Psalm 6 - "O LORD, Heal Me, Deliver Me"

O LORD, do not rebuke me in Your anger, Nor chasten me in Your hot displeasure. Have mercy on me, O LORD, for I am weak; O LORD, heal me, for my bones are troubled. My soul also is greatly troubled; But You, O LORD--how long? Return, O LORD, deliver me! Oh, save me for Your mercies' sake! For in death there is no remembrance of You; In the grave who will give You thanks? I am weary with my groaning; All night I make my bed swim; I drench my couch with my tears. My eye wastes away because of grief; It grows old because of all my enemies. Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity; For the LORD has heard the voice of my weeping. The LORD has heard my supplication; The LORD will receive my prayer. Let all my enemies be ashamed and greatly troubled; Let them turn back and be ashamed suddenly." Pastor Mike Impact Ministries was blessed to give a special donation to both these ministries yesterday because of friends like you that faithfully support us with your donations and prayers! Thank you! Today we want to share some thoughts on Psalm 6. I hope you took the time to read the Psalm or listen as we read it in our chat today! Personally, I would entitle this Psalm as the “O LORD” Psalm. This Psalm was possibly written on the occasion when David was facing an insurrection by his son Absalom and desperately needed the Lord’s help and mercy. Even if this was not the exact time when David wrote this Psalm, he faced the challenge of dealing with many enemies throughout his lifetime and could have written and prayed this pray on any of those occasions. David realizes that he is being chastened by the Lord for his many sins and he is feeling the pain of that discipline. He is asking the Lord how long is it going to last and pleads for mercy. Both his body and his soul are greatly “troubled” and he is in distress! Have you ever felt this way? Three times David used the Hebrew word bahal, which means "faint, weak, troubled, terrified." It is translated "vexed" in the King James Version (vv. 2, 3, 10), but in the 17th century, the word "vex" was much stronger than it is today. The translators of the Greek Old Testament used tarasso, which is the word used in the Greek of John 12:27, "Now is my soul troubled..." (and see Matt. 26:38 and Mark 14:34). Knowing that he deserved far more than what he was enduring, David begged for mercy (see 103:13-14) and asked God to send help speedily. The painful question "How long?" is asked at least sixteen times in The Psalms (6:3; 13:1-2; 35:17; 62:3; 74:9-10; 79:5; 80:4; 82:2; 89:46; 90:13; 94:3). The answer to this question is, "I will discipline you until you learn the lesson I want you to learn, and are equipped for the work I want you to do." According to Hebrews 12, when God disciplines us, we can despise it, resist it, collapse under it and quit, or accept it and submit. What God is seeking is submission. May the Lord give us grace to humble ourselves today and surrender our all to Him! God bless!