Whatever My Lot
Psalms 55
November 17, 2019
Tonight we come to the 55th Psalm.
You likely recognize it as a Psalm of betrayal and backstabbing
As David laments a close companion who turns against him.
Many have also seen a parallel here to Judas’ betrayal of Jesus
But honestly, I think it’s a stretch to force that comparison.
While certainly Judas did betray Jesus,
It is hard to see a point in Jesus’ life when He would have sang this song.
I’ll show you why.
• Verse 2 reveals David as “distracted” and it appears to me that our Lord
was always focused.
• Verse 4 speaks of “anguish” and “terrors of death”
• Verse 5 speaks of “trembling” and “horror”
Some might point to the garden where Jesus was certainly in anguish,
But He was not in anguish because of the betrayal of Judas. He was in anguish because He was about to bear the full fury of the wrath of God.
• Verses 6-8 indicate that if he could David would have fled. Christ could flee
and yet did not.
• In verse 15 David actually prays for the death of his enemies, whereas
Christ prayed for the forgiveness of His.
Now I don’t say that to insinuate that David’s prayer is sinful.
What he wrote here was inspired by the Holy Spirit.
I merely point out that I’m not sure this Psalm references the betrayal of Judas
As clearly as so many have wanted to assume.
Instead of seeing Christ’s burden here,
I find it much more comforting to see Christ in this Psalm
As the One David is running to.
Christ in this Psalm is the burden bearer.
I do think this Psalm however greatly depicts a different setting
And that is the betrayal of David by Absalom and Ahithophel.
TURN TO: 2 SAMUEL 15
While you turn there I’ll remind you briefly of the back story of Absalom.
• Absalom was David’s 3rd born son. (the oldest was Amnon)
• Absalom had a sister named Tamar.
The story goes that
• Amnon (the older ½ brother of Absalom) loved Tamar and wanted her.
• Through a series of events he lured Tamar to his house, raped her, and then sent her away.
• David didn’t really do anything about it and Absalom was ticked.
• Through a plot of his own Absalom killed Amnon and then fled.
• David grieved for his son and eventually was persuaded to bring Absalom home, but did not see him. (And Absalom’s bitterness grew)
• After a prolonged period Absalom worked his way back into the king’s presence where David felt remorse and the relationship seemed to be repaired.
But it was not.
Absalom was merely working to overthrow his dad.
(READ: 2 SAMUEL 15:1-14)
• So Absalom is conspiring against the king and David is forced to flee.
(READ: 2 SAMUEL 15:30-31)
• There we see again that Ahithophel had also agreed to join Absalom.
Now Ahithophel was a smart man and a trusted counselor
And he knew how to capture and kill David.
Now, if you read on you find that
• There was another man named Hushai who loved David
• But David told him to stay in Jerusalem, pretend loyalty to Absalom,
• And do everything he could to get Absalom not to listen to Ahithophel.
SO
• You’ve got David on the run.
• You’ve got Absalom in Jerusalem.
• You’ve got 2 counselors (Ahithophel and Hushai)
(READ: 2 SAMUEL 16:20 – 17:4)
• Ahithophel has a plan to kill David and by all accounts it would have worked.
• So you see the conspiracy and the danger David is facing from his son and former counselor.
Now if you read the rest of chapter 17
You’ll find that Hushai steps in and convinces the king
Not to follow Ahithophel’s advice and this ultimately saves David’s life.
Hushai counsels Absalom to gather a mighty army to himself
And to personally lead them after David, and Absalom takes the advice.
And the result is tragic for “Team Absalom”
• First concerning Ahithophel:
• (READ: 2 SAMUEL 23)
• And then concerning Absalom:
• (READ: 2 SAMUEL 18:9-15)
I just think that’s a fitting backstory
Now, in saying that it is important for you to note that
David DOES NOT SING this song as a testimony.
That is to say, this song is not written after Ahithophel and Absalom are dead.
This song is written while they are very much alive and in power.
In fact we read when David fled:
2 Samuel 15:31 “Now someone told David, saying, “Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.” And David said, “O LORD, I pray, make the counsel of Ahithophel foolishness.”
And that corresponds very well to verse 9 of Psalms 55,
“Confuse, O Lord, divide their tongues…”
This is not an after-the-fact song.
This is a during-the-fact song.
David is not singing this song in gratitude, he is singing it in faith.
That means he is singing it to himself
Just as much as he is singing it to those around him.
And the point of the Psalm is clear.
CAST YOUR BURDEN ON GOD
We see it in verse 22, “Cast your burden upon the LORD, and He will sustain you.”
That is the point of Psalms 55.
And it is being sung by the man who wrote it
That he may first encourage his own heart
And then encourage the hearts of those around him.
This is a great song to sing when we are under a great burden.
Indeed it is the song David sang under his great burden.
I think it’s easiest to look at if we break it down into 4 points tonight.
#1 DAVID’S GENUINE BURDEN
Psalms 55:1-11
We could probably break this down even more,
But I think it’s just as easy to see if we keep it together.
When you look at these 11 verses as a whole, there are some words that just sort of jump out at you.
• (2) “restless”
• (2) “distracted”
• (4) “anguish”
• (4) “terrors of death”
• (5) “trembling”
• (5) “horror”
• (5) “overwhelmed”
• We could sort of sum up verses 6-8 with the word “retreat” as David admits he’d like nothing better than just to run from the problem.
When you look at those words it becomes apparent that
THIS IS A REAL BURDEN.
David is really shaken here.
He is overcome with anxiety
He is overcome with fear
He is overcome with desperation
This is not some person living a life of ease
Just mindlessly preaching to you to “relax and trust God”.
David understands a burden.
But we also want to look at little closer at these 11 verses.
It begins with David’s cry to God.
(1-2) “Give ear to my prayer, O God; And do not hide Yourself from my supplication. Give heed to me and answer me; I am restless in my complaint and am surely distracted,”
Can you hear David’s desperation?
He’s not just praying, but he wants to make sure that God is listening.
• “Give ear to my prayer”
• “do not hide Yourself”
• “Give heed to me…answer me”
It was not enough for David to just pray some token prayer
So that he might say, “There I did it”
No David was committed to prayer.
This was serious. He needed God.
“I am restless in my complaint and am surely distracted”
I so understand that statement.
It comes from a man who would say, “I know I shouldn’t be letting this get to me, but it is. I know I should be focused on other things, but I cannot get my mind off of it.”
Perhaps you’ve had a burden like that.
You know the answer is “not think about it” or “don’t worry about it”
But somehow you can’t put it out of your mind.
It’s a burden so great that it consumes your mind
And causes you to be distracted from everything else.
That is David here.
And it (3) “because of the voice of the enemy, because of the pressure of the wicked”
• David can’t get their threats out of his head.
• David can’t get their plans out of his head.
• They threatened him and he just keeps playing it over and over.
“For they bring down trouble upon me and in anger they bear a grudge against me.”
That is to say, they plot against me and I just can’t seem to let it go.
I can’t escape it in my own mind.
We call that worry.
We call that anxiety.
David just can’t put it away and so he is crying to God for help.
Beyond that, his fear here is real.
(4-5) “My heart is in anguish within me, And the terrors of death have fallen upon me. Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror has overwhelmed me.”
This is a guy who says, “I can’t quit shaking. I’m filled with fear and terror. I can’t quit thinking about the horrible things they want to do to me.”
Do you see how David is consumed and overcome here?
And he has to turn to God because he can’t escape it.
Believe me, if he could escape it, he would.
(6-8) “I said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest. “Behold, I would wander far away, I would lodge in the wilderness. Selah. “I would hasten to my place of refuge From the stormy wind and tempest.”
There are some burdens that you just can’t escape.
Things like illness or poverty or the loss of a loved one
• You just can’t run from it.
• Wherever you go it runs with you.
• You just can’t escape it.
And that is what David is talking about here.
He’s got a terrible and terrifying burden that he cannot get away from.
In David’s world it is a death threat.
And all he can seem to do is muster up a request
That God not let them accomplish what their tongues are threatening.
(9-11) “Confuse, O Lord, divide their tongues, For I have seen violence and strife in the city. Day and night they go around her upon her walls, And iniquity and mischief are in her midst. Destruction is in her midst; Oppression and deceit do not depart from her streets.”
• They are talking up a storm and spreading their violence and strife.
• Day and night they spread their iniquity and their mischief.
• They are pushing everyone to the same oppressive destruction.
And as David sits here all he can do is wonder how successful they are being?
• He can’t stop them.
• He can’t escape them.
• He’s terrified of them.
• He’s overrun with fear of what they are doing.
And all he can do is desperately run to God for supernatural intervention.
That God would “Confuse…divide their tongues”
His prayer brings to mind the incident of the tower of Babyl
• Where men came together to build a tower to the heavens
• And it appeared that anything was within their ability
• Until God confused their speech and all at once all their plans fell aside.
That is the sort of disruption David is hoping God will accomplish here.
AND ALL OF THAT REALLY JUST POINTS TO THE REALITY
THAT DAVID HAS A BURDEN THAT IS HUGE.
David’s genuine burden
#2 DAVID’S INTIMATE GRIEF
Psalms 55:12-15
We could probably have included this in with the first 11 verses, but I chose to separate it out because it just makes the burden that much worse.
On top of all of David’s pain.
On top of all of David’s fear.
On top of all of David’s anxiety.
Now we find that at the heart of it is the sting of betrayal.
(This just keeps getting worse)
(12) “For it is not an enemy who reproaches me, Then I could bear it;”
That is to say, I could overlook it.
• If it was the Philistines this would make perfect sense.
• If this was some adversary, I could probably let it go.
• But the fact that it is not an enemy makes this all the worse.
“Nor is it one who hates me who has exalted himself against me, The I could hide myself from him.”
That is to say, I could ignore it.
• If this was just some noted enemy, this wouldn’t be getting to me as bad.
• I could overlook it, I could ignore it.
• But this I can’t.
BECAUSE
(13) “But it is you, a man my equal, My companion and familiar friend; We who had sweet fellowship together Walked in the house of God in the throng.”
We understand why the sting is even worse.
• This great danger David faces.
• This great threat…
• This vicious verbal attack…
• This horrible grudge…
• This malicious plan…
It was coming from that David regarded as a friend.
This is why Ahithophel fits so easily here.
• He is a man whom David had confided in.
• He is a man whom David had trusted.
• He is a man whom David had worshiped with.
And now this man was plotting his death
And David says, “I just can’t let it go. I just can’t ignore it.”
And then comes the most difficult verse of the Psalm.
(15) “Let death come deceitfully upon them; Let them go alive to Sheol, For evil is in their dwelling, in their midst.”
What do we do with it?
Well, WE COULD just take it at face value
And see it as yet another of David’s imprecatory Psalms.
And that is certainly fine.
We’ve already seen such statements in the Psalms:
Psalms 5:10 “Hold them guilty, O God; By their own devices let them fall! In the multitude of their transgressions thrust them out, For they are rebellious against You.”
Psalms 10:15 “Break the arm of the wicked and the evildoer, Seek out his wickedness until You find none.”
Psalms 35:1-8 “Contend, O LORD, with those who contend with me; Fight against those who fight against me. Take hold of buckler and shield And rise up for my help. Draw also the spear and the battle-axe to meet those who pursue me; Say to my soul, “I am your salvation.” Let those be ashamed and dishonored who seek my life; Let those be turned back and humiliated who devise evil against me. Let them be like chaff before the wind, With the angel of the LORD driving them on. Let their way be dark and slippery, With the angel of the LORD pursuing them. For without cause they hid their net for me; Without cause they dug a pit for my soul. Let destruction come upon him unawares, And let the net which he hid catch himself; Into that very destruction let him fall.”
We understand that the Psalms are filled with such imprecations.
• And as we have said repeatedly, we are not comfortable just ignoring them or overlooking them,
• Or saying as so many do that Christians should never pray in this way.
• Even these declarations of judgment are the inspired words of Holy God.
And so we are certainly fine with an imprecation here.
If that is what David is doing,
Who are we to argue with the inspired word of God?
But I think there is more here than just righteous indignation.
The wording seems to suggest that he has A HISTORICAL SCENE in mind
• Perhaps you remember when Moses’ associates revolted against him.
• There was a day when Korah, and Dathan, and Abiram all conspired against Moses to remove him from his leadership role before Israel.
Several things played out in that story, but this is how it ultimately ended.
Numbers 16:23-35 “Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the congregation, saying, ‘Get back from around the dwellings of Korah, Dathan and Abiram.'” Then Moses arose and went to Dathan and Abiram, with the elders of Israel following him, and he spoke to the congregation, saying, “Depart now from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing that belongs to them, or you will be swept away in all their sin.” So they got back from around the dwellings of Korah, Dathan and Abiram; and Dathan and Abiram came out and stood at the doorway of their tents, along with their wives and their sons and their little ones. Moses said, “By this you shall know that the LORD has sent me to do all these deeds; for this is not my doing. “If these men die the death of all men or if they suffer the fate of all men, then the LORD has not sent me. “But if the LORD brings about an entirely new thing and the ground opens its mouth and swallows them up with all that is theirs, and they descend alive into Sheol, then you will understand that these men have spurned the LORD.” As he finished speaking all these words, the ground that was under them split open; and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, and their households, and all the men who belonged to Korah with their possessions. So they and all that belonged to them went down alive to Sheol; and the earth closed over them, and they perished from the midst of the assembly. All Israel who were around them fled at their outcry, for they said, “The earth may swallow us up!” Fire also came forth from the LORD and consumed the two hundred and fifty men who were offering the incense.”
This seems to be the type of incident David has in mind
When he prays “Let them go down alive to Sheol”
And that event WAS NOT ABOUT God taking up for Moses
Because Moses got his feelings hurt.
That was about God defending His sovereign right
To place whomever He wanted as ruler in Israel.
God had selected Moses and Korah, Dathan, and Abiram had no right to try and usurp God’s authority by seizing leadership for themselves.
And that seems to be the mindset here behind what David prays.
• That God would intervene in this terrible situation
• And let it be known for sure and for certain that David is God’s anointed ruler
• And these men are only evil men seeking to seize the throne.
David asks God to stop them as God stopped Korah.
And incidentally, as you already saw, God did.
• Ahithophel hanged himself.
• And God hanged Absalom.
But even in that you still see the backdrop.
• David is bearing an intense burden and it is one that has caused
him intimate grief.
• It is a situation so bitter that David has asked God t
supernaturally intervene.
And all of that is really serving as a backdrop for you and me
To understand that when David asks us to trust God,
He understands how hard it is.
When David asks you to cast your burden on God,
He understands all the little difficulties associated with that.
He had a genuine burden He had intimate grief
#3 DAVID’S DECISION TO TRUST GOD
Psalms 55:16-21
Here is David, from the middle of his burden,
Telling everyone around him what he is going to do.
“As for me, I shall call upon God”
David has decided that this burden must be entrusted to the Lord.
“And the LORD will save me.”
David is confident that God will come through as He always has.
And this is NOT BASED upon the fact that
God never lets His children suffer or even die,
But rather IT IS BASED on the confidence that
God has decreed that David is His anointed king.
David knows God will not let the enemy overturn His sovereign decision.
And in this reality David will rest.
(17-18) “Evening and morning and at noon, I will complain and murmur, And He will hear my voice. He will redeem my soul in peace from the battle which is against me, For they are many who strive with me.”
DO NOTICE the level of David’s commitment when he says he is going to call upon God.
“Evening and morning and at noon”
This is not token prayer at the beginning of the day just to be able to say you did it.
• Prayer is David’s strategy.
• Prayer is David’s great hope.
• Every time the fear comes…
• Every time the terror comes…
• Every time his mind is overrun with anxiety…
• The answer is that he will pray.
And I even like the terminology he uses.
“I will complain and murmur”
• This wasn’t ceremonial.
• This wasn’t always pretty.
It is a man who is honestly taking his entire burden to the Lord.
Everything about the entire ugly situation
And David is presenting it all to the Lord.
Have you ever been in the role of helping bear another person’s burden?
• Perhaps an illness and they need your help…
• Perhaps a financial struggle and they come to you…
• Perhaps an addiction or a relationship problem…
When people throw their entire burden on you
Then you know that often times
You get way more than you likely wanted to get.
It’s not all pretty
It’s not all enjoyable
That’s why it’s called a burden
And when they want to share it, they give it ALL to you.
Well David is throwing all of that on God all day long.
• He is holding nothing back.
• God gets it all.
And David says
“He will hear my voice”
“He will redeem my soul in peace”
David is going to let God have the entire burden
And David is going to enjoy the peace.
It is our folly when we are unwilling to lay our entire burden on God.
When we try to maintain some distance, or only give God a little of it.
David hits God 24/7 and he hits Him with the full ugly reality of it.
For David also trusts how God will deal with his enemy.
(19-21) “God will hear and answer them — Even the one who sits enthroned from of old — Selah. With whom there is no change, And who do not fear God. He has put forth his hands against those who were at peace with him; He has violated his covenant. His speech was smoother than butter, But his heart was war; His words were softer than oil, Yet they were drawn swords.”
You pick up again on the bitterness of David’s soul for this individual.
Phrases like:
• “who do not fear God”
• “put forth his hands against those who were at peace”
• “violated his covenant”
• “speech was smoother than butter”
• “his heart was war”
• “his words were softer than oil”
• [his words] “were drawn swords”
You feel the betrayal
You feel the sting
It is a hard burden for David to let go of.
But David does and he believes that “God will hear and answer them”
David is trusting God to fix it.
“I’m giving it all to You God. I’m giving that weasely, backstabbing, no good, lying, phony, and all his evil intentions to You God because I know You will deal with it.”
That’s a real prayer isn’t it?
That’s a raw prayer isn’t it?
That’s the messiness of taking your real burden and laying at God’s feet.
AND THAT IS THE EXAMPLE.
THAT IS THE MODEL DAVID GIVES.
• He is in a terrible spot of grief.
• It has consumed him in every way.
• But now, through song, he is letting the entire congregation know that he is
giving the entire messy affair to God for Him to deal with.
And David says the result for him will be peace.
“He will redeem my soul in peace”
Well, it obviously worked for David
Because the very next verse of this song
Has David encouraging you to do the same.
#4 DAVID’S ENCOURAGEMENT TO THE CHURCH
Psalms 55:22-23
“Cast your burden upon the LORD”
The word for “cast” means just that.
It means “to throw” or “to fling”
(I picture like when a grasshopper jumps up on your finger)
The interesting word here is “burden”
It is the Hebrew word YEHAB (yee-have)
And it literally means “my lot” or “that which has been given to me”
As in “my lot in life”
As in the old hymn
“Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say, ‘It is well with my soul’”
And David here now gives that advice.
What is your lot in life?
What is your unique yoke that you’ve been forced to bear?
• It may be different than everyone elses.
• It may be yours specifically.
• Maybe an illness
• Maybe a disability
• Maybe a relational dilemma
• Maybe a burden or a war
What is your lot?
(And regardless of what it is)
FLING IT ON THE LORD!
That’s what David did wasn’t it?
He took that whole ugly affair and threw it at God like it was God’s problem not his.
And if casting it on God is still a little confusing,
Let me show you some parallel verses
That USE A LITTLE DIFFERENT WORDING.
Psalms 27:14 “Wait for the LORD; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the LORD.”
• There the word is “wait” as in let Him have it and don’t give up on Him.
Psalms 37:5 “Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, and He will do it.”
• There the word is “commit” as in give Him time to do His work.
Casting your burden on God cannot be a provisional or temporary thing.
It cannot be done on a trial basis.
• Also there is “Trust”. Don’t be skeptical with God.
Psalms 42:11 “Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him, The help of my countenance and my God.”
• There the word is “hope”. Put your future on God’s back.
• Put it in God’s hands. Trust it all to him.
Psalms 63:8 “My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me.”
• And there he uses the word “clings”
• Like a man holding to a tree in a tornado.
• Like God is the only hope you’ve got.
That is what it means also to “cast your burden on the LORD”
• Wait on Him
• Commit your way to Him
• Trust Him
• Hope in Him
• Cling to Him
You can even take a practical cue from David in this Psalm.
• He is praying continually
• He is singing
• He is standing on solid theology
• He is remember God’s past deliverances
• He is resolving to trust God
That is all the practical way in which David is transferring this great burden from his shoulders to God’s shoulders.
And David says when you do.
“and He will sustain you;”
God will carry you through it.
And this is based on a theological reality.
“He will never allow the righteous to be shaken”
• God never lets His people fall.
• It’s just who He is.
So cast your burden on God.
And then I love how the Psalm ends.
(David is still casting his burden on God)
(23) “But You, O God, will bring them down to the pit of destruction; Men of bloodshed and deceit will not live out half their days. But I will trust in You.”
He is still throwing that burden on God.
And we learn there that it is often NOT A ONE-TIME THING.
David had to KEEP FLINGING his burden on God.
“Evening and morning and at noon”, David said.
But you get here the point of the Psalm.
“Cast your burdens upon the LORD”
Fling your lot in life on God
And do we not see this same reality in the New Testament?
1 Peter 5:6-7 “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.”
Matthew 11:28-29 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.”
Philippians 4:6-7 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
So there you have the song for the church.
• Whatever your lot
• Whatever your burden
• No matter the depth
• No matter the pain
• No matter the grief
The solution is the same.
Fling it on God, let Him have it, and you accept His peace.
There is no peace in handling it yourself.
He is the burden bearer.
