Monday Devo
Scripture Reading:
Psalm 5
1 O Lord, hear me as I pray;
pay attention to my groaning.
2 Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God,
for I pray to no one but you.
3 Listen to my voice in the morning, Lord.
Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly.
1 O Lord, hear me as I pray;
pay attention to my groaning.
2 Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God,
for I pray to no one but you.
3 Listen to my voice in the morning, Lord.
Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly.
Commentary from the ESV Study Bible:
5:1–3 Asking for God’s Attention. As is common in the laments, the psalm opens by calling out to God. The tone is one of urgency and expectation.
5:2 my King and my God. Some psalms that speak of the Lord as “king” have in mind his rule over all his creation. Others, such as this one, refer to him as king over his people. The Davidic kingship, when it functioned properly, did not usurp either kind of divine kingship, though a faithless king could lead to God punishing the people (cf. 1 Sam. 8:7; 12:12–15).
5:3 I prepare a sacrifice for you is difficult in the Hebrew, which could also be rendered as in the ESV footnote, “I direct my prayer to you.” The mention of the morning here, and the Lord’s house in v. 7, favors “sacrifice”; the idea here is that the prayer comes in the context of a faithful worshiper who receives assurance and expresses personal consecration by way of these ordinances; it is small wonder that such a person will watch, looking around and ahead in expectant faith.
5:2 my King and my God. Some psalms that speak of the Lord as “king” have in mind his rule over all his creation. Others, such as this one, refer to him as king over his people. The Davidic kingship, when it functioned properly, did not usurp either kind of divine kingship, though a faithless king could lead to God punishing the people (cf. 1 Sam. 8:7; 12:12–15).
5:3 I prepare a sacrifice for you is difficult in the Hebrew, which could also be rendered as in the ESV footnote, “I direct my prayer to you.” The mention of the morning here, and the Lord’s house in v. 7, favors “sacrifice”; the idea here is that the prayer comes in the context of a faithful worshiper who receives assurance and expresses personal consecration by way of these ordinances; it is small wonder that such a person will watch, looking around and ahead in expectant faith.
Study Questions:
- David had a lot of enemies. He fought lions and bears as a boy, then Goliath, then Saul and even his own son. Someone was constantly after him, and he always ran to God for help. David cries out to God in his anxiety in Psalm 5. He says, "Hear me!" He is desperate, but also so patient that he tells God that he will wait expectantly. When you are in distress, what is your response? Do you cry out to God for help? If so, do you wait patiently for him to move or do you get impatient and move on to other methods of resolving things?
- First he cries out, then he waits. But he doesn't just wait... he waits EXPECTANTLY. The difference is huge! To wait expectantly means that you have every confidence that God not only CAN but WILL move and answer your cry for help. There is an implication of complete faith and confidence in God. When you pray or wait on God, how expectant are you that he can and will move? What is your faith meter like?
Pray:
- That you would run to God for help.
- That when you get there, you would wait for him expectantly.
This Week's City 7:
Try to commit to memory!
5. Is the Bible God’s word? Jesus proved He is God by rising from the dead and said the Old Testament was God’s word and gave authority to the Apostles to write the words of the New Testament under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit so that all the words of the Bible are God’s Word.
(Matthew 5:18; Luke 24:27, 44; John 14:25-26, 15:27, 16:12-13, 17:20; Acts 2:42; Ephesians 3:5; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:16-21)
(Matthew 5:18; Luke 24:27, 44; John 14:25-26, 15:27, 16:12-13, 17:20; Acts 2:42; Ephesians 3:5; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:16-21)
No Comments