The Sweet Psalmist Of Israel

by J.M. Gault, Hayes, Kent | Category: The Life And Times Of David | Sept 1972

David, King of Israel, is one of the most colourful personalities portrayed in the Scriptures. His character and life are fascinating. In the many experiences recorded for us we see him as someone very human yet with a deep reverence and awe for his Creator. His generosity, his courage, and the warmth of his nature had a magnetic charm which drew the men of his day to his side and will continue to warm the hearts of men for all time.

Shepherd, warrior, musician, outlaw, first of a dynasty of kings, statesman, exile: these are some facets of the man we know and admire, but as the sweet psalmist of Israel he left for his people and for the godly of every age a rich treasury of poetry and song which, under God, has enriched their thoughts and meditations. Few of us can adequately express our inmost thoughts, or put words to the deep longings of our spirits towards our God, but we can find our own experiences reflected in the psalms of David and can draw from them comfort in our deepest trials, expression for our secret longings and inspiration for our highest worship.

Nature was his teacher; the wilderness his classroom. Those tender years, free from the sorrow, bitterness, intrigue and strife of later years, are reflected in the earliest of his psalms. His young spirit was moved by the greatness of his God. In the solitude of the hills, beneath the blue of the heavens or the night sky his heart was moved by the revelation of God in nature, the wonder of which we still can share:

"When I consider Thy heavens, the work of Thy fingers, The moon and the stars, which Thou hast ordained;

What is man?" (Psalm 8:3,4).

"The heavens declare the glory of God;

And the firmament sheweth His handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, And night unto night sheweth knowledge" (Psalm 19:1-2).

The early years soon passed, and because of the intrigues of Saul's court David found himself the object of the king's jealousy. Flying for his life, hated by Saul but loved by Jonathan, with one step between him and death, David entered into the first of those dark periods of his life. By subterfuge and pretence, failing in his faith, he went from Gibeah to Nob, on to Gath, and then to Adullam. These experiences searched David to the very core of his being. The man after God's own heart passed through the fire, but from the hot crucible of persecution there emerged the brilliant gem which would adorn the crown of Israel for ever.

The cord of faith is stretched but does not break. David hoped in God and knew deliverance. The anguish and fear, the perplexity and despair all found expression in his psalms, but shining clearly through it all was the love of God.

"How long, 0 LORD, wilt Thou forget me for ever? How long wilt Thou hide Thy face from me? How long shall I take counsel in my soul, Having sorrow in my heart all the day?" (Psalm 13:1,2).

"Keep me as the apple of the eye;

Hide me under the shadow of Thy' wings" (Psalm 17:8). "This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, And saved him out of all his troubles" (Psalm 34:6). Keilah, Ziph, Engedi, Adullam are for ever enshrined in the psalms of David as places where faith triumphed over adversity. Suffering children of God have found comfort and strength in what David wrote during these experiences. God in His mercy delivered him from the great mistake of Ziklag. In the valley of Achor the door of hope opened; The news that Saul and Jonathan were dead wrung from the heart of David the sweet and generous Song of the Bow" (2 Sam. 1). His suffering at the hand of Saul is forgotten. The king is dead and Israel's loss is enormous:

"Thy glory, 0 Israel, is slain upon thy high places How are the mighty fallen I"

"From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the mighty, The bow of Jonathan turned not back, And the sword of Saul returned not empty."

"Lovely and Pleasant" are David's thoughts when they might have been otherwise. Jonathan too, is dead, and for them both David pens one of the most beautiful epitaphs ever written:

"Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives,

And in their death they were not divided;

They were swifter than eagles,

They were stronger than lions."

Of Jonathan himself he writes,

"... my brother Jonathan:

Very pleasant hast thou been unto me:

Thy love to me was wonderful,

Passing the love of women,

Kingship, first at Hebron, then at Jerusalem, was not without its problems, but the foundations of Israel's greatness were being laid. David's desire for the things of God is seen in his eagerness to bring the Ark of the Lord to Jerusalem:

"I will not give sleep to mine eyes,

Or slumber to mine eyelids;

Until I find out a place for the LORD,

A tabernacle for the Mighty One of Jacob" (Psalm 132:4,5).

The mistake of the new cart, and the death of Uzzah remind David that there is no new, or easy way for carrying out the will of the Lord; men must bear the burden of the holy things. Well might David ask,

"Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? And who shall stand in His holy place?

He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart" (Psalm 24:3,4).

In the more settled days which followed, the long desire of David's heart towards the house of God found practical expression. First the plans by divine revelation, next the purchase of the site, then the amassing of the materials; but the will of the Lord was that another should build the house. David is assured that his own house will rule in Israel for ever. From afar he sees the glory of Israel, and in his psalms he speaks of the coming Christ. He writes of Messiah's rejection, suffering and death; of His resurrection and future glory. He portrays Him as Shepherd, Priest and King of His people, and extols the glories of His everlasting kingdom.

"Yet I have set my King

Upon my holy hill of Zion.

I will tell of the decree:

The LORD said unto Me, Thou are my Son.

This day have I begotten Thee.

Ask of me, and I will give thee the nations for thine inheritance,

And the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession"

(Psalm 2:6-8).

Such are the psalms of David that as we read his words we see into his heart, we share his hopes and fears, we rejoice with him in his triumphs and weep with him in his failures. With him we learn to trust in our God and know deliverance, and through his eyes we see the glory of the coming King,

"who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, who was declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection of the dead; even Jesus Christ our Lord" (Rom. 1:3,4).

J.M. Gault, Hayes, Kent | Sept 1972
The Life And Times Of David