Psalm 20 Devotional:

A prayer of the people unto God, that it would please him to hear their king and receive his sacrifice, which he offered before he went to battle against the Ammonites.

To him that excelleth. A Psalm of David.

1 The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee;

2 Send thee help from the sanctuary, and strengthen thee out of Zion;

3 Remember all thy offerings, and accept thy burnt sacrifice; Selah.

4 Grant thee according to thine heart, and fulfil all thy counsel:

5 That we may rejoice in thy salvation, and in the name of our God set up our banners: when the Lord shall fulfil all thy petitions.

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.

7 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the Lord our God.

8 They are brought down and fallen: but we are risen, and stand upright.

9 Save, Lord: let the king hear us when we call.

Previously we saw in the Psalm the notable manner in which certain Psalms follow after others, and the duty of the people of God in times of trouble to call out to Him for aid, and is this not exactly what we find in Psalm 19 and 20? Even the declaration of God’s glory in creation, which makes Him worthy of praise and worship, and worthy to be called upon in the day of trouble, even as Hezekiah the king provides for us an example, saying, “O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, that dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth: thou hast made heaven and earth. Incline thine ear, O Lord, and hear; open thine eyes, O Lord, and see: and hear all the words of Sennacherib, which hath sent to reproach the living God. Of a truth, Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the nations, and their countries, And have cast their gods into the fire: for they were no gods, but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone: therefore they have destroyed them. Now therefore, O Lord our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the Lord, even thou only.” Therefore we see that one principle follows after the other like night and day. God is worthy to be worshiped because He created all things, therefore He is worthy to be called upon in the day of trouble. For if we truly believe that the Lord created the heavens and the earth, then it follows that we believe He is able to save us from all our troubles. ALL our troubles. Therefore we see by this very same principle that those who do not call upon God in their adversity, or deny His providence and care are no better than atheists, seeing they deny to God His Fatherly love which is one of His essential attributes, as it is written, “casting all your care upon Him for He careth for you” and again, “Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.” and again, “Considerest thou not what this people have spoken, saying, The two families which the Lord hath chosen, he hath even cast them off? thus they have despised my people, that they should be no more a nation before them. Thus saith the Lord; If my covenant be not with day and night, and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth; Then will I cast away the seed of Jacob and David my servant, so that I will not take any of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: for I will cause their captivity to return, and have mercy on them.” and therefore it is written of them, “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.” for truly although men pretend to be religious and act the hypocrite before men, they prove themselves fools when they make not God their rock, but rely on worldly means of happiness, and pursue after the vanity of wealth and status. Therefore there is a stark contrast made in these Psalms between the righteous and the wicked, between him that feareth God and him that feareth Him not, between those who view the beauty and glory of God in creation and on account of this call upon His name in trouble, and those who are blinded by success in this life and so rely on vain shadows. As the Psalm says, “their sorrows shall be multiplied that hasten after another god.”

Calvin,
Some trust in chariots. I do not restrict this to the enemies of Israel, as is done by other interpreters. I am rather inclined to think that there is here a comparison between the people of God and all the rest of the world. We see how natural it is to almost all men to be the more courageous and confident the more they possess of riches, power and military forces. The people of God, therefore, here protest that they do not place their hope, as is the usual way with men, in their military forces and warlike apparatus, but only in the aid of God. As the Holy Spirit here sets the assistance of God in opposition to human strength, it ought to be particularly noticed, that whenever our minds come to be occupied by carnal confidence, they fall at the same time into a forgetfulness of God. It is impossible for him, who promises himself victory by confiding in his own strength, to have his eyes turned towards God. The inspired writer, therefore, uses the word remember, to show, that when the saints betake themselves to God, they must cast off every thing which would hinder them from placing an exclusive trust in him. This remembrance of God serves two important purposes to the faithful. In the first place, however much power and resources they may possess, it nevertheless withdraws them from all vain confidence, so that they do not expect any success except from the pure grace of God. In the second place, if they are bereft and utterly destitute of all succor, it notwithstanding so strengthens and encourages them, that they call upon God both with confidence and constancy. On the other hand, when ungodly men feel themselves strong and powerful, being blinded with pride, they do not hesitate boldly to despise God; but when they are brought into circumstances of distress, they are so terrified as not to know what to become. In short, the Holy Spirit here recommends to us the remembrance of God, which, retaining its efficacy both in the want and in the abundance of power, subdues the vain hopes with which the flesh is wont to be inflated.

They are bowed down. It is probable that there is here pointed out, as it were with the finger, the enemies of Israel, whom God had overthrown, when they regarded no event as less likely to happen. There is contained in the words a tacit contrast between the cruel pride with which they had been lifted up for a time when they audaciously rushed forward to make havoc of all things on the one hand, and the oppression of the people of God on the other. The expression, to rise, is applied only to those who were before sunk or fallen; and, on the other hand, the expression, bowed down and fallen, is with propriety applied to those who were lifted up with pride and presumption. The prophet therefore teaches by the event, how much more advantageous it is for us to place all our confidence in God than to depend upon our own strength.

Henry,
They conclude their prayer for the king with a Hosanna, “Save, now, we beseech thee, O Lord!” Psalms 20:9; Psalms 20:9. As we read this verse, it may be taken as a prayer that God would not only bless the king, “Save, Lord, give him success,” but that he would make him a blessing to them, “Let the king hear us when we call to him for justice and mercy.” Those that would have good of their magistrates must thus pray for them, for they, as all other creatures, are that to us (and no more) which God makes them to be. Or it may refer to the Messiah, that King, that King of kings; let him hear us when we call; let him come to us according to the promise, in the time appointed; let him, as the great Master of requests, receive all our petitions and present them to the Father. But many interpreters give another reading of this verse, by altering the pause, Lord, save the king, and hear us when we call; and so it is a summary of the whole psalm and is taken into our English Liturgy; O Lord! save the king, and mercifully hear us when we call upon thee.

Opening Prayer.

Lesson 23.
The necessity of understanding the historical and religious atmosphere in which we live. Part 3. New Testament History. The Acts of the Apostles.

Intro.
Review, Luke 1. Acts 1-2
Acts as a commentary on John 3:16, see also Rom. 11. Jerusalem to Rome.
There are subtle introductions to Acts in Luke. See Luke 4:16-32

ii. New Testament History.
Luke-Acts
1. Ascension. Acts 1.
2. Pentecost. Acts 2.
3. Early opposition and growth. Acts 4.
4. Stephen’s defence. Acts 7.
5. Peter’s vision and the salvation of Cornelius and his house. Acts 10.
6. The conversion of Saul. Acts 9.
7. Paul’s missionary journeys. Acts 13-27
8. The gospel preached in Rome. Acts 28.

Application. Bless God and never cease blessing God that the gospel has come to America. This is life eternal. Although not yet widespread, yet the church has ever had small beginnings and there may be increase in time to come.

Conclusion.

Closing Prayer.

YouTube Audio: https://youtu.be/wmzIJtQaRQ0