Let Your glory be above all the earth.

Psalm 57 (NASB) from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Prayer for Rescue from Persecutors.

 A Mikhtam of David, when he fled from Saul in the cave.

Be gracious to me, O God, be gracious to me,
For my soul takes refuge in You;
And in the shadow of Your wings I will take refuge
Until destruction passes by.
² I will cry to God Most High,
To God who accomplishes all things for me.
³ He will send from heaven and save me;
He reproaches him who tramples upon me. Selah.
God will send forth His lovingkindness and His truth.

⁴ My soul is among lions;
I must lie among those who breathe forth fire,
Even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows
And their tongue a sharp sword.
⁵ Be exalted above the heavens, O God;
Let Your glory be above all the earth.
⁶ They have prepared a net for my steps;
My soul is bowed down;
They dug a pit before me;
They themselves have fallen into the midst of it. Selah.

⁷ My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast;
I will sing, yes, I will sing praises!
⁸ Awake, my glory!
Awake, harp and lyre!
I will awaken the dawn.
⁹ I will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the peoples;
I will sing praises to You among the nations.
¹⁰ For Your  lovingkindness is great to the heavens
And Your truth to the clouds.
¹¹ Be exalted above the heavens, O God;
Let Your glory be above all the earth.

David had already been anointed as king. Saul though was seeking to kill David, to try to hold onto his position. So David, chosen and anointed by God, found himself hiding in caves. Sometimes our situations can be similar. We have been chosen by God, our future is secure, it is established in heaven. Yet here on earth we struggle with circumstances. We are subject to various authorities and enemies who want to destroy us.   

David begins his entreaty to God saying: Be gracious to me, O God, be gracious to me,
For my soul takes refuge in You; And in the shadow of Your wings I will take refuge
Until destruction passes by. Though he was physically hiding in a cave David acknowledged that his true hiding place, his refuge was in God. We need to have that same understanding and that same confidence, that regardless of the source or the severity of our difficulties or the attacks against us, we have a refuge, a safe hiding place in God. We have been chosen and called by God. He says: “For I know the plans that I have for you, plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11) Whether the trial, the difficulty or the attack is brief or seemingly endless, it will pass by.

David continues saying:  I will cry to God Most High, To God who accomplishes all things for me.  He will send from heaven and save me; He reproaches him who tramples upon me. Selah.
God will send forth His lovingkindness and His truth. David placed all of his trust in God. He knew it was God who called him, so he waited trusting and crying out to God  who accomplishes all things. There were times, while hiding in the caves, that David had opportunities to kill Saul. Instead he waited and trusted God and His timing. What we establish by our own strength, we will need to maintain by our own strength. What God establishes, He will maintain.  

David says:  My soul is among lions; I must lie among those who breathe forth fire, Even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows And their tongue a sharp sword.  Be exalted above the heavens, O God; Let Your glory be above all the earth.  They have prepared a net for my steps; My soul is bowed down; The circumstances surrounding David were not good at that time. I am sure that many of you also face difficult circumstances today. David says his soul is bowed down. When times are hard that seems to be our posture, we tend to bow down under the weight of the difficulties and trials of life. Jesus says: “when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” (Luke 21:28)

May the prayer and the declaration of David be your prayer and declaration today.

 Be exalted above the heavens, O God; Let Your glory be above all the earth… My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises! Awake, my glory!
Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn. I will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to You among the nations.  For Your  lovingkindness is great to the heavens And Your truth to the clouds.  Be exalted above the heavens, O God; Let Your glory be above all the earth.   Amen.