Psalm 28 — The Lord Listens

A Psalm of David.

1 Unto thee, O LORD, will I call;
My rock, be not thou deaf unto me:
Lest, if thou be silent unto me,
I become like them that go down into the pit.
2 Hear the voice of my supplications, when I cry unto thee,
When I lift up my hands toward thy holy oracle.
3 Draw me not away with the wicked,
And with the workers of iniquity;
Which speak peace with their neighbours,
But mischief is in their hearts
4 Give them according to their work, and according to the wickedness of their doings:
Give them after the operation of their hands;
Render to them their desert.
5 Because they regard not the works of the LORD,
Nor the operation of his hands,
He shall break them down and not build them up.
6 Blessed be the LORD,
Because he hath heard the voice of my supplications.
7 The LORD is my strength and my shield;
My heart hath trusted in him, and I am helped:
Therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth;
And with my song will praise him.
8 The LORD is their strength,
And he is a strong hold of salvation to his anointed.
9 Save thy people, and bless thine inheritance:
Feed them also, and bear them up for ever.

In this cry to the Lord for help, David needs to be heard. If his voice falls on deaf ears, he might as well be lost in the pit. Without the Lord listening, what use do we have for a voice at all?

The message of his cry is to be separated from the wicked workers of iniquity. He does not want to be caught by - or caught up in - their selfishness. Their hands are always mixed up in worthless deeds and their end matches their doings. To be kept with God, away from their vanity, is David's desire.

This psalm helps us see the great reason we have to praise the Lord. The Lord listens! Our Savior separates us from evil. God guards us as a stronghold. This psalm helps communicate complicated ideas and feeds them with simple words. We can use the psalm on its own or even borrow from it to inform our own prayer to God.

God is good and listens to our voice. Let us use it well.