Psalm 17

A Prayer of David.

1 Hear the right, O LORD, attend unto my cry;
give ear unto my prayer, that goeth not out of feigned lips.
2 Let my sentence come forth from thy presence;
let thine eyes behold the things that are equal.

3 Thou hast proved mine heart; thou hast visited me in the night;
thou hast tried me, and shalt find nothing;
I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress.
4 Concerning the works of men, by the word of thy lips
I have kept me from the paths of the destroyer.
5 Hold up my goings in thy paths, that my footsteps slip not.

6 I have called upon thee, for thou wilt hear me, O God;
incline thine ear unto me, and hear my speech.
7 Shew thy marvellous lovingkindness,
O thou that savest by thy right hand them which put their trust in thee
from those that rise up against them.

8 Keep me as the apple of the eye,
hide me under the shadow of thy wings,
9 from the wicked that oppress me,
from my deadly enemies who compass me about.

10 They are inclosed in their own fat;
with their mouth they speak proudly.
11 They have now compassed us in our steps;
they have set their eyes bowing down to the earth;
12 like as a lion that is greedy of his prey,
and as it were a young lion lurking in secret places.

13 Arise, O LORD, disappoint him, cast him down;
deliver my soul from the wicked, [by] thy sword:
14 from men [by] thy hand, O LORD,
from men of the world, which have their portion in this life,
and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure;
they are full of children,
and leave the rest of their substance to their babes.

15 As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness;
I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.

JW: David appealing to God for his integrity, begs for defence against his enemies, ver. 1-9; describes their wickedness, ver. 10-12; prays for deliverance from them, and rests in hope, ver. 13-15.

[On verse 3:] 'Proved' - or, searched or tried it, by many temptations and afflictions. 'Night' - when men's minds being freed from the distraction of business, and from the society of men, they act more vigorously and freely, according to their several inclinations. 'Tried' - as goldsmiths do metals. 'Nothing' - nothing of unrighteousness. 'Purposed' - I have resolved, upon deliberation, as the word implies. 'Mouth' - I am so far from practising against Saul's life, as they charge me, that I will not wrong him so much as in a word.

[On verse 10:] 'They' - they live in splendor and prosperity.

[On verse 14:] 'Treasure' - with extraordinary wealth and glory. 'Children' - when many of thy faithful servants are barren, these are blessed with a numerous posterity.

[On verse 15:] 'I will' - I do not place my portion in earthly treasures, but in beholding God's face, in the enjoyment of God's presence and favour; which is enjoyed in part in this life, but not fully. 'Satisfied' - The time is coming, wherein I shall be abundantly satisfied with beholding thy face. 'Awake' - When I arise from the dead. 'Likeness' - with the image of God stamped upon my glorified soul.

I absolutely love the resolution of this Psalm, and I appreciate Wesley's take on it. The last 2-3 verses sound so much like the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7). The Sermon echoes the Psalm when Jesus says things like "...assuredly I tell you, they already have their reward." We also see this Psalm echoed in 1 John 3.2-3: "Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure." Do you hear the words of Jesus, too? "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."

The Psalmist observes the disconnect between the good things ("fat," "treasures," having children, etc.) that exist in the world and the fact that the wicked enjoy them, seemingly much more than the righteous. Now any serious reading of the Bible will clearly indicate that food, money, and child-bearing are not bad or evil things, but in fact are (or can be) seen and used in a positive light. Certainly being fruitful in bearing children is a very good thing, as it was commanded to our parents in the creation, a very good creation, to "be fruitful and multiply..." The difference is in this phrase: "which have their portion in this life." When these "things" become our ultimate treasure, then we know where our treasure is being stored. But if we use and relate to whatever we are graced with in this life, and realize that we are called to be good stewards in all these areas, then we know that these "gifts" are not our own! The treasure is laid up and we find ourselves ultimately satisfied with the one thing needful: beholding the face of God.

Because David did not bow down to the things of the earth...because he was not ultimately satisfied in what this world had to offer, he was able to proclaim, "I will behold thy face in righteousness." Can we really say that we're ready for that? To behold the face of God? Let's not undervalue the significance of the face and its relation to image & likeness. Isn't this why the bride's veil in a wedding carries such profound eschatological significance for us? And echoing again what I said in relation to the blind man that Jesus touched twice to heal, can't you see this Psalm as Advent-esque, in living in light of the first coming of Jesus, where we can enjoy "God's presence and favour," as Wesley puts it, "but not fully" yet...until we "awake" in the resurrection. Then the veil will be removed and "we shall become like him for we shall see him as he is." I recall the satisfaction I had when Carrie's veil was removed and I have since then known her as my wife! I've heard it said that the longer a couple stays together, the more they begin to look alike as time goes on. People have said as much regarding Carrie and me, specifically. That's but a foretaste of the satisfaction we shall know when we awake with God's likeness. And there's an eternity for that.