You are my King, O God;
ordain salvation for Jacob!
5 Through you we push down our foes;
through your name we tread down those who rise up against us.
6 For not in my bow do I trust,
nor can my sword save me.
7 But you have saved us from our foes
and have put to shame those who hate us.
8 In God we have boasted continually,
and we will give thanks to your name forever.
We commonly use the word “ordained” in terms of ministers of the gospel. We don’t often see the word in Scripture. Yet here it is in this psalm and it means that a Sovereign God has spoken salvation for Israel. Most other times the Hebrew word occurs in the Bible, it is translated “command”, as if God demanded Israel’s deliverance. It is true. The psalmist is proclaiming trust in the God that can be trusted more than his own strength. Man gauges strength by weaponry and wealth but when God says we win, we win.
Do you have that assurance today? We can easily buckle under the pressure of health issues in ourselves or our loved ones, our finances, or our relationships. This can lead to defeat if we feel that we are alone in the battle or that our own strength is what is needed if we are to withstand the onslaught. Pray for the billions of people in that category. Praise the Lord that you do not need to be one of them. In other words, cast your burdens upon the Lord and he will sustain you. Trust not in your bow but in the Lord…
He has commanded it.
Pastor Brad Boyer
Cape Community Church