Hi and Welcome to training for life redeemed. I am Dan. I’m here with my father, Dr David Jackson. We are looking through some of the Psalms. At the moment we are up to Psalm 57. Dad…are you going to read the psalm for us?

Psalm 57

⁰ For the director. Do not destroy.

A miktam of David,

when he fled from the face of Saul in a cave.

¹ Be gracious to me God, be gracious to me,

because my life takes refuge in you.

In the shade of your wings I take refuge

until he passes over chasms.

² I call to God Most High,

to God who completes for me.

³ He sends from heavens and he saves me.

He takes on the one who pants after me.

Selah

God sends his covenant faithfulness and his truth.

⁴ My life is in the midst of lions,

I lie down to consuming sons of man.

Their teeth are spear and arrows,

and their tongues sharp swords.

⁵ Be high above the heavens, God,

Your glory over all the earth.

⁶ They set a net for me to step in.

My life bends down.

They dig a pit in front of my face.

They fall into the middle of it.

Selah

⁷ God is the one who sets my heart.

My heart is set.

I will sing and I will make music.

⁸ Rouse my honour.

Rouse harp and lyre.

I will rouse the dawn.

⁹ I praise you among the peoples, my lord.

I make music to you in among the peoples.

¹⁰ For wide across the heavens is your covenant faithfulness,

and your truth extends to the clouds.

¹¹ Be high above heavens, God;

Your glory over all the earth.

2.29 Dan

Well dad. The psalm at the beginning he talks about the context which is always good. Context each time. He’s running away from Saul in a cave…David’s hiding, Saul’s hunting. Saul goes and relieves himself, loses a bit of his coat and at the same time, And David’s like, “Look I could have killed you but I didn’t.” and Saul is like “oh no no. What a fool I am” and runs away and then needs to come back and try again…Because he’s a fool. He is that. Do I need to know more context than that?…

3.03 David

We walked that gully…You walked that gully. Yeah Yeah…Wadi David Just off the Dead Sea. The area round about it is dry. Good sheep country I suppose. As you go up the gully at the top of the gully there’s this massive freshwater spring. If you’re going to hide out you need fresh water. And what better hide out than a place that’s just absolutely littered with limestone caves. So you know I think of one of the caves up in the Jenolan caves. They found the remains of a bush ranger from the 1850s sixties, who had been hiding out up there And we think he might have got lost but you find all sorts of stuff. You know outlaws and whatnot, hiding out in caves in the mountains and it’s pretty far.

This must’ve been some cave. If he’s got 400 men with him. Yeah. And…they don’t get noticed while Saul comes in to go the loo…

So there is…You can just imagine, now’s my chance to slit his throat. And David won’t lay hands on the Lord’s anointed. it’s God’s job to appoint those in authority and God’s job to you know, David is not a legitimate king if he does it through his own sword, it has to be God who puts him in place. There’s a real, there’s an exercise of faith there that craves the legitimacy of God’s approval over that of the population or whatever. So Saul’s been accusing him of wanting to assassinate Saul And that’s the justification for hunting David down. You know he’s going to kill the king. And now he’s got the opportunity and these men are all for it. I talk about peer pressure…And now turns into comedy…

I must admit. I’ve been in a few caves. You sneak up behind your enemy. While he’s having a bog…And he’s taken his outer coat off I assume. Now surely he wasn’t wearing it when he was. You know the bit off and doing these business. So you know the other coat is there. And you take it.

I half imagine he’s cut the whole backend. Got it, goes out You And he’s missing the back of his coat, he might’ve just cut the hem off I don’t know. But. That to be able to hold that up and prove my integrity prove my innocence. So that the whole of Saul’s army witnesses it.

And then an awareness dawns on you. God set this up to vindicate me. This whole thing has been set up by God. Not so that I could kill him. But so that I would resist that temptation. And do the right thing. and prove that to the people of Judah and Israel.

That this is the kind of king I am I’m not here to take the kingdom by force and that. My mind then you know you’re talking last week about How does this point is to Jesus. Jesus standing in front of Pontius Pilate saying. You can’t touch me without my father’s approval. I could snap my fingers and a hundred million angels would come down here and take you guys. Out. But I’m here. Because God’s plan is for me to die for my people. And I’ll do whatever he says. Hmm. so this this idea of godly faithfulness.

And the cost of it. but if you let go of the faithfulness, nothing has any point. Yep.

7.05 Dan

Now this psalm is lovely to read It talks a lot about God’s graciousness He’s covered up, Faithfulness is in there.

As you know he’s fulfilling you know he’s the one who anointed David so he’s going to protect him. He’s made Saul look a bit like a fool it talks about you know, They’d dig and…dig a pit for in front of my face And then they fall in the middle of it Yeah…

It’s David very much reflecting and going Yeah. There’ve been hunting me Without any kind of success. And they just keep falling over themselves

7.38 David

I mean Saul set this whole thing up. You know David is wanting to assassinate the Lord’s anointed, let’s go out and kill him, and he’s got all the support of the country to do that. And as he does it, it ends up smacking him in the face. Proving that he’s a liar. so he’s fallen into his own.

There’s a beautiful picture in there too of David talks about the chasms. I take refuge in the shade of your wings until he passes over the chasms and English versions Have a problem translating that one. But you stand in that gully. Definitely can you  imagine all the troops going along the high Ridge, looking for David and he’s hiding in his little cave. And you go I wish he’d just keep going, And instead he drops down in front of your cave and comes in to get to the loo and you go

By the way there’s a beautiful American translation. I think it was the good news Bible in this passage. That said that a Saul went into the cave to go to the bathroom, Which makes every Australian laugh, “where’s the bathroom?”

Yeah. So there’s that wonderful feeling of. God turning the tables on these enemies all the time. Hmm.

8.58 Dan

Yeah And just clearly showing his covenant faithfulness. I love seeing the words,  “covenant faithfulness” It’s. So rarely translated that way. Yeah.

9.07 David

The English versions translate. Khesed as loving kindness Yeah. and it’s not. The word love isn’t there The word kindness isn’t there. It’s faithfulness. it’s the fact that you made a commitment and you are going to stick to it.

9.23 Dan

And that’s what you’re called to as well. When you became a Christian we talk about faith It’s about faithfulness to the covenant. That God has made.

9.30 David

And God has committed to himself to that, to the point where he dies in our place…

It’s a wonderful thing. Yeah…

9.40 Dan

So Dad for us today we’re looking at this Psalm. Hmm. I don’t know how to look like. We talked about with the last why would I get haunted too much We don’t want too worried. we did talk a little bit last time about like spiritual warfare stuff but today. How do I apply this to me? How do I look at it Like, yes God’s covenant be faithful. I get that. Like that’s for sure. You know what’s up is by the end of the bargain. I don’t need to doubt that that’s quite a you know, Something that comes out of it quite clear. what else can I get out of this

10.11 David

I think the punchline for this for me as a believer That is I look back at those experiences. Where we’ve seen God’s faithfulness we’ve seen our reputation vindicated We’ve seen enemies shoot themselves in the foot. You know, There’s an element of, we’ve seen all of that in history. Maybe in our own experience, but I think. what is it Verse seven onwards. He talks about God is the one who set my heart. So here I am and I’m feeling. Vulnerable and you know I could be pulled this way I could be pulled that way. how do I know? I went through a phase as a young believer. You know how do I know? That I will still be committed in 12 months time That sort of thing. And David’s very aware. it’s God who has called me. God who has made me a new creature. God who has set my heart.

I didn’t wake up one morning so oh good I’ll be the Lord’s anointed. Suddenly my whole life has just picked up and put in the place where he wants it to do his thing for his glory. so what’s my assurance of salvation in this crazy mess. And David ends this song singing about that. And you can, you can imagine the feeling you know…

When you finished with this and Saul’s army has said. Saul’s got up and said You know I’m in the wrong David you’re in the right I’m sorry I’ll go home. You know you’re a better man than I am. And David and his 400 men sitting down looking at each other going. Wow.

Hmm, what just happened? And David’s saying to the Lord. You set my heart You put me in this place. This is your doing. And it’s utterly utterly amazing.

So his response is this repeated line Be high above the heavens God your glory over all the earth. he is gobsmacked. And this is a song about people who are. Oh wow. Yeah.

I was scared I was upset I was frightened all the rest of it And now. What an outcome. and that’s the God we serve Yep.

12.28 Dan

It’s always good to reflect on. Yeah, not just how God’s been faithful throughout history of the Bible but also has been faithful to you.

In Your personal context. And as you’ve been faithful seeing his faithfulness as well.

12.42 David

I think sometimes we miss that when we do a, like a home Bible study. we’ve been writing some home Bible studies recently and I looked at it I think. Often in our home Bible study we do all the comprehension questions you know… But what we, what we forget to do is tell the stories. Hmm, the stories of what God has done in my life in your life. There’s memories in those songs for every believer. Yeah. We need to make sure that we pass those memories onto other people. because God has done wonderful things. and the things that we should sing about.

13.19 Dan

Yep. Definitely…That’d be just to the end of this episode that is episode 113. So if you want to come and get the study notes for this episode, you go to trainingforliferedeemedcom/113. Make sure you’ve hit that subscribe button come back and join us again next week. we do it on 58 And then we’ll talk to you about what we are going to do next after we did I do these few psalms.

Thanks guys.