Psalm 4

To the chief musician on Neginoth (or on stringed instruments),

A Psalm of David

1 Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness:

thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress;

have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer.

2 O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame?

How long will ye love vanity and seek after leasing?

Selah.

3 But know that the LORD has set apart

him that is godly for himself:

the LORD will hear when I call to him.

4 Stand in awe, and sin not:

commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still.

Selah.

5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness,

and put your trust in the LORD.

6 There may be many that say, "Who will shew us any good?"

LORD, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.

7 Thou hast put gladness in my heart,

more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased.

8 I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep:

for thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety.

JW: David prays, reproves the wicked, and testifies the happiness of the righteous, ver. 1-3; exhorts them to consider and serve God, ver. 4-5; declares his own experience of the grace of God, ver. 6-8.

[On verse 2:] 'My glory' - By his glory probably he means that honour which God had conferred upon him.

[On verse 3:] 'Godly' - Me, whom, though you traduce as an hypocrite, God hath pronounced to be a man after his own heart, 1 Sam. 13.14. 'For himself' - In his stead, or to be his vicegerent, as all kings are, and especially the kings of God's own people.

[On verse 5:] 'Offer' - Unto God, that he may be reconciled to you. 'Righteousness' - Righteous sacrifices; which requires that the persons offering them be righteous and do righteous things, and offer them with an honest mind, with faith and true repentance. Without which, he intimates, that all their sacrifices were of no esteem with God, and would be wholly unprofitable to them.

[On verse 6:] 'Who' - Who will put an end to our troubles, and give us tranquility. 'Lift up' - Upon me and my friends. Give us an assurance of thy love, and evidence it by thy powerful assistance.

[On verse 7:] 'Thou hast' - Whatsoever thou shalt do with me for the future, I have at present unspeakable satisfaction in the testimonies of thy love to my soul; more than worldly persons have in the time of a plentiful harvest.

[On verse 8:] 'In peace' - In tranquility of mind, resting securely upon God's promises.

I'm found to be convicted in verse 2. There are two ways of seeing this prayer: as being prayed by me or being prayed by someone else. The notion of loving vanity and seeking after "leasing" (or lies) strikes me as the culture of gossiping. So the question of application is: is someone else turning my 'glory' into shame? Or, am I taking part in turning someone else's glory into shame? May it not be so! I think this is an important word for the Church, for although David had done his fair share to bring shame upon himself, he also repented and pursued the heart of God again. How many times do we like to bring up the former sins of our enemies or even our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ to hold something over their head? Let's not turn their glory into shame! The Lord hears the cry for mercy! Let's side with the father, who shows mercy and embraces warmly, and not the elder prodigal, who disowns and casts judgment even after the repentance of his brother.

Regarding verse 5, faith and ritual are not opposed nor mutually exclusive. Offering right sacrifices and putting trust in the Lord is the combination of having the form of godliness as well as the power thereof. When all of our tempers and affections as well as all of our actions are done toward the glory of God then that is being wholly devoted to God.

I love that Wesley takes the latter parts of this hymn to be a prayer for and a basking in the love of God! Can we really let that sink in today? "God loved me and gave himself for me." An Octoberfest has lots of merriment to be sure, but there's a joy that surpasses that: the awareness and living in the love of God, who has shown "the light of [his] countenance upon us" in the life, death, and resurrection of his Son. Hallelujah! Be filled with the Spirit!