Psalms 62

Psalms 62THEME: The only psalmThis is called the “only” psalm, not because there are no othersthere are 149 othersbut because the word only is significant. “Truly [better translated only] my soul waiteth upon God …He only is my rock and my salvation …they only consult to cast him down …wait thou only upon God …He only is my rock.” The superscription here is “To the chief Musician, to Jeduthun, A Psalm of David.” Psalms 39 was also written to Jeduthun. He was one of the chief musicians. His name is mentioned several times in the Psalms. Apparently he led the orchestra and the choir when this psalm was used. This is a simple psalm. It is one of simple faith. It reveals a faith and confidence in God that is akin to a child’s faith in his parents. Perowne gives us a wonderful statement concerning this psalm: “Scarcely anywhere do we find faith in God more nobly asserted, more victoriously triumphant; the vanity of man, of human strength and riches, more clearly confessed; courage in the midst of peril more calm and more unshaken, than in this Psalm, which is as forcible in its conception, and its language, as it is remarkable for the vigorous and cheerful piety it breathes” (The Book of Psalms, Vol. I, p. 442). Although the inspired text does not give us this information, tradition tells us that this psalm came from the greatest heartbreak of David’s lifethe rebellion led by his son Absalom. We turn to the historical record, and read this language: “And David went up by the ascent of mount Olivet, and wept as he went up, and had his head covered, and he went barefoot: and all the people that was with him covered every man his head, and they went up, weeping as they went up” (2Sa_15:30). That was a tragic time in the life of David. It was his dramatic moment, his time of crisis. Thomas Paine spoke of times that try men’s souls. This time had come to the old king. Absalom, David’s son, is marching into Jerusalem. His entry is forcing a time of decision. There are some who are choosing David; others are choosing Absalom. It is a time when David has found who are the loyal and disloyal in the ranks. The betrayers and followers are well-marked. An important man is Ahithophel (related by marriage through Bathsheba to David), an astute statesman, a man of sagacity, of wonderful ability, a counselor upon whom David had leaned. Ahithophel has deserted and gone over to Absalom. It was a great grief to David when he found that this trusted man had deserted him. Then Ziba, the servant of Mephibosheth, came and said that his master, the son of Jonathan, whom David had befriended, had also betrayed him. As David fled from the city, barefoot and weeping, there stood Shimei, a Benjamite, still loyal to former King Saul. From a heart of bitter hatred for David, he threw stones and heaped cursings upon the old king as he fled. We see Absalom entering Jerusalem in triumph, and the same crowd that once shouted to the rafters for David is now shouting deliriously for Absalom. Centuries later the children of these people were the ones who shouted “Hosanna” to the Lord Jesus Christ, and shortly after cried, “Crucify him.” David knew the sting of the voice of the mob, and Psalms 62 is the song of David in that hour of ignominy. Here we find a man who has committed his way to God, one who is traveling in the spiritual stratosphere; a man who is living above the storms, shocks, and stresses of this life. And as we read this psalm which comes from his heart in this hour of darkness, this time of testing, this hour of defeat, we are amazed to find not one note of discouragement, nor suggestion of fear, nor word of distress. There is neither rancor nor bitterness welling up in the heart of the psalmist. He sings forth a song of salvation, a paean of praise, an opus of optimism. It is a song of sanguinity, a thesis of trust, and a work of wonder. How could David write such a Hallelujah chorus out of an experience so dark?

Psalms 62:1

THE TEST OF FAITHNo doubt there were those around Davidfanatics of those dayswho urged that he stand his ground and thereby exhibit his faith, for he was God’s anointed and God should overrule this whole matter. Not David! He said that his life was in God’s hands, and it seemed best that he leave. David lived above the hue and cry of little men. He did not listen to pious shibboleths, for while little men cried for a miracle, David avowed to walk in the dark, trusting God. O for a faith like that! A God-given faith! What others called defeat, to David was but a test of faith. David can retreat from Jerusalem, and it is still going to sound like a victory.

Psalms 62:2

Zadok, the high priest, is come out to go with David. He is faithful and has brought the ark, a symbol to the Israelites of God’s presence in their midst, and he is following David when the old king turns and, seeing the ark, commands Zadok to carry it back to the city, for “…if I shall find favour in the eyes of the LORD, he will bring me again, and shew me both it, and his habitation: But if he thus say, I have no delight in thee; behold, here am I, let him do to me as seemeth good unto him” (2Sa_15:25-26). If I can but make this great truth clear so that it will live for you! Here is a man so wholly committed to God that he turns aside from any thought of merit in the ark, clinging only unto God and saying to Zadok that if it is God’s will for him to come back to this city, he will be allowed to come back; if not, then he is in God’s hands. He refuses to attempt to force God to do anything but determines to go the way God leads, regardless of the path. O, to live like that today!

Psalms 62:3

David tells them that they are just running over him “as a bowing wall …and as a tottering fence.” He says, “How long will ye imagine mischief against a man? ye shall be slain all of you.” Here he is thinking of Ziba, servant of Mephibosheth, who did a dastardly thing, thinking he would gain favor with David. He said his master had deserted, which was not true. Then he thinks of Ahithophel, his best friend and wisest of his counselors. Ahithophel went over to the other side in David’s darkest hour. Here in this psalm David is speaking of Ahithophel prophetically as Judas Iscariot. Ahithophel was in the inner circle and was the man that David leaned upon. David says that they are running over him as a mob runs over a fence, but he says it is all right if it is God’s will.

Psalms 62:4

Let us understand David’s action under the bitter attack of Shimei. While David was on the throne, Shimei bowed like the rest of them; but, when he was free to express his heart of hatred, we find him cursing David and hurling rocks after him as he fled from Jerusalem. David had a loyal captain by the name of Abishai, a son of Zeruiah, who said to the king, “…Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? let me go over, I pray thee, and take off his head” (2Sa_16:9). My friend, if you want an example of what the Scripture means by “…Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord” (Rom_12:19), listen to David as he replies to his captain: “And the king said …so let him curse, because the Lord hath said unto him, Curse David. Who shall then say, Wherefore hast thou done so?” (2Sa_16:10). In other words, David tells him “God has permitted him to curse me; you let him curse me.” Have you ever stopped to think, my friend, that God has given you certain enemies for a definite purpose to test you that you might become a better Christian? Do not become alarmed at the presence of enemies and difficulties that God has permitted to cumber your path. He is not bearing hard on you. Would that we would trust God to the extent that we would not cry out at a time like that!

Psalms 62:5

THE TIME OF FAITHWhen is the time of faith? Is it on a sunshiny day when there is not a cloud in your sky? Is it a time when everything is going exactly right, with nothing to mar your outlook? David’s answer is that the best time to trust God is at the crisis moment of your life This is a Bible definition of prayer. I once had a little card sent to me bearing a message that seemed rather important, so I kept it. Here it is: “True prayer is the Holy Spirit speaking in the believer, through the Son, to the Father.” That is prayer; it is real prayer. “My expectation is from him.” David is saying here that he is not making some wild prayer, some audacious statement, that he is not demanding that God do anything"My expectation is from him." David is expecting God to put into his heart the thing that He wants done; therefore, he will be praying for the thing that is best. We wonder again if some pious person around David might not have suggested to him that he was in such a tight place that they should have a prayer meeting. To this David would have said to them that his whole life was a life of prayer, “My expectation is from him.” Here is the illustration that Paul had in mind when he said, “Pray without ceasing” (1Th_5:17). Now by this Paul did not mean that you are to get on your knees and remain there twenty-four hours a day. But Paul did mean for you to get on your knees and pray and then live in the expectation of that prayer for twenty-four hours every day. So David is not going to call a prayer meeting. In fact, the amazing thing is that this psalm has no prayer in it at all.

But we find that the entire psalm is in the atmosphere of prayer. He is a man so committed to God that his life and actions are that of prayer. Now we see this old king going out of Jerusalem; we hear him weeping. But these exterior things fade away when we glimpse the depths of his heart, for he is a man who is committed to God and he will go with God regardless of what the outcome might be. Other men would have become bitter, but not David. He is saying something here that is tremendous: “My soul, wait thou only upon God; …my expectation is from him.”

Psalms 62:6

That is the central truth of the psalm. That is the central truth of David’s life. That is the dynamo that ran his life. That is the thing that caused him to stand head and shoulders above other men on the horizon of history. It has caused him to cast a long shadow down the corridor of time. “He only is my rock.” When we come to the New Testament, we can see what the Lord Jesus means when He says this tremendous thing: “And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder” (Mat_21:44). Christ is that Rock, that Stone. There is coming a day when the Stone cut out without hands will fall on this earth. Today, you and I can fall on this Stone, and those who fall on it will be saved. A little Scottish woman got up in a testimony meeting and gave this as her testimony: “You know, sometimes I tremmel [tremble] on the rock, but the rock never tremmels under me.” Are you on this Rock? Whosoever falls on this Rock shall be saved. This is what Paul meant when he said, “For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1Co_3:11). David said, “He only is my rock. He is the One I am trusting. O, the throne is toppling, Jerusalem is in convulsions, the people have turned against me, but I am on the Rock!” David has learned that glorious lesson.

Psalms 62:7

This is a very personal psalm. Notice that God is “my salvation …my glory …my strength …my refuge.”

Psalms 62:9

THE TRIUMPH OF FAITHHe has learned that one cannot trust the mob, for they are fickle. He has found that men of high degree, such as Ahithophel, are not to be trusted. They cannot be leaned upon. And this is the first thing that a new Christian must learnnot to look to men but to God. Many new Christians have become discouraged, disappointed, and disillusioned, for they have their eyes set upon a man. A young Christian told me recently that he had gotten his eyes on a man, and it had all but made shipwreck of his faith. David knew all of the time that he could not trust men, so his faith was fixed utterly upon God. He rested upon a Rock that could not be moved. Then he tells us that we cannot trust in material things either:

Psalms 62:10

And now hear the conclusion: Why is it that you can trust God?

Psalms 62:11

Friend, you can trust God because He can do anything that requires power. He has all power, and He can do anything he wants to do! Power did not reside in David. He was simply a great king because God made of him a great king. Now He has permitted men to force him to leave Jerusalem: and, if it is not God’s will that he return, then he will not go back. But he is resigning all to God for He alone is the One who has all power. The mad rush to gain power is the destroying element in the world at this hour. In the effort to gain power, the bomb has been created. This form of power wreaks destruction. It is man’s effort at power. But David says he has discovered that with real power there is another element that goes with it always:

Psalms 62:12

If you have power, you ought to be able to exercise mercy. David is saying that his God who can exercise power is a God who can also exercise mercy. To Zadok he said that he wanted him to take back the mercy seat and place it in the temple, for he would find mercy with God. At the very heart of Old Testament religion was the mercy seat. At the heart of the Christian faith today is mercy. “Come every soul by sin oppressed, there’s mercy with the Lord.” I think that is what Brother George Bennard meant when he wrote: “I’ll cling to the old rugged cross.” Mercy! Friend, let me make a suggestion. This psalm simply states this precious relationship with God. David just pours out his heart to God. He talks to God and tells Him, “You are my salvation; You are my rock.” So many people get uptight in a prayer meeting or in a church service. They feel oppression in prayerthey want to say the right things and use the right words. Public prayer is all right, but let me suggest that you go aside and be alone with God.

Perhaps you can drive along in your car, or maybe you can find a good quiet corner in a room in your home. Find a place where you can be quiet before God. Then “take the lid off.” There is a time to “gird up your loins,” and there is a time to take off your girdle and just let yourself go before God. When I was in Pasadena, a ladies’ group put a shaggy rug in my study. It was the first shaggy rug I ever had, and I liked it very much. I used to get down on that rug, on my face before God, and pour my heart out to Him.

It did me good, and it will do you good. It is the best tonic you could have.