Do you have enemies in life? Perhaps there are people who seem to want to foil your plans, bring about your failure, or even cause you harm? Maybe our response is to feel we should answer, “Of course not.” After all, having enemies is not really en vogue in our day. On Facebook, as best I can tell, there’s only a category for “friends.” Having enemies is reserved for the arch-nemesis of the superhero in the movie or the soldier at war. But the reality is, regardless of what we might think is correct to say, we do have enemies.
And you know what, that’s okay? In fact, Jesus expected us to have enemies. He even warned us in Luke 6:26 to be fearful of all men speaking well of us. After all, those whom all men spoke well of in the Old Testament were false prophets. God’s true followers always have mixed reviews at best. In fact, right after the warning against all men speaking well of us, Jesus says in Luke 6:27-28, “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” What this means is that Jesus expected us to have people in our lives who are our enemies, who hate us, curse us, and abuse us. Paul also made very clear in Galatians that those who recognize the freedom from condemnation that is found in the gospel will always be persecuted by those who are trying to be justified by their works – whether those trying to be justified by their works are outright unbelievers or those who profess faith in Christ (as did Paul’s enemies being confronted in Galatians).
Jesus was certainly familiar with enemies. If there were a contest in his day as to who had the most enemies, he surely would be able to make a run at first place. He was well-acquainted with people having unjust bitterness, hatred, and dislike for him. He knew what it was like to have people scheme against him, want his failure, and attack him without cause. And yet, Jesus is not some exception among God’s servants in having enemies. There are numerous examples in the Bible as a whole of God’s people having enemies, and one of the clearest examples is seen in David.
James Boice has pointed out that if you start with Psalm 52 and read all the way to Psalm 64, you’ll find that every one of these psalms is written by David, and you’ll find that in every single one of them, David makes mention of his enemies. It’s actually almost humorous that commentators struggle to identify the setting of a psalm like Psalm 64 (which we’re looking at this morning) when David speaks of the attacks of his enemies. After all, the reason they struggle to figure out the setting in which David was writing is because there are numerous times in David’s life when his enemies rose up against him.
Yet, I think there is a divine purpose in not always giving us the setting in which the psalmist writes. If every psalm gave us the setting in which it was written, we might feel that none of the psalms really is fit for our specific situation. But when we hear of David’s cry in the midst of having people gossip about him and slander him, we can relate to that, can’t we? We can relate to having our reputation soiled because of the slanderous words of others. As unpopular as it may be to acknowledge, we can relate to having enemies. So, let’s then ask the question, “What do we do when we find ourselves being unjustly attacked, harmfully spoken against, and wrongfully criticized by individuals who have made themselves our enemies?” And let’s look at Psalm 64 as instruction for answering this question. We see first,
In verses 1-2, David cries out to the Lord, saying, “Hear my voice, O God, in my complaint; preserve my life from the dread of the enemy. Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked, from the throng of evildoers.” And right off the bat, we need to make a few things clear concerning these verses. First, when David says “Hear my voice,” it’s not because he thinks God might not be listening. Rather, this is David’s way of asking God to act. As parents, there are sometimes we might say to our children, “Do you hear me?” And what we’re really asking is not whether or not they actually heard the words that we said. What we’re really asking is, “Are you going to obey me?” Similarly, when David says, “Hear my voice, O God,” he’s saying, “Do something, God. Act. Attend yourself to my situation.”
Second, when David mentions that he is making a “complaint,” he doesn’t mean that he’s complaining about something like we often hear the word “complaint.” Rather, it’s the idea of something like issuing a complaint in court. This is David offering up to the judge of the universe an issue that he’s asking God to take note of and involve himself in. In Psalm 64, David is issuing a complaint in the court of heaven, asking God to come and do something about those who are David’s enemies and attacking him.
David’s request, then, is that God would preserve his life and hide him from the secret plots of the wicked. That is, he knows people are coming against him, David knows that he is not sufficient to thwart them on his own, and so he asks God to protect him from their attacks and charges.
Now, this is common with David. If you turn back to the previous three psalms, you’ll see that they all start with David looking to God. In Psalm 63, he earnestly seeks God. In Psalm 62, his soul waits for God. And in Psalm 61, he asks God to hear his cry and listen to his prayer. And you know what, David didn’t respond this way, crying out to God in the midst of dealing with his enemies, because he was really artsy and liked poetry. He cried out to God in the midst of his struggles because that’s what someone what someone who is God’s child does.
Consider two New Testament texts for a second. We are told in 1 Peter 5:7 that we are to cast our anxieties on the Lord because he cares for us. This is a command, isn’t it? It’s not as if the Lord wants us wrestling over whether our situation is meaningful enough to bring before him in prayer or not any more than he wants us wrestling over whether we should commit adultery or not. He issues us a command: cast our anxieties on him. We are also told in Galatians 4:6 that because God has made us his sons, he “has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’” That is, God gave us his Spirit so that the orientation of our hearts would be to turn to him and cry out to him, as our Father, when we are in need.
So, let me ask you this morning, “Does this characterize you?” Do you feel anxious about opposition from others and, therefore, turn to the Lord in prayer? Does the reality of people attacking you make you flee to your Father in prayer? Or, as one alternative, do you think it easier to express your bitterness and frustration concerning your enemies to others? Do you find it more natural to make sure your roommate or spouse knows how evil you think another person is (possibly leading them into sin) than to cry out and issue your complaint before the Lord? If so, we need to repent this morning and ask God to help us turn to him with our cries as we face the attacks of our enemies.
Now, in one sense, David doesn’t point out the folly or foolishness of the wicked in verses 3-6. He waits to do that until verses 7-9. But I think he wants us to go ahead and see the folly as he describes the acts, thoughts, and nature of the wicked. After all, you can’t help but see it. It’s like me saying, “One time, as a child, I decided to walk along a fragile block wall, pretending that I was in a sword fight with someone.” You don’t need me to get to the point in the story where I’m lying on the ground, hurt, bleeding, and crying before you realize that I want you to understand that I wasn’t the brightest of kids in my decision-making. And it’s the same way here. David expects the reader to see through the folly of the thinking of these wicked men.
He begins describing their actions in verse 3-4, saying that they “whet their tongues like swords” and “aim bitter words like arrows, shooting from ambush at the blameless, shooting at him suddenly and without fear.” That is, David’s enemies are attacking him with their words. And their words are like arrows. As James confirms in the New Testament, the tongue is a powerful weapon that can be used to destroy lives. It must be controlled. Moreover, they attack David suddenly and surprisingly, catching him off guard not because he has done someone to merit their attacks. He notes that they attack the blameless. But they don’t fear God. They want to bring him down.
Then, in verses 5-6, he exposes what is going on in their hearts and minds. He writes, “They hold fast to their evil purpose; they talk of laying snares secretly, thinking, who can see them? They search out injustice, saying, ‘We have accomplished a diligent search.’ For the inward mind and heart of man are deep!”
Now, this is foolish, isn’t it? They’re determining the evil they’re going to do, and they’re working in secret the whole time. They don’t want others to find out. They’re hiding their sin. And they’re having to work hard to do it, but they’re doing it. In fact, they’re impressed with themselves, for the mind and heart of man are deep, showing great cleverness in regard to sin. What makes this foolish is that it is not secret at all to God. We’re supposed to mock them. But it’s hard to mock them, isn’t it, because it’s a good description of us, isn’t it?
I doubt that Union has had much of a problem with individuals seeking out pornographic material on the public computers in the library. Why? Because we like to hide our sins, don’t we? We work hard to scheme so that they are hidden so that they are secret. We typically don’t stand up on a public stage and attack others with our words. We like to say things about others in secret, where they won’t hear and we won’t have to deal with what we’ve done, right? We like to sin in ways that no one will see.
And David knows this well because he lived it out. Don’t verses 3-6 describe David’s sin with Bathsheba and sin against her husband, Uriah? David held fast to his evil purpose. He wanted Bathsheba, even though she was another man’s wife. He got her. But he wanted to keep his action secret, so he had Uriah come home from war, hoping that he would lie with his wife and think the pregnancy was theirs. But Uriah didn’t lie with his wife. But when David’s plans fell apart, he continued to scheme, eventually having Uriah killed in battle, making it look like a complete accident. David knew well how deep man’s mind and heart are in figuring out how to sin secretly.
But God knew David’s sin. Nathan’s charge, “You are the man,” made that clear to David. God had seen him. God knew what he had done. And God was going to deal with it.
So, this is true of sinners out there. God sees their sin. But it’s true for us as well. You’re not hiding your sin. What you said or what you did this week that you thought no one else knew of, God saw it. In fact, I believe in this moment his intention is for you and me to hear that very personally. God saw our sin. For the good of his people, God exposes sin – whether exposing the sin against us or done by us. David helps us see sin’s folly.
The fact that God sees the action of sinners means very little if God is indifferent to sin. But God is most definitely not indifferent to sin. He judges the wicked. All the schemes they embarked on to bring harm to David will actually fall on them. David writes, “But God shoots his arrow at them; they are wounded suddenly. They are brought to ruin, with their own tongues turned against them; all who see them will wag their heads” (vv. 7-8).
They shot arrows with their words; God will shoot his arrow at them. They suddenly attacked the blameless; God will suddenly wound them. They sought judgment against the righteous; men will wag their heads, noting God’s judgment against them. God will judge the wicked.
Now, this is helpful for us in a couple of ways. First, God’s coming judgment forms the foundation for our peace. We don’t have to retaliate when men attack us. When we are slandered against or gossiped about, we don’t have to run to others to make sure they’re on our side and will think bad of our enemies with us. We can trust that God will bring about justice in the end. What has been done in secret will one day be revealed openly when God opens the books and judges mankind. God will judge the wicked, so we can rest. We can love our enemies, pray for them, and do good to them, knowing that justice belongs to the Lord.
Second, it should help us to long for the Lord’s return. After all, our chief enemies are not flesh and blood, are they? Rather, we wrestle with Satan, sin, and death constantly. The attacks of the enemy are ruthless and constant. He seeks to bring division to the body, destroy us with sin (our own and others’), and delight in death. We should hate Satan, sin, and death.
But we should realize that coming judgment means salvation. You see, salvation throughout Scripture is tied in with the judgment of God’s enemies. We often refer to Genesis 3:15 as God’s first promise of the gospel. But in Genesis 3:15, God is not speaking to Adam or Eve. He’s speaking to the serpent. Genesis 3:15 is God’s promise of judgment against the serpent. But we rightly see his judgment as our salvation.
In the Exodus, it is the destruction of the Egyptians that brings about Israel’s salvation. And in the end, it will be the destruction of Satan, sin, and death – all enemies being put under Christ’s feet – that will mean our salvation. There is coming a day when it will have been hundreds and thousands of years since we last had a dealing with sin and death. Let the reality of coming judgment cause us to hope, and yearn, and pray, “Lord come quickly.”
And yet, the reality of judgment should cause two others reactions. In verses 9-10, we see one last detail.
In verses 9-10, David says that God’s coming judgment should cause all men to fear and the righteous to rejoice. David writes, “Then all mankind fears; they tell what God has brought about and ponder what he has done. Let the righteous one rejoice in the LORD and take refuge in him! Let all the upright in heart exult!”
God’s coming judgment should cause all men, without exception, to fear God. God’s judgment is a frightening reality. And considering that God will cast the wicked into eternal hell, which is described as an eternal lake of fire where the suffering does not end, we should tremble. Man’s foolishness is shown to be at its greatest when sinful mankind does not fear God.
But there is another response. David calls the righteous to rejoice and exult. We are to delight and celebrate and rejoice? Why? Because God is our refuge. David sought his refuge in the Lord, knowing that God would deal with his enemies. That is reason for rejoice. And the same is true for us.
It is true that we, like the wicked, have sinned. It is true that we have foolishly tried to keep our sins hidden and secretly thought, “No one sees what I’m doing” when God saw the entire time. It is true that God may be using this morning to expose our secret sins – yours and mine. And it is true that our sins deserve hell as much as the wicked who will go there.
But the glorious news is that we can repent. The glorious news is that we can repent and seek the Lord Jesus Christ – who lived, died for our sins, and was raised on the third day – as our refuge from God’s wrath, and we will be spared from the wrath our sins deserve.
We can rejoice this morning because God’s wrath has already been poured out for our sins, both those we thought were secret and those which were public. God’s wrath has been poured out for the sins of any who trust in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of our sins because they were poured out on Christ. He took the judgment we deserved. We need to look no further than the cross to see that God knows our sin and judges it.
So, this morning, are your enemies causing you pain, anxiety, and dread? Cry to the Lord, commit them into his hands, and ask him to show his care for you. Or, maybe it’s that we realized that we’ve played the part of the enemy. We’ve sinned in secret, we’ve brought harm to another, we’ve spoken against one behind his or her back. Let us also deal with that by crying to the Lord in repentance. And if we do, then we should rejoice, because in Christ, we really have found a sure and certain refuge against God’s wrath. And that is reason to exult, to rejoice, and to celebrate as we come to the table. Amen.