PSALM 63. THE THIRSTY KING. The background to this psalm is that David was wandering in the Wilderness of Judah. During the persecution by Saul and the rebellion of Absalom, David was often in those wild parts of the country. He was wandering to save his life. It is significant that it was in this wilderness that John Baptist preached in a later era. (Matthew 3) That voice, which came to Israel after 400 years in which there was no word from the Lord, came from this Wilderness. It is also worthy of note that it was in this Wilderness that our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ was tempted. (Matthew 4). I would like to make a proposition: That as surely as they went through it, at some time or another we will find ourselves metaphorically in the same Wilderness. It is not a new thing for a person to be driven into the Wilderness. Some say that David wrote this psalm whilst he was being persecuted by Saul. But this militates against the fact that he never called himself king during the lifetime of Saul. In the eleventh verse of this psalm he sings in reference to himself, "But the king shall rejoice in God." Thus, the rebebellion which caused this ode must have been Absalom's.. It is recorded in 2 Samuel 16. Shimeah came out to curse king David and stone his company, crying, "God is doing this to you because of what you did to Saul." But David prevented his troops from retaliating. He felt that every man was entitled to his opinion. David was looking for the blessing of God. He longed for a sign of God's favour in the situation. He expresses it in this way: "My soul thirsteth for Thee!" This is his description of the longing in his heart. It was SOUL THIRST. He would have given anything to be able to go up into the House of the Lord. "O God, Thou art my God!" In that cry, two ideas are bound together:- O God = Omnipotence. My God = A covenant relationship. He is in effect saying, "I am bound up with Omnipotence". It is satisfying to be able to say, "I'm alright, I am in partnership with some very clever business men." That will not do. Oh No! I am in partnership with the Almighty. "Lord", he says, "You are the Governor of the World. Your Word is pledged to me. You are MY God. Early will I seek you!" Early seeking was a sign of diligence. Diligently seek God. It is essential to do more than talk about God being on our side. Early seeking is not just getting up early in the morning; it is seeking without delay; allowing nothing to delay our audience with the Lord of Glory. Here is a king who could not get a drink of water, thirsting for the Living God. He did not complain about being parched, he confessed that he was thirsty for God. He did not ask God to do a miracle and let water come out of the rock. His yearning, above all else, was for God. "I am thirsting to see your Glory and your Power, as I have seen You in the sanctuary." He longed to see God as he had seen Him in the sanctuary; not where he, David, was at that time, but where he should be seeing God - in the sanctuary. He continues : "Thy loving kindness is better than life." What ! does he mean?. It is better not to exist at all, than to exist without the favour of God. "My lips shall praise Thee." - In this particular statement the word PRAISE is capable of a number of meanings:- praise - commend - glory in - triumph in. We should not only approach God as the ALMIGHTY, but also as the PROMISE KEEPING GOD. A person in the street will say, "God Almighty!" and thereby turn that Glorious Name into a curse. The true believer believes in God Almighty, and also in the God Who Keeps His Promises. David, in the Wilderness, knew that God had said that he would reign upon the Throne of Israel. That Promise kept David alive. Shemaiah was wrong when he said, "God has given your kingdom to your son Absalom." God has NOT done so. Absalom had tried to grab it, but the coup had failed. There are many enemies, and some of our own household, who would rob us of the very thing God would give us. But God is in control. David continues his song to uplift his soul: "Thus will I bless Thee!" Whole life lasts he will publish the honour of God. When the soul is thirsty for God there are five ways to imbibe the blessing of the Lord:- 1/ "I will lift up my hands." This is not a physical exercise that David is referring to, but a lifting up of holy hands to extol, bless, and praise God. They were refreshed there : but there is no mention of water. 2/ "My soul shall be satisfied with marrow and fatness." The banquet he longed for, he enjoyed in spirit. However dark the present circumstances, he still rejoices in God: "My mouth shall praise Thee with joyful lips." Soul satisfaction is a spiritual fullness which overcomes even natural thirst. 3/ "I will remember Thee upon my bed." If I wake at 3.00 a.m. and start to think. My body wants to go back to sleep and my mind keeps ticking over. Then my mind tells me what COULD happen, and the alarm bells ring. Our spirit should then tell us what CAN and WILL happen because of our Hope in God. Often when we lie awake we have the choice of SLEEPLESSNESS or PRAISE. David affirms, "When I lie upon my bed I WILL REMEMBER THEE." So often, when we lie awake, we remember the things of yesterday which we did not do. David speaks of the NIGHT WATCHES. The Hebrews divided the night into THREE and later the Romans divided it into FOUR night watches. But the night can be shattered into fragments if you are without God. David had huge family problems and these vitally affected the National Problem. But, he remembered God. He had God with him all the time. 4/ "Because Thou hast been my help." He sings on. "I am under your protection, Lord! I will shout for joy!" He was not trusting reluctantly nor despondently. Once, a lady rose in one of my services, asking permission to testify. Unfortunately, I gave her what she wanted, and immediately regretted it. "I have had twenty four operations," she said, "and I feel so sick." She carried on in such a mournful voice that most of us ceased listening. Then, she ended with, "I am going to trust God even if it kills me!" The pastor of the Church, who had asked me to take the service, exclaimed with a loud voice; "It probably will, sister!" That poor lady was exercising Despondent Trusting. David, in the Wilderness, sings "I will trust God and shout for joy!" 5/ "My soul cleaves to you" sings David. In every Wilderness, the best advice is, STAY CLOSE TO GOD. He knows the way through the Wilderness, and all I have to do is follow. Copyright (c) 1996, Hedley Palmer. All rights reserved. ---------------------------------------------------- file: /pub/resources/text/hpalmer/psalms: ps-063.txt .