God’s Word for You

Psalm 27:1-3 Our refuge

by Pastor Timothy Smith on Monday, October 10, 2022

27 Of David

I like to think of David’s time as king in four periods, all about ten or eleven years, after the first part which was just a little shorter than that. First, David reigned in Hebron. He was at war with Saul’s son Ish-Bosheth at that time, but was victorious. His army captured Jerusalem in about 1002 BC. Second, the early Jerusalem years saw several victories in the war against Philistia, and there was the ordeal of bringing the Ark to Jerusalem. It was at this time that David fell into adultery with Bathsheba and Uriah was killed. Third, the middle Jerusalem years were marked with famine and then the incident with Absalom’s revenge followed by Absalom’s rebellion. Finally, the late Jerusalem years saw his son Adonijah trying to seize the throne and Solomon named as successor. David died in about 970 BC.

In that outline, the last two periods, (III) Absalom’s rebellion and (IV) Adonijah’s rebellion, fit the context of the Psalm well enough, but there was also the time when he was at war with Ish-Bosheth in the early years. David doesn’t mention Jerusalem (or any city) here, but he makes more than one reference to the tabernacle and also to his parents, which a man is less likely to do later in life when thinking of a refuge (27:10).

1 The LORD is my light and my salvation.
  Whom shall I fear?
  The LORD is the stronghold of my life;
  of whom shall I be afraid?
2 When evil men assail me to eat my flesh,
  When my enemies and foes come against me,
  They are the ones who will stumble and fall.
3 Though an army lines up against me, my heart will not fear;
  though war rises against me, even then I will keep trusting.

The idea of these opening lines is clear: God is with me, so I have nothing to fear. This is echoed by Paul’s famous verse: “If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31).

It’s unusual to call God “my light.” The prophet Micah says the same thing in chapter 7 (Micah 7:8), but it’s more common to hear people talking about the Lord giving light, or his word being light for our path (Psalm 119:105), but John makes an excellent confession: “The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world” (John 1:9). And again, he says: “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed” (John 3:19-20). And Jesus proclaims: “I am the light of the world, Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life (John 8:12).

So also the Lord is our stronghold, our safe place. In our wicked world with machines of terrible death, we think of a refuge as being deep underground. But David thought of a refuge as being high in the mountains, a place so lofty that no one could reach him there. This was a marvelous illustration of God’s protection over us all.

When David uses the revolting words, “evil men assail me to eat my flesh,” there is no way to understand him apart from men plotting murder against him. Nobody in the nations of Canaan practiced cannibalism except in dire need, such as in the final days of a terrible siege (Isaiah 9:20).

David trusts God, and he doesn’t try to give God suggestions or hints about what he should do. There are two pitfalls when we rely on our own watchfulness, Luther said: “Arrogance or worry. If all goes well and is secure, we pride ourselves on our watchfulness; if things go wrong and are about to fail, we worry, lose heart, and become doubtful. Now God will tolerate neither of these, neither arrogance nor worry. We should neither worry when we are insecure, nor be proud when we are secure, but in free and true faith do our watching and perform the duties of our calling. We should no more be anxious when things go wrong than be proud when things go well. But none but a believing heart acts this way” (LW 45:330).

We trust God because he is the source, the engine as it were, of all we do and of what preserves us. If God were to withhold the power he sends to each of us to live, even for a moment, we would cease to be. Gerhard says: “What is more natural for man than moving? Yet it is in God that we move (Acts 17:28). What is more natural for the sun than rising every day? Yet God makes the sun rise (Matthew 5:45)” (Providence §62). God is at work when the grass grows, when the apple ripens, when the rain falls, when babies are conceived and born, when souls are gathered to paradise. His plan moves forward, his power moves us, his gospel makes our spirits come to life, and his light shines for us forever. This is why armies lined up against David did not cause him to fear, and why nothing lined up against us—devils, missiles, or the chaos of modern politics—needs to cause us to fear in any way. The Lord is our refuge, our safe place, our castle; and if need be, our bunker.

In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith

 

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