Psalm 138: Regards

Psalm 138 begins eight consecutive psalms in which we hear from David for the last time in the book. We have heard from David in his highest and lowest moments and many of them in between. We’ve read things that he wrote that challenge our faith and motivate us to know God the way he did, and we’ve read other things that make us a little uncomfortable, wondering how this “man after God’s own heart” could hope for the teeth to be kicked out of the mouths of his enemies or question the faithfulness of God. David’s life was different than mine, I’ve never nor am I going to be king, kill a giant or hopefully have to hide out in a cave and yet our hearts are not that much different. I’ve faced unexpected disappointment, hurts that seemed more than I could bear and joy that was nearly unspeakable. I’ve loved God and failed Him, and I’ve had moments when my doubts have caused me to wonder if He’d failed me. Somehow, while living completely different lives, David was speaking from my heart and by the omnipotent love and care of God, the Holy Spirit was speaking to my heart through David. In this first of the last psalms of David we find a promise that is once more much less about what God will do for us than it is about who we need to know and remember that God is. 

The psalm begins as many psalms do, with a word of praise or thanksgiving, but this psalm is much different in the setting. David wrote, “I give you thanks, O LORD, with my whole heart; before the gods I sing your praise.” The Hebrew word at the end of verse 1 means “gods” in the ordinary sense, but it does have three possible uses. It can refer to angels or supernatural beings. In Psalm 82:1 it appears to refer to governmental leaders or rulers and it can also refer to false gods or idols. I believe that David was writing that in the midst of idols, in the midst of the worship of those who don’t know the Living God, in the midst of opposing opinions, theories and beliefs, he would give thanks to the One true God with his whole being. 

Isn’t this the action Romans 12:1-2 calls for? “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” David was saying that while surrounded by those who go their own way, he would stay in the way that God had led him. Our inclination is to get out or to get away, to not have to confront or be confronted, but both David and the author of Romans are telling us to stand firmly different in difficult places, that sometimes we must guard our hearts by being a witness or testimony of light to those whose hearts are darkened. It’s not enough to know the truth, our lives must be immersed in the truth to the point that it overflows from us to others. 

What was that truth that David was sure of, that caused him to give thanks with his whole being, that the author of Romans called us to be transformed and renewed by? In the second verse David wrote that he would, “give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness, for you have exalted above all things your name and your word.” David’s reason for giving thanks was not found in what God had done or what He hoped He would do, but in who He was, He was giving thanks for God’s character. The purpose of actions is to reveal character, the things we do tell the truth about who we are. David had discovered that God was faithful and kind, that He was just and gracious, that He was overflowing in love and while anger was not absent from Him, even in His anger His mercy prevailed. David was no longer singing songs about the miracles God had worked for him but the character of God he had learned in the miracles. 

Verse 2 ends with a statement that is a bit difficult to understand. In the English Standard Version it says, “you have exalted above all things your name and your word”. The New Kings James Version says, “For You have magnified Your word above all your name.” The Amplified Bible says, “For You have magnified Your word together with Your name.” What exactly does this mean and why does it matter? David was rejoicing that God’s words always matched His character, that He was never less than Himself, that He could not be pushed outside of His heart and His emotions could never cause Him to lose control. Consider what David had seen. God was faithful to Saul, even though Saul had disobeyed. Even when God had taken the kingdom from Saul, God still protected him, not allowing David or his men to kill him. God even continued to honor Saul, rebuking David for just cutting off the corner of his robe. David had seen God’s mercy in his own life. After his sin with and against Bathsheeba and then the coverup and murder of her husband and his friend Uriah, God had held David accountable, He had called out His sin and there were consequences, but there was also mercy. God didn’t forsake him, He accepted him, forgave him and proved his unchanging love for David. God’s words could always be trusted because circumstances never changed His character. God speaks not just for Himself but from Himself. He’s careful with his words because He’s faithful to His character. He doesn’t change so He can be trusted, but before we can believe what He says we must trust who He is. 

And who is God? That’s a huge question that can’t be answered in many volumes must less this one psalm or our discussion of it, but David does give us an incredible view of our God in verse 6, “For though the LORD is high, he regards the lowly, but the haughty he knows from afar.” In our world, greatness, wealth, influence and status separate. The rich don’t often live among the poor, the famous stand out when they are in public, and the powerful don’t ask for input from those they rule over. But in the kingdom of God, the King sent His Son to turn His enemies into His children. He fills us with His Spirit, He invites us into relationship, and He rejoices over us with love. God’s greatness is not what sets Him apart from us but it’s what draws Him near to us. 

The Hebrew word translated “regards” is “raa” it literally means “to see”. It was used 7 times in the creation story of Genesis 1, each time telling us that God saw His creation and called it good. When this word is applied to God, it’s not just a seeing of eyes but of heart, it’s not that He catches a glimpse, but He sees the depths. David wrote that God sees the deep places of the lowly, He sees our hearts, our fabric, not just who we are or what we have become, but who He created us to be and what we can still become. Who are the lowly? I’ll be honest, this came as a surprise to me. Once again going to the Hebrew, the word used is “sapal” and it’s literal meaning is “depressed”. God sees the depressed, everything in me wants to put an exclamation point there. He sees the lowest places of our hearts. He doesn’t look away from us in those places, He’s not telling us to snap out of it or pull ourselves together, He sees us, I’ll go ever farther, He joins us in those places. 

I’m not saying that God joins the depression, but He joins us in those depressed places. He joins us because He loves us, and He joins us to lead us out of darkness and into His marvelous light. We talk often about how Jesus joined Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the fiery furnace of Daniel 3. The three young men walked in faith, they refused to bow down to the idol built by Nebuchadnezzar and they were forced to pay the price, thrown alive into a furnace that burned so hot that the men who were tasked to throw them into it died. But when they were tossed in they did not burn and as the king looked he saw not only the 3 men alive and unharmed in the fire, but a fourth man with them that he said looked like “a son of the gods.” Jesus joined them in the fire of their faith, but that’s not the only fire He joins. He joined the Samaritan woman in the fire of her shame, the woman caught in adultery in the fire of her condemnation, Zacchaeus in the fire of his greed, He joined all of us in the fire of our sin so that He could demonstrate His love for us in His death and resurrection so that He could set us free. 

God regards the lowly. He sees us in our depression, in our bondage, in our fear, our weakness, our shame and our sin and He doesn’t use those things as distance from us but instead, He uses His love and His character as the reason to come join us in those places so that He can lead us from them to Himself. We are seen, we are known, and we are loved. It’s so much more than what God does, it’s who He is. Give thanks so that the lowly that surround us would know the God who sees them, who loves them and is right now in the fire with them. We are all regarded by God, but it takes the redeemed to sing of their redemption for the lowly to regard the Redeemer.