Suffer Unjustly | Psalm 7:1–5

A Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the Lord concerning the words of Cush, a Benjaminite.
          O LORD my God, in you do I take refuge;
            save me from all my pursuers and deliver me,
          lest like a lion they tear my soul apart,
            rending it in pieces, with none to deliver.
          O LORD my God, if I have done this,
            if there is wrong in my hands,
          if I have repaid my friend with evil
            or plundered my enemy without cause,
          let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it,
            and let him trample my life to the ground
            and lay my glory in the dust. Selah

We’re reading another lament psalm, but David isn’t confessing sin here.  He stands falsely accused, and it may mean his body will return to the dust.  Cush, being a Benjamite, may have been feeding King Saul misinformation about David’s intentions (cf. 1 Sm 24:8ff), though he’s never named elsewhere in Scripture.

Hunted, David seeks the Lord in prayer.  Indeed, he sings, and our songs can be just as prayerful.  He seeks Yahweh, the covenant-keeping God of Israel, knowing that he can plead his case for deliverance.  He lays out several conditionals in vv. 3–5, if–then statements, calling down a curse upon himself if he’s guilty.  God will do what is just.

Life means dealing with lies and slander.  People are motivated by their sin.  Whoever this Cush was, perhaps he was trying to gain favor with Saul.  Whatever the case, we have to live in a world affected by the sins of those around us.  Even so, the Good Shepherd won’t allow His sheep to be devoured by the lion, and He will give us the strength to stand firm in His grace (1 Pt 5:8–9).


Make certain your suffering is unjust.  David isn’t saying he’s sinless, but he’s confident that he’s innocent in this situation.  Sometimes, while we assure ourselves that we’re not guilty of certain particulars of a case, we still have brought the suffering into our own house.  In such cases, Jesus commands us to come “to terms quickly with your accuser,” even if it means prison (Mt 5:25–26).  By God’s grace, though, you can begin living in such a way that all future accusations are completely baseless.  

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