Day 1093: The Christian soldier - Psalm 18 vs 37 - 50
37-40 I pursued my enemies and overtook them, and did not turn back till they were consumed. I thrust them through, so that they were not able to rise; they fell under my feet. For you equipped me with strength for the battle; you made those who rise against me sink under me. 40-42 You made my enemies turn their backs to me, and those who hated me I destroyed. They cried for help, but there was none to save; they cried to the Lord, but he did not answer them. I beat them fine as dust before the wind; I cast them out like the mire of the streets.
43-45 You delivered me from strife with the people; you made me the head of the nations; people whom I had not known served me. As soon as they heard of me they obeyed me; foreigners came cringing to me. Foreigners lost heart and came trembling out of their fortresses. 46-48 The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock, and exalted be the God of my salvation - the God who gave me vengeance and subdued peoples under me, who delivered me from my enemies; yes, you exalted me above those who rose against me; you rescued me from the man of violence.
49-50 For this I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations, and sing to your name. Great salvation he brings to his king, and shows steadfast love to his anointed, to David and his offspring for ever. Psalm 18:37-50 English Standard Version
We need to remember that this Psalm was written to recall how David was often on the run from Saul and other enemies. It started with the introduction “A Psalm of David, the servant of the Lord, who addressed the words of this song to the Lord on the day when the Lord rescued him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul.” So verses 37-40, gruesome as they are, reflected the conditions of a warrior. If David hadn't won the victory, then he himself would have been killed.
What we see though is that, in vs 43-45, David rejoices in what God had done for him. His kingdom was established and those who had warred against him sought peace. In vs 46-48 he testifies to how God had rescued him from those who had risen against him. What was the outcome of David's victories? (vs 49-50)
He gives God heartfelt praise. He realized that his kingdom was being established by the Lord who had anointed him. Does this mean God overlooked all the strife and bloodshed David had been involved in?
Well, many years later when David wanted to build a temple for the Lord, he said to the people: “I had it in my heart to build a house of rest for the ark of the covenant of the Lord and for the footstool of our God, and I made preparations for building. But God said to me, ‘You may not build a house for my name, for you are a man of war and have shed blood.’ Yet, (says David) the Lord God of Israel chose me from all my father's house to be king over Israel for ever . . . and among my father's sons he took pleasure in me to make me king over all Israel.” (1 Chronicles 28:2-4)
God had chosen David and made him king. But the war and bloodshed that dogged his life rendered him unsuitable for the task of building a temple for the Lord. Yet God's promise to David of an eternal kingdom was not forfeited. It is fulfilled in the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul says in Romans 1:2-3 “. . . concerning His Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh, and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead.” He takes this further, and says that the Gentiles have been built together with Jews, as a dwelling place for God. (Ephesians 2:19-22)
So now, our warfare is not with sword or spear, but with the armour God provides. “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.” (Ephesians 6:10-11) And with God on our side, victory is assured.