January 11
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PSALM 70 – HASTEN TO HELP ME O GOD FOR I AM POOR AND NEEDY
Make haste, O God, to deliver me! O LORD, make haste to help me! 2 Let them be put to shame and confusion who seek my life! Let them be turned back and brought to dishonor who delight in my hurt! 3 Let them turn back because of their shame who say, “Aha, Aha!” 4 May all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you! May those who love your salvation say evermore, “God is great!” 5 But I am poor and needy; hasten to me, O God!
You are my help and my deliverer; O LORD, do not delay! – Psalm 70:1-5
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Martin Luther comment on this psalm as “This prayer is the shield, spear, thunderbolt and defense against every attack of fear, presumption [and] lukewarmness…which are especially dominant today.”
When you hear the urgency in the first verse of this psalm, you wonder why David would hasten the Lord to deliver him. We know that during his lifetime, David had so many enemies who were in pursuit to kill him. The rush is not about demanding his God to do something for him, but it is about his complete dependency on Him. It is almost like a child who would run to his parents for safety. It sounds like a helpless person wanting to be helped by someone whom he knows would surely come to his rescue. We hear intimacy from the way he addressed his Lord. David sounded so sure that God will do something about the plea because he is faithful to Him. How many of us Christians have this confidence in God? Sadly, many of us resort to relying on our own strength and try to solve our problems instead of running to our Lord God.
David even prays for the enemy’s confusion and shame. Boice comments on this verse as “The kindest thing we can pray for people who do wrong is that their plans will fail, for it may be that in their frustration they will see the folly and true end of evil and be reached for God.” The expression Aha! Aha is an exclamation of ridicule according to Easton’s bible dictionary. When David mentions this, he was emphasizing how these wicked people scornfully mocked him.
He ends this psalm with a praise of God, proclaiming how great He is and acknowledging his neediness and weakness. He also declares him as his only deliverer and help. Who can say “no” to such confident plea for deliverance? Do you think God will ignore the request of someone who knows him and trust him so well?
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REFLECTION
• Do you have an intimate relationship with God that you can ask Him anything just like how David asks Him?
Tag Archives: Psalm 70
O LORD, DO NOT DELAY Poem Devotional
January 8
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O LORD, DO NOT DELAY
Make haste, O God, to deliver me! O LORD, make haste to help me!
2 Let them be put to shame and confusion who seek my life!
Let them be turned back and brought to dishonor who delight in my hurt!
3 Let them turn back because of their shame who say, “Aha, Aha!”
4 May all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you!
May those who love your salvation say evermore, “God is great!”
5 But I am poor and needy; hasten to me, O God!
You are my help and my deliverer; O LORD, do not delay!
– Psalm 70:1-5
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In this psalm, we hear David prays for a haste deliverance from his enemies. David is being pursued by Saul who wants him dead. Despite all the things David did to support Saul, he was sought after by him because of jealousy. Since David was blessed with such strength to win many battles and Saul won a few, Saul’s ego got wounded. We hear David’s humble heart to seek God’s help and acknowledges his neediness before the Lord. Because he has a deep relationship with God, he addresses the Lord with such intimacy to ask him to hasten his deliverance from his enemies. How many of us believers have such confidence in our closeness with God?
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ADORATION: You are our deliverer, our protector! Praise be to the one who has made each one of us. We praise and honor your name, Lord Jesus Christ.
CONFESSION: Forgive me when I run to many things and people who cannot deliver me from the works of the enemy. Pardon my ego when I chase things that I feel insecure about to feed my pride.
THANKSGIVING: Thank you for your undying faithfulness to give us protection and direction when we are attacked or when we go astray.
SUPPLICATION: Help us to focus on you always so that we will only come to you for help as you are the only one who knows what is best for us.
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REFLECTION
• Do you have an intimacy with Jesus that you have a confidence like David to pour out your heart and needs?