Rev Dr Quek Suan Yew

Psalm 35 – Plead My Cause! (Part 3 of 3) [continued]

VI.The Plea for VINDICATION (vs. 22-28) – David acknowledged that the LORD had seen all that he endured from his enemies. The knowledge of the sovereignty of God in David’s life did not turn David into a robot. His heart felt all the bombardment of the unceasing harsh words and his soul turned from calmness to a boiling froth when his enemies assassinated his character and turned a nation that once adored David against him. The trials and persecution David endured drove him nearer and closer to his LORD. This literally fulfilled what the apostle Paul revealed when he said that all things work together for good to those who love the LORD and are called according to His purpose (cf. Romans 8:28). This is the truth that transcends time and location. The God who called David to be the best king Israel ever had allowed him to endure immeasurable persecution that drove him to his knees and to Christ in order that self confidence and pride might be put aside when David reigned over God's people. This has been how God prepared his servants in times past and is the same in the present. How many of us can testify of the trials God sent our way to prepare us for future service? When His servants think that they are ready for service, then they are not. When His servants realize that they are not ready because they are void of self confidence, then the LORD says to them "you are ready!" This was true of Moses, David, etc. There are no exceptions.

Those who serve the LORD in their own strength and confidence will fail and fall. God wants His servants to serve Him in His confidence and not theirs. These are the kinds of servants who will pray without ceasing and serve Him faithfully to the end. The only way to strip the servant of God of his pride and self-confidence before service is through trials and great humiliation and difficulties. They learn the priceless lesson of no confidence, no leaning on man or the arm of the flesh. These will all fail in time but not the arm of God. God’s servants cannot partially lean on God and the arm of the flesh. They must lean only on God and God alone to succeed when they do His spiritual work! Thus David declared that the LORD has seen. The LORD knows exactly what David was going through. It was a matter of when the LORD would intervene.

David implored the LORD not to be far from him. The LORD had never been far from David, His beloved servant. However, sometimes it feels as if the LORD is far from His servants especially when the persecution does not seem to stop. It is one of perspective. The mind believes that the LORD is never far from His servants. He never has and He never will. Knowing is one thing but experience is another. When trials seem to go on forever, one’s faith in the presence of the LORD can be affected. It does not turn the servant of God into an unfeeling robot. The feelings of hurt and pain and loneliness that the believer feels when all human relationships turn to ice are real. The mind pushes the truth of God to the background. When that happens faith is weakened. This feeling of the absence of the LORD comes to the fore and faith recedes. The LORD does not seem to be present when the persecution intensifies and seems to go on for a long time, hence, the cry from David for his LORD not to be far from him.

Verse 23 (synthetic parallelism) – David followed up with pleading. He pleaded with his LORD to stir up Himself like a man who slumbered. He added the verb "awake" for good measure. Of course David knew that the LORD neither slumbers nor sleeps. The LORD is all powerful. He never and can never get tired or sleepy. He is always alert and mindful of all His children who serve Him on earth. David was very specific in His cry to his LORD to awake. He asked for his LORD’s judgement. David was being unjustly hounded and persecuted by his enemies. They were attacking him from all directions. David felt lost and alone. David felt as if the LORD had gone to sleep because his trials did not seem to end but kept on increasing in number as well as in intensity. The life of a believer on this earth is to live for Christ which will definitely include persecution. Christ warned His disciples before His ascension that the world will hate all born again obedient believers who faithfully serve Him in holiness. Mark 13:12-13 "Now the brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son; and children shall rise up against their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death. 13 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved."All believers must endure to the end. David understood this too. This can be seen in David’s many psalms. He did not have as clear a picture as the New Testament saints because of progressive revelation. Believers today have the entire completed Bible to assure them of the abiding presence of God in times of persecution. Such elongated persecution will tend to cause God’s children to feel that perhaps the LORD has gone to sleep. Many of us who endure such evil unjust attacks can feel with and appreciate David's cry and feeling.

Notice that in the use of synthetic parallelism, David did not use the term "LORD", i.e. Jehovah which is a covenantal term. He used the words "God" and "Lord." The word "God" is "’elohiym" which emphasizes the almighty power of God, whereas "Lord" (i.e. "’adonay") is used here to emphasize the master servant relationship. Appealing to the power of God means that David was crying to God for intervention based upon His attribute of omnipotence. His enemies might escape the justice of man especially when they are kings themselves. They will not escape the judgement of God! David’s appeal for help was to the "Lord" because David was on earth doing God’s will and not his own will. He was to be the next king of Israel not by his own personal design or desire but by God’s sovereign appointment. His cause was God’s ordained cause. David did not ask to be king of Israel. God made him. Now the enemies were trying to destroy his ministry by their slanders and lies. "God must awake, and rise and stop them!" was David’s cry.

Verse 24 (synthetic parallelism) –More often than not, fathers on earth will help their children regardless of whether their children are right or wrong! The reason is simply that they are their children! This is wrong. David did not ask God to help him because of the relationship he had with his Lord. He asked God for help because he knew he was right and the enemies were wrong. They lied and accused him falsely. They slandered him and wanted him dead because he was called by the Lord to be the next king of Israel. David did nothing wrong. Hence, he asked the LORD to judge him! If David had done wrong and his enemies wanted him dead so be it. David wanted God’s help based upon justice and righteousness, not favouritism. He cried to the "LORD" (His covenantal Name) and also "God" (elohiym) to judge him, acknowledging that they are one and the same. The basis for the judgement is God’s righteousness. God's righteousness is always based upon truth and holiness. In short, judge David according to the standard revealed in the perfect Word of God! David knew that he would come out stronger; he knew in his heart that he was innocent. This means that when the LORD’s deliverance finally comes, David will not only experience deliverance but also vindication, as he was persecuted for righteousness’ sake and the enemies were all liars.

David added "let them not rejoice over me" in his cry. Using synthetic parallelism, he said to the LORD that his enemies’ joy over his persecution by way of their lies and deception hurt him tremendously. They were mocking and laughing at him; no one came to his aid to deliver! David’s loneliness and helplessness in the face of all these enemies and their incessant attacks turned his eyes upward to his LORD for intervention. Evil men like to rejoice at the calamities of others especially the ones they mock and hate. The LORD has warned His children never to rejoice even when the enemies of God are punished. There is no joy in seeing sinful men being punished for their lies and their deception. Sadness in the heart is the only genuine heartfelt experience. Therefore when David’s enemies rejoiced at his calamity, he cried only to the LORD to help and deliver him based upon what is right and according to God's attribute.

Verse 25 (synonymous parallelism) – David said, "Let them not say in their hearts, Ah, so would we have it: let them not say, We have swallowed him up." It seems that David’s appeal here was based upon knowing the intent of the heart of his enemies. However, on closer examination we see that this is not the case. David was merely appealing to God to not even allow his enemies to say in their hearts. All words usually stem from the heart. Before they are uttered, the heart and mind would frame the words. David asked the LORD to deal with the source of their evil words. The LORD ought not to just shut the mouths of the evil men but also to deal with the source of their evil words, their heart! Do not even let them say quietly within them that they have succeeded in destroying David. David would keep on trusting in his LORD. He would not allow these evil men with their lies to get David to sin through not trusting in his LORD to keep His promise in his life. God said that David would be king and even though his enemies’ attacks seem to bring about a destruction of God’s will in his life, David will cling on to his faith and trust in the LORD. David wanted the LORD to stop his enemies at the source because that is where their perseverance in their attacks lies. The LORD stopped King Saul who died in battle. The LORD stopped Absalom who also died in battle. When the enemies are obsessed with destruction, the only way they will stop is to stop them at the source!

Using synonymous parallelism, David pressed home his request to his LORD, God! Do not let them say that they have swallowed David up, which means to have captured and destroyed him. David would not stop trusting but his enemies believed that they had won when he had to hide in Philistine territory to find refuge from King Saul’s wrath. If David is ousted from Israel, he can no longer be the next king of Israel, so they surmised. These evil and faithless men who resort to lies and deception to destroy God's servants think that kings are made by men. They do not see or understand the sovereignty of God. They take matters into their own wicked hands. They stoop to worldly ways in their sneak attacks and by threats. They hide behind biblical jargons to give their diabolical attacks some semblance of Christian spirituality. But all they have is a disguised devilish attack on the servants of God to destroy the work of God! That is why David cried to the LORD to stop them at the source – their heart! In other words, David asked the LORD to not just neutralize their wicked methods but deal with the wicked men.

Verse 26 (synonymous parallelism) – David continued, "Let them be ashamed and brought to confusion together that rejoice at mine hurt: let them be clothed with shame and dishonour that magnify themselves against me." This imprecation from David for the LORD to shame his enemies and bring them to confusion is a biblical concept. There was no vindictiveness on David’s part, neither was there are any desire for vengeance. David was crying to the LORD for justice. Divine justice from God is always sure and just. All true believers have the best sense of justice because they have the mind of Christ. Their sense of justice is based upon the Bible. David knew that he had not done anything wrong. All he did was to obey the will of God according to the Word of God. The enemies tried to kill him and hunted him like an animal. He called to God to shame them for what they were doing to him. These evil men who rejoiced in David’s calamities must be brought to confusion, i.e. be confounded by God. They must not be allowed to succeed in thwarting the will of God in David’s life. These evil men were actually attacking God! They were not destroying the will of David but the will of God. These evil men were not stopping the work of David in becoming king but the work of God. It is of utmost importance that God’s obedient servants remain faithful to the will of God in their lives, for when they come under attack, and it will happen, they must remain strong and stay the course! They must not doubt the will of God in their lives and His protection and care.

Using synonymous parallelism, David restated what his heart desired. He wanted God to put these evil men to shame for what they had done against the will of God in his life. These evil men would receive their just reward from the just God.

Verse 27 (synonymous parallelism) On the other hand, there were those who stood with David, albeit very few. David asked the LORD to let them "shout for joy, and be glad." These were the born again ones like David. They were able to see the truth. They could see the spiritual beyond the carnal. The unbelievers were blind and they followed King Saul or other enemies of David for fear of their lives or for carnal rewards. They would betray David for filthy lucre or for the praises of the king. They cared not for the will of God, for they did not know God. David cried to the LORD to protect these who were on David’s righteous side. When they are protected then only can they shout for joy and be glad openly in praise of David’s God. David was not interested in the praises of man. All he wanted was to exalt the name of Christ and not his name. When David wanted to promote his own name by numbering the people of Israel, he committed a grievous sin and seventy thousand men died (cf. 2Samuel 24:15). Therefore when David cried to the LORD to let those who favoured his righteous cause to shout for joy and be glad, it was to honour God and not himself. This is clearly affirmed in the second half of this verse! Such a wonderful Christ-honouring request will definitely be answered by God.

The synonymous parallelism emphasizes the strong desire in David’s heart to praise the LORD. He asked the LORD to let these who had pleasure in David’s prosperity be magnified by the LORD. Let the LORD enlarge their shout for joy and gladness in praising the LORD. Do not let them praise the LORD in hiding but in the open and from the house tops for all to hear of His goodness and greatness! The hearts of believers will be strengthened and encouraged to also keep on trusting in the LORD when they also face evil men who desire to destroy and stop the will and work of God in the lives of His servants. They must be strong in faith and keep on trusting regardless of how hopeless the outward circumstances might appear. When the enemies laugh and mock in victory the LORD will bring them down!

Verse 28 (synthetic parallelism) – The experiential knowledge that a child of God has with his heavenly Father is the catalyst that propels him to the heavenly realm as he serves God on earth. Praising the LORD is not an academic exercise. It is not ritualistic where the worshipper goes through the motion of praising and feels nothing about the words he sings. When children of God endure a similar trial like David, the praises will definitely be personal and heartfelt. This is what the LORD wants. That is why the LORD allowed the painful trials to come upon David. David had to be driven to the point of near breaking before he could learn and experience the deepest praise from his lips and heart. Psalm 35 could have been written in any other way than the way of intense suffering for Christ. All David wanted was to speak of the LORD’s righteousness. David experienced all the unrighteous deeds from his enemies, allowed by God, and he did not curse or complain. Evil men could do all they wanted to David and all of God’s servants but God’s servants desired to only praise the LORD in the process. What an amazing response from persecuted believers. This is spiritual victory in action!

David said that he wanted to do this all the day long. He did not want to stop praising the LORD regardless of the suffering. He knew that the deliverance would come in time, God's time. When it came, he would praise the LORD even louder. He would not be defeated by the evil men. He knew that their attacks were to make him sin. David refused to sin but praised the LORD instead. All faithful believers must follow David’s example, especially in times of trials and persecution! Amen.