Our reading of Scripture this morning is Psalm 57. Hear the Word of the Lord. Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me, for in You my soul takes refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of Your wings until the disaster has passed. I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills His purpose for me. He sends from heaven and saves me, rebuking those who hotly pursue me. God sends His love and His faithfulness. I am in the midst of lions. I lie among ravenous beasts, men whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens. Let Your glory be over all the earth. They spread a net for my feet. I was bowed down in distress. They dug a pit in my path. But they have fallen into it themselves. My heart is steadfast, O God. My heart is steadfast. I will sing and make music. Awake, my soul. Awake, harp and lyre. I will awaken the dawn. I will praise You, O Lord, among the nations. I will sing of You among the peoples. For great is Your love, Reaching to the heavens, your faithfulness reaches to the skies. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens. Let your glory be over all the earth. As ends our reading of God's Word, let us pray and ask God's blessing upon the reading and preaching of His Word. Our Father, we give You thanks that You have not left us in the darkness of our sin and ignorance. We give You thanks that You have given to us Your Word as a light for our path. We thank You for the message of salvation and deliverance which it brings. And we pray that as Your Spirit inspired these words, that Your Spirit might also illumine our hearts to understand Your Word. We pray that we might receive it with faith and obedience. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. If you were following along with the reading of the Scripture a moment ago, you will have noticed that there is a brief heading or superscription that appears before the first verse of this psalm. Now, many psalms, not all psalms, but many psalms have such superscriptions and these contain certain sorts of information, either musical notations or historical background. Now, there's a lot that we don't know about these headings. We don't even know for sure whether these should be considered part of the inspired text of Scripture. In other words, we don't know if the Holy Spirit inspired these words to be composed along with the rest of the psalm, or whether they were composed at a later date. But whatever the case may be, many of these superscriptions that occur at the beginning of these psalms give us valuable information about reading and interpreting these psalms. For some of these headings, like what we find here in Psalm 57, contain historical background, which suggests to us the situation or the setting in which the psalmist composed the words that are before us. And oftentimes, by having this historical background in mind, it sheds important insight and illumination on the psalm itself. And certainly that's the case here in Psalm 57. You'll notice that towards the end of this superscription of Psalm 57, we read that the Psalm of David was written or composed on the occasion when he had fled from Saul into the cave. Now, if we would go back to 1 Samuel, we would find two stories in which David fled into a cave. And I think there are a couple of reasons why we ought to believe that it is the second of these stories in 1 Samuel 24 that is the immediate reference here at the beginning of Psalm 57. Now, the story in 1 Samuel 24 is a remarkable one and one that probably most of you will recall. David was indeed fleeing from Saul. David had been anointed king over Israel though Saul was king. And Saul had turned against David and was pursuing him and wanted to put him to death. And David and his band of men were in the desert. And Saul had called out a multitude, an army from all the tribes of Israel, to hunt David down. And David had fled into a cave in the desert. And as Saul and his men approached the area where David was, Saul had to relieve himself. And since there were no rest areas there in the wilderness, Saul went into a cave, apparently by himself. And what he didn't realize was that he went into the very cave where David and his men were hiding. And David's men were so excited. And they said to David, This is your time. This is your opportunity. Put Saul to death. Let's put this whole saga to an end. And you can assume the kingship over Israel, which is your right from God. And David approaches Saul and he cuts off a corner of his robe. And then, he withdraws. He refuses to carry it through. He will not touch the Lord's anointed, but he lets Saul walk out of there unharmed. We'll have occasion to think about this story some more in a few minutes. But this, it seems, is the background against which David composed this psalm. And in 1 Samuel 24, we hear this story in a sense at a distance. It's told to us in the third person. But here in Psalm 57, we get an insight into David's own heart, into David's own mind as he experiences this pursuit by Saul and this occasion of Saul being given, it seems, into his hand. And as we have this insight into David's own heart, we see him on the one hand as a pious, godly individual who is being persecuted for the sake of his allegiance to God. And on the other hand, we also see him not as just any ordinary person, but we see him as one who has been anointed king over Israel as one who has been established by God to show His Old Testament people that greater King who is to come, our Lord Jesus Christ. Here we get an insight into David in both of these capacities. And what David reminds us of again and again in this psalm is that we should not simply look at our lives, not simply look at the difficult circumstances in which we find ourselves in this life from an earthly perspective. How tempting it must have been for David and how tempting it can be for each one of us when we find ourselves hard-pressed and fearful and anxious to look at things only from the perspective of what is right in front of us. David reminds us again and again that we need to step back. That we need to look at things from a heavenly perspective. That we need to look at things from God's perspective. And what a great difference that makes. And so as David trains us here to see things from that heavenly perspective, we see in David's words and David's actions the true nature of God's salvation and our response to that salvation as it is given to us. So let's look now at this psalm. Beginning in verses 1-3, the opening section of this psalm. From the very beginning, we realize that David is writing this as a man who is in trouble. A man who is suffering hardship for the sake of his God. Notice how he begins, Have mercy on me, O God. Have mercy on me. He cries out to God in his distress. And he continues, for in you my soul takes refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed. David is a man who is now seeking refuge from the trouble that has come upon him. But you see, right from the beginning of this psalm, David begins to show us that things are not always as they appear. Things are not always as they seem from our earthly perspective on the ground. For as we read that David is seeking refuge in the midst of his trouble, what might our minds immediately think of? Well, he's hiding in a cave, isn't he? That's a pretty good refuge. If David is fleeing in the desert from Saul and his army, there aren't that many places to hide in the desert. It's barren. It's open. A cave provides protection. It provides secrecy. And if you're wandering in the desert, it's hot. The sun is brutal. A cave would provide shade, provide coolness. From an earthly perspective, a cave seems to be a pretty good refuge given David's circumstances. But the cave is not what David is talking about. David says, For in you my soul takes refuge. It is not the cave in which he has his trust. It is God in whom he is seeking refuge in his time of trouble. And notice the language, the imagery that David uses as he describes this refuge that he takes in God. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings. God doesn't have a body. God doesn't have wings by which he flies around heaven. What's David talking about here? Well, this language that David uses, which we find in other places in the Psalms, almost surely refers to the tabernacle. It moves our minds to that tent that God had commanded Moses to make as the people were coming out of Egypt and going towards the Promised Land. And in that tabernacle was the Holy of Holies, that inner sanctuary. That was the special place of God's dwelling and so holy, so special that as the book of Hebrews reminds us, only the high priest was allowed to enter into it. And he was only allowed to go in once a year. But you see, in that holy of holies was the Ark of the Covenant. And above the Ark of the Covenant were these statues of the cherubim. The angels who are in God's presence. And their wings overshadowed the Ark of the Covenant. Overshadowed the mercy seat of God. David is bringing our minds into that holy of holies. David is saying, I find refuge in that most holy place. In the place of God's special dwelling under the shadow of the wings of His angels who dwell in His presence. What an amazing thing. David is miles and miles from that tabernacle. He is hiding for his life in a cave in the desert. And yet he feels so secure, so safe in the hands of his God that it is as if he is in that most holy place. It is as if he is there in the most intimate presence of his God. Certainly, we should be able to understand this, shouldn't we? The New Testament tells us that we, though we live here on earth, are citizens of heaven. That our lives are hidden with God in Christ. Though we seem so far away from that heavenly place, that is where we belong. That is where our lives are kept hidden and safe and secure in the hands of our Lord Jesus Christ. And David finds refuge in his time of trouble in his God, in the presence of God, though he may seem to the earthly eye so far away. And to add to this picture, to add to the sense that things are not always as they appear, notice how David refers to God in verse 2. I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills His purpose for me. there are many names which the Scriptures give to God. Many ways in which the Scriptures teach us to refer to God. And all of these different names tell us something about Him. They reveal something about God's character and about God's actions. Here, David refers to Him as God Most High. It is one of the most awesome titles that God has given in the Scriptures. In Isaiah 14, the prophet refers to God Most High as the One who is enthroned on the heights of the clouds. In Psalm 97, the psalmist refers to God as the Most High over all the earth who is exalted far above all gods. In Genesis 14, Melchizedek says, Blessed be Abram by God Most High, creator of heaven and earth. You see, this is a title which emphasizes the majesty of God. That He is above everything that could be His rival. He has made all things. He is exalted above all things. He is more powerful than any other God whom the nations might worship. That is the God to whom David cries out. Saul's army may seem great. It may seem powerful. It may vastly outnumber his little band of men. But he calls out and finds refuge in God Most High. And therefore, David may have confidence. Finally, in this opening section, note what David says in verse 3. He sends from heaven and saves me, rebuking those who hotly pursue me. God sends His love and His faithfulness. Here we read that God saves. That God gives deliverance. That He sends His love and His faithfulness. But note here. Note from where this salvation comes. It comes from heaven. It is a salvation that God sends from on high. And as a heavenly salvation, it is not a salvation that is going to meet earthly expectations. It is not a salvation that is going to accord with what we expect and what we might assume from our perspective here below. And you see, the story in 1 Samuel 24 makes such a remarkable affirmation of this. Think about David and his men in that cave as Saul came in there alone, vulnerable, as he was put into David's hands. What did earthly expectations say? What did human wisdom dictate? Take him out. Put him to death. But David understood why he had been anointed by God. Not to be a king like Saul who's saved by violence, by vengeance. You see, David had been appointed, anointed king by God in order to be a different sort of king. In order to be a king to show the people of the Old Testament the Lord Jesus who was to come. And how did Christ save? He didn't come to save by the sword. He didn't come to save by bloodshed. and violence by conquering the Romans, setting up an earthly kingdom. How did He come to save? He came to save through love. Through humility. Through gentleness. Through suffering. Through enduring persecution and violence at the hand of His enemies. The only blood that was shed was His own. Did the people of His day understand? No, they were looking for a different kind of king, a different kind of salvation. You see, God's salvation doesn't meet earthly expectations. The heavenly salvation that God brings is a different sort of thing. And as David points forward to that Messiah who was to come, he gives us a glimpse of that salvation that God brings. A salvation that comes through mercy. Through love, through humility and meekness. But think about it. Did Jesus fail in showing humility and mercy and love rather than striking and conquering with the sword? No. It was precisely in His mercy, precisely in His bearing and enduring that suffering that our salvation has been accomplished, that our sins have been taken away, That our eternal life is ours. It did not meet human expectations. But according to the wisdom of God, it was exactly what we needed. And so, people of God, remember that as we find ourselves amidst the trials and the anxieties of this life, as we cry out to God for our salvation, for deliverance, remember that we cry out to a God who is on high. A God who does not save according to earthly wisdom, according to human expectations. He is a God who saves according to His own wisdom and His own mercy and His own love. But you see, as David reflects here, God sends from heaven and saves me, rebuking those who hotly pursue me. You see, this is precisely what happened when David did what he did towards Saul. He may have seemed like a failure in not striking down Saul. But if you would go and read the rest of 1 Samuel 24, what would you find? That when David called out to Saul later and Saul learned about what had happened, he was confused. He was indeed put to shame. He hardly knew what to say. He confessed that David was right, that David was just. And he practically hands over the kingdom to David. God triumphs according to His own way and in His own wisdom. This is the God to whom you cry out. This is the God in whom we must take refuge. Well, as we turn to verses 4 through 6, we see many of the same things put before us, but from a slightly different angle. For in the first three verses, we read about David's response to these people who are persecuting him and his crying out to God for help. In verses 4-6, we get our first look at the people who are persecuting David. At those who are pursuing him and have driven him out into this hardship. In verse 4, David writes, I am in the midst of lions. I lie among ravenous beasts, men whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords. You see, these people who are persecuting David are like animals. They're not even human beings. They're wild. They're savage. They're like beasts that have come after him. And note how he describes them. Their teeth are spears and arrows. Their tongues are sharp swords. One of the things that David feels, one of the things that David experiences is the persecution of their lips. He feels suffering by their very words. Certainly, we might fear the physical sword. We might feel physical persecution and fear that. But words also hurt. David, at the hands of Saul, not only feared for his physical life, but Saul had been persecuting David with his words. He had slandered David. He had accused him unjustly. He had ruined his reputation. And we know what this is as those who belong to Christ. Few of us, perhaps none of us, fear going out of this place and suffering physical persecution for the sake of belonging to Christ. But certainly all of us know what it is to face verbal persecution for the sake of the kingdom. Probably every one of us has been tempted to deny the name of Christ or at least avoid the subject of our faith in Christ. To avoid those looks and those words of others. To avoid thinking that others might slander us even behind our backs because of our allegiance to Jesus Christ. Words can hurt. And these beasts who are pursuing David, pursue him not only with their swords, but also with their violent and harsh words. All of a sudden then, we come to verse 5. And notice how things change so radically. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens. Let your glory be over all the earth. In verse 4, David, it says, lying low. He is being struck down by these animals with their swords, with their evil words. And all of a sudden, David raises up his eyes and says, Be exalted, O God, above the heavens. Let your glory be over all the earth. What a different perspective. Things are not always as they seem. His enemies may seem strong, but God is exalted on high. And do you want to see the result of that? Well, look at verse 6. David says, they spread a net for my feet. I was bowed down in distress. They dug a pit in my path. But they have fallen into it themselves. Verse 4 had told us that David was lying among the ravenous beasts. He was lying down. He couldn't even get up. Notice here in verse 6. They spread a net for my feet, he says. They didn't go for the head. They went for the feet. They are bringing Him low. Next, He says, I was bowed down in distress. Right? Down, towards the ground. He goes on to say, they dug a pit in my path. As if they haven't got Him low enough, they want to dig a pit and put Him in it. They are trying to bring Him down, lower and lower. They want to set His gaze upon this earth and upon the things that are pressing upon Him. But God is exalted above the heavens. God is exalted in all the earth. And what is the result of that? The result is poetic justice. They dug a pit in my path, but they have fallen into it themselves. That's poetic justice. The punishment fits the crime. And you see, because God is exalted, because God is in His heaven and is in control over all things. As strong as the enemies of God may be, in the end, there will be perfect justice as God brings deliverance for His people. Well, we come now to the end of this psalm. The last section, verses 7-11. Up to this point, it's been a little stressful. We've met David as he is in distress. We've met David crying out for help. We've met these animal-like men who are trying to destroy David. Now we can sit back. Now we can take a deep breath. Because as we come to verses 7-11, those enemies are gone. We hear nothing more about them. We hear nothing more about David's troubles. Nothing more about David's distress. Salvation has come. And now David turns to reflect upon this salvation that he's been given. And it's glorious. It's marvelous what David says. Look with me now at how David's perspective expands and expands and expands as he goes from verse to verse, from verse 7 to the end of this psalm. In verses 7 through 8 first, David begins very narrowly. David begins by talking to himself. He exhorts himself to worship God. He's experienced the salvation of God and now he calls upon himself to render the praise and thanks to God that he is due. My heart is steadfast, O God. My heart is steadfast. I will sing and make music. Awake, my soul. Awake, harp and lyre. I will awaken the dawn, he says. Now, what David says here may seem a little puzzling to us. He says, Awake, my soul. Awake, harp and lyre. I will awaken the dawn. Why does David want to sing to the dawn? Maybe you were up early this morning. Maybe you saw the sun rise over the eastern horizon where you tempted to take out your instruments and make music to accompany the sun as it rose. What is David talking about here? Well, certainly we have to understand what David is saying here in light of a common theme through the Psalter. Because in the Psalter, darkness, nighttime, is the time of trouble. It's the time of suffering, the time of temptation, the time of wrestling and waiting before God. But the morning, the dawn, the breaking in of the light is the time of salvation. It's the time of deliverance. And you see, that is what David has in mind here. Psalm 46, verse 5. As the psalmist talks about the city of God. He says, God is within her. She will not fall. God will help her at break of day. Psalm 90, verse 14. Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love. Psalm 143 Answer me quickly, O Lord. My spirit faints with longing. Do not hide your face from me or I will be like those who go down to the pit. Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love for I have put my trust in you. And do you remember Psalm 130? We sang it just before we read the Scriptures. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits. And in His Word I put my hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning. More than watchmen wait for the morning. The believer's life is like a person who is in the dark, who is struggling against the forces of evil and yet sees the morning breaking, sees the dawn coming, and sees it as a day, as a time of God's salvation. And you see David there in that dark cave awaiting, looking forward to the salvation that God would bring from His enemies has now seen God's saving hand. He's seen the deliverance of His God and it's like seeing morning break. And it's as if He takes out His instruments to accompany not just that physical sunset but the dawning of salvation that He sees at the hand of His God. And you see David again pointing us to the Lord Jesus Christ and His coming. Because in the New Testament, the coming of Christ is described as the breaking in of the morning. As the dawning of the lights after the long night. Consider what the Apostle Peter says in 2 Peter chapter 1. After reminding his readers about the transfiguration when Jesus appeared in glory with Moses and Elijah. And he says this, We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with Him on the sacred mountain. And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. With the coming of Christ, the morning has broken. The day has come. And we can never be the same. Earlier in the service, I read from Romans chapter 13. After Paul gave us the command to love one another, he said, and do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over. The day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently as in the daytime. Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, we are not those who belong to the night. We are not those who belong to the darkness. The evil love the darkness. It's a time for hiding your sin. It's a time for doing shameful things that you don't want other people to see. We belong to the light. In Christ, the day has broken. And so we live as in the light. We live with honesty and integrity and self-control and sincerity. We have nothing to hide. For we live in the light of the salvation of our God. David sees this light breaking and he bursts into song. He calls upon himself to raise music to God as he sees his salvation coming. But now see how David's perspective expands. In verses 7 and 8, he's called out to himself. He's exhorted himself. In verse 9, his perspective expands horizontally. He says in verse 9, I will praise You, O Lord, among the nations. I will sing of You among the peoples. You see, David is not content just to talk to himself. He wants to sing God's praises and proclaim His name among all the nations, among all the peoples. How remarkable this is. David, there in the desert, fearful for his own life, and yet thinking big. Thinking about all of the nations, desiring that they too would come and know the salvation of his God. And as David looks forward to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, He looks forward to that day when that gospel message would indeed go to all the nations. When our Lord Jesus Christ would be proclaimed and would claim a people for Himself among all the peoples. But you see, even this is not enough for the psalmist. It's not enough that he proclaimed the glory of God in all the nations. In verse 10 he says, For great is your love reaching to the heavens. Your faithfulness reaches to the skies. You see, in verse 9, He pushes God's glory out to the ends of the earth. Here in verse 10, He raises our sights up vertically, up even to the very heavens. He turns our eyes upward for the glory of God, the love and the faithfulness of God to extend even to the skies. But you see, even that is not enough for the psalmist. In verse 11, he turns back to that wonderful chorus that we heard earlier. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens. Let your glory be over all the earth. Do you see how verses 10 and 11 fit together? In verse 10, he says, great is your love reaching to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. It's glorious, but it's as if the skies are the limit. It's as if this faithfulness gets up to the heavens and goes no farther. Here in verse 11, it's as if the glory of God burst all boundaries. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens. Let Your glory be over all the earth. There is no boundary, no limit in all creation for the glory and the majesty and the love of our God. There comes a point, probably happens more often than we think, But when preachers can't add anything more to what is said, when a psalm ends on such a glorious note, what more can be said except to remind you that as you remember, as you refuse to look at things from an earthly perspective, but as you remember that you serve God Most High, God who is exalted above all things, as you take refuge in Him, And as you rejoice in the breaking of the dawn, in the coming salvation of our Lord Jesus Christ, may these words, may this praise, may this song be yours. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens. Let your glory be over all the earth. Let's pray. Our Father in heaven, how we thank You for these marvelous words by which You encourage us and strengthen us in the midst of the lives You have called us to live here and now. O Lord, as we find ourselves in the midst of our pilgrimages here on earth, how strong the temptations may seem, how trying our anxieties may feel, how weak the church sometimes seems to be and how strong the enemies of truth may seem to be. But we thank You, O Lord, that You have given us words like these to remind us that things are not always as they appear. That though we seem weak and though Your enemies seem strong, that You, O Lord, are exalted. that You are the Most High over all the earth. You are a God who saves Your people, who delivers them. And we thank You that as You saved David long ago, that as You brought salvation through the work of Your Son, so as we trust in Him, may You deliver us from all our enemies. May You give us faith to turn to You, to find refuge in You alone, and though the deliverance you bring will not be according to our expectations, though it may not be according to our plan or according to our way or according to our time or according to a way that the world recognizes, O Lord, we thank you that we may be confident that you are with us in every trial and every temptation. Strengthen us, O Lord, in these words. Create in our hearts a song of gladness, a song of joy and thanksgiving such as we read here that we may give you fitting and worthy thanks for being such a great God and for bestowing upon us such a great salvation. We pray this in the name of our God, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, our only Savior. Amen.