I Take Refuge in You – A Shiggaion (High quality voices) of David, which he sang to the LORD concerning Cush, a Benjamite.
“O LORD my God, I take refuge in You; save me and deliver me from all my pursuers, or they will shred my soul like a lion and tear me to pieces with no one to rescue me.
O LORD my God, if I have done this, if injustice is on my hands, if I have rewarded my ally with evil, if I have plundered my foe without cause, then may my enemy pursue me and overtake me; may he trample me to the ground and leave my honor in the dust. Selah
Arise, O LORD, in Your anger; rise up against the fury of my enemies. Awake, my God, and ordain judgment. Let the assembled peoples encompass You; take Your seat over them on high. The LORD judges the peoples; vindicate me, O LORD, according to my righteousness and integrity. Put an end to the evil of the wicked, but establish the righteous, O righteous God who searches hearts and minds.
My shield is with God, who saves the upright in heart. God is a righteous judge and a God who feels indignation each day. If one does not repent, God will sharpen His sword; He has bent and strung His bow. He has prepared His deadly weapons; He ordains His arrows with fire.
Behold, the wicked man travails with evil; he conceives trouble and births falsehood. He has dug a hole and hollowed it out; he has fallen into a pit of his own making. His trouble recoils on himself, and his violence falls on his own head.
I will thank the LORD for His righteousness and sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High.“
Once more, David is begging God for help and protection. Evidently, Cush, one of King Saul’s tribesmen, has been pursuing David, probably in hopes of eliminating him as a possible candidate for king.
Originally, God wanted to be the only King over the Israelites; however, they whined and rebelled, demanding a human king. The prophet Samuel attempted to warn the Israelites; however, they persisted. God appointed Saul from the tribe of Benjamin as the first king over Israel; however, Saul proved to be a disappointment. Rather than staying close to God and following God’s commands to the letter, Saul “got the big head” and played fast and loose with God’s commands.
When it became obvious that Saul was consistently disobedient, God sent the prophet Samuel to anoint David, the son of a wealthy farmer named Jesse from the town of Bethlehem. David was the youngest son, of whom Jesse thought so little that when Samuel arrived, Jesse left David to remain in the field with the sheep. Samuel viewed all the sons Jesse thought were important; however, not one of them was God’s choice for the next king. It was Samuel who had to demand that David come in from the field to be anointed.
Once David was anointed, the favor of God began to rest on him in a remarkable way. During the time David had been out in the fields with the sheep, he had begun praying and worshiping God. Now God promoted David so that he became a mighty warrior as well. Refusing to acknowledge God’s Will, Saul and his supporters attempted to eliminate David, hounding his men and him throughout the Judean wilderness. It was likely during this time that David composed this psalm.
“O LORD my God, I take refuge in You; save me and deliver me from all my pursuers, or they will shred my soul like a lion and tear me to pieces with no one to rescue me.” David has gone from being a court favorite to running for his life. People whom David has trusted are now informing on him in hopes of currying favor with King Saul.
“O LORD my God, if I have done this, if injustice is on my hands, if I have rewarded my ally with evil, if I have plundered my foe without cause, then may my enemy pursue me and overtake me; may he trample me to the ground and leave my honor in the dust.”
“Arise, O LORD, in Your anger; rise up against the fury of my enemies. Awake, my God, and ordain judgment. Let the assembled peoples encompass You; take Your seat over them on high. The LORD judges the peoples; vindicate me, O LORD, according to my righteousness and integrity. Put an end to the evil of the wicked, but establish the righteous, O righteous God who searches hearts and minds.”
David’s hands are clean, and he realizes that actions have consequences. This psalm is obviously an early one written before the shameful incident with Bathsheba.
“My shield is with God, who saves the upright in heart. God is a righteous judge and a God who feels indignation each day. If one does not repent, God will sharpen His sword; He has bent and strung His bow. He has prepared His deadly weapons; He ordains His arrows with fire.
Behold, the wicked man travails with evil; he conceives trouble and births falsehood. He has dug a hole and hollowed it out; he has fallen into a pit of his own making. His trouble recoils on himself, and his violence falls on his own head. I will thank the LORD for His righteousness and sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High.“ David’s back is to the wall; if God fails him, he will die quickly. David is trusting God to deliver him.
APPLICATION: What does being a whistle blower have to do with David and why designate this psalm as “The Whistle Blower’s Psalm?” Corruption is spreading throughout the world and political agendas have become more important than anything else. Honest men and women who see problems and attempt to draw public attention to them are stifled at best and conveniently eliminated at worst. One horrific example is the number of men and women who have attempted to report problems with various aspects of the behavior of a former U.S. president and his wife, only to die under mysterious circumstances.
Yet another set of whistle blowers having a tough time are those pointing out the deficiencies of electric vehicles, including the deplorable conditions under which the lithium required for these vehicles is being mined.
In an earlier age, Galileo was persecuted by the Catholic Church for teaching that the earth revolved around the sun and not the other way around. Galileo spent the rest of his life under house arrest. It took 359 years and the leadership of Pope John II to recognize the wrong. On October 31, 1992, he (Pope John II) formally apologized for the “Galileo Case” in the first of many famous apologies during his papacy.” (https://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1997272_1997273_1997285,00.
html#:~:text=Galileo%20took%20back%20his%20statement,famous%20apologies%20during%20his%20papacy.)
Many of us face our own trials that, while far less politically significant, still present major challenges. We can freely pray this psalm, trusting that the same God who helped David will continue to help us also. Hebrews 4:16 tells us, “ Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help all who read these words and who are suffering unjust persecution to put their trust in You as they pray the words of this psalm. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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