His Help and His Rescue

I waited patiently for the LORD;And He inclined to me and heard my cry. He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay,And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God;Many will see and fear And will trust in the LORD. How blessed is the man who has made the LORD his trust,And has not turned to the proud, nor to those who lapse into falsehood. Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders which You have done,And Your thoughts toward us;There is none to compare with You.If I would declare and speak of them,They would be too numerous to count. Sacrifice and meal offering You have not desired;My ears You have opened;Burnt offering and sin offering You have not required. Then I said, “Behold, I come;In the scroll of the book it is written of me. I delight to do Your will, O my God;Your Law is within my heart.” I have proclaimed glad tidings of righteousness in the great congregation;Behold, I will not restrain my lips,O LORD, You know. I have not hidden Your righteousness within my heart;I have spoken of Your faithfulness and Your salvation;I have not concealed Your lovingkindness and Your truth from the great congregation. You, O LORD, will not withhold Your compassion from me;Your lovingkindness and Your truth will continually preserve me. For evils beyond number have surrounded me;My iniquities have overtaken me, so that I am not able to see;They are more numerous than the hairs of my head,And my heart has failed me. Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me;Make haste, O LORD, to help me. Let those be ashamed and humiliated together Who seek my life to destroy it;Let those be turned back and dishonored Who delight in my hurt. Let those be appalled because of their shame Who say to me, “Aha, aha!” Let all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You;Let those who love Your salvation say continually,“The LORD be magnified!” Since I am afflicted and needy,Let the Lord be mindful of me.You are my help and my deliverer;Do not delay, O my God.
-Psalm 40

This beautiful Psalm is easily one of my favorites in the entire collection. I love the division it contains, focusing on 2 major sections: thanksgiving for the Lord’s history of His provision, and a refreshing reliance on His current mercy. In other words, the writer boasts in how through patience and resting in God’s presence, he has found comfort in His sweet rescue. The writer then continues on with the idea that he will continue to trust and give His allegiance to the majesty of YHVH.
Think with me for a moment about a time in your life in which you’ve discovered the gracious hand of the Lord rescuing you from trial or tribulation. Think with me of the pain you endured but then the victory you discovered in the end. We often times look at suffering in a sense of a momentary discomfort and a blinded awareness of His control. However, when we look at the beauty He gives us in waiting patiently for Him and seeking His pleasure, we in turn receive the greatest news of all; His mercy and grace!
Lately, I’ve been reading Job. It’s amazing to me that we read this book with the lens of the outcome. We know that in the end, Job will be blessed richly for His patience and waiting in the Lord’s presence. Even with lousy advice from friends and a hurt spouse, Job perseveres. However, one thing that has challenged me is the understanding that Job doesn’t know the outcome at the present time. His patience in suffering and joy in the Lord sustains him during difficult days. What faith! What trust and satisfaction he presents as a testimony to us!
Do you wait patiently today? Do you cling to His rescue? Do you rejoice in the new song He puts in your mouth daily (Psalm 40:3)? Do you make Him your trust (Psalm 40:4), your subject to proclaim (Psalm 40:5), your delight in worship (Psalm 40:16)? I want to encourage you to read all 17 verses today of Psalm 40 and rejoice in the Lord, your help and your deliverer.

Soli Deo Gloria!