Digging Deeper Days
Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!
Today is 2-for-1 Friday!
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The Questions
1) What is a horn (verse 2) and why is it important?
2) How can we know God has heard us in our distress, even when our situation is not immediately relieved?
3) What truth can I cling to in seeing the Lord “delighted in” David?
Psalm 18:1-19
1 I love you, Lord, my strength.
2 The Lord is my rock,
my fortress, and my deliverer,
my God, my rock where I seek refuge,
my shield and the horn of my salvation,
my stronghold.
3 I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise,
and I was saved from my enemies.
4 The ropes of death were wrapped around me;
the torrents of destruction terrified me.
5 The ropes of Sheol entangled me;
the snares of death confronted me.
6 I called to the Lord in my distress,
and I cried to my God for help.
From his temple he heard my voice,
and my cry to him reached his ears.
7 Then the earth shook and quaked;
the foundations of the mountains trembled;
they shook because he burned with anger.
8 Smoke rose from his nostrils,
and consuming fire came from his mouth;
coals were set ablaze by it.
9 He bent the heavens and came down,
total darkness beneath his feet.
10 He rode on a cherub and flew,
soaring on the wings of the wind.
11 He made darkness his hiding place,
dark storm clouds his canopy around him.
12 From the radiance of his presence,
his clouds swept onward with hail and blazing coals.
13 The Lord thundered from heaven;
the Most High made his voice heard.
14 He shot his arrows and scattered them;
he hurled lightning bolts and routed them.
15 The depths of the sea became visible,
the foundations of the world were exposed,
at your rebuke, Lord,
at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.
16 He reached down from on high
and took hold of me;
he pulled me out of deep water.
17 He rescued me from my powerful enemy
and from those who hated me,
for they were too strong for me.
18 They confronted me in the day of my calamity,
but the Lord was my support.
19 He brought me out to a spacious place;
he rescued me because he delighted in me.
Original Intent
1) What is a horn (verse 2) and why is it important?
Throughout the Old Testament, a horn was used to symbolize both power (Daniel 3:5, Psalm 89:17) and joyful noises (Joshua 6:4). David was writing this Psalm after the Lord had rescued Him from the pursuit of King Saul. David was ecstatic to be safe from his arch-enemy and wanted to bless the name of the Lord, by which He had been saved. He looked back at the Lord’s faithfulness and chose to list some of our God’s attributes to settle his nerves and give testimony of what the Lord had done on his behalf. David saw how the Lord was the “horn of his salvation” (verse 2) and wanted others to know how salvation could be found through the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob alone.
2) How can we know God has heard us in our distress, even when our situation is not immediately relieved?
David had to wait for his relief to come. King Saul was angry at the thought of his son, Jonathan, not receiving the throne. David was anointed to be the next ruler of Israel and King Saul wanted him dead. He pursued David repeatedly and threatened to kill him multiple times (1 Samuel 18-31). David was on the move; hiding here, gathering men there. The most powerful ruler of a nation was literally working to kill David and the Lord chose not to answer immediately! Yet, David could still say, “In my distress, I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help. From His temple, He heard my voice; my cry came before Him, into His ears.” (Psalm 18:6)
3) What truth can I cling to in seeing the Lord “delighted in” David?
David had found pleasure in God’s eyes. He was not of royal blood, but was chosen to rule the Israelites in spite of this glaring “flaw”. God called David into something of great magnitude and David’s answer was shown by his willingness to obey and trust. David walked closely with God and was blessed abundantly! God delighted over David and his humble obedience; he was eventually given the crown of the Lord’s chosen people. What a position!
Everyday Application
1) What is a horn (verse 2) and why is it important?
When the Lord has done good things in our lives, we want to offer praise and testimony. Psalm 34:1 says “I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise will always be on my lips.” When we visualize the horn of our salvation, we see our Loving Father protecting us, buying us back from the kingdom of darkness, and we want to shout about it, telling everyone around us of His great REDEMPTION! Let’s be a people who are ready to speak of the rich good the Lord has done in our lives and see how it influences our non-Christian friends. Pray for open doors to share what He is doing in your life, then follow through in obedience by speaking of Him!
2) How can we know God has heard us in our distress, even when our situation is not immediately relieved?
Just as David had to wait for a reply from God, we often find ourselves waiting before the Lord for an answer. Sometimes, it may even feel as if our own lives are being hunted down. We feel in danger and as if the Lord is nowhere to be found, but these are the moments where our faith is given the opportunity to grow the deepest. David knew the characteristics of God and chose to cling to them, regardless of his life-threatening circumstances. Moment by moment, David asked God what to do and God would answer; one little step at a time. Even when the Lord was silent, it provided David the opportunity to trust the God He knew, or rely on his own feeble, human understanding. When we’re in the throes of trouble in everyday life, let’s look to God with every breath, asking what step we should take next. He has been faithful before, He will be faithful again!
3) What truth can I cling to in seeing the Lord “delighted in” David?
Our amazing Creator loves us and has chosen each of us to follow Him. Our circumstances, our past, our shame, our seeming insignificance is nothing to Him. He simply longs for relationship with us and for our faithful (joyful) service to Him. The more we study His character, the more we trust Him, which leads to our more faithful obedience and deepening joy. The beginning? Knowing Him. Dear Sister, walk closely with the Lord! Study His heart through His Word and the lives of other faithful believers! There are many distractions in this life, many things that look like good things to be busy with. Consider what the Lord is asking you to do and joyfully obey! Who knows where you’ll end up or what you’ll be doing, but the joy He gives will sustain you as He leads you into your “next”!
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Digging Deeper is for Everyone!
1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
3) Write down your questions
as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God
in your everyday!
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Why Dig Deeper?
Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.
In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!
Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.
Study Tools
We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.
Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!
Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))
Memorize It!
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