For those who may wish to ‘study’ this chapter, the following simple resources are provided for you. Each passage has a four-Part approach to help you take in and think further about what you have read.
Passage: Psalm 55
1 Listen to my prayer, O God,
do not ignore my plea;
2 hear me and answer me.
My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught
3 because of what my enemy is saying,
because of the threats of the wicked;
for they bring down suffering on me
and assail me in their anger.
4 My heart is in anguish within me;
the terrors of death have fallen on me.
5 Fear and trembling have beset me;
horror has overwhelmed me.
6 I said, ‘Oh, that I had the wings of a dove!
I would fly away and be at rest.
7 I would flee far away
and stay in the desert;
8 I would hurry to my place of shelter,
far from the tempest and storm.’
9 Lord, confuse the wicked, confound their words,
for I see violence and strife in the city.
10 Day and night they prowl about on its walls;
malice and abuse are within it.
11 Destructive forces are at work in the city;
threats and lies never leave its streets.
12 If an enemy were insulting me,
I could endure it;
if a foe were rising against me,
I could hide.
13 But it is you, a man like myself,
my companion, my close friend,
14 with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship
at the house of God,
as we walked about
among the worshippers.
15 Let death take my enemies by surprise;
let them go down alive to the realm of the dead,
for evil finds lodging among them.
16 As for me, I call to God,
and the Lord saves me.
17 Evening, morning and noon
I cry out in distress,
and he hears my voice.
18 He rescues me unharmed
from the battle waged against me,
even though many oppose me.
19 God, who is enthroned from of old,
who does not change –
he will hear them and humble them,
because they have no fear of God.
20 My companion attacks his friends;
he violates his covenant.
21 His talk is smooth as butter,
yet war is in his heart;
his words are more soothing than oil,
yet they are drawn swords.
22 Cast your cares on the Lord
and he will sustain you;
he will never let
the righteous be shaken.
23 But you, God, will bring down the wicked
into the pit of decay;
the bloodthirsty and deceitful
will not live out half their days.
But as for me, I trust in you.
A. Find Out:
- How does the Psalmist feel? v.2,4,5
- Who caused him to feel like this? v.3,9,11
- Who is it that really causes him anguish? v.12-14
- How do the former group operate? v.9b-11
- How does the latter person act? v.21
- What is the Psalmist’s answer? v.1,16.22
B. Think:
- Why is it that the greatest pain comes when those closest to us turn against us?
- What feeling does it create in us? (v.6-8)
- But what is the proper way to deal with it?
C. Comment:
Yesterday we considered those times when God seems far away. Today we consider another time when anguish comes, when those closest to us turn against us. First there are general enemies who are against him, the wicked who are always against the righteous. But then there is the one who has been a “close friend” who shared fellowship, who walked together with him before the Lord (v.13,14). But now this one has turned against him and whose words are smooth, enticing, but destructive (v.21). When those we love most, or who are closest to us, turn against us, that is one of the hardest things to take. With this comes a sense of hurt, rejection, loneliness, even grief and, like the Psalmist, we want to run away and hide from it all (v.6-8)
Yet in all of this David prays. He first shares his heart feelings of anguish, then he asks the Lord to deal with the enemy, then he declares in faith his knowledge of the Lord. “Cast your cares on the Lord” (v.22) is a summary of Jesus’ words in Matthew 11:28-29. The Lord wants us to unburden ourselves on Him; His shoulders are broad enough to take it all. If we try to carry the burden alone, we’ll go down under it.
D. Application?
- Romans 12:20,21 Christians are to bless their enemies and make room for God to deal with them.
- Share your burdens with the Lord today.