Psalm 140 — What does God help us with?
For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
1 Deliver me, O LORD, from the evil man;
Preserve me from the violent man:
2 Which imagine mischiefs in their heart;
Continually do they gather themselves together for war.
3 They have sharpened their tongue like a serpent;
Adders' poison is under their lips. Selah
4 Keep me, O LORD, from the hands of the wicked;
Preserve me from the violent man:
Who have purposed to thrust aside my steps.
5 The proud have hid a snare for me, and cords;
They have spread a net by the way side;
They have set gins for me. Selah
6 I said unto the LORD, Thou art my God:
Give ear unto the voice of my supplications, O LORD.
7 O GODthe Lord, the strength of my salvation,
Thou hast covered my head in the day of battle.
8 Grant not, O LORD, the desires of the wicked;
Further not his evil device; lest they exalt themselves. Selah
9 As for the head of those that compass me about,
Let the mischief of their own lips cover them.
10 Let burning coals fall upon them:
Let them be cast into the fire;
Into deep pits, that they rise not up again.
11 An evil speaker shall not be established in the earth:
Evil shall hunt the violent man to overthrow him.
12 I know that the LORD will maintain the cause of the afflicted,
And the right of the needy.
13 Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto thy name:
The upright shall dwell in thy presence.
In this psalm of David, seeking the Lord's help in the face of the troubles of the wicked, we can see an odd conundrum. David's need to call on God - the oppressive hand of the wicked - is placed next to the very confidence David has in God - that God will help us from such oppressive hands. So, do these ideas cancel each other out? If God does indeed remove the wicked ones, why does David have any wicked ones to deal with in the first place?
In a cold and scientific environment of analytical rationality we could argue this way, but who lives in such a rational world? We live in a world of variance and hypocrisy. How many of us, in the midst of a rotten afternoon, tell our good friends that "everything's fine"? We are a jumbled mess walking around in a jumbled mess.
That God promises to handle the wicked should not mean that we will see no wickedness. Instead, it proclaims that we absolutely *will* see the wicked ones, so that we can also see God's powerful acts of deliverance and salvation! The gift of a warm coat is felt more closely in the cold weather.
God, knowing what he can do and will do, waits for us to call so that he can save us. Let's allow these psalms to change our hearts.