Year 8, Day 170: Psalms 17-18

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Today we have two psalms of David.  Both psalms are focused on the nature of God and His deliverance.  Both psalms assume the righteousness of the psalmist.

Look at this second point.  There’s no doubt who David is.  This is the man who had Uriah killed so that he could take his wife.  In fact, he had multiple wives at the same time!  Here is a man who struggled to keep his children under control.  Here is a man who certainly had his faults, especially in his personal life.

However, David doesn’t assume perfection.  David is righteous because his heart desires the Lord.  There is a difference between perfection and righteousness in spite of the fact that we often conflate the two concepts.  Perfection means that a person is without error.  Righteous means that in spite of one’s condition God has deemed the person justified.  When our hearts incline to Him, He makes us righteous.  We, like David, can have significant flaws yet still be righteous in God’s eyes.  We need not be perfect, we simply need to pursue the Lord and His ways.

Having said all of this, now turn to what David says about the Lord.  It is the Lord who caused David to rise above his enemies.  It is the Lord who fought for him.  It is the Lord who delivered him.  The Lord thunders from heaven.

Look at what David says about the character of the Lord.  He is merciful, blameless, pure, saving, a light, a rock, and strength.  Against the wicked He is judgmental, tortuous, and confrontational.  He pursues what is good and casts off that which is evil.

All of these things combined is why David knows that God will listen when David calls to Him.  If the Lord is righteous, then the Lord will hear those who pursue righteousness.  It is a natural conclusion to make.  Why wouldn’t God desire to hear from the people whose heart is inclined in the same way as His own?

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