2 Samuel 22,  Psalm 117,  Mark 15:42-47,  Galatians 5:13-26

2 Samuel 22:

This chapter is one long song, written by David, to praise God for his deliverance. David realizes now that he is finally established: all his enemies are defeated, and he has been rescued from Saul and the nefarious effects of Saul’s reign. David’s response—as a man after God’s own heart—is praise. David recognizes whence came the source of all his victories: from God. 

The image of “rock” is used, and repeated, and reflects a fortress image of God as our safety and security. The song refers back to Hannah’s prophetic prayer at the beginning of 1 Samuel—“the horn” is exalted (1 Samuel 2:1, 10; 2 Samuel 22:3). This symbol of strength is connected to the “anointed” (2 Samuel 22:51; 1 Samuel 2:10), meaning first David, but then by prophetic extension over the horizon to the Anointed, the Messiah Jesus himself. 

Intrinsic to David’s piety is the expression that he records for us in verse 4: 

“I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised,
and I am saved from my enemies.” 

If we were to learn one thing from the life of David, it would be this. Call upon God, inquire of God, ask God, seek him while he may be found, “humbly” rely upon God. It was not David’s might or athletic prowess that conquered. No, this little shepherd boy, with his sling and stones, became the greatest pre-Christ ruler of God’s people because he was a man after God’s own heart. He depended upon God for his strength and his power. He was filled with a vision of the almightiness of God. For David, God is worthy to be praised; he is the rock and the fortress, can be relied upon and trusted in, and will give us aid against our enemies. 

Would you call upon God today? Would you lay at his feet all your burdens and concerns, all your anxieties and problems, and ask God to send rescue for you against your trials and tribulations? Would you, like David, declare the greatness of the Lord who is “worthy to be praised”?