Category: Psalm

2 Samuel 23:2 “The Spirit of the LORD spoke through me; His word was on my tongue.”
I struggle with David. He is called a man after God’s own heart, but he was so fallibly human, there are so any times when his flawed humanity showed through so clearly. But God knows his heart, and his heart belongs to God.
2 Samuel 23:3-4 …“When one rules over people in righteousness, when he rules in the fear of God, he is like the light of morning at sunrise on a cloudless morning….”
I, too, struggle with my fallibility. Way too often, my flawed humanity shows through clearly. But my heart belongs to God as well. I long for Him and seek Him daily. Even when I fail, even when I mess up, in the quiet of my heart, I seek His presence.
2 Samuel 23:5 “If my house we’re not right with God, surely He would not have made with me an everlasting covenant, arranged and secured in every part….”
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You that You know our hearts and that You treat us with mercy and grace. Help us to show Your mercy and grace to each other as well, Lord. Help us not to judge but only to love as You love us. Draw us closer. Amen.
Psalm 84:10 A single day in Your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else! I would rather be a gatekeeper in the house if my God than live the good life in the homes of the wicked.
Have a blessed day.

2 Samuel 15:4 And Absalom would add, “If only I were appointed judge in the land! Then everyone who has a complaint or case could come to me and I would see that they receive justice.”
There is still so much manipulation and deception in this chapter, but I connect to David the parent and David’s faith journey in very real ways. When his oldest son raped his daughter, David did nothing. When his son, Absalom, killed his brother to avenge his sister, David banished him for years, eventually allowing him back, but still banishing Absalom from his sight. I think he clearly sees the flaws of his parenting. As a flawed parent myself, facing the reality of your parenting mistakes is incredibly sobering. You can’t undo. You can only apologize and try to move forward in a more positive direction.
2 Samuel 15:10 Then Absalom sent secret messages throughout the tribes of Israel to say, “As soon as you hear the sound of the trumpets, then say, ‘Absalom is king in Hebron.’”
On his faith journey, commentary tells me David wrote at least six Psalms during this period: Psalms 3, 41, 55, 61, 62, and 63. Every single one of these Psalms cries out to God for mercy, peace, and rest. David seeks God, he longs for God, he know God is his unshakable fortress in his distress. His praise is humble and sincere, not obsequious. He knows his sin. He has humbled himself before God.
2 Samuel 15:30 But David continued up the Mount of Olives, weeping as he went; his head was covered and he was barefoot. All the people with him covered their heads too and were weeping as they went up.
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for the ability to humble myself before You, to admit my failures and shortcomings, to seek forgiveness and grace. Help me to show to others the same compassion that You lavish upon me. Draw me closer. Amen.
2 Samuel 15:37 So Hushai, David’s confidant, arrived at Jerusalem as Absalom was entering the city.
Have a blessed day.

2 Samuel 12:10 “Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised Me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.”
David wrote Psalm 51 after he fully realized his sin against God (probably after 2 Samuel 12:13) and was striving to humble himself in God’s presence. I have read the blurb at the beginning of the Psalm before, but I always come to this Psalm when I am struggling. To read it along with 2 Samuel 12 adds a new layer of depth for me.
2 Samuel 12:11 “This is what the LORD says: ‘Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity on you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight.’”
“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit with in me” (Psalm 51:10). “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and grant me a willing spirit to sustain me” (Psalm 51:12). My sins are nothing like David’s, but like David, I have cried out these verses to the Lord as I sit in the ashes of my hopes, begging God for restoration and renewal. And God, my precious Savior, gracious and loving and merciful, He hears our pleas. 
2 Samuel 12:12 “‘You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.’”
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for Your mercy and grace. Thank You for allowing us to see our way back to You when we lose our way. Thank You for the ability to humble ourselves before You. Restore to us the joy of Your salvation, Lord. Draw us closer. Amen.
2 Samuel 12:13 Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.”
Have a blessed day.

1 Samuel 23:2 [David] inquired of the LORD, saying, “Shall I go and attack these Philistines?” The LORD answered him….
David’s faithful obedience and the Lord’s steadfast love astound me in this section. Saul, the king Israel clamored for, isn’t doing his job. Instead of protecting the people, he’s laser-focused on eliminating David. So God sends David to protect the people of Keilah. Saul gets wind of it and makes plans to go—not to protect his people, but to kill David. Again, David goes to the Lord seeking guidance, and again he receives guidance and direction from God. Even when the Ziphites go to Saul and volunteer information on David’s whereabouts, David goes to God: “Surely God is my help; the Lord is the one who sustains me” (Psalm 54:4).
1 Samuel 23:4 Once again David inquired of the LORD, and the LORD answered him….
David helps me put my problems in perspective. I’m incredibly thankful no one, especially not a crazed monarch, is after me, trying to kill me. I’m thankful I’m not being asked to do the job of that crazed king by protecting his people. But I am asking myself: What IS God calling me to do? Who IS God calling me to protect and defend? How CAN I be most faithful to God in my roles as Christian, wife, mother, sister, friend, teacher? “Surely God is my help; the Lord is the one who sustains me” (Psalm 54:4).
1 Samuel 23:14 …Day after day Saul searched for him, but God did not give David into his hands.
Lord, Thank You for this day, this scripture, David’s example. There are so many unknowns in so many areas of my life right now, Lord. Help me to seek You and Your will every moment of every day. Help me to cling to You and to understand what You are calling me to do in Your name. Draw me closer. Amen.
1 Samuel 23:26 Saul was going along one side of the mountain, and David and his men were on the other side, hurrying to get away from Saul….
Have a blessed day.

1 Samuel 22:1a David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam….
David has a rich interior life that I never understood until commentary pointed me to the Psalms that correlate with this time. At the beginning of this chapter, he has just escaped from Gath by pretending to be insane so they didn’t realize he was the one who killed Goliath and take revenge.
1 Samuel 22:1a David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam….
Psalm 142 was written as David hides in the cave: “I cry aloud to the LORD; I lift up my voice to the LORD for mercy” (v1). Psalm 57 is also written during his time in the cave of Adullam: “Have mercy on me, my God, have mercy on me, for in You I take refuge” (v1). David cries out to God in his fear and doubt. He realigns himself fully with his Creator, and God hears him and guides him.
1 Samuel 22:1b …When his brothers and his father’s household heard about it, they went down to him there.
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for David’s example as he struggles with his fear and places his trust in You. There are so many unknowns in so many aspects of our world right now. Help us not forget that You are our refuge. Help us to cry to You for mercy in our fear. Help us to recognize the people You place in our lives to support us on Your path. Help us to walk that path knowing that we can trust in You completely. Draw us closer. Amen.
1 Samuel 22:2 All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their commander. About four hundred men were with him.
Have a blessed day.

1 Samuel 21:2 David answered Ahimelek the priest, “The king sent me on a mission and said to me. ‘No one is to know anything about the mission I am sending you on.’ As for my men, I have told them to meet me at a certain place.
David is lying. Granted, he is afraid of Saul and running for his life; however, I’d wager that he was at least a smidge afraid when he faced Goliath, so why is it different now? The answer is quite simple: When he faces Goliath, he knows he is with God, on God’s side. Now he is just afraid, and in his fear, he does not seek God. He seeks to save his own skin. Understandable, but not ideal for a man after God’s own heart.
1 Samuel 21:8 David asked Ahimelek, “Don’t you have a spear or a sword here? I haven’t brought my sword or any other weapon, because the king’s mission was urgent.”
Fortunately, David does eventually get his eyes back on God. Commentary directs me to Psalm 56, which is attributed to David when he is captured in Gath. Verse 1 shows his returning: “Be merciful to me, my God, for my enemies are in hot pursuit.” He’s still afraid, but he’s got his eyes on God again. And in Psalm 34, attributed to David when he feigns being a madman, David writes: “I sought the LORD, and He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears” (verse 4), and “The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit” (verse 18).
1 Samuel 21:10 That day David fled from Saul and went to Achish king of Gath.
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for understanding that our human tendency to fear makes us lose our focus. When we take our eyes off of You, You could cast us off completely, leaving us on our own. Thank You for Your grace and mercy, which allow us a path back to You. Always. Help us to stay focused on You. No matter what. Amen.
1 Samuel 21:13 So he pretended to be insane in their presence; and while he was in their hands he acted like a madman….
Have a blessed day.

1 Samuel 19:11a Saul sent men to David’s house to watch it and to kill him in the morning….
There is a lot going on in this chapter. It’s a veritable roller coaster ride of events, and David has every right to feel like the coaster is chasing him around the tracks. Yet commentary tells me that in the middle of all this madness, as Saul’s men are waiting outside David’s house to kill him, as David’s wife helps him escape through a window, this is when David composes Psalm 59.
1 Samuel 19:11b …But Michal, David’s wife, warned him….
“You are my strength, I watch for You; You, God, are my fortress, my God on whom I can rely” (Psalm 59:9-10). “But I will sing of Your strength, in the morning I will sing of Your love; for You are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble” (Psalm 59:16). “You are my strength, I sing praise to You; You, God, are my fortress, my God in whom I can rely” (Psalm 59:17).
1 Samuel 19:11c … “If you don’t run for your life tonight, tomorrow you’ll be killed.”
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for the faithful example of David: hunted and chased from his home, he had every right to be angry and bitter, yet he turned to You in trust and praise. Help me to develop a faith as strong, help me to be a woman after Your own heart. Draw me closer. Amen.
1 Samuel 19:12 So Michal let David down through a window, and he fled and escaped.
Have a blessed day.