Psalm 7

In this Psalm we again see David struggling with antagonistic people around him.  According to the title it is someone named “Cush” who was from the tribe of Benjamin. 

Having seen in the first few Psalms this type of prayer and knowing there will be many more in this “hymnal” one wonders why the Psalmists had so many enemies.  The answer to that question certainly involves the reality of God’s people living in the midst of a world that is generally antagonistic.  It is a recognition of the spiritual battle in which we find ourselves.

In addition, these Psalms also reflect differing kinds of circumstances.  In some the writer includes recognition of his own sin (e.g. Ps. 6).  In Psalm 7 David maintains his integrity.  It is not a prideful maintaining of innocence; he sees the possibility of his own fault and is willing to accept God’s judgment in that case (v3-5).  But it is a situation in which he is “persecuted” (v1); he thinks the treatment he is receiving is not just.

To study this Psalm let us consider 4 key words.

·         v1: “persecute.”  The word means to pursue and is also used in v5.  Cush is putting David to flight, chasing him.  The word itself also fits the need of God’s people to “pursue” righteousness, and of God’s people pursuing the wicked in battle.  But in this case it is David who is being persecuted.  (By the way, this is the same word in Ps. 23:6: Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all of my life.)

·         v8: “integrity.”  The root idea of this word is “completeness, fullness”.  According to God, David had this quality in the overall view of his life (1 Kings 9:4).  Think about this as you remember David was not sinless.  Rather, he handled his sin appropriately.  God also applied this term to Abimelech when he had taken Sarah into his palace after Abraham had lied about her being his sister (Gen. 20:5-6).  Even though Abimelech would not be a man of integrity in the overall picture of life, he had it in that particular situation.  Integrity requires right motives, the things that can’t be seen by anyone but God.  Integrity also means being right in your home, where others will not always know how you act (Ps. 101:2).  While David maintains his integrity in this situation, Job’s friends were wrong when they thought the confidence of his prayer should be his integrity (Job 4:6).  So note in this Psalm that David’s confidence is in the righteousness of God; God will do what is right.

·         v10: “defense.”  The Hebrew term (magen) means specifically a shield.  This is the defense for the individual.  The first use of this term in Scripture is important, when God promised Abraham to be his shield (Gen. 15:1).  What David asks for was promised to father Abraham.  David has already claimed God to be his shield (Ps. 3:3).  Note that God’s word is a critical aspect to His shield (Ps. 18:30; Prov. 30:5).  As our shield God is also a sun (Ps. 84:11), our strength (Ps. 28:7), our help (Ps. 115:9-11), and our hiding place (Ps. 119:114).  For all these reasons, our shield is the shield of salvation (Ps. 18:35).

·         v11: “just.”  This is from the family of words that speak of “righteousness” which appear several times in this Psalm (v7,8,9,11,17).  The idea is simply that God will do what is right.  It is “right” according to His standards, His law.  So in maintaining his integrity this is what David asks for, in essence, to be vindicated. 

So what is of interest in this Psalm is what is not said.  Unlike Ps. 5 and 6, David does not base his plea on the mercy of God.  Rather it is in God’s justice or righteousness.  The plea for mercy came when David knew he was part of the problem.  His sin contributed to the issue.  Here he maintains his integrity. 

There is an important thought about prayer that we need to learn and remember.  We come to God with hearts that are open to His scrutiny; thus we need to come honestly.  If we have contributed to our problem we need to pray accordingly, for mercy.  If we can see no wrong on our part and believe we are being “persecuted” let us come to God for vindication.  But let us come with an open heart that says, “If I have been at fault let me be judged accordingly.”  Let us come with the humble and contrite attitude of those who seek God in truth.