Day 134

Psalm 63 part 2 

David was motivated by the lovingkindness (chesed) of God which was better, and more meaningful than life itself. David both knew and experienced something of God’s unfailing love (RSV) that many believers today do not know and experience. This was his pearl of great price! 

If we have nothing to say about God’s goodness, the probable cause is our want of experiencing it.  Have you spoken with God this morning? Do you allow a day to pass without conversing with Him? Can it be right for us to treat the Lord with mute indifference?” 

The lifting of the hands (v4) was not only the common posture of prayer among the ancient Hebrews, it was especially appropriate for praise. It displayed the anticipation of gratefully receiving from God and the sense of surrender to Him. 

In v5 he spoke of the deep satisfaction that comes to a surrendered seeker of God; receiving His great love; praising God without reservation. 

David thought that there were not enough hours in the day to think upon God’s greatness and goodness. Therefore, he also used the ‘night watches’ (v6) to ‘meditate’ upon God. This is an expression that stresses the slow progress of the hours. 

In this psalm, he is giving thanks and praise for God’s repeated faithfulness. The idea of shelter in the ‘shadow’ of God’s wings is repeated many times in the psalms. Sometimes it has the idea of protection, as a mother bird shelters her young chicks. Other times it has the idea of presence, as in the wings of the cherubim that surround the throne of God. Here the idea of presence seems to best fit that context. If he had been meditating on the sanctuary, (v2) then these are wings of eternal security covering the Ark of the Covenant. 

Two things are necessary for such triumph as this. These are indicated in the opening words of the psalm. First, there must be the consciousness of personal relationship, ‘O God, you are my God’; and, second, there must be earnest seeking after God: ‘Early will I seek you.’ Relationship must be established. Fellowship must be cultivated. Victory is assured (v9-11).