For Thy Mercies’ Sake

We all know Psalter 12 based upon the sixth psalm:

Lord, rebuke me not in anger;

Chastened sore I waste away;

Pity my distress and hear me;

Lord, how long wilt thou delay?

Who is praying here, and what is his concern? For what is the author of this psalm praying? It is clear that the composer of this solemn psalm is King David, and he is apparently in difficult straits. When we read through this psalm, we get an impression of the troubles with which he is faced. We read of God’s anger (verse 1), of his (bodily) sickness (verses 2,5&6), and his enemies (verses 7&10). I would think David was pursued by enemies, and his understanding was that these mortal enemies were an evidence of God turning against him, which also made him bodily ill.

Who the enemies were, I do not know, but David feels forsaken by God, and his sins rise up against him. It is no wonder that he is asking the Lord to have mercy on him and to be gracious (verse 2). Having enemies lurking everywhere and fearing for your life is hard, but David was even more concerned about God’s hot displeasure. His God was hiding His face, and that disturbed David tremendously. For him, that was more bitter than death. In this penitential psalm, David expresses his feelings, and it is clear that his convictions are so deep that they make him feel sick. He feels weak as a drooping plant without water, and he is so terrified that he even feels it in his bones. His entire being is shaking and sore vexed. David means himself when he speaks of his soul. He has a soul, of course, but he also is a soul, as the Old Testament writers often express it. “Deliver my soul, oh save me” (verse 4), he writes. Every fiber of his being is affected by God’s rebuking and chastening him.

It becomes so bad that David is utterly fatigued, and because of his deep sighs, he is weary with his groanings, “All the night make I my bed to swim; I water my couch with my tears” (verse 6). He can barely see, as his eyes seem swollen. He wrote, “Mine eye is consumed because of grief” (verse 7). He feels like an old man.

Think about this. David was already known as a child of God, and in this psalm he is not wording his conversion; no, he has felt his sins before. He knows something of the Lord; he has tasted something of God’s grace at an earlier time. Therefore, he prays, “Return, O LORD” (verse 4). If he had never felt close to God, he would not say that.

However, at this moment he feels lost again, and he suffers from God being so far away from him again.

Yes, that can happen. The reasons for that may vary. The Lord’s dear children can be discouraged and feel forsaken or even be afraid that God is angry against them. The circumstances can be difficult, interpreted as the Lord turning against them. It may be that the Lord is not so much against them, but that is how they feel. It could be that they have been grieving the Lord with certain sins, and the Holy Spirit is frowning on them. They cannot pray, and the Word for them seems closed. Sometimes it is neither of these two reasons, but the Lord leads His children further and trains them to live by faith. I do not know the reason, but I gather that in David’s case the circumstances play a big role, and the hostility of his enemies remind him of his sins.

As I mentioned previously, this psalm is one of the penitential psalms. Often beginners in grace love to sing psalms such as Psalter 12 and others. These psalms verbalize what lies within, but also the most experienced of God’s children are again brought to that place. At such times prayer is not dull but solemn and lively again. These are not the worst of times.

In the first five verses of this psalm, David has poured out his heart. Five times we read of an “O LORD.” He knows where he must go.

In the fourth verse we find an important expression: Save me for thy mercies’ sake. What does that state? Apparently, David is pleading as an unworthy sinner. What does he mean? Does David ask to be saved because God is merciful after all? Or is David asking to be saved in order for God’s mercy to be displayed? We may say that David knows of God’s mercy and even believes in it, but in this verse the king pleads with the Lord to save him so that the Lord will receive the honour, the honour of being such a merciful God. It is the same word the servants of Benhadad used when they stated that the kings of Israel were merciful kings.

In this context David continues, stating that in death and the grave God is not honoured (verse 5). There is life after death, but in death he cannot give glory with his physical mouth.

Pause here, dear reader. Have we ever asked the Lord to help, to deliver, to save us, for His mercies’ sake? We may wrestle with God and remind God that He is worthy to display His wisdom and power in Creation, but we may also beg the Lord to exalt His mercy, to show the world what a faithful God He is.

Think here of the well-known verses from Ephesians, explaining the purpose of saving the elect: “Having predes-tinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the Beloved” (Ephesians 1:5&6).

Finally, let us not overlook David’s faith. Three times he repeats that the Lord has heard him and will receive his prayer. Although in darkness and in deep distress not only emotionally and physically but also spiritually, we see him lifting up his head. There was faith, and that faith came into exercise.

Dear reader, do you ever miss the Lord, and does your heart ever accuse you? Have you never felt something of God’s hot displeasure? I must tell you that after death the hottest displeasure is reserved for them who were the closest to the kingdom of God. I must declare to you that you are dead in sins, never truly willing to be saved, ever resisting the common work of the Spirit. Hurry, make haste. Read this psalm to the Lord and be convinced of the Lord’s mercies in Christ. Come with the rope around your neck.

“And his servants said unto him, Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings: let us, I pray thee, put sackcloth on our loins, and ropes upon our heads, and go out to the king of Israel: peradventure he will save thy life” (1 Kings 20:31).

And you, dear child of God: You may feel God’s anger, but He is not angry. Not really. The Lord loves you for His mercies’ sake. The waves may be high, the enemies many and strong, your sins very great, yet the Lord has not forgotten about you.

One person experiences more of God’s anger and of the infinite, hot displeasure than another does. Yet, there was One weary in His groanings, sweating blood, being consumed with grief. Through Him, our precious Lord Jesus Christ, there is forgiveness.

We live in confusing times; Satan is going about as a roaring lion, yet the Lord lives!

Deze tekst is geautomatiseerd gemaakt en kan nog fouten bevatten. Digibron werkt voortdurend aan correctie. Klik voor het origineel door naar de pdf. Voor opmerkingen, vragen, informatie: contact.

Op Digibron -en alle daarin opgenomen content- is het databankrecht van toepassing. Gebruiksvoorwaarden. Data protection law applies to Digibron and the content of this database. Terms of use.

Terug naar resultaten Printen