START WITH SCRIPTURE:
Psalm 20
CLICK HERE TO READ SCRIPTURE ON BIBLEGATEWAY.COM
OBSERVE:
This Psalm begins with the Psalmist’s intercession for others. These prayers are generous, and are grounded in the faithfulness represented by the temple sacrifices. But the application is very personal:
May He grant you your heart’s desire,
and fulfill all your counsel.
The first half of the Psalm is on behalf of the ones for whom he intercedes, from verses 1 – 5.
The second half of the Psalm (verses 6-9) focuses on the Psalmist’s declaration of faith. It seems a kind of credo:
Now I know that Yahweh saves his anointed.
He will answer him from his holy heaven,
with the saving strength of his right hand.
The Psalmist underscores the ultimate source of victory and blessing and protection — not from the conventional sources of success, but from the Lord alone:
Some trust in chariots, and some in horses,
but we trust the name of Yahweh our God.
Chariots and horses were the equivalent of tanks and missiles today. There is no question that the mightiest war machine that exists is dwarfed by the power of God.
Therefore those who trust in Yahweh are unbowed and unbeaten:
They are bowed down and fallen,
but we rise up, and stand upright.
Save, Yahweh!
Let the King answer us when we call!
APPLY:
This Psalm is a reminder that we are invited to lift up virtually anything to God in prayer — our distress and our fears, but also the desires of our heart and our plans for success. There is nothing that cannot or should not be brought before God.
However, there is also a divine perspective to take into consideration. We are to remember that our trust and our source of strength is to come from God alone, not from conventional human means.
What are the chariots and horses in which we are tempted to trust today? Human techniques and technology? Personality and personal charisma? Or do we ground our hope in God alone? What would that look like for us?
As with the shepherd boy David, when we humble ourselves before God, then we can be lifted up:
They are bowed down and fallen,
but we rise up, and stand upright.
RESPOND:
This Psalm is not intended to turn God into a kind of “Magic Genie” who gives us all of our desires and makes all of our plans succeed.
The truth is that the only true satisfaction and success is to be found in God alone. Psalm 37:4 puts it this way:
Also delight yourself in Yahweh,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
The order in which these are mentioned is a significant hint about priority — first delight in the Lord, and then your desires will be fulfilled, chiefly because the most profound desire we have is for God. Jesus says:
seek first God’s Kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things will be given to you as well (Matthew 6:33).
Lord, give me your perspective on the desires of my heart, and my plans. Remind me that your desires for my life, and your plans, will fulfill me far more than my own selfish ambitions. Amen.
PHOTOS:
The background for “Psalm 20:7” is “a wall as texture” by Marc is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.
SOAR Lectionary Bible Study 