Psalm 119.169-176 (2)

Pray Psalm 119.170.
Let my supplication come before You;
Deliver me according to Your word.

Sing Psalm 119.169, 170.
(Regent Square: Angels from the Realms of Glory)
Let my cry come up before You, holy, righteous, loving Lord;
give me understanding so to live according to Your Word.
Let my prayer rise up before You; by Your Word redeem me, Lord!

Read Psalm 119.169-176; meditate on verse 170.

Preparation
1. What kind of prayer is this?

2. What was the psalmist asking?

Meditation
In the previous verse, the psalmist prayed for understanding, both of the Word and by the Word for every aspect of life. Here the focus of his prayer changes a bit. He is keenly aware of his daily need for deliverance, and so he offers supplications to the Lord to that end.

How comforting and emboldening it is to know that our God can deliver us. I think of Daniel’s friends, looking into that fiery furnace, and saying without flinching, “Our God is able to deliver us!” (Dan. 3.17) Ultimately, of course, we rejoice in the knowledge that God will deliver us to Himself. He has addressed our souls to His eternal throne, stamped us with the image of His own Son, and sealed and deposited us into the care of His Spirit to deliver us in His time to our eternal home.

But we’re in need of deliverance every day. When temptations arise. When trials befall us. When we’re confused or uncertain or need a decision now. God is able to deliver us, and He will always do so according to His Word. That is, He will keep His promises. He will bless obedience. He will chasten and discipline when we stray. He will encourage and embolden as we act in faith. All this He has told us plainly in His Word. And this is the deliverance we seek, deliverance according to what God has said, that we might continue on His pathway of blessedness, righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.

We should at all times pray that God will deliver us; and as we increase in our knowledge of His Word, we will be more confident of His power to deliver and know greater boldness for obedience in all our ways.

Treasures Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
This verse reminds me of Queen Esther’s plight, as she contemplated the need to appear before the king to request that she and her people be saved. She knew that unsummoned, any person who appeared in the king’s court was usually put to death. But after words of stern encouragement from Mordecai, she decided to proceed before the throne. And happily, for her, she was welcomed by the king into his presence (Esth. 4.10-5.3).

The psalmist was asking of the Lord, “Please let my supplication come before You; and deliver me according to Your word” (Ps. 119.170). And happily, for him, God also welcomed him into His Presence.

We pray the same thing to our heavenly Father and He welcomes us into His Presence to deliver us from evil according to His Word (Matt. 6.13). “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb. 4.16).

“The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD, but the prayer of the upright is His delight” (Prov. 15.8).
“He shall regard the prayer of the destitute, and shall not despise their prayer” (Ps. 102.17).
“I pray, LORD God of heaven, O great and awesome God, You who keep Your covenant and mercy with those who love You and observe Your commandments, please let Your ear be attentive and Your eyes open, that You may hear the prayer of your servant which I pray before You now, day and night… (Neh. 1.5, 6).

Our confidence is in the Lord our God, and we rejoice to be able to come before Him in prayer. And as we bring our supplications to Him, we can remember many others who, according to His Word, have received help from God: Daniel and his friends, Queen Esther and her people, and Jonathan and his armor-bearer
who were going into a battle of two against an entire garrison of Philistines. And Jonathan’s courageous call to action? “Come, let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised; it may be that the LORD will work for us. For nothing retrains the LORD from saving by many or by few” (1 Sam. 14.6).

“He is able.” What prevents us from supplicating the Lord for our deliverance according to His Word?

For reflection
1. God is able to deliver. Where do you need Him to deliver you today?

2. What is the difference between “supplication” and “intercession”? Do your prayers include both?

3. Why do we “need deliverance every day”?

His own hands are not sufficient, nor can any creature lend him help; therefore he looks up to God, that the hand that had made him may help him. He had made religion his deliberate choice. There is an eternal salvation all the saints long for, and therefore they pray that God would help their way to it. Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on Psalm 119.170

Pray Psalm 119.172, 173.
Pray that God will give you an opportunity to speak His Word to someone today – to encourage, to bear witness, to praise and extol. Call on Him to keep His hand on you so that you will know what to say when the opportunity arises.

Sing Psalm 119.172, 173.
(Regent Square: Angels from the Realms of Glory)
With our lips we praise You, Jesus, for You teach us, full and free.
Now Your Word will ever please us; Your commandments true shall be.
Let Your hand come forth to ease us; we Your Word choose gratefully!

T. M. and Susie Moore

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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter (Williston: Waxed Tablet Publications, 2006), available by clicking here.He will deliver. Psalm 119.170