July 3, 2019 (Wednesday)
(From Charles Haddon Spurgeon): Psalm 143 is a box of ointment composed of dirverse ingredients, sweet and bitter, pungent and precious. It is the outcry of an overwhelmed spirit, unable to abide in the highest state of spiritual prayer, again and again descending to bewail its deep temporal distress; yet evermore struggling to rise to the best things. The singer moans at intervals; the petitioner for mercy cannot withhold his cries for vindication. His hands are outstretched to heaven, but at his girdle hangs a sharp sword, which rattles in its scabbard as he closes his psalm.
(From the Cambridge Bible Commentary): The Septuagint adds to the title ‘when his son [v.l. Absalom his son] was pursuing him’ (The story is in 1 Samuel chapters 15-19). But it is not specially appropriate to that occasion, and .. the dependence on earlier Psalms is unmistakable. The second half in particular is almost entirely a mosaic of phrases taken from other Psalms (Psalms 25:2, 4-5, 11; 27:9, 11; 28:1; 30:5; 31:14-15; 32:8; 49:14; 59:1; 60:8; 69:17; 77:8-9; 84:2; 86:2, 4, 16; 90:14; 94:23; 102:2; 119:17; 138:7; 140:6).
(Outline from Enduring Word Commentary)
A. Pleading for God’s Help in a Time of Crisis.
1. (1-2) Pleading for God to hear
2. (3-4) The nature of the crisis
3. (5-6) The workings of the soul.
B. The Plea Presented Again
1. (7) The need for a quick answer.
2. (8) The need for loving guidance.
3. (9) The need for deliverance from wicked men.
4. (10) The need to do God’s good will.
5. (11-12) The need for revival and rescue.
Outline from the Cambridge Bible
1,2. An appeal for mercy.
3,4. The reason for his prayer.The extremity of his present sufferings seems to be a proof that God is calling him to account and punishing him for his sins with strict severity.
5,6. The thought of all that God wrought in ancient times makes him long for a fresh manifestation of His power.
7-12. Prayer for speedy hearing, for guidance and deliverance, for the destruction of his enemies. The language is borrowed almost entirely from older Psalms.
New International Version (NIV)
A psalm of David.
I. PART ONE (1-6)
1 Lord, hear my prayer,
listen to my cry for mercy;
in your faithfulness and righteousness
come to my relief.
2 Do not bring your servant into judgment,
for no one living is righteous before you.
3 The enemy pursues me,
he crushes me to the ground;
he makes me dwell in the darkness
like those long dead.
4 So my spirit grows faint within me;
my heart within me is dismayed.
5 I remember the days of long ago;
I meditate on all your works
and consider what your hands have done.
6 I spread out my hands to you;
I thirst for you like a parched land.
Selah
II. PART TWO (7-12)
7 Answer me quickly, Lord;
my spirit fails.
Do not hide your face from me
or I will be like those who go down to the pit.
8 Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love,
for I have put my trust in you.
Show me the way I should go,
for to you I entrust my life.
9 Rescue me from my enemies, Lord,
for I hide myself in you.
10 Teach me to do your will,
for you are my God;
may your good Spirit
lead me on level ground.
11 For your name’s sake, Lord, preserve my life;
in your righteousness, bring me out of trouble.
12 In your unfailing love, silence my enemies;
destroy all my foes,
for I am your servant.
Click here for Easy English Explanations about Psalm 143
Click here for Cambridge Bible Commentary notes on Psalm 143
Click here for Spurgeon’s Treasury of David on Psalm 143
Click here for Enduring Word Commentary notes on Psalm 143
LEAD ME, GUIDE ME
Doris Akers
1953
Chorus
Lead me, guide me along the way,
For if you lead me I cannot stray.
Lord let me walk each day with Thee.
Lead me, oh Lord lead me.
Verse 1:
I am weak and I need thy strength and power
To help me over my weakest hour
Lead me through the darkness thy face to see
Lead me O Lord, Lead me.
VERSE 2:
Help me tread in the paths of righteousness.
Be my aid when Satan and sin oppress.
I am putting all my trust in Thee:
Lead me, oh Lord lead me.
VERSE 3:
I am lost if you take your hand from me,
I am blind without Thy light to see.
Lord just always to me thy servant be,
Lead me, oh Lord lead me.
Click here for a list of Psalms we will study from June 5, 2019 to August 28, 2019
John Adams wrote to his wife, Abigail, that the signing of the Declaration of Independence “will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival.”
Tomorrow is the Fourth of July. First thing tomorrow morning, thank the Lord for America.
America!
America!
God shed His grace on thee!
Pike’s Peak