“I will give to the Lord the thanks due to His righteousness, and I will sing praise to the name of the Lord, the Most High.” – Psalm 7:17
In reading David’s song to the Lord in Psalm 7, I am struck by the impartiality of David towards his own position in the Lord’s eyes. Spurned by the words of Cush the Benjaminite (an associate of Saul’s – judging by 1 Samuel and this Psalm, they were not kind words), David pleads for refuge in the Lord’s power, but not for his own benefit. Rather, he knows God punishes the wicked – as David himself says in this chapter, “if there is wrong in my hands… let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it, and let him trample my life to the ground.” David understands the Lord alone can prescribe who is right and who has done wrong, and in this knowledge finds the key for subservience and submission to a righteous Lord. Even amidst his own sin, and owning up to the consequences of it, David shows a keen enlightenment of sorts that the Lord’s judgement wholly deserves precedence over his own well-being. And in seeing this, David knows only when he wholly devotes himself to his master’s word can he do what is right.
This is a lesson we can all learn, but wow is it difficult to apply in practice. As flawed people, we can be quick to both pass judgement on others, and question their passing of judgement. All while ignoring our own wrongs! It’s so easy and so commonplace to overlook our own transgressions and get wrapped up in who is right and wrong, who has done good and who hasn’t; these concepts are so fickle by shifting human standards. Only in the Lord Most High, the one who wields true righteousness like a sword, who radiates ultimate authority over all men, good and evil, can truly know who has done right and who has not. And the truth is that none of us has done right by every one of God’s words.
Thankfully though, all who believe are not judged on their own accord. We know through our sanctification, bought through the blood of Jesus Christ who died on our behalf, we are made upright in heart. And as David says in verse 10 of this chapter: “My shield is with God, who saves the upright in heart.” Through profession of faith and expressing this faith through living lives according to His command, our Lord protects our faithful hearts from those who would do them harm. In this we can rest assured, and sing praise to the Lord whose victory is guaranteed. Greater than any evil and more powerful than anything of this world is the Lord Most High.
This passage has moved me this week to pray that God would help me remove judgement from my own heart, for I know if I were to be judged by Him as I were, I’d be struck down on the spot. Instead, I’ve prayed for a heart of forgiveness and humility; for I know only God resides over righteous judgement, and instead of judging others, I can embody 1 Peter 4:8: “Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.” I’ve especially asked for the conviction to see my own sin as David sees his, take accountability for the consequences of it, and to surrender it to God so that I may better reflect how He is my master and Lord. In all these things, I pray for strength for you as well. For only He establishes the righteous and delivers them, only He can rule righteously, and only He is Lord Most High over all.