One of the many benefits of the Psalms are the fact that, when read often and correctly and meditated on fervently, they actually serve to form our thoughts and attitudes and feelings and words and actions until we begin to imitate the psalms themselves. Amazingly, as we immerse ourselves in them, we find that we become like them. As we immerse ourselves in these songs (for that is what many of the Psalms are), we will find ourselves thinking on their themes and their truths and reacting in the way the psalmist reacts. As we immerse ourselves in these prayers (thoughtfully and prayerfully and in faith), we will find that we begin to pray like the psalmist.
This attitude will help us understand the crucial importance of psalms such as Psalm 17. It tells us that this psalm was a prayer of David. Why would we want to examine someone else’s prayer from thousands of years ago? The reason we would examine it is because it provides us with a critical model for how to pray. It also points us to critical truths that should guide our thoughts and lives as we pray and live. More specifically, Psalm 17 was a prayer offered by David in a time of great difficulty and suffering. It seems that he was being unjustly accused or persecuted by wicked men. He cries out to God for vindication in verse 2 – vindication is a word that refers to being declared innocent and in the right when experiencing something. If someone is vindicated, they are delivered and rescued because they are not at fault. In verses 8-9, we see that David is in the midst of wicked people who are trying to kill him! This is a prayer offered to God in the midst of a difficult situation that has not arisen because of any fault in David. He is suffering at the hands of another unjustly.
Understanding this setting helps us understand how we should read this psalm. Psalm 17 provides us with a critical example of how we should pray. Particularly, it teaches us how to pray in the midst of situations that seem unjust and unfair. Whether we find ourselves in such a situation or we are praying for someone else in such a situation, this psalm helps us understand what and how we should pray. The central point of this psalm is clear: In times of distress and difficulty, the righteous can come before God, cry out for help and expect it to come because of God’s righteous character. Let us see this point made by David as he prays.
Before examining the heart of the prayer, we should take note of the fact that David cries out to the Lord in the midst of his distress. Interspersed throughout the psalm are various cries for help and deliverance uttered by David. The psalm begins with such a word: “Hear a just cause, O Lord; attend to my cry! Give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit! From your presence let my vindication come! Let your eyes behold the right!” (17:1-2). David continues pleading for the Lord to help as he writes, “I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God; incline your ear to me; hear my words. Wondrously show your steadfast love” (17:6-7a). We will look in a moment at what drives the psalmist to do this, but we should not fail to notice the basic fact that David turns to God. Even when crying out against his persecutors, he directs his plea to God: “Arise, O Lord! Confront him, subdue him! Deliver my soul from the wicked by your sword” (17:13).
Such a basic reality is crucial for us because it brings to our mind again the necessity of making our requests known to God. Though we all acknowledge the necessity of prayer, observing David’s actions must cause us to ask ourselves: do we pray in such times? The Scripture is clear about the need for prayer. Paul told the Philippians, “The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God” (Phil. 4:5b-6). James told his readers, “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray” (James 5:13a). Peter, likewise, told his readers, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that tat the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you” (1 Pet. 5:6-7). We must examine not just our minds to see if we know that we should turn to God in such difficult times but our actions to see if we actually do turn to God in such times. David did this, and we should heed his example.
David highlights his own righteousness (17:3-5)
Having seen that most foundationally David cries out to the Lord, we should examine the way he cries out. As we will see, there are some crucial aspects of David’s prayer that can be very instructive for us.
First of all, we see very clearly that David holds his own righteousness before God. We see this even in verses 1-2, which we looked at already, as David calls his cause a “just cause” and says that his lips are “free of deceit.” But this becomes even more clearly apparent beginning in verse 3 as David prays, “You have tried my heart, you have visited me by night, you have tested me, and you will find nothing; I have purposed that my mouth will not transgress. With regard to the works of man, by the word of your lips I have avoided the ways of the violent. My steps have held fast to your paths; my feet have not slipped” (17:3-5). It is clear that David believes he is entirely in the right – righteous before God. No doubt, if we are well-versed in the Scriptures, this makes us a bit uncomfortable because we know that no one is righteous (Rom. 3:10) and all have sinned (Rom. 3:23). We also know that even David declared that he was brought forth from his mother’s womb in iniquity (Ps. 51:5). So how can David express such confidence in Psalm 17? The reason he can speak in such a way is because his focus is not on life as a whole but on the specific situation in which he finds himself. In this particular instance, David is making clear to the Lord that he has not sinned. He has not transgressed with his mouth or done what is evil or walked as a violent person. Rather, he has held fast to the paths of the Lord. David is holding up before the Lord his righteousness in this situation of suffering and distress.
Though this part of David’s prayer may catch us off guard, it is a crucial thing that we must not miss. We will see in a moment why this is such a crucial part of the prayer, but at this point we must simply notice that David was able to come before the Lord with a clear conscience with regard to his specific situation. This is instructive for us because it helps us understand the need to examine ourselves when bringing requests to the Lord – particularly during times of distress. David had examined his life – and even makes clear that the Lord had examined him – and found nothing. Likewise, we must examine our own hearts and minds and motives. James makes this very clear in his letter as he declares, “You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions” (James 4:2b-3). Later, when speaking about praying for those who are sick, he writes, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed” (James 5:16a). James is making very clear that there is an intimate connection between our motives and hearts and the outcome of our prayers. We must examine our own lives when we pray. Are our motives pure? In this situation, have we walked in accordance with God’s word? Can we declare ourselves righteous, like David, in this situation?
No doubt, even as I asked those questions, many of you answered with a resounding “NO!” Most likely, we all know our own sin. Though there may be situations in which we feel that we can claim righteousness, more often than not, we probably feel unable to make such a claim. So what do we do? Does that mean we should never pray so long as we are aware of unrighteousness in our lives? No. Rather, we should recognize the centrality of Jesus’ work in allowing us to come before the Lord. One of the glorious realities of Jesus’ death and resurrection is that He has made a way for us to come boldly and confidently before God and make our requests known. Paul told the Ephesians, “For through him [Jesus] we both [Jews and Gentiles] have access in one Spirit to the Father” (Eph. 2:18). This is an amazing reality: the very ones who have sinned and fallen short of His glory and were dead in their trespasses and sins can have access to the Father through Christ! Paul tells the Ephesians later that in Christ “we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him” (Eph. 3:12). We can not only come, but we can come with boldness and confidence – just like David – because of what Christ has done. The author of Hebrews makes this same point as he declares, “Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb. 4:14-16). The point is that we are weak, but we have a priest who was perfect. Therefore, we can come with confidence to God and receive mercy and grace to help us. If you have sinned, confess that and repent before the Lord. You will be forgiven. And then you can pray, knowing that “The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working” (James 5:16b). You are a righteous person, just like David, in Christ.
David highlights the unrighteousness of his enemies (17:10-12)
Interestingly, alongside highlighting his own righteousness, David also highlights the unrighteousness of his enemies. We will look in a moment at verses 6-9 which form the very heart of the psalm, but after speaking of his enemies as the “wicked who do me violence” (17:9), David describes them: “They close their hearts to pity; with their mouths they speak arrogantly. They have now surrounded our steps; they set their eyes to cast us to the ground. He is like a lion eager to tear, as a young lion lurking in ambush” (17:10-12). Compared to David’s description of himself, this is a stinging indictment of these enemies. These people have no pity on David (and apparently others) who is trying to walk righteously and obey the Lord. Instead of showing pity, they speak arrogantly to them and are seeking to destroy them. More specifically, they are trying to tear the people of God apart like a lion waiting to tear apart its prey. Just like with the previous point, we will see in a moment the reason this description is important, but it is crucial for us to see the description so that we can understand exactly what is causing David to pray for the destruction of these people. It is because they are sinning against the Lord and seeking to destroy His people. David is not driven by personal animosity or an arrogant desire for vengeance but by righteous anger at the wickedness and unrighteousness of these people. In essence, he is making his case before the Lord that these people deserve to be confronted and punished.
Once again, this is beneficial for us because it helps us understand how we should pray. More than likely, almost every one – at least in the midst of a time of distress – will automatically put themselves in the place of David in this psalm. As we have seen already, that may be appropriate, but it also may be arrogant and wrong. We should see David’s model in this prayer and understand the need, just as we saw earlier, to examine our own hearts and motives. Do they conform to the will of God? Are we demonstrating pity for someone who is genuinely seeking to follow God or are we demonstrating our own arrogance by assuming our superiority? It is vitally important for us to notice that David highlights the way these people are violating God’s standard rather than the way they are violating his personal standards. In the same way, we should examine ourselves rightly. By nature, we always think our position is the right one, and the key for Christians is to examine those stances and positions and actions against the Word of God rather than anything else. This is the point Jesus makes in Matthew 7:1-5 when he speaks about taking the log out of your own eye before pointing out the speck in your brother’s eye. We must first examine our own hearts. It might be that, more often than we want to admit, we occupy the place of the wicked in this psalm more than the place of David.
That said, there are no doubt people in this room who do not care to follow God or obey Him. Moreover, there may be people in this room who claim to follow God but live like the wicked. We must all examine our actions. If you act like the wicked, with no regard for God or the people of God but only for yourselves, then you must be honest and number yourselves among the wicked. Do not deceive yourself, but test yourself against the law of God.
David highlights the character of God (17:6-9, 13-14)
We might wonder why David would spend such time describing his own righteousness as well as the unrighteousness of his enemies. The mystery is solved as we look to the very heart of the psalm in verses 6-9. In essence, David is praying this way because of what he knows to be true about God. He is highlighting his own righteousness because he knows that God acts a certain way toward the righteous, and he is highlighting the unrighteousness of the wicked because he knows that God acts a certain way toward the unrighteous.
Beginning in verse 6, David writes, “I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God; incline your ear to me; hear my words. Wondrously show your steadfast love, O Savior of those who seek refuge from their adversaries at your right hand. Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings, from the wicked who do me violence, my deadly enemies who surround me” (17:6-9). These verses are crucial in David’s prayer because they provide the foundation for what comes before and what comes after. David makes clear that he is calling upon the Lord because he knows the Lord will answer him. How does he know that? It is because he knows that he is righteous in this matter. He knows that the one who will ascend the Lord’s hill is the one “who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully” (Ps. 24:4). He knows that the one who is blessed is the one “who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers” (Ps. 1:1). David knows that God does not just protect anybody or show favor to anybody but only to His people who have trusted in Him and obey Him. He cries out to the Lord because he knows that the Lord is full of “steadfast love” – a love demonstrated by His choosing of Israel before they were anything worth choosing (Deut. 7) and by His deliverance of them on numerous occasions (Ex. 15). He recognizes that the Lord is the Savior of those who seek refuge in Him. He turns to the Lord knowing that the Lord cares for him and will protect him, and he is even so bold as to refer to himself as “the apple of the Lord’s eye” (17:8). David has no question about the Lord’s care for him and willingness to protect him. This is the root of David’s plea for help.
Interestingly, it also seems to be the root of David’s plea for God to destroy his enemies. Just as he expects the Lord to aid him because he is righteous, he also expects the Lord to punish his enemies because they are wicked. Once again, David’s request is rooted in the character of God toward the wicked. After asking God to rise up and confront and subdue the wicked people, David goes on to describe them as “men of the world whose portion is in this life” (17:14a). He then goes on to talk about how all the wicked have is the things of this life – assuming that is because they have no portion in the next life. Once again, David’s assumption is that God will pull out his sword (17:13) and destroy the wicked because they are wicked. Once again, David’s request is rooted in the character of God. He knows that the wicked “are like chaff that the wind drives away” and that “the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous” (Ps. 1:4b-5). David knows his God and is making requests accordingly.
As I mentioned before, these verses are the crux of the psalm. Everything David says in this psalm flows out of, and rests on, what he knows about his God. It is his knowledge of God that drives his prayer. And it should be no different with us. Too often, we enter prayer with thoughts focused entirely on ourselves and our wants and needs and requests instead of on the character of the One to whom we are speaking. If we want to pray well, we should fill our minds and hearts with accurate thoughts about God. If we want to come before God boldly, we should remind ourselves often that we are joint heirs with Christ and, therefore, sons of God and that God will always give good gifts to His children. If we want to come before God diligently, we must constantly remind ourselves that “he rewards those who seek Him” (Heb. 11:6). We will act based on what we believe about God, just like David, so we should labor to know God rightly. If we know how God has revealed Himself, we can better pray in accordance with His will. David prayed because of what he knew about God. David prayed confidently because of what he knew about God. David prayed expectantly because of what he knew about God. If we want to pray in this way, we should seek to know God in this way as well.
David ends his prayer expressing absolute confidence in his own fate and in the Lord’s help. He declares, “As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness” (17:15). In direct contrast to the wicked described in 17:14, David makes clear that his portion is in the future. His hope is not merely in this life alone but in a future hope that will transcend this life. David is certain that he will behold the face of the Lord in righteousness when his life on this earth ends. Once again, this hope is rooted in everything that has come before – particularly the love of God toward His people and His faithful care for, and protection of, them.
In the same way, if we think rightly about the Lord and turn our hearts and minds to Him in faithful and diligent prayer, we can have the same confidence that David possessed. In the midst of unjust suffering and difficulty, we can trust that He will care for us and protect us. And even if the suffering brings about the end of our earthly life, we can confidently trust that we will behold the face of the Lord in righteousness. We can be certain that when we wake from the pain and suffering that is so often present in this life, we will be satisfied when we see the face of God. We will be satisfied and the sufferings of this life will not be worth comparing to that joy and when we see Him we will be like Him. Praise the Lord!
As we come to the table, we are coming to remember the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. As we go from here today knowing that we must know God well if we want to pray well, we should understand that the primary way we know the Father is by looking at the Son. In particular, the primary way we know the Father is by looking at the cross and the resurrection. It is there, in all of its glory, that we see the love and justice and mercy and power of the Father demonstrated in the Son. If we will meditate diligently and fervently on the death and resurrection of Christ, we will know the Father more and more. As a result, we will be able to pray rightly and confidently – just like David. Amen.