This morning we're looking at Psalm 27. If this sounds
like one of the most familiar psalms in the psalter to you, it's
no wonder. Several of our best-loved anthems and choruses
are based on this psalm. We sing from this text all the time.
And yet rarely will you hear a sermon on
Psalm 27. Phrases and verses from this passage circulate in
my mind all the time, because so many of our worship songs
come from here. But I've never preached on this psalm, and I
don't think I've ever heard anyone else preach on it.
This is a psalm of David, written during one of the many
times in his life when trouble hounded him into exile. The
whole psalm is about faith in times of trouble.
There's no indication in the psalm itself as to when David
wrote it. It could pertain to almost any period of David's life
after Samuel anointed him to be king. Some think the
reference to David's father and mother in verse 10 proves
that Psalm 27 belongs to an early period in David's life. I'm
more inclined to think it comes out of his later life, because
it is so full of the kind of confidence that grows out of
experience and maturity. The Lord had delivered David out
rarely will you hear a
So this is familiar ground for most of us. Let's take a little more analytical look
at it.
Psalm 27 2
of trouble many times in the past, and this whole psalm has
the ring of seasoned reflection from someone who has
learned to wait on the Lord.
But the truth is that in a timeline of David's life, psalm 27
would pretty well describe his experience at just about any
given point. And the question of when David wrote this
psalm is not ultimately important anyway. Just know that this
is one of many psalms David wrote in times of trouble, while
he was wrestling with depression, discouragement, a deep
sense of betrayal, and fear.
In fact, if you take a big-picture look at the life of David,
it really is remarkable how much and how long he suffered.
The only really trouble-free period in David's life was his
childhood and teenage years, when he was serving as
shepherd over his father's flocks.
Then, according to 1 Samuel 16, David was suddenly
called in from the fields one day and Samuel anointed him as
king of Israel, in a private ceremony in David's father's
house. David therefore became Israel's second king. Saul was
still on the throne at the time, but Saul was not God's choice
for king in the first place. Saul was the people's choiceCand
they selected him because of his physical stature. Saul (of
course) proved to be a carnal man and an unsatisfactory king.
So after a few significant spiritual failures, the Lord rejected
Saul and sent Samuel to anoint David as his successor.
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David's life was never peaceful again after that. It was one
long chronicle of conflict, war, frustration, and struggle. Saul
was still on the throne during David's rise to prominence, and
of course he became jealous. So David spent years hiding
from Saul, who became obsessed with killing David. Then
when Saul finally died, the Hebrew nation was torn by civil
war because there was a large faction in Israel who opposed
David. David finally managed to unify all Israel, but then he
spent years at war with the Philistines, the Amorites, the
Moabites, and practically every neighboring tribe and nation.
After that, David's own son, Absalom, attempted to usurp
David's throne and drove David out of Jerusalem and into
exile again. Absalom also eventually came against David
with an army of more than twenty-thousand men. So that
kind of trouble more or less dominated David's public life
from start to finish.
It's no wonder that the psalter is full of psalms about
David's trouble. And they are great psalmsCwe tend to love
these psalmsCbecause they express David's frustration in
very human termsCbut they also point the way through
trouble to triumph.
There's a pattern David normally followed when he
poured out his frustration in the psalms. Usually, he would
begin with a very honest outpouring of his complaint to
GodCin words that are full of feeling. That's why we find it
Psalm 27 4
so easy to relate to David. That's why the psalms resonate so
powerfully in times of trouble and fear. David expresses
emotions we all know all too well. He gets frustrated with so
many trials. He grows weary of the strife. He wonders where
God is in the absurdity of human injustice. He becomes
exasperated when it seems the Lord is too slow in coming to
the defense of His people. And as David describes whatever
injustice or sorrow or other kind of affliction he was suffering,
he expresses his emotions without apology in raw and
honest language. He is never irreverent, but he is always bold
and direct.
Psalm 13 is a classic example of that style. It starts with
an expression of frustration: "How long, O LORD? Will you
forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?"
And the first two-thirds of that short psalm are a drawn-out
expression of David's dismay because it seemed the Lord
was postponing His deliverance (Psalm 13:2): "How long
must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all
the day? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?" Verse
4: "my enemy [will] say, 'I have prevailed over him,' . . . my foes
[will] rejoice because I am shaken." That's not what You want,
is it Lord? (I know those feelings, don't you? I have been in
that place.)
But in most of these psalms where David wrote about his
troubles, there is a turning point where David shifts his
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focus. As he pours out his heart to the Lord, He naturally
begins to focus his thoughts on the LordCand there he finds
hope in the midst of every trial, because he knows the Lord is
faithful. And Psalm after psalm that begins on a note of fear
or crushing sorrow closes with a profound expression of
hope and faith. Psalm 13, for example, starts with that cry of
anguish and frustration: "How long, O LORD?"Cbut it ends
just six verses later with this: "I will sing to the LORD, because
he has dealt bountifully with me."
Psalm 17 follows a similar pattern. It opens with a
heartfelt plea from the psalmist, who is a victim of obvious
injustice: "Hear a just cause, O LORD; attend to my cry!" Then
he pleads his case for 14 verses. He rehearses a testimony
about his own faithfulness; he recalls the Lord's faithfulness
and tenderness; and he recounts the many evil attributes of
his enemies. That makes him look at his troubles from the
perspective of eternity, and he realizes that even though it
sometimes feels like he is on the precipice of hell, the trials
of this life are as close to hell as he will ever comeCbut this
is also is as close to heaven as his wicked adversaries will
ever get. For DavidCand for all the Lord's redeemed
onesCthe troubles of this life are merely temporary. Because
David trusted the Lord for salvation, he had the guarantee of
ultimate and eternal satisfaction in the presence of the Lord.
So he closes Psalm 17 with this classic expression of
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assurance: "As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness;
when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness."
Psalm 27 is similar to those psalms in one regard: It was
written while David was under siege, living in exile, troubled
on all sides, and tempted (like any of us would be) to become
discouraged, downcast, and fearful.
And yet this psalm is dramatically different from most of
the other psalms David wrote in times of trouble. It starts
where those other psalms ended. It begins on a powerful note
of triumph, and builds from there. In fact, the very first verse
gathers up all of David's troubles, looks them square in the
eye, and defies them all with a song of praise to God. It is a
celebration of light in a world of darkness. It is a song of
deliverance penned on a sea of difficulties. It is David's
recognition that God's strength is made perfect in our
weakness. And it sets forth an unassailable reason for
courage in the midst of discouragement.
That's why I'm inclined to think this psalm pertains to
David's later life. He has learned that the best answer to all
this life's darkest, most discouraging trials is simple praise
rendered to God, and that has become the starting point for
him whenever his heart is troubled.
In fact, that is the central message of this psalm. If you
wanted to sum it up in a single sentence, you could hardly do
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any better than this: The best remedy for all this life's trials
and discouragements is worship.
That's it. DavidCwho suffered more than most of us could
ever imagineClearned through his suffering that worship is
the best way through every trial. Worship is a uniquely
heavenly activity. All of heaven is consumed full time with
giving praise to God. Therefore nothing on this sin-cursed
earth could possibly get us closer to the atmosphere of
heaven than when we ourselves are engaged in worship. So if
you want to be elevated above the pain and frustration of a
cursed world and a life that's filled with difficulty, there is no
better, no more direct, and no more efficient way to get from
here to heaven than by focusing your heart on praise.
David had learned by long experience that worship
offered the best sanctuary from earthly troubleCno matter
what form his troubles took. Because worship transported
him out of the world's darkness and miseryCand into the
presence of the Lord, who is our light and our salvation.
So this is a psalm about sanctuary. David was singing
about because He knew a place of heavenly peace and safety
he could retreat to in any kind of earthly trouble. That place
of sanctuary is the main theme of this psalm.
There are three parts to the psalm. Verses 1-6 are a
testimony to the whole world about David's unshakable
confidence in the Lord. Verses 7-12 are a prayer to God,
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seeking immediate deliverance from whatever evil his
enemies wanted to do to him. And verses 13-14 are a sermon
David preaches to himself, reminding himself of the main
lesson he has learned through a lifetime of suffering. So you
have a testimony, a prayer, and a sermon, in that order. And
we'll let that outline be the framework for our understanding
of this psalm.
Now with that as an introduction, I'm going to read the
psalm. Watch for that central theme, and we'll look at how it
runs through each of the three parts of this psalm and ties
them together. Here's the psalm:
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 evildoers assail me to eat up my flesh, my
adversaries and foes, it is they who stumble and fall.
3 Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not
fear; though war arise against me, yet I will be confident.
4 One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek
after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the
days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and
to inquire in his temple.
5 For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble;
he will conceal me under the cover of his tent; he will lift
me high upon a rock.
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6 And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies
all around me, and I will offer in his tent sacrifices with
shouts of joy; I will sing and make melody to the LORD.
7 Hear, O LORD, when I cry aloud; be gracious to me and
answer me!
8 You have said, "Seek my face." My heart says to you,
"Your face, LORD, do I seek."
9 Hide not your face from me. Turn not your servant
away in anger, O you who have been my help. Cast me not
off; forsake me not, O God of my salvation!
10 For my father and my mother have forsaken me, but
the LORD will take me in.
11 Teach me your way, O LORD, and lead me on a level
path because of my enemies.
12 Give me not up to the will of my adversaries; for false
witnesses have risen against me, and they breathe out
violence.
13 I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the
LORD in the land of the living!
14 Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take
courage; wait for the LORD!
One of the commentaries I read said this psalm is a psalm
about "balanc[ing] the ups and downs of real life." That
seems an awfully trivial way of putting it, and I hope you can
see that. The "ups and downs" of David's life were hardly
Psalm 27 10
trifling things. When he speaks in verse 3 about "an army
encamp[ing] against [him]," that was exactly the kind of trial
he faced in the most literal sense. His enemies were more
numerous and more powerful than most of the problems you
and I will ever face. His life was quite literally in mortal
jeopardy virtually all the time; the times he had to spend in
exile were truly costly in almost every conceivable sense.
These were real, imminent dangers that he facedCand yet he
found the Lord a sufficient shelter in the very worst of
timesC"our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble,"
to borrow words from Psalm 46:1. Or verse 11 of that psalm:
"The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our
fortress."
That's the same message featured in our psalm. Here in
Psalm 27, David gives us a threefold reminder that the Lord
Himself is the best place for the believer to find true
sanctuaryCno matter how fiercely the storms of life may
blow. The first part isC
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1. A TESTIMONY (TO THE WORLD)CVV. 1-6
The psalm opens with a trumpet-blast of faith and
assurance: "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?" If that verse were all we hadCif we stopped without
reading the rest of the psalmCwe might ever know that this
is the expression of a troubled heart. It is a declaration of
fearlessness.
David was a naturally courageous personality-type. even
in his adolescent years, he was generally fearless. You see
that clearly in 1 Samuel 17, where David first encounters
Goliath. Everyone else was cowering in terror at the sight of
a giant. David comes alongCstill basically an
adolescentCand he is amazed that no one else had struck
Goliath dead yet. His reaction was (1 Samuel 17:26), "Who is
this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of
the living God?" And then David recounted how while
working as a shepherd he had killed both lions and bears, and
he told Saul, "this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of
them, for he has defied the armies of the living God."
Here in our psalm, David gives a testimony that explains
such courage. It is not the carnal courage of an impetuous
person who trusts in his own strength. It is a different kind of
courage; it arises from faith in God. David doesn't trust his
Psalm 27 12
own skill. He trusts the Lord, who is his light and salvation
and stronghold.
And notice he doesn't say that the Lord brings salvation,
or that he gives light. David's point is that the Lord is those
things, so that the one who lays hold of God by faith has
everything necessary to answer the darkness and trouble of
this life, because God is our light, salvation, strength, and
protection. That is exactly what the apostle Paul said about
Christ in 1 Corinthians 1:30Cthat Christ is "wisdom from
God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption." He is
our salvation, and sanctification, and wisdom. He is our
righteousness. That is even one of the names of God.
Jeremiah 23:6: "This is the name by which he will be called:
'The LORD is our righteousness.'" He is the only real
righteousness we possess. His righteousness, imputed to
those who trust Him, provides everything we need for a right
standing before God.
David, of course, looked forward to a redemption he
could not possibly understand completely. He didn't know
God would come to earth in human form, in the person of
Jesus Christ, David's promised Son. He had no way of
knowing Christ Himself would be the perfect sacrifice to
take away the sin of the world. But he got the gist of it.
That's exactly what David means when he says, "The
LORD is my light and my salvation." That is the gospel,
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summarized superbly in the opening phrase of David's
testimony. It's not about David, it's about his God. David
says nothing about his own strength or skill or sanctification.
His confidence in no sense rested in his own abilities. David
was celebrating the greatness of God, not boasting about his
own valor. This is a psalm of praise to God, not a celebration
of David's superiority.
And yet notice that it is personal: "The LORD is my light
and my salvation." David's faith in God was personal, and
therefore his assurance was personal. David could be
confident that the Lord was on his side, because he had laid
hold of the Lord by faith, entrusted himself to the Lord's
care. Verse 1: "The LORD is the stronghold of my life." The
Lord Himself was David's only sanctuary.
And the Lord had fought for David repeatedly. Although
David's life had been a long chronicle of conflict, it was also
the story of triumph over every foe. David's only failures
were his own personal moral lapsesCsuch as his sin with
Bath-Sheba. But his conflicts with earthly enemies always
ended with victory for David. Verses 2-3 testify to that fact:
"When evildoers assail me to eat up my flesh, my adversaries
and foes, it is they who stumble and fall. Though an army
encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war arise
against me, yet I will be confident." The fierceness of David's
adversaries is captured perfectly in verse 2, which pictures
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them as cannibals or wild beastsChungry for violence out of
sheer, evil bloodlust. But no matter how evil or how
determined they were, God always preserved David, and it
was his enemies who stumbled and fellCstarting with
Goliath, all the way through to Absalom, who was defeated
because his long hair got caught in an oak tree.
It also never mattered how large and powerful David's
adversaries were. David managed to elude Saul and all his
armies with just a few hundred men who lived in caves like
outlawsCuntil Saul actually fell on his own sword in a
disastrous battle against the Philistines. On the day
Absalom's rebellion was overthrown, 2 Samuel 18:7 says
twenty thousand men in Absalom's army were killed on that
one day.
So neither the size nor the ferocity of David's enemies
were any reason for him to fear. The Lord had delivered him
again and again from every earthly enemy. That was literally
the story of David's life.
Notice, too, that he speaks of the Lord's deliverance as a
present-tense reality. "The LORD is my light and my salvation
. . . The LORD is the stronghold of my life . . . " And as he
rehearses the way the Lord always delivers him, he keeps his
testimony in the present tense (verse 2): "When evildoers
assail me . . . it is they who stumble and fall"Cas if to say,
"That's how it always happens. It's happening even now to
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the current cast of enemies." Verse 3: "Though war arise
against me, yet I will be confident." Again, his hope is in the
Lord, not in his own strength. This is the furthest thing from
carnal confidence.
But here's another remarkable thing about this psalm. In
the whole psalm, there is not a single imprecatory plea
against his enemies. When we get to the prayer section in
verses 7-12, you'll see that David's prayer is full of petitions
for himself. He acknowledges his need for the Lord's grace
and mercy. He praises the Lord for His faithfulness. He
pleads for the Lord to teach him, and lead him, and keep him
safe. But there's not a word about the destruction of his
enemies.
That's because in this psalm, David treats that as a given.
It's not that David was showing some kind of post-modern
charity towards the evildoers, pretending that he could win
them over by being nice to them. God would cause David's
enemies to stumble and be destroyed, just as He always had.
David had already expressed his absolute confidence in that
certainty.
Elsewhere, David did pray imprecatory prayers, calling
for the downfall of his adversaries. And there was nothing
wrong with that, because they were truly evil men with evil
agendas. But that wasn't the point of this psalm. This is a
psalm about a higher principle.
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David himself spells out that principle for us in verse 4:
"One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I
may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to
gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple."
That is this psalm's key verse, and it's a perfect summary of
the whole message.
In the midst of so much trouble, David desired only one
kind of sanctuary: He wanted to be in the Lord's house with
the Lord's people, beholding the beauty of the Lord in
worship in that corporate setting. It was the best preview of
heaven available to David and therefore it was the one thing
that could lift him above the troubles of this life and into the
heavenly realm.
Now that says a lot about the importance of worship, and
I want you to notice, first of all, that this is not a truth that
David isolates to this one psalm. The psalms are full of
similar expressions. One of the first verses of Scripture I ever
memorized as a child was Psalm 122:1: "I was glad when they
said to me, 'Let us go to the house of the LORD!'" It's the whole
theme of Psalm 84. Verse 1: "My soul longs, yes, faints for the
courts of the LORD; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living
God." Verse 4: "Blessed are those who dwell in your house,
ever singing your praise!" And verse 10: "For a day in your
courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a
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doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of
wickedness."
David loved to be in the Temple, praising God. It was the
purest joy he knew on earth. In the midst of so many wars
and so much conflict, this was the one form of sanctuary
David craved most of all.
Verse 5: "For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His
pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me;
He shall set me high upon a rock." The word pavilion evokes
the imagery of a military encampment. Pavilion is derived
from the French word for "butterfly," because the king's
pavilion was naturally the most colorful, ornate tent in the
camp, and it had a peaked top that gave the impression of
butterfly wings. The king's pavilion would always be at the
center of the camp, because if any enemy wanted to infiltrate,
he would first have to get past rank after rank of armed men.
So the king's pavilion was the safest place in camp.
It was a high privilege to be allowed entry there. To dwell
there permanently was in effect to share the king's own
privileges. So this is a bold request that David makes. But he
craves that place of sanctuaryCa place of relief from the
troubles heaped on him by his enemies. He has always found
the best sanctuary from those trials in the place of worship.
Therefore this is the "one thing" he has desired from the
Lord. "One thing" (v. 4).
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When I was thinking about that expression, it reminded
me of that moment in Luke 10 where Jesus is in Bethany at
the home of Mary and Martha. And Martha was fussing
around with all the details of being a good hostess. She was
collecting dishes, and serving refills, and tidying up the
kitchen, and whatever it is that hostesses do for their
guestsCwhile Mary just sat at Jesus' feet and worshiped Him.
Martha gets frustrated with Mary and actually makes a kind
of backhanded rebuke at Jesus for not encouraging Mary to
get busy serving. Luke 10:40: "Martha was distracted with
much serving, and she approached Him and said, 'Lord, do You
not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell
her to help me.'" The next two verses say, "And Jesus
answered and said to her, 'Martha, Martha, you are worried and
troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary
has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from
her.'" One thing is necessary: worship. David understood
that. It's the "one thing" he seeks in Psalm 27.
Notice the setting of this psalm in the canon. It comes
right between two other Psalms that also celebrate the joy of
seeking the Lord in His holy tabernacle: Psalm 26:6 says: "I
hate the assembly of evildoers, and I will not sit with the
wicked"; but verse 8 says: "O LORD, I love the habitation of
your house and the place where your glory dwells." Verse 12:
"In the great assembly I will bless the LORD."
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Then in Psalm 28:2-3, we read: "I lift up my hands toward
your most holy sanctuary. Do not drag me off with the wicked,
with the workers of evil."
That was David's perspective. He hated nothing more than
the assembly of evildoers. That's the starting point of Psalm
1, isn't it? "Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of
the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the
seat of the scornful." And conversely, he loved nothing more
than worshiping the Lord in the beauty of holiness with
people who shared his love for the Lord.
The worldly church of our generation has it exactly
backward. In fact, it's hard sometimes nowadays to
differentiate between the church and the assembly of
evildoers. And it's rare to find Christians who truly love the
worship of the Lord as much as they love worldly recreation.
In fact, some churches have actually cultivated an appetite
for entertainment and fostered an atmosphere of amusement
rather than authentic worship.
So it's no wonder if this psalm sounds a little bit odd to
postmodern ears. Our minds are full of worldly distractions.
Our eyes are assaulted almost nonstop every day with
advertizing and entertainment that is designed to appeal to
the basest kinds of carnal lust. We frankly have a hard time
understanding what David meant when he talked about
beholding the beauty of the Lord. The Tabernacle of David's
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time was a temporary, makeshift arrangement on mount
Moriah. In 2 Chronicles 1:3, we are told that the Tabernacle
Moses built, which the Israelites carried through the
wilderness, was being kept at Gibeon. Presumably, most of
the tabernacle's furnishings were kept at Gibeon, too, until
Solomon brought everything to the temple. During David's
reign, the tent that was situated on the future temple grounds
in Jerusalem was just a temporary place David had prepared
as a shelter for the ark of the covenant. There was nothing
elaborate about it. In fact, David himself did not think the
temporary tabernacle was even adequate, and he pleaded
with God to let him build a permanent, more elaborate,
temple.
So understand what David is saying in our psalm. It was
not the structure, or the location per se, that gave him a place
of sanctuary. And the beauty of the Lord He wanted to
behold had nothing to do with the temple itself or its
furnishings. It was not about the rituals involved in the
sacrifice, because those rituals were deliberately bloody, and
anything but beautiful.
But when David speaks of "the beauty of the Lord" in verse
4, he is talking about the glories of divine truthCthe truth as
revealed in God's Word, which is the truth on which Israel's
worship was based.
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That is reflected in these very psalms. This was the music
of Israel's worship: revealed truth. Scripture. God's Word in
written form, celebrating His attributes, rehearsing His
faithfulness, exalting His glory, just the way this psalm does.
And Israel's worship was so much focused on the truth
revealed in verbal form that the important thing about the
psalms themselves was not the musical accompaniment they
were sung to, but the truth they conveyed. We know that the
psalms were sung, and Psalm 150 outlines a whole orchestra
of musical and percussion instruments that accompanied
them. But the tunes were not preserved for us. The words
were.
For all the debates and arguments about musical styles in
church worship today, we should not lose sight of the fact
that the real beauty of Israel's corporate worship was
embodied in the truth the psalms conveyed, not in the
musical style or the tunes. In Hebrew poetry, it's the ideas
that rhyme, not the sound of the words. That's why Hebrew
poetry is full of parallelisms. The "beauty" was unveiled in
the truth the words expressed. That's why Scripture was at
the heart of all true corporate worship in Israel. You see that
clearly in Nehemiah 8, where the people of Jerusalem stood
for hours as the priests read the word of God.
That, I believe, is the "beauty" David wrote about in this
psalm. When he speaks in verse 4 about "inquir[ing]" at the
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Temple, that is the implication. He wanted to learn more
about God and immerse himself in the truth of God's Word,
which is where the beauty and glory of the Lord are most
clearly unveiled for us.
You'll see David's passion for the truth expressed again in
the prayer section of the psalmCespecially verse 11, where
he prays, "Teach me Your way, O LORD."
But before we leave this first point, let me point out a
couple more features of David's testimony to a hostile world.
Don't miss the tone of unshakable confidence that runs
throughout these first six verses. The first verse twice raises
the question of whom David has to fear with the Lord as his
fortress. It's the very same note of confidence the Apostle
Paul sounds in Romans 8:31: "If God is for us, who can be
against us?" Verses 2-3; he rehearses the fact that his
enemies always meet their downfall. Verse 4, he testifies that
he desires this one thing from the Lord: a permanent place of
habitation and sanctuary and worship in the Lord's own
house. And then in verses 5-6, he expresses confidence that
the Lord will grant that one request. "In the secret place of His
tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.
And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around
me; Therefore I will offer sacrifices of joy in His tabernacle; I will
sing, yes, I will sing praises to the LORD."
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Here's a geographical fact: the place where David brought
the ark of the covenant to rest was the highest point in the
ancient city of Jerusalem. Even today, there is a rock that
protrudes from the top of the Temple mount. I've seen it.
Today it's inside the mosque known as the Dome of the
Rock, which derives its name from that high outcropping of
rock. David pictures himself situated on a high rock like that,
safely inside the Lord's own pavilion, lifted up far above his
enemies. It's an image of the victor's positionCand to David,
this would be the very pinnacle of earthly victory: to "offer
sacrifices of joy in His tabernacle [and] sing praises to the
LORD."
That requires most of us to adjust our thinking a bit,
doesn't it? Think about this: The one thing David desired
more than anything else in life is something you and I can do
freely, any time we like. We can enjoy the fellowship of
God's people in unbridled worship together right here. We
get to behold the beauty of the Lord and hear His truth taught
clearly and in-depth all the timeCand if the weekly corporate
gatherings of the church are not enough, we can listen to
recorded sermons again and again. We're not being pursued
by armies or hounded by evildoers who want to kill us.
And yet sometimes we act as if there is more pleasure to
be found in worldly diversions than in heavenly worship.
Sometimes we act as if the assembly of evildoers has more to
Psalm 27 24
offer than the congregation of the Lord. If that's the true
measure of where our hearts are, then a lot of us need to
repent. David's prayer needs to be our prayer.
So look at the second section of this psalm. It'sC
2. A PRAYER (TO GOD) VV. 7-12
We can't spend a lot of time in this section. I've already
pointed out a few things about it. But the thing to notice, first
of all, is that there is a distinct change in tone starting with
verse 7. Up to that point, David is confident; resolute;
fearless. But starting in verse 7, he is pleading with God for
help.
The shift is so dramatic that some commentators have
suggested that perhaps these are really two different psalms,
written by different authors. Of course, that's rubbish. There's
no incompatibility between the faith David expresses in the
first six verses and the plea for divine grace he makes in the
next six verses. In fact, David's prayer for grace and mercy
simply underscores what we already said about the tone of
the opening verse: this is not a carnal self-confidence. It is an
expression of trust from someone who knows his only hope
is in the Lord and who has cast himself on God alone for
redemption from the guilt of sin and deliverance from the
evil consequences of sin.
Sanctuary 25
This prayer is, first of all, the cry of a penitent heart.
David begins the prayer section with an explicit plea for
grace and mercy. "Be gracious to me" (verse 7); and (verse 9)
"Hide not your face from me. Turn not your servant away in
anger." Implicit in those expressions is David's own
recognition that he has sinned. He is not worthy of the Lord's
goodness to him, but he recognizes his profound need for
divine grace, and he has both the faith and the courage to
plead for it.
That highlights the difference between worldly anxiety
and godly fear. David detested one kind of fear and
cultivated the other. When it came to his enemies, he was
heroic, refusing to waste energy worrying about what they
might do to him. When it came to the Lord, David knew that
the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. So after
declaring that he is unafraid, even when surrounded by
whole armies of human adversaries, He pleads with God for
mercy and grace.
I pointed out that David's prayer is devoid of any pleas for
the destruction of his enemies. What he does pray for is a
clearer vision of God. This is a perfect parallel and really just
a further elaboration on the "one thing" he said he desires: "to
gaze upon the beauty of the LORD." He wants that
unobstructed vision of God's glory. Verse 9: "Hide not your
face from me."
Psalm 27 26
That's poetic language, of course. He does not literally
expect to look into the face of God. In Exodus 33:20, God
said to Moses, "You cannot see my face, for man shall not see
me and live." But remember that David is acknowledging his
sinfulness and his need of divine grace. "Hide not your face
from me" is simply another plea for mercy. It's a parallel of
the next expression: "Turn not your servant away in anger." In
other words, "Don't turn away from me, and don't turn me
away from You."
Also, when you read it in light of verse 8, it underscores
the fact that what David really sought was truthCspecifically,
truth about God. A clearer understanding of God's
self-revelation. Verse 8: " You have said, 'Seek my face.' My
heart says to you, 'Your face, LORD, do I seek.'" David declares
his obedience to the Word of God by echoing what God said
and owning the Lord's command as the desire of his own
heart. The command in this case was to seek the Lord's
faceCto pursue a knowledge of God as He has revealed
Himself. And in David's own words, he had already declared
that this was his heart's deepest desire: "to gaze upon the
beauty of the LORD."
Therefore he says (verse 11), "Teach me your way, O
LORD." That is a prayer the Lord will always answer, because
it is in perfect accord with his will for us.
Sanctuary 27
Before we move on, notice verse 10: "For my father and my
mother have forsaken me, but the LORD will take me in." We're
not to imagine that David's mother and father literally turned
against him. Nothing in Scripture ever suggests that David's
relationship with his parents was strained. In fact, when he
was still a fairly young man, hiding in a cave from Saul, 1
Samuel 22:1 says David's parents came to be with him. He
was so concerned for their welfare that 1 Samuel 22:3 says
he traveled to Moab and made a treaty with the Moabite king
to provide his parents a place of refuge.
Verse 10 probably suggests that by the time David wrote
this psalm his parents were dead, so they could no longer
stand with him against his enemies. But David recognized
that the Lord would be with him forever.
The prayer section closes with this (verse 11): "lead me on
a level path because of my enemies." In other words, smooth
out the bumps in the road of my life that my enemies place
there, so that I can more easily devote myself to the duty of
seeking your face. Verse 12: "Give me not up to the will of my
adversaries; for false witnesses have risen against me, and they
breathe out violence." Hide me; hold me; keep me safe; grant
me sanctuary in your pavilion. RememberCthat is the theme
that ties the whole psalm together.
It's still the one thing that David has asked of the Lord.
That is the whole essence of his prayer here. It is a prayer for
Psalm 27 28
sanctuary in the Lord's own presenceCa prayer that is every
bit as bold as the testimony David began the psalm with.
So we have heard David's testimony and listened in on his
prayer. The last, brief section of the psalm isC
3. A SERMON (TO HIMSELF) VV. 13-14
Two short verses constitute the sermon at the end of this
psalm. Verse 13 is another affirmation of David's conviction
that the Lord is on his side. It is an emphatic statement of his
trust in the Lord: "I believe that I shall look upon the goodness
of the LORD in the land of the living!" The grammatical
construction in the Hebrew reads like a conditional
statement: "Unless I believed . . . " Most modern translations
supply words to fill in what the Hebrew merely implies. So if
you are reading the New American Standard Bible, it says
this: "I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would
see the goodness of the LORD In the land of the living."
That, in David's mind, is the singular answer to utter
despair in a sin-cursed world: to "look upon the goodness of
the LORD in the land of the living." It is what he has been
saying from the beginning: if you want an answer to this
life's troubles, you'll never find a satisfactory answer apart
from a clear vision of the beauty of the Lord. So if you
struggle under a heavy load of trials, as David did, set your
heart on worship, and wait on the Lord.
Sanctuary 29
This is not only a powerful expression of David's faith; it
is also a practical reminder to himself that "th[ose] who wait
for the LORD shall renew their strength."
David's prayer in verse 11 was, "Teach me your way, O
LORD." Lesson number one, Isaiah 55:8: "My thoughts are not
your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the
LORD." God's timing is rarely in sync with our expectations,
either. So it is crucial to wait upon Him. Run ahead, and you
are stuck with what you can do in your own strength. Wait
on Him, and both your faith and your energy will be
strengthened. That is why worship offers such a perfect place
of sanctuary in the midst of this world's troubles.
That's the very message of Isaiah 40:27-31:
Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is
the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is
unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no
might he increases strength.
30 Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men
shall fall exhausted;
31 but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their
strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they
shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.