Making "Psense" of Psalms--Psalm 16: Now, and Then!

Part of a continuing series on selected Psalms.

 It wasn’t how I imagined my life at 32: sleeping on a borrowed twin mattress in the corner of someone’s bedroom, a box holding my lamp, clock and Bible. That first night, I stared at the ceiling and prayed, “Thank you, God, for shelter.” The shorter version of this long story was that my parents died while I was pursuing graduate studies 2,000 miles away. I finished the degree but couldn’t land a job. Then, days before I had to vacate college housing, with nowhere to go, I was offered a job nearby. Someone at the company offered to take me in temporarily, providing this bedroom corner. 

God’s just-in-time provision at this desolate time made Psalm 16:5 come alive for me: “LORD, you alone are my portion and my cup; you made my lot secure.”

 Psalm 16 is one of six psalms labeled “A Miktam of David,” an obscure musical term related to the word “engraving.” What’s more revealing are the circumstances named for the other five miktams (Psalms 56-60). In those, David faced life-threatening situations involving local enemies and murderous King Saul. Most likely, Psalm 16 grew out of David’s years of fleeing Saul and wandering in the wilderness with 600 ragtag followers united by distress, debt, and discontent (1 Samuel 22:2). No wonder he began this psalm with almost a sighing “help!”: “Keep me safe, O God, For in you I take refuge.”

The first part of the psalm affirms his trust in God in his present circumstances. In the second, he expresses his faith that his life after death will be better by far.

 THE “NOW”

David talks of the blessedness of being connected to God: “I say to the LORD, “’You are my Lord, apart from you I have no good thing’” (v. 2). “Lord” in this verse is actually two different Hebrew words. More accurately, he said, “I say to the strong-powerful-God-of-all, you are the master of my life.” He lives out his allegiance by siding with God-followers (v.3) and having nothing to do with idol-worshippers (v. 4). Even though he’s living on the run, surrounded by malcontents, David finds that inner peace: “LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure.  The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance” (vv. 5-6).

“Portion and cup” probably refers to daily food—no small feat in the wilderness. “Made my lot secure” alludes to the tribal allotments of the “Promised Land” after the Exodus and 40 years of wandering. As a fugitive, David couldn’t live in his family’s territory, but he could be content. His attitude was similar to that of Paul, who wrote from a prison: “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in in and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want” (Philippians 4:12).

THE “THEN”!

Rather than mull over the negatives, David focused on God’s help and protection. After all, God had Samuel anoint David the next king of Israel! Yet the constant danger reminded David how fragile life can be. In thinking about his own death, he made this remarkable statement: “Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure, because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay.  You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand” (Psalm 16:9-11).

In some versions, “grave” in verse 10 is translated “Sheol.” In Old Testament times, this was understood to be a type of “netherworld” for both believers and unbelievers when death separated one’s personality from the body. What happened there was a murky subject. With the New Testament, after-death concepts changed to the spirits/souls of non-believers going to a state of suffering called “Hades” (Luke 16:23). But when believers died, their souls/spirits went to the presence of Christ in heaven (2 Cor. 5:8, Phil. 1:23).

Verses 9-11 were prophetic, and not of David. He died, was buried, and his body decayed. Instead, this spoke of the future--of Christ. After Christ’s ascension, the apostle Peter preached from this passage, explaining to listeners that the Jesus they crucified, and who rose again, was the Messiah who fulfilled David’s prophecy. Convicted and convinced, 3,000 made decisions that day to follow Christ (Acts 2:25-41).

That also helps explains the “path of life” in Psalm 16:11. God has shown us the path of eternal life, through faith in Christ. He will lead us from death to the joy of eternal life in Heaven, in God’s presence.  Being at His “right hand” means the place of honor and pleasure.

What a journey in this little “miktam”! It models gratitude for God’s protection and provision, and it reminds us that, for believers, eternal joy waits beyond the grave.

 

Next week: Psalm 18