Psalm 7

Haystack bible commentary

"Stacks and stacks of commentary...."

==Psalm 7:1:

O Lord my God, in You I put my trust; Save me from all those who persecute me; And deliver me,

He who begins with trust can go on to think of the fiercest antagonism without dismay. Many of the Psalms ascribed to David begin like this, but it is no mere stereotyped formula. Each represents a new act of faith, in the presence of a new danger. The word for "put trust" here is very illuminative and graphic, meaning properly the act of fleeing to a refuge. It is sometimes blended with the image of a sheltering rock, sometimes with the tenderer one of a mother bird, as when Ruth "came to trust under the wings of Jehovah," and in many other places. The very act of faith is better expressed by the metaphor than by much subtle exposition: Faith is a place of refuge. Acting in faith comes from the strength of that refuge..

We must realize that there is no other place to turn to for safety than God. When trouble came to the Israelite, there was nothing else that should have come to their mind than the six cities of refuge that God had designated. Friends, there should be nothing else that comes to our minds in the times of trouble than fleeing to the Lord for refuge. This was a great theme of the major and the minor prophets. Notice Nahum 1:7, “The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him.” Refuge is about trusting in God. You and I will never find refuge from the troubles of this world and we will never find refuge from those who commit evil against us until we put our trust in God. Unfortunately, in religious arenas putting one’s trust in God means saying that I believe that Jesus is the Son of God. But that is confession and not trust. Trust is about turning over control to someone else. Trust is about depending upon another for the outcome. Trust is about what you are relying upon when under fire and in a tight bind. Trust is seen in a man like Abraham who could leave all that he had and had known to go to a place that God would show. He was trusting that the outcome would be good, though he did not know what he would encounter along the way. Without this releasing and surrendering of our lives to the Lord, the rest of the steps of David are not going to matter. If we are simply unwilling to let go, then the rest of this lesson has no value. God is a refuge if we will put our trust in Him. --West Palm Beach Church of Christ

==Psalm 7:2-9:

Lest he tear my soul like a lion, rending it in pieces, while there is none to deliver.
3 O Lord my God, If I have done this; if there be iniquity in my hands;
4 If I have rewarded evil unto him that was at peace with me; (yea, I have delivered him that without cause is mine enemy:)
5 Let the enemy persecute my soul, and take it; yea, let him tread down my life upon the earth, and lay mine honour in the dust. Selah.
6 Arise, O Lord, in thine anger, lift up thyself because of the rage of mine enemies: and awake for me to the judgment that thou hast commanded.
7 So shall the congregation of the people compass thee about: for their sakes therefore return thou on high.
8 The Lord shall judge the people: judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness, and according to mine integrity that is in me.
9 Oh let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end; but establish the just: for the righteous God trieth the hearts and reins.

Matthew Henry

David flees to God for succour. But Christ alone could call on Heaven to attest his uprightness in all things. All His works were wrought in righteousness; and the prince of this world found nothing whereof justly to accuse him. Yet for our sakes, submitting to be charged as guilty, he suffered all evils, but, being innocent, he triumphed over them all. The plea is, For the righteous God trieth the hearts and the reins. He knows the secret wickedness of the wicked, and how to bring it to an end; he is witness to the secret sincerity of the just, and has ways of establishing it. When a man has made peace with God about all his sins, upon the terms of grace and mercy, through the sacrifice of the Mediator, he may, in comparison with his enemies, appeal to God's justice to decide.
--Matthew Henry

February 29, 2017: Ross Lester wrote: David dreamed of the day when God would rule and reign in a perfect theocracy. We all know that governments can’t fix the problem. Democracy is a truly wonderful thing – by far the most just of human systems – but it can’t fix the human condition and the wickedness that dwells in us. But one day it will all be fixed.
Along with David, I long for that day. I long for a new heaven, and a new earth. I can’t wait for a new me, and a new you. A trustworthy King, and a city that will endure forever. In the meantime, it is left to the church to bring glimpses of that new kingdom to earth. As Jesus taught us to pray, “Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” But
even as I commit to that mission today again, I can’t help feeling that it is ingrained in my DNA to long for another home. I want God to step in and make it right. Come on Lord! We wait for you.

==Psalm 7:10-13:

10 My defence is of God, which saveth the upright in heart.
11 God judgeth the righteous, and God is angry with the wicked every day.
12 If he turn not, he will whet his sword; he hath bent his bow, and made it ready.
13 He hath also prepared for him the instruments of death; he ordaineth his arrows against the persecutors.

...the righteous and just God who is COMPLETELY moral, right, and lawful tests the hearts and minds of people. In Him, there “is no variation or shadow of turning” (James 1:17). He is completely holy, completely right, completely clean (which is at the root word of righteous) and completely moral. --Christian Engaged

==Psalm 7:14:

Behold, the wicked brings forth iniquity; Yes, he conceives trouble and brings forth falsehood.

It is the Old Testament version of "Sin when it is finished brings forth death." The evil-doer is boldly represented as "travailing with iniquity" and that metaphor is broken up in two parts. "He hath conceived mischief" and "He hath brought forth falsehood." The "falsehood," which is the thing actually produced, is so called, not because it deceives others, but because it mocks its producer with false hopes and never fulfills his purposes. This is but the highly metaphoric way of saying that a sinner never does what he means to do, but that the end of his plans is disappointment. The law of the universe condemns him to feed on ashes to make and trust lies.

==Psalm 7:15-17:

He made a pit, and digged it, and is fallen into the ditch which he made.
16 His mischief shall return upon his own head, and his violent dealing shall come down upon his own pate.
17 I will praise the Lord according to his righteousness: and will sing praise to the name of the Lord most high.