PSALMS 20
We will begin by giving chapter 20 in metre.
THE PSALMS OF DAVID IN METRE
Chapter 20
verse 1 "Jehovah hear the in the day When trouble he doth send;
And let the name of Jacob's God From every ill defend."
verse 2 "O let him send his help to thee Out from his holy place;
Let him from Zion, his own hill, Sustain thee by his grace."
verse 3 "Let him remember all thy gifts, Accept thy sacrifice;
Grant thee thy heart's wish, and fulfill Thy thoughts and
counsel wise."
verse 4 "In thy salvation we will joy, In our God's name we will
Display our banners; And the Lord Thy prayers all fulfill."
verse 5 "Now know I God his king doth save; He from his holy heaven
Will hear him, with the saving strength By his own right
hand given."
verse 6 "In chariots some put confidence, On horses some rely,
But we remember will the name Of God, our God Most High."
verse 7 "We rise, and upright stand, when they Are made to bow, and
fall. Deliver, Lord, and let the King us hear, when we do
call."
We will begin now with the verse by verse study of Psalms chapter
20. Psalms 20:1 "{To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.} The LORD
hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend
thee;"
Many people never pray, until there is a great crisis in their
lives. God fellowships with mankind in man's prayers. The truth of the
matter is that, God knows the desires of our heart, even before we
pray. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is the same God that we
pray to. If we have been regularly communing with God in prayer, He is
already listening for our prayer. This seems to be a prayer of the
people for David, their leader. I can not say enough about praying for
those who are your leaders. I believe the mention of the God of Jacob
here, is saying the God of the covenant which came down from Abraham,
to Isaac, to Jacob. Christians are part of that covenant with Abraham,
also. Galatians 3:29 "And if ye [be] Christ's, then are ye Abraham's
seed, and heirs according to the promise."
Psalms 20:2 "Send thee help from the sanctuary, and strengthen
thee out of Zion;"
Believers are to help each other. Help from the sanctuary would
however, indicate help from God. Zion is symbolic of the church. We do
know that battles that the Israelites were in, when God sent them, and
when the Ark of the Covenant was with, them were all victorious.
Psalms 20:3 "Remember all thy offerings, and accept thy burnt
sacrifice; Selah."
It appears from this that David gave offerings and sacrifices in
the holy place, before he went out to battle. Perhaps, Selah, means
that he paused and waited for God's blessing in battle, before he went
any further. We Christians could learn a lesson from this. Before we
do battle with the enemy, we should take time to pray, and wait until
the Lord says it is O. K. to proceed, before we take on the enemy. We,
too, might try the sacrifice of praise, and perhaps, fast a few days
to show our sincerity in our prayer.
Psalms 20:4 "Grant thee according to thine own heart, and fulfil
all thy counsel."
This prayer seems to end with {if it be thy will O Lord}. Notice
who David took counsel from. He took counsel from God. How many of us
are so head strong that we go blazing into a war with the enemy
without taking counsel of God in the matter? We should learn to say,
Lord the battle may be mine, but you have already won the war. Are we
fighting for God, or ourselves? Let us win battles for the Lord, and
not for self.
Psalms 20:5 "We will rejoice in thy salvation, and in the name of
our God we will set up [our] banners: the LORD fulfil all thy
petitions."
Christians should be raising their flag of victory throughout the
land. Jesus Christ our Saviour has won the war. Our flag should be
red, white, and blue. Red is for the life that Jesus purchased for us
with His blood, white is for the righteous battle, and blue is for our
heavenly calling. Salvation is the trophy we have won by choosing the
Lord. Colossians 1:27 "To whom God would make known what [is] the
riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is
Christ in you, the hope of glory:" Matthew 21:22 "And all things,
whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive."
Philippians 4:6 "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer
and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known
unto God." John 16:24 Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask,
and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full. We can see from the
verses above that, God answers the prayers of His people.
Psalms 20:6 "Now know I that the LORD saveth his anointed; he
will hear him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his
right hand."
As we have said in these lessons before, Jesus Christ is the
Right Hand of God. We can see from the next 2 verses, who anoints.
II Corinthians 1:21 "Now he which stablisheth us with you in Christ,
and hath anointed us, [is] God;" Hebrews 1:9 "Thou hast loved
righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, [even] thy God, hath
anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows." You might
even say God's anointed in these verses. Those who have been chosen by
God to fulfill a certain purpose in His plans are the anointed. As we
said before, it is dangerous to come against God's anointed. Jesus
Christ {the Right Hand of God} is their strength and their protection.
God will not allow anyone, or anything, to prevent His anointed from
fulfilling their task that He has given them.
Psalms 20:7 "Some [trust] in chariots, and some in horses: but we
will remember the name of the LORD our God."
Pharaoh had many chariots and many horses, but they were no help
when he followed the Israelites into the Red Sea. Pharaoh's horses and
chariots were drowned, along with his mighty warriors, when they came
against God's people. Notice in the following verses that, Moses used
the name of the Lord to fight Pharaoh. Exodus 14:13 "And Moses said
unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of
the LORD, which he will shew to you today: for the Egyptians whom ye
have seen today, ye shall see them again no more for ever." Exodus
14:14 "The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace."
Now let us see the results of Moses' faith in God. Exodus 15:1 "Then
sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and
spake, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed
gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea."
Exodus 15:2 "The LORD [is] my strength and song, and he is become my
salvation: he [is] my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my
father's God, and I will exalt him." Exodus 15:3 "The LORD [is] a man
of war: the LORD [is] his name." Exodus 15:4 "Pharaoh's chariots and
his host hath he cast into the sea: his chosen captains also are
drowned in the Red sea." Exodus 15:5 "The depths have covered them:
they sank into the bottom as a stone." Exodus 15:6 "Thy right hand, O
LORD, is become glorious in power: thy right hand, O LORD, hath dashed
in pieces the enemy."
Psalms 20:8 "They are brought down and fallen: but we are risen,
and stand upright."
We have seen, in the previous verses, how God fights for His own.
Just as these Israelites were greatly feared by the people around them
after God dealt with Pharaoh so harshly, The Lord will make our
enemies tremble, as well. We stand upright not on our own power, but
in the power of God.
Psalms 20:9 "Save, LORD: let the king hear us when we call."
The King here is possibly the Lord Jesus who will reign as King
of kings and Lord of lords. This cry, to me, is a shout of I know you
will save me Lord. I know Jesus will reign.
Questions 20
1. In verse 1, {The Lord hear thee in the ___ of _______}.
2. The ______ of the God of Jacob defend thee.
3. When is the only time that many people pray?
4. What does the author believe is meant by {God of Jacob}?
5. If ye be Christ's, then are ye __________ seed and heirs according
to the promise.
6. Send thee help from the ___________.
7. What is Zion symbolic of?
8. What did David do, before he went into battle showing that he
needed God's help?
9. Before we do battle with the enemy, we should take time to ____.
10. In verse 4, how does this prayer seem to end?
11. We should win battles for ___, and not for ____.
12. What should be the colors of the Christians flag?
13. What is the trophy we have won as Christians?
14. Christ in you, the hope of ______.
15. Quote Matthew chapter 21 verse 22.
16. Quote John chapter 16 verse 24.
17. Who is the Right Hand of God?
18. Who is the one who anoints?
19. Who are the anointed?
20. It is dangerous to come against God's _________.
21. What does verse 7 say some trust in?
22. Who should Christians put their trust in?
23. What did Moses use to fight Pharaoh?
24. What did Moses tell the people to stand still and see, at the Red
sea?
25. Where are the Scriptures found that show the results of Moses
faith in God at the Red sea?
26. Quote Exodus chapter 15 verse 6.
27. What effect on the Israelite's enemies, did the incident at the
Red sea have?
28. Who is the King in verse 9?
29. What does the author believe this cry in verse 9 really is?
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