Our Help Is in the Name of the LORD
A song of ascents. Of David.
“If the LORD had not been on our side—let Israel now declare—if the LORD had not been on our side when men attacked us, when their anger flared against us, then they would have swallowed us alive, then the floods would have engulfed us, then the torrent would have overwhelmed us, then the raging waters would have swept us away.
Blessed be the LORD, who has not given us as prey to their teeth. We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowler; the net is torn, and we have slipped away. Our help is in the name of the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.”
David’s psalms are scattered throughout the Book of Psalms, and this is one the pilgrims are chanting on the way to Jerusalem. “If the LORD had not been on our side—let Israel now declare—if the LORD had not been on our side when men attacked us, when their anger flared against us, then they would have swallowed us alive, then the floods would have engulfed us, then the torrent would have overwhelmed us, then the raging waters would have swept us away.” When we remember David’s struggles while Saul was pursuing him, we realize that Saul nearly caught David on several occasions. At one point, David and his men had taken refuge in a cave, only for Saul to decide to take a nap in that same cave! David cut off a small piece of Saul’s robe while Saul was asleep and then woke Saul up and showed it to him.
Even after David became king, he still faced enormous challenges. There were probably many times when David felt as if he had been caught in a wadi with flood waters barreling down in a huge wave threatening to sweep him away. As the pilgrims continue on their journey, they are remembering all the times that God delivered them miraculously.
“Blessed be the LORD, who has not given us as prey to their teeth. We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowler; the net is torn, and we have slipped away. Our help is in the name of the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.” Those who caught birds generally laid snares or nets that would then be triggered by the bird’s weight. As soon as the bird tripped the snare or the net, it would spring up, catching the bird and holding it fast. Here David is avowing that even when he has been caught in Satan’s snares, God has torn the spiritual netting, allowing him to escape. Only God can deliver in this fashion.
APPLICATION: How many of us can look back over our lives and see times when God has delivered us from our own stupidity? One Sunday afternoon when I was ten years old, I decided to see if I could escape from the second story of our old farm house in case there was a fire and I couldn’t get down the stairs. I climbed on out the front porch roof and jumped ten feet to the ground, landing on soft grass. Blessedly, I rolled when I jumped and I didn’t injure myself. God protected me from physical injury that day, but God has delivered me from many more dangerous situations since then. I must confess that most of the time, I have failed to recognize God’s deliverance until well after the danger has been thwarted. Has this kept me from further recklessness? Well, sometimes.
All of us are pilgrims passing through life. We need the Lord on our side to make it through successfully to heaven. Even if we don’t do stupid things that test God’s ability to deliver, none of us is good enough to make it to heaven on our own. All of us sin and fall short of God’s glory. Jesus Christ has come as a man and has died in his innocence so that he can serve as the blood sacrifice for our sins. But we must believe in Jesus and accept that sacrifice he has made.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help those who read these words to trust that Jesus has died for them, and that he has conquered death and the grave. Help them to trust You for the rest of their lives. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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