Psalm 20:1, 5-7 NIV
May the Lord answer you when you are in distress;
may the name of the God of Jacob protect you.
May we shout for joy over your victory
and lift up our banners in the name of our God.
May the Lord grant all your requests.
Now this I know: The Lord gives victory to his anointed.
He answers him from his heavenly sanctuary
with the victorious power of his right hand.
Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.
Psalm 20 is written to celebrate the king of Israel. It's what biblical scholars call a Royal Psalm. The psalm offers blessing that God might grant all the requests of the king. The psalm lifts up confidence in the Lord who watches over Israel, the God of Jacob. You may remember that Jacob is just another name for Israel since the biblical character Jacob was renamed Israel after an encounter with God.
The king is referred to as the Lord's anointed. But this reference can also be for the people the king governs, the people of God. The title given to Jesus is Christ, which means the anointed one. Jesus, the son of David, the anointed one is king forever of a new Israel under a new covenant in His blood. Therefore I can read this psalm as directed at me, for I am a Christian, an anointed one, a little Christ.
I am most moved by the idea of others trusting in their military might, their weapons and their armies. But the people of God understand that the greatest power belongs to the creator alone, the One who watches over his people. Their ultimate trust is not in weaponry or military power, but in the Lord's power.
A word of caution about this psalm: if you read it as addressed to you or for you, it's easy to get sucked into seeking God to grant you everything your heart desires. Our hearts are fickle. We often really don't know what we need. We may covet things, but that's not the same as getting what we need. Here's an example of what I mean.
Psalm 20:4 NIV
May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed.
I find that rarely in life do my plans succeed the way I want them to. Nor are the desires of my heart perfectly aligned with God's will. It's important for us to remember that God's will prevails, not our own. But when our will is surrendered to God's will and we seek to do His rather than our own, we find God working out His plan in our lives. It's a powerful path. It's a wonderful path. And it's a path that has many temporary challenges and eternal rewards. Would we want it any other way?
Psalm 20 is written to celebrate the king of Israel. It's what biblical scholars call a Royal Psalm. The psalm offers blessing that God might grant all the requests of the king. The psalm lifts up confidence in the Lord who watches over Israel, the God of Jacob. You may remember that Jacob is just another name for Israel since the biblical character Jacob was renamed Israel after an encounter with God.
The king is referred to as the Lord's anointed. But this reference can also be for the people the king governs, the people of God. The title given to Jesus is Christ, which means the anointed one. Jesus, the son of David, the anointed one is king forever of a new Israel under a new covenant in His blood. Therefore I can read this psalm as directed at me, for I am a Christian, an anointed one, a little Christ.
I am most moved by the idea of others trusting in their military might, their weapons and their armies. But the people of God understand that the greatest power belongs to the creator alone, the One who watches over his people. Their ultimate trust is not in weaponry or military power, but in the Lord's power.
A word of caution about this psalm: if you read it as addressed to you or for you, it's easy to get sucked into seeking God to grant you everything your heart desires. Our hearts are fickle. We often really don't know what we need. We may covet things, but that's not the same as getting what we need. Here's an example of what I mean.
Psalm 20:4 NIV
May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed.
I find that rarely in life do my plans succeed the way I want them to. Nor are the desires of my heart perfectly aligned with God's will. It's important for us to remember that God's will prevails, not our own. But when our will is surrendered to God's will and we seek to do His rather than our own, we find God working out His plan in our lives. It's a powerful path. It's a wonderful path. And it's a path that has many temporary challenges and eternal rewards. Would we want it any other way?
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