Epaggelia

v1-3, Learning that God can be viewed as having shields, a lance and a spear, may seem unsettling for some people, but David was at ease with the idea. Where did he get this idea? Perhaps it was from his miraculous defeat of Goliath with a single shot. Would David attribute the sling’s accuracy to God, or was the sling itself a weapon of God? However David came to believe in God’s activity in war, it is essential that we understand God has a sword, see Ephesians 6:17. 

v8. Let his net that he has hidden catch himself: David prayed that the guilty one would truly be caught in his own trap. David prayed that destruction would come upon his adversary unexpectedly. We can pray on the same principle against our spiritual adversaries, the principalities and powers that battle against us in the spiritual realm. The devil has “snares” or traps,(1 Timothy 3:7, 2 Timothy 2:26) and he has strategies or plans, (2 Corinthians 2:11) that are set against us. We may rightly pray that the devil’s children are caught in and by his own snares and strategies. Do you believe Jesus was correct in calling some people “children of satan”? See John 8:44, Matthew 13:38 & 1st John 3:8.

v11-12, They reward me evil for good: “This was never more literally true of King David, than it was for the divine Christ Jesus, when, standing before Pontius Pilate, he received no other reply from the Jews, for all the gracious words which he had spoken, and all the powerful works of mercy which he had done among them, than that of being slandered, and put to death.

v19,  Who hate me without a cause: “Jesus identified with those who suffer without apparent cause, because he applies the words of Psalm 35:19 (Psalm 69:4) to himself (John 15:25).”

They devise deceitful matters against the quiet ones in the land: David prayed for vindication against his enemies because they plotted against God’s humble, simple people.The German Lutheran Bible translates the phrase the quiet ones in the land as die Stillen im Lande. It later became a phrase to describe believers in Germany, especially those from the Pietistic tradition. They emphasized living a quiet, devoted life of peace before God and man, and trusting God to defend them. It seems in every age of history, God has had his “quiet ones”, ignoring the noise & strife of the world and withdrawn from godless ambitions, they are unshaken by worldly headlines, because they have entered into the secret of an abundant life hidden in Christ Jesus, Jn. 10:10. Remember the command of Christ, “from the rooftops”! (Matthew 10:27). There was a time in the ministry of Jesus, when he needed to keep his Messiahship quiet, but towards the latter, he mandated public proclamation and then sent disciples out throughout the entire world to SHOUT.  Should Christians remain quiet?