easily. It calls people to receive a
saviour, to accept Jesus into their hearts. if they want a
better life, if they want to go to heaven, if they want friends,
if they want peace. And for so many, their salvation
and their profession of salvation is so simple. Oh, I was a little
troubled in my life, I was searching for something else, I was invited
to a meeting, I heard about Jesus and I called upon him and I became
saved. And it's so easy. And they can't
cry out and burst forth in joy as David did because they never
really went to the depths that David did. They speak of being
saved but there's very little from which they're truly saved.
They were never slain. They were never brought down
into the grave. They were never broken. They
never really knew despair. They never saw their sins flowing
over their head like deep waters in which they would drown. They
never felt the judgment of God sounding against them. They were
never brought to fear and to cry and to feel like they were
lost and to feel like there's no hope and to feel like there's
nothing they could do. Their saviour was one that just
came along breezily in their happy life, said follow me and
off they went and it was so simple, so easy. But their love for him
is so light. so weak, so changeable because
they've never truly been saved what were they saved from? a
little misery in life things not going quite so well as they
would have liked a bit of loneliness brought into a church so-called
where they have some friends and family people actually give
them a bit of time oh they've been saved from a bit of loneliness
in this world Like others in the world might be saved from
that loneliness by going to a bar or going to a club or joining
this club or that club or this group or that group. Or they
found a few friends. But they've not been saved from
sin. And they've not been saved from death. And they've not been
saved from that knowledge of the wrath of God that would judge
their sins and cast them into hell. What have you been saved
from? What do you know of the sorrows
of death which compassed David? David writes, 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. In my distress, I called upon
the Lord and cried unto my God. He heard my voice out of his
temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears. The child of God knows something
of the sorrows of death. He knows something of the sorrows
that sin and death bring upon his soul. He's brought to know
as the Spirit of God takes the Word of God and applies it to
him. He's brought to know that he's
a sinner. he's brought to know that in
his heart there dwells no good thing that in him there is but
sin he's brought to know that evil sewer of his own heart out
of which flow imaginations and thoughts and words and actions
and deeds which are only evil continually and he's brought
to know that there is a God before whom one day he must stand. He's
brought to know that he has enemies, and not just enemies in the world,
not just enemies of other people, but that he has enemies within.
He's brought to know that his own heart is an enemy, which
slays him. that the sin within is an enemy
that the death which he feels in his flesh and which he knows
will await him is a great enemy before whom he has no strength
against whom he cannot stand he's brought to know that he
has an enemy called Satan, the devil, the serpent, who whispers
in his ear every day, who leads him astray, who seeks to devour him. He knows
enemies, he knows warfare, and he knows the sorrows of death
and the sorrows of hell which compass him about. And when he reads the words of
David, he can say, I've been there. I know that. This is why
I cried unto God. Are you there? Have you been
there? If you're there, under whom are
you crying? Where do you look for strength?
Where do you go for hope? There's no strength in man. There's
no hope in the religion of this world. There's no salvation through
your works. David cried. unto his God. In my distress I called upon
the Lord and cried unto my God. He heard my voice out of his
temple and my cry came before him even into his ears. That's whom he cried unto. There
was no one else to cry to. There was no point in crying
unto anyone else. There was no hope in anyone else. In his distress he called upon
the Lord. Are you distressed? Has sin brought
you down? Have the sorrows of death compassed
you about? Do you know your sin? Do you
know the wrath of God against your sin? Do you know that you're
dying and that judgment will be upon you? And that you cannot
stand against that judgment? Then cry. in your distress, call
upon the Lord, for only he can deliver you from your enemy as
he delivered David. Yes, the child of God knows where
David's been. And the child of God, when he
cries and when he's heard, and when he's delivered knows like
David what it is to shout out in joy to cry forth in praise
and adoration he knows what it is to be overcome by emotion
that those months those years of warfare have finally come to an end,
that his enemy has been conquered, that his God has delivered him
from his sin, that his Saviour has blotted out his sins, that
his Saviour has paid the price and set him free. He knows what
it is to be spared death and to know he's been spared death. He knows what it is to burst
forth in praise unto that One upon whom he's called, unto that
One in whom he's hid, unto that One who has proved himself to
be his rock, his fortress, his deliverer. He knows what it is to burst
forth in praise to the Chief. musician. The psalm is entitled
to the chief musician, the psalm of David, the servant of the
Lord. David cries out to the chief
musician, his God, as his servant. He knows that his God has delivered
his servant from his sins. These opening three verses give
us such an outpouring of the heart of David. An outpouring
of praise. David opens, I will love thee,
O Lord, my strength. And goes on to say, the Lord
is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer. My God, my strength
in whom I will trust, my buckler and the horn of my salvation,
and my high tower. I will call upon the Lord who
is worthy to be praised, so shall I be saved from mine enemies.
Now essentially he describes his God in seven distinct ways. He's his rock, his fortress,
his deliverer, his God, his strength, his buckler. The horn of his
salvation, his high tower. Oh, what perfect praise to a
perfect saviour. What an outpouring of praise.
Can you speak in that way? Well, it's because of what he
was delivered from. It's because of what he endured
that David could cry out in such adoration. The psalm in its first
half, from verse 4 through to about verse 29, gives a wonderful
depiction, firstly of the sorrows and the trials which David endured,
which are common in measure to all the children of God, but
particularly and type and figure of the suffering of Christ especially
upon the cross. Such a vivid picture is painted
here. Such a vivid picture, there's
poetry here. The foundations also of the hills
moved and were shaken because he was wrath. Oh what a description
of the outpouring of God's wrath! When Christ in the darkness,
nailed to the cross, took the sins of his people, And God the
Father looked upon His Son as the sacrifice and saw their sins
and saw their sin and His wrath came forth in judgment and poured
out in fire upon His Son. Oh what a description of what
it was, of what it felt like, of the force and the power. Then
the earth shook and trembled, the foundations also of the hills
moved and were shaken because he was wrath. There went up a
smoke out of his nostrils and fire out of his mouth devoured. Coals were kindled by it. He bowed the heavens also and
came down and darkness was under his feet. There was darkness
over all the face of the earth from about the sixth hour until
the ninth hour. And he rode upon a cherub and
did fly. Yea, he did fly upon the wings
of the wind. He made darkness his secret place. His pavilion round about him
were dark waters and thick clouds of the skies. at the brightness
that was before him his thick clouds passed, hailstones and
coals of fire. The Lord also thundered in the
heavens and the highest gave his voice, hailstones and coals
of fire. Yea, he sent out his arrows and
scattered them. and he shot out lightnings and
discomfited them. Then the channels of water were
seen and the foundations of the world were discovered at thy
rebuke, O Lord, at the blast of the breath of thy nostrils.
He 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. They prevented me in the
day of my calamity, but the Lord was my stay. He brought me forth
also into a large place. He delivered me because He delighted
in me. The Lord rewarded me according
to my righteousness. According to the cleanness of
my hands have 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 have the Lord recompensed
me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of
my hands in his eyesight. With the merciful thou wilt show
thyself merciful. With an upright man thou wilt
show thyself upright. With the pure thou wilt show
thyself pure. And with the froward thou wilt
show thyself froward. For thou wilt save the afflicted
people but will bring down high looks. For thou wilt light my
candle. The Lord my God will enlighten
my darkness. For by thee I have run through
a troop. And by my God have I leaped over
a wall. As for God, His way is perfect. The word of the Lord is tried.
He is a buckler to all those who trust in Him. For who is
God save the Lord? Or who is a rock save our God? It is God that girdeth me with
strength and maketh my way perfect. Oh what vivid pictures both of
the judgment and the wrath of God which poured out upon Christ
in the darkness of the cross and of the salvation and the
deliverance and the rising power of Christ as God lifted him up
after that judgment because Christ was righteous. He endured the wrath, he bore
the judgment and the fires of God against the sins of his people
and when those sins had been judged, when they had been blotted
out, when the price had been paid, when the fires were quenched
when the wrath of God had been appeased when it was finished
then God looked upon his son and rewarded him according to
his righteousness because he stood there slain as a sacrifice
with no sin the dross had been burnt away, the sin had been
judged, it had been blotted out and all that remained was a perfect
saviour who had always obeyed, who had always loved, who had
always been upright, who always had clean hands, who was full
of righteousness. and God lifted him up. He sent from above, he took me,
he drew me out of many waters. And David, with his saviour,
knew what it was to go through those waters, knew what it was
to have an enemy. and knew what it was to be taken
by his God and drawn out of many waters. The earth shook and trembled. The foundations also of the hills
moved and were shaken because he was rough. There went up a
smoke out of his nostrils and fire out of his mouth devoured.
The coals were kindled by it. He bowed the heavens also and
came down. And darkness was under his feet. And he rode upon a cherub and
did fly. Yea, he did fly upon the wings
of the wind. he made darkness his secret place
his pavilion round about him were dark waters and thick clouds
of the sky at the brightness that was before him his thick
clouds passed hailstones and coals of fire the lord also funded
in the heavens and the highest gave his voice hailstones and
coals of fire. Yea, he sent out his arrows and
scattered them, and he shot out lightnings and discomfited them.
Then the channels of waters were seen, and the foundations of
the world were discovered at thy rebuke, O Lord, at the blast
of the breath of thy nostrils. That's what Christ rode through
in the darkness upon the cross. And O sinner, you who shut your
ears at the gospel, you who laugh and scoff, you who close your
eyes, you who dismiss this message, this saviour, this psalm, this
truth, this God, that's what you will endure in eternity to
come if you go to your grave in this state. You can laugh
now, you can mock now, you can shut your ears now, but one day
you will know what it is to see the wrath of God kindled and
the darkness all around. and the Lord thundering in the
heavens and the highest giving his voice hailstones and coals
of fire you'll know the arrows you'll know the lightnings you
know the channels of water you'll know the foundations of the world
beneath you shaken you'll know the blast of the breath of his
nostrils you'll know as he knew You'll know because
you want it. You'll know because you deserved
it. You'll know because you chose
it. He knew because he loved those
who hated him. He knew because he said of them,
punish me rather than them. He knew because he offered himself
in their place. He knew because he loved David
and said, though David's a sinner, though he hated me by nature,
though he's without strength, though he has a wicked heart,
punish me for what David's done and I will wash him clean and
he will be mine and he will rise with me. we will rise together
out of the darkness out of the waters out of the sorrows of
death out of the sorrows of hell out of this distress out of the
grasp of the enemy out of the gaze of all David's enemies we
will rise together victorious and perfect and righteous and
we will enter the gates of glory to come in victory as mighty
warriors who have gone to battle and conquered and return home
bloodied and bruised and beaten but victorious. Lay David's sins upon me. Lay
the sins of my people upon me, he said. And God laid them upon
him. And God's wrath poured down upon
him. and he went through the darkness
the sorrows of death compassed him the sorrows of hell compassed
him in his distress he called upon the Lord and cried unto
his God and his God heard him out of his temple and his cry
came before him even into his ears but the judgment came down
and the price was paid and Christ died for his church, for his
bride, for his people, because he loved them and gave himself
for them. Did he love you? Did he give
himself for you? Have you waded through these
waters with him? Have you seen him rise? Do you
cry out with David in praise and adoration of a saviour who
has delivered you? from your sin delivered you from
death delivered you from Satan's grip delivered you from all your
enemies and brought you into a large place with the merciful
thou wilt show thyself mercy with the pure thou wilt show
thyself pure for thou wilt save the afflicted people as he delivered
you as he delivered you. Having described
in such vivid terms the sufferings of Christ and his own sufferings
David turns again in praise to God. Verse 30, As for God, His
way is perfect. The word of the Lord is tried.
He is a buckler to all those that trust in Him. For who is
God save the Lord? Or who is a rock save our God? It is God that girdeth me with
strength and maketh my way perfect. He maketh my feet like hind feet
and setteth me upon my high places. He teacheth my hands to warth,
that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms. 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. Thou hast enlarged
my steps under me, that my feet did not slip. I have pursued
mine enemies and overtaken them, neither did I turn again till
they were consumed. I have wounded them that they
were not able to rise. They have fallen under my feet,
for thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle. Thou
hast subdued unto me those that rose up against me. Thou hast
also given me the necks of mine enemies that I might destroy
them that hate me. they cried but there was none
to save them even unto the lord but he answered them not then
did i beat them small as the dust before the wind i did cast
them out as a dirt in the streets that has delivered me from the
strivings of the people and that has made me the head of the heathen
a people whom i have not known shall serve me As soon as they
hear of me they shall obey me. The strangers shall submit themselves
unto me. The strangers shall fade away
and be afraid out of their close places. The Lord liveth and blessed
be my rock and let the God of my salvation be exalted. He turns in praise to his God. He speaks of how wonderful his
God is, what his God has done for him, and the salvation that
God has given him over his enemies. And he speaks of the wonderful
grace of God which wrought that salvation. Thou hast given me
the shield of thy salvation, and thy right hand hath holden
me up, and thy gentleness hath made me great. Thy gentleness hath made me great. God's love, God's mercy, God's
long-suffering, God's grace made David great. When David doubted,
God loved him. When David turned, God loved
him. When David was a fool, God loved
him. When David sinned, God still
loved him. When David knew the grief and
the agony of the great sin that he had wrought and the separation
it brought in between he and his God, God was gentle with
him. He deserved God's wrath. He deserved to be cast out. Yet
God loved him. And God took David's sins and
judged them in another. God was gracious with him. Do
you know this gentleness and this grace of Almighty God? Has
he delivered you from your enemies through grace? through love,
through mercy. David rises up at the end of
the psalm. The Lord liveth and blessed be my rock, and let the
God of my salvation be exalted. It is God that avengeth 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. Therefore will I give thanks
unto thee, O Lord, among the heathen, and sing praises unto
thy name. Great deliverance giveth he to
his king, and showeth mercy to his anointed, to David, and to
his seed for evermore. Great deliverance giveth he to
the king, and sheweth mercy to his anointed, to David, and to
his seed for evermore. Oh, David loved his God, because
David knew what sorrow was. David knew what war was. David knew what enemies were.
David knew what tragedy was. David knew what his sin was. David knew what the judgment
and wrath of God was. David knew what death was. David knew what calamity was
and David knew what deliverance was. Great deliverance giveth
he to his king. He gave it to Christ. Christ was David's king, of whom
David the king was a picture. Christ suffered for David, of
whom David's sufferings were but a picture. Christ delivered
him from his enemies. Christ was the anointed. And God showeth mercy to his
anointed, to David, and to his seed forevermore. Are you one of the seed of David? The seed of David was Christ. All God's people chosen in Christ
are his seed. Are you amongst that seed? Are you amongst that people?
Did Christ, the King, the Anointed, God's Son, God's Saviour, the
Sacrifice, did Christ die for you? Did he enter into the sorrows
of death for you? Did he enter into the sorrows
of hell for you? Did he in his distress call upon
the Lord and cry unto the Lord for you? Was he heard for you? Did he cry out it is finished
for you? Did he endure because he set
his love upon you? Did he bear your sins? Did he
deliver you from your enemies? Did he take away your sin? Did
he take away your death? Did he take away destruction?
Did he cast down Satan? Did he overcome every foe, every
enemy? Will he lead you through the
gates of the heavenly city? into a heavenly kingdom upon
his horse, all splattered in blood, but victorious. Will he lead you in to that wonderful
city to come? And will you rejoice with him
and all his people, David included, saying, I will love thee, O Lord,
my strength. The Lord is my rock. and my fortress
and my deliverer my God my strength in whom I will trust my buckler
and the horn of my salvation and my high tower I will call
upon the Lord who is worthy to be praised so shall I and so
have I been saved from mine enemies. Amen.