PSALMS LESSON 61
We will begin this lesson by giving the 63rd Psalm in metre.
THE PSALMS OF DAVID IN METRE
Chapter 63
Verse 1 "Thou art my God, O God most High, And early seek thy face
will I; My soul doth thirst for thee. My spirit thirsts to
taste thy grace, My flesh longs in this barren place In
which no waters be.
Verse 2 "I long as in the times of old Thy power and glory to behold
Within thy holy place; Because to me thy wondrous love Than
life itself doth dearer prove, My lips shall praise thy
grace."
Verse 3 "Thus will I bless thee while I live, And with uplifted hands
will give Praise to thy holy name. As when with fatness well
supplied, So shall my soul be satisfied, My mouth shall
praise proclaim:"
Verse 4 "My lips shall in thy praise delight When on my bed I rest at
night, And meditate on thee. Because thy hand assistance
brings, Beneath the shadow of thy wings My heart shall
joyful be."
Verse 5 "My soul, O Lord, cleaves fast to thee, And thy right hand
upholdeth me; It doth my life defend; But those who seek me
for a prey, That they may take my life away, Shall into
earth descend."
Verse 6 "They by the sword shall fall and die, Their flesh a prey for
foxes lie. In God the king shall joy: Who swears by him
shall still rejoice, But mouths which speak with lying voice
He'll silence and destroy."
We will now begin the verse by verse study of thee 63rd Psalm.
Psalms 63:1 " {A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of
Judah.} O God, thou [art] my God; early will I seek thee: my soul
thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty
land, where no water is;"
The water, that David is speaking of, is the Spirit of God. I
have discovered, along with David, that the best time to seek God is
the first thing in the morning. The reason we know for sure that the
water David is thirsting for, is the Spirit, is the fact that Jesus
told the woman at the well she would never thirst again, if she drank
the water He gave her. John 4:14 "But whosoever drinketh of the water
that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall
give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting
life." This is really speaking of righteousness through the Spirit of
God. Look at one more Scripture that Jesus spoke on this subject.
John 6:35 "And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that
cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall
never thirst." All of this leaves no doubt that the dry and thirsty
land, in verse one above, is a land without the Spirit of God.
Psalms 63:2 "To see thy power and thy glory, so [as] I have seen
thee in the sanctuary."
David wants very much to be able to worship, again, in the
sanctuary where he had witnessed the presence of God. We know that in
David's youth, he had been in close relationship with the Lord. This
is really what he is desiring, again, here. I refuse to attend church,
where the presence of God is not evident. There is no more hollow
feeling, than to seek God and not be able to sense His presence.
Psalms 63:3 "Because thy lovingkindness [is] better than life, my
lips shall praise thee."
To live this life without God is not worth living. The only life
worth living , is the life we live in Him. The following Scripture is
the only way to live a victorious life in the world today. Galatians
2:20 "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but
Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live
by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for
me." We Christians, even more than David, have much to prise the Lord
for. He paid the price for our sins that we might live in His
righteousness. Our lips should not stop day and night praising His
wonderful name. God inhabits the praises of Israel. Christians are
spiritual Israel.
Psalms 63:4 "Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up
my hands in thy name."
Had you ever really thought of it being possible that we might
bless the Lord? Notice, how long David says he will praise Him. He
says as long as there is breath in his body, he will praise God. Can
we who have received so much more than David, do less? Notice, how
David blesses Him. He lifts his hands toward heaven, and praises Him.
This reminds me of the offering that is waved before the Lord in the
tabernacle. Do you suppose, by raising our hands toward heaven to
bless the Lord, that we are dedicating our work with our hands to Him?
Even the lifting of the hands must be done in the name of the Lord.
Psalms 63:5 "My soul shall be satisfied as [with] marrow and
fatness; and my mouth shall praise [thee] with joyful lips:"
The fat of the offering was burned as a sweet smelling savour to
God. The fat, then, could be a spiritual blessing that we receive in
our soul when we bless God. This beautiful experience can make us
alive with joy, and nothing but praise could come from our lips. The
dry bones in Ezekial needed but a breath of the Spirit of God to make
the fat and marrow come on them and make them alive again. I won't
tell you where it is, it is good to search the Word for morsels of
truth.
Psalms 63:6 "When I remember thee upon my bed, [and] meditate on
thee in the [night] watches."
David, perhaps, was like many of us. He was so busy during the
day, that his best time to be quiet and think of God was on his bed at
night. Sometimes just thinking of God and His plans early in the night
get me so excited that, I forget what time it is and visit most of the
night with him.
Psalms 63:7 "Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the
shadow of thy wings will I rejoice."
How beautiful to feel the protection underneath the protecting
wings of God. We talked about how a mother hen will get her little
chickens under her wings before the storm comes for their protection.
This just means that God is that protective, and even more, of us.
Just knowing that God is protecting us should make us rejoice. David
says, you have been my help in the past, and I know you will protect
me now.
Psalms 63:8 "My soul followeth hard after thee: thy right hand
upholdeth me."
David is saying, that even though he made some mistakes, he
sought the Lord with everything within him. He would not be denied. He
just came to the Lord over and over. This Right Hand, and its mention
all through the Bible, is speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Psalms 63:9 "But those [that] seek my soul, to destroy [it],
shall go into the lower parts of the earth."
David's enemies were actually out to destroy him. They were not
out just for David's life, but to destroy his reputation, as well.
They were God's enemies, as well as David's, and their destination was
hell. It really is no different now. There are people who do nothing
except try to cause you to sin. The devil has sent them on a mission
to steal your soul. They are out to destroy you. The flesh and the
spirit of man are constantly in battle. The will of man has to do with
the soul. The spirit or the flesh of man will control the will of
man. If the spirit rules, the man is saved and will spend eternity in
heaven. If the flesh rules, the man is headed for an eternity in hell.
Psalms 63:10 "They shall fall by the sword: they shall be a
portion for foxes."
Those that live by the sword, shall die by the sword. Those who
are opposed to God's family will die in the field of battle. A very
good example of this is Ezekial chapter 39, where 5 out of 6 of those
opposed to Israel are killed. The scripture says, that the animals and
birds shall eat their flesh.
Psalms 63:11 "But the king shall rejoice in God; every one that
sweareth by him shall glory: but the mouth of them that speak lies
shall be stopped."
The king here is David. David will greatly rejoice, because his
enemies have been defeated by God. Christians where is our rejoicing?
Our enemy, the devil, has been defeated by the Lord Jesus Christ. This
is prophetically speaking of Jesus as King of kings and Lord of lords,
as well. The swearing by Him, just means that we have professed our
belief in Him with our mouth. The liars, spoken of, are children of
their father, the devil, who is the author of all lies. Christians
will not have to hang their head in shame, because they will reign
over these liars for the 1000 year reign of Jesus as King on this
earth.
Questions 61
1. When did David seek God?
2. My _____ thirsteth for thee.
3. What was the water that David was seeking?
4. Quote John chapter 4 verse 14.
5. What did Jesus call himself, in John chapter 6 verse 35?
6. What is the dry and thirsty land, in verse 1?
7. Where was David longing to worship again?
8. Where does the author refuse to attend church?
9. Thy _____________ is better than life.
10. Quote Galations chapter 2 verse 20.
11. God inhabits the praises of ________.
12. Who is spiritual Israel?
13. Why do we lift our hands to God?
14. What was done with the fat of the offering?
15. What did the dry bones in Ezekial need to make them live?
16. Why did the author not give you the location in Ezekial for the
dry bones?
17. Where was David, in verse 6, when he remembered God?
18. Why do you suppose this was a good place to worship and meditate
on God?
19. How does the mother hen protecting her chicks relate to verse 7?
20. What is meant by David when he says, his soul followeth hard after
thee?
21. Where will those who sought to destroy David wind up?
22. The spirit is constantly in battle with the _____.
23. What does Ezekial chapter 39 say will happen to the enemies of
God's people?
24. Who is verse 11 speaking of prophetically?
25. Why will the Christians not be ashamed at last?
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