Psalm 31- The Lord is my Fortress

Psalm 31

The Lord a Fortress in Adversity

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.

1 In You, O Lord, I put my trust;
Let me never be ashamed;
Deliver me in Your righteousness.
2
Bow down Your ear to me,
Deliver me speedily;
Be my rock of refuge,
A fortress of defense to save me.

3
For You are my rock and my fortress;
Therefore, for Your name’s sake,
Lead me and guide me.
4
Pull me out of the net which they have secretly laid for me,
For You are my strength.
5

Into Your hand I commit my spirit;
You have redeemed me, O Lord God of truth.

6
I have hated those who regard useless idols;
But I trust in the Lord.
7
I will be glad and rejoice in Your mercy,
For You have considered my trouble;
You have known my soul in adversities,
8
And have not shut me up into the hand of the enemy;
You have set my feet in a wide place.

9
Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am in trouble;
My eye wastes away with grief,
Yes, my soul and my body!
10
For my life is spent with grief,
And my years with sighing;
My strength fails because of my iniquity,
And my bones waste away.
11
I am a reproach among all my enemies,
But especially among my neighbors,
And am repulsive to my acquaintances;
Those who see me outside flee from me.
12

I am forgotten like a dead man, out of mind;
I am like a broken vessel.
13
For I hear the slander of many;
Fear is on every side;
While they take counsel together against me,
They scheme to take away my life.

14

But as for me, I trust in You, O Lord;
I say, “You are my God.”
15
My times are in Your hand;
Deliver me from the hand of my enemies,
And from those who persecute me.
16
Make Your face shine upon Your servant;
Save me for Your mercies’ sake.
17
Do not let me be ashamed, O Lord, for I have called upon You;
Let the wicked be ashamed;
Let them be silent in the grave.
18
Let the lying lips be put to silence,
Which speak insolent things proudly and contemptuously against the righteous.

19
Oh, how great is Your goodness,
Which You have laid up for those who fear You,
Which You have prepared for those who trust in You
In the presence of the sons of men!

20
You shall hide them in the secret place of Your presence
From the plots of man;
You shall keep them secretly in a pavilion
From the strife of tongues.

21
Blessed be the Lord,
For He has shown me His marvelous kindness in a strong city!
22
For I said in my haste,
“I am cut off from before Your eyes”;
Nevertheless You heard the voice of my supplications
When I cried out to You.

23
Oh, love the Lord, all you His saints!
For the Lord preserves the faithful,
And fully repays the proud person.

24
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart,
All you who hope in the Lord.

Psalm 31 is a prayer from king David, a man after God’s own heart, (Acts 13:22), were he expresses his trust in God for deliverance and protection. But David was far from perfect. When we read about his life in the Bible we notice he accomplished great things for the Lord, but he also had big failures, still he is called and remembered as a man after God’s own heart, even many years later, (in the New Testament) because he had a deep desire to follow God’s will and do “everything” God wanted him to do. From this man’s descendants God raised a Savior, our Lord Jesus, according to His promises.

God looks at the hearts of men, He knows which ones are towards Him and that is what he saw on David. When God sent Samuel to David’s house to choose a king , Samuel thought David’s oldest brother Eliab was surely the Lord’s anointed, (Sam.16:6-7) but the Lord said to Samuel : “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

We notice David’s emotions, he pleads for deliverance, he  was in distress & afraid (vs.9-13), but he also remembers God has previously shown him His marvelous kindness (vs.21) & starts praising & blessing the Lord. At the end (vs. 23-24) David ends up exhorting us believers to love the Lord & put our hope in Him. We see that is normal to have emotions in the midst of trials but the key is not to let those emotions keep us down, because we have victory in the Lord.

This Psalm teaches us to rely on God in times of adversity or persecution. Let us not forget to put our trust in the Lord, He indeed is our rock and our fortress of defense. Hallelujah!

Psalm 31 Outline

I. (vs. 1-2) In times of trouble take refuge in the LORD
II. (3-6) Trust in your Redeemer to lead you & guide you
III. (7-9) Be glad & rejoice in His mercy.
IV. (10-14) Don’t despair trust in the Lord, He is your God.
V. (15-18) He will  deliver us.
VI. (19-22) Praise Him, great is His goodness!
VII. (23-24) Be of good courage & He shall strengthen your heart.