What’s in a Name?

What’s in a Name?

Psalm 54

Main Idea: The gospel compels believers to trust in God’s character when friends betray us and enemies attack us.

A rose by any other name would smell as sweet” is a familiar reference from William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Juliet appears to be arguing that it doesn’t matter that Romeo bears the name “Montague,” her family’s rival house. The reference is often used to suggest that a person’s name doesn’t affect who they really are. While this may be true in some cases, nothing could be farther from the truth when it comes to God’s name. God’s name tells us everything about him and gives us great confidence in him.

The superscription of the psalm reveals its backdrop. Although they’re referred to as “strangers” in the song itself (v. 3), these Ziphites actually were fellow Israelites, not foreigners (Josh 15:24). David had even rescued a nearby city from the Philistines (1 Sam 23), so he assumed them to be allies. However, now they’ve done a one-eighty on him and ratted him out to King Saul. It was one thing to have been betrayed by Doeg the Edomite (Ps 52; 1 Sam 22:22), but now David finds himself the target of men he thought to be on his side (1 Sam 23:19; 26:1). So with Saul in hot pursuit, David is not only disillusioned from being betrayed, but his life is in danger (Kidner, Psalms 1–72, 215). Psalm 54 is the prayer of a desperate man when his heart is hurting, his faith is fainting, and his safety is suspect.

So, what exactly does David do? He does what we should do in desperate times: he calls on the name of his God. This prayer is bookended by references to God’s “name,” which is the object of his hope for deliverance (vv. 1,6; cf. 52:9). And in the middle is the psalm’s major theme that unpacks the nature of that divine name: “helper” and “sustainer” (v. 4; Wilson, Psalms, 797). Prophetically, this psalm demonstrates how the gospel compels us to trust in God’s character when friends betray us and enemies attack us. Moreover, it compels us to look to Jesus Christ as the ultimate expression of God’s name and glory. Paul said,

For this reason God highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow—in heaven and on earth and under the earth—and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Phil 2:9-11)

So as we travel through this psalm, we’re ultimately talking about the name of Jesus.

The term choir director in the heading refers to some liturgical officiant or worship leader. Along with the reference to “stringed instruments,” this psalm evidently was intended to be part of the corporate worship of God’s people. But it also was intended to be educational. The term Maskil is well known in wisdom literature and often meant “to instruct” or “make perceptive” (Wilson, Psalms, 545). The word Selah is inserted at the end of verse 3. While its exact meaning is unknown, it’s generally thought to indicate a pause or interlude in a musical presentation of the psalm. The term often corresponds to structural divisions within a text and can help us understand the various components of a poem (Wilson, Psalms, 128). These terms show us that David thinks his words—especially his confidence in God’s name—are important enough to put to music and be rehearsed by the people of God.

So let’s explore how our God delivers and vindicates us when we cry out to his great name. Consider how our desperation for God leads to our dependence on God and results in our devotion to God.

Our Desperation for God

Psalm 54:1-3

Psalm 54 begins with a desperate request for God’s help, followed by the reason for that desperation. Let’s look at the reason first—which is found in verse 3—before we look at the actual request in verses 1-2.

The Reason (54:3)

One of the most traumatic and disillusioning experiences I’ve ever had in ministry came during my first pastorate. One of my deacons, who was a close friend, had a middle-school daughter in our student ministry. One year as we were preparing to go to summer camp, this young lady made it known to the other students that she was planning a series of pranks while we were at camp. As other parents began to express concern, I decided I needed to have a conversation with her dad. I made an appointment with him and shared my concerns. It was like flipping a switch. This brother—who had been my biggest supporter and one of my closest confidants—immediately turned against me. It’s hard to describe the degree of bitterness he harbored. After a number of attempts at reconciliation, I went to his house one morning to plead with him one more time. He opened his door, and without saying a word, threw a cup of hot coffee in my face and slammed the door. I turned and went back to my vehicle, drenched in coffee . . . and tears.

We expect to be ridiculed, maligned, and attacked by our enemies. But what catches us by surprise—and usually hurts the most—is when we’re stabbed in the back by those within our own ranks. When people we thought were for us suddenly and surprisingly turn against us, we find ourselves in a painful and precarious position. That’s what was happening in this psalm. The word For at the beginning of verse 3 flags the reason for David’s dire predicament in verses 1-2. The stakes are high in this text. David’s desperation is highlighted and intensified as he describes his circumstances as life-threatening! These were violent men who had betrayed him, ones who wanted him dead. The word violent can be translated as “awe-inspiring, terror-striking” (BDB, s.v. ‘arits).

However, probably the most frightening description here is not that David’s enemies are described as “violent” but that they are called “strangers.” While this word often refers to foreigners, such couldn’t be the case here. The Ziphites were fellow countrymen! Here it has to be referring to someone or something “foreign” to the community or its standards. The word is used for the “unauthorized fire” that Nadab and Abihu burned on the altar in Leviticus 10:1. It wasn’t pagan incense but simply fire other than what they were authorized to use. It shows up again in Proverbs 5:3, where the “forbidden woman” isn’t characterized as a foreigner but as the unchaste wife of another man (Ross, Psalms, vol. 2, 231–32).

No, these “strangers” weren’t foreigners to David’s national family. However, they were foreigners to his faith family. These were people who were geographically and genetically associated with the kingdom, but they weren’t genuinely associated with it. They were part of Israel but not the true Israel (cf. Rom 2:28-29; 9:6-8; Gal 3:7-9).

In the New Testament Jesus said such hypocrisy will be prevalent in the kingdom of God until he returns for his people, his true people. The parable of the sower (Matt 13:1-23) and the parable of the weeds (Matt 13:24-30), as well as the analogy of the separation of the sheep and goats (Matt 25:31-46), all suggest that the earthly kingdom will have people in it who put on the face of kingdom citizenship but who aren’t genuinely children of the King. Paul even suggests that these frauds—like the “strangers” in Psalm 54—will persecute true believers: “In fact, all who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. Evil people and impostors will become worse, deceiving and being deceived” (2 Tim 3:12-13).

The church today is filled with such phonies. They join our churches, attend our worship gatherings, participate in our programs, sing our music, listen to our sermons, give their money, and sometimes even live moral lives. Yet they’ve never truly experienced the life-transforming, heart-regenerating power of the gospel. They are geographically affiliated with the kingdom because they’re in our midst. They are genetically affiliated with the kingdom because they’re often related to us by bloodline. But they’re not genuinely affiliated with the kingdom because they don’t know Christ.

Jesus is clear that at his coming a distinction will be made between genuine believers and these pretenders:

Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. On that day many will say to me, “Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name, drive out demons in your name, and do many miracles in your name?” Then I will announce to them, “I never knew you. Depart from me, you lawbreakers!” (Matt 7:21-23)

No, none of these charlatans will sneak into the eternal kingdom. Our Lord’s avowal concerning the clear distinction that awaits is truly haunting: “Let both grow together until the harvest. At harvest time I’ll tell the reapers: Gather the weeds first and tie them in bundles to burn them, but collect the wheat in my barn” (Matt 13:30). True and false believers may coexist in the kingdom on earth, but they won’t in heaven.

The end of verse 3 confirms such a commentary on the spiritual condition of these “strangers.” The reason for their hypocrisy is simple: “They do not let God guide them.” Like the “fool” who “says in his heart, ‘There’s no God’” (53:1), they reject God’s authority over their lives. Wilson says that when letting God guide you, you keep your eyes fixed on the one out in front—the leader—in order to know the right way. These attackers didn’t do that but instead chose to follow their own ruthless devices (Wilson, Psalms, 799). They had no regard for God’s authority.

One can be guilty of this rebellion, even passively. I travel quite a bit as part of my ministry, so I’m on a lot of airplanes. Most of the time I don’t think much about the pilots who fly the planes, other than to greet them and say, “Thank you,” as I’m deplaning. However, every once in a while, the plane in which I’m flying hits some turbulence that jerks the big vessel around a bit. Whenever that happens, I start thinking things like, I wonder how many flight hours this pilot has, and, I hope he’s had some experience flying through stuff like this. I can be kind of passive about airplane pilots until I hit some rough air. And passivity can be a manifestation of rebellion. God wants me to set him before my eyes constantly, not just when there’s turbulence in my life. Otherwise—like David’s detractors—I’m not much different from the fool who says that there is no God.

The Request (54:1-2)

Now that we understand David’s circumstances, we have a context for appreciating the intensity of the request he makes in these verses. The psalmist makes his plea through two pairs of parallel ideas. The first pair is the words save and vindicate, which express David’s urgent need for God to deliver him both physically and justly. The word vindicate is a judicial term that suggests an acquittal. David knew such a verdict would have to be levied through saving deeds, not words. The slander on his character was that he was a traitor against Saul, the king of Israel (Kidner, Psalms 1–72, 215). He knew the only way for his reputation to be reestablished would be as a direct result of God’s saving his life. So he was asking for his life to be spared and his name to be cleared.

The agent of David’s petitioned deliverance is expressed in the words name and might, the second of the two pairs of parallel thoughts. He knew he was in a situation he couldn’t solve. He was going to need something beyond himself, and that something was God’s strength expressed in his name. The children of Israel believed God was present on earth in his name, which represented his essential character and nature. His name referred to “the whole of the divine manifestation, the character of God as revealed in his relationship and dealings with his people” (Ross, Psalms, vol. 2, 231).

At least part of God’s character and nature is his power and authority as demonstrated through his might. So basically David is crying out to God to deliver him from his enemies by means of his glorious attributes. That’s an expression of faith. Faith isn’t believing something hard enough that it comes to pass. Neither is it a leap in the dark. Faith is actually a leap in the light: responding to and acting on what God says and reveals about himself. David is confident God will be his deliverer and vindicator because that’s who God has revealed himself to be. That is faith prompted by the revealed nature and character of God. And that faith will win out every time!

Verse 2 also begins by addressing David’s deliverer. The name God is emphasized by its position at the beginning of each verse. The psalmist is acknowledging that no one else is able to save him. So he pleads that God will “hear” him and “listen” to him. The language in these two verbs conveys attempts to gain access to a judge in order to hear the plaintiff’s case (Wilson, Psalms, 799). David wants God to hear his plea and respond favorably on his behalf. The picture is of a man on trial for his life desperately pleading with the judge to hear his side of the story.

I remember when my daughter was little and needed something from me while my mind was on other things. She would crawl up in my lap while I was watching a ball game or reading and begin to ask me for what she needed. When she noticed that my attention was given to something other than her, she would grab both of my cheeks with her two little hands, turn my head in her direction, and plead, “Daddy, listen to me!” That’s what the psalmist is doing. He’s grabbing hold of God’s face and saying, “God, listen to me!” But when those words roll off of his lips, they’re not directed at one who is distracted and busy with other matters. They’re finding a hearing with a good Father who desires his children to seek his face and appeal to his strength. What Father doesn’t take delight in his children’s dependence on him?

Our heavenly Father wants us to pray with this kind of abandon. He wants us to plead our case to him when we find ourselves betrayed by people we thought were for us. He wants us to appeal to him when our safety and our character are on the line. He wants us to cry out to him and ask him to come to our aid and to show himself strong for us. God is both blessed and glorified when his children express their utter desperation for and dependence on him. And he delights in giving to us out of the abundance of his goodness. Jesus teaches his followers to pray this way (Luke 11:1-13). He tells us to be like the friend at midnight, who pleaded with his neighbor with annoying relentlessness to open his door and give him some bread. He said for us to ask and keep on asking, to seek and keep on seeking, to knock and keep on knocking. And he said to pray this way, knowing that God is a good Father who wants to give his presence to those who ask in this way.

Our Dependence on God

Psalm 54:4-5

One of the great mysteries of the earthy praying that God desires from his children is the way desperation for him seems to always breed dependence on him. In verses 1-3 David passionately brought himself and his enemies to God’s attention. Now, in verses 4-5, he abruptly turns his own attention toward God. Somehow God has wired prayer to work this way. If you and I can bring ourselves sincerely to cry out to God when we’re distressed, it will drive us to the doorstep of dependence on him. There we will find our confidence in his great name and all that it represents. Here the psalmist acknowledges God as the one who helps, sustains, and props up his children. Then he declares what God will do to bring justice to their plight.

Who God Is (54:4)

Psalm 54:4 appears to betray a sudden mood swing in the author’s disposition. This verse houses the big idea of the whole psalm—confidence in the God who shows himself strong to his children. David addresses the congregation, reminding them of the fundamental principle by which God’s people resolve to live their lives. David is acknowledging that God does for him what his children can’t do for themselves.

The next line of the song strengthens the claim. The Hebrew here seems to number God merely among the psalmist’s sustainers, an idea that seems unsettling to several modern translators. However, Kidner believes such a translation doesn’t belittle God but demonstrates his hand through human help (cf. 1 Sam 23:13; 2 Sam 23:8-39), an aspect of his faithfulness that served as David’s support and delight (Kidner, Psalms 1–72, 216). God is the helper and upholder of his children, even when he chooses to levy it through human instruments!

Here we find one of the beautiful pictures of the gospel in the Psalms. We’re reminded that Jesus Christ is our helper and upholder and that our gaze remains fixed on him. To do otherwise is to be overwhelmed by the cares and burdens of this life. Peter learned this lesson painfully. When he saw the one who had power over creation walking on the water, he wanted to go meet him by doing the same thing. As he miraculously made his way toward our Lord, everything was peachy until he started looking at the elements on which he was treading instead of looking at Jesus. That’s when he started to sink! So, like the psalmist, “he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ Immediately Jesus reached out his hand, caught hold of him, and said to him, ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’” (Matt 14:30-31). Jesus helps and upholds us when we cry out to him.

Hypocrites don’t do this, but God’s true children keep their eyes on the one who has saved them, trusting in his name and all that it represents. When we do, the stormy seas and tumultuous circumstances of our lives fade into the background as lesser concerns. When friends betray us (cf. 55:12-14), when our leaders fall (cf. 146:3-5), and when family members abandon or abuse us (cf. 27:7-10), Jesus helps us and holds us up. So the old gospel hymn got it right: “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, / Look full on His wonderful face, / And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, / In the light of His glory and grace” (Lemmel, “Turn Your Eyes upon Jesus,” 1922).

When people set their eyes on someone or something other than the Lord Jesus Christ, they don’t see the “glory and grace” of God as it is revealed in his Son. When Jesus came, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We observed his glory, the glory as the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). Keeping our gaze on him changes how we look at everything else in the universe. When we look at Jesus, we see a God of justice and equity; we see the righteous one who takes no pleasure in evil; we see the Creator God who cares for all of creation. When we look at God in Christ, we can’t take lightly his power and glory, and we can’t take a pass on being involved in his mission in the world (Wilson, Psalms, 803). The name of God as revealed in Christ compels us to reflect his character, nature, and values in this world.

What God Will Do (54:5)

God’s name suggests that he always acts according to his character, not only on behalf of his children but also toward those who oppose them. The psalmist acknowledges as much when he says that God “will repay my adversaries.” He knows that God’s nature is to right wrongs, and that includes rendering justice to his people’s enemies. Basically, David is confidently claiming here that God will cause his enemies’ plans to backfire on them.

The fate of these slanderers is specified as the psalmist speaks directly to God in the parallel statement of the Hebrew poetry. God will annihilate them, destroy their lives. The preposition at the beginning of this clause indicates a cause: “on the basis of what your faithfulness demands.” God’s faithfulness is the truth that characterizes him. On the basis of God’s truth, the psalmist prays that his enemies would be exterminated. He’s asking God to act according to his name, his character.

Praying for God to act according to his character is always right and good. And it’s the most potent praying we can do because we’re always appealing to what is true, to what God has revealed about himself. John said, “This is the confidence we have before him: If we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears whatever we ask, we know that we have what we have asked of him” (1 John 5:14-15). This is the assurance we have whenever we pray according to God’s will, and God’s will always issues forth from his character.

But let’s admit, it does seem a bit awkward for us to ask God to obliterate our enemies. If we’re honest, some of the prayers we find in the Psalms bother us a bit. After all, didn’t Jesus say, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven” (Matt 5:44-45)? And Paul seems to advocate the same sentiment: “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse” (Rom 12:14). As Christ followers, don’t we reflect the character of God by doing the opposite of what David is doing in Psalm 54? The gospel of Christ does seem to constrain us not to respond in anger toward our enemies or desire revenge for what they do to us but to forgive them, love them, bless them, and respond to their evil intentions with good (Matt 5:43-48; Rom 12:14-21).

However, the kind of praying the psalmist does here isn’t actually out of harmony with the gospel. First, this prayer lifts the lid off of our own hearts and reveals our need for the gospel. We really need to press pause before we start feeling too high and mighty and think that David was a lesser human being than us because he lived during Old Testament times. Think about the last time you heard of someone abducting a child, raping a woman, or walking into a public building and gunning down a mass of innocent people. Reflect for a moment on the most recent news report of a terrorist bombing a Christian church building in some part of the world or even the threat of a dictator to launch a nuclear missile. Consider how you felt—including the outcome you desired—as you followed the latest high-profile trial of a mass murderer. Ponder for a moment what you were feeling when you first read the testimonies of Nazi Holocaust prisoners, victims of apartheid in South Africa, or survivors of the killing fields of Cambodia. Didn’t your heart long for justice? And what about the last time someone unjustly attacked you, whether physically or otherwise? Wasn’t there a part of you that wanted them to get what they deserved?

This is why I love the earthiness of the Psalms and the prayers that fill them. They are so me! While it’s easy for me to feel superior to the people of God who lived on the other side of the cross, I often hate those who hurt me and want them to get their due. The emotion of the psalmist in this prayer causes me to see myself and acknowledge the wickedness of my own heart. It causes me to see my desperate need for the gospel. Additionally, the heart cry of David always reminds me of the people in our world who are suffering to the point that they, too, want to pray this way. Bible prayers like this can actually raise our awareness of our own hearts and the hearts of others in seasons of suffering. And when we see our own wickedness, we see our need for the gospel.

This kind of praying is gospel praying for another reason. We should pray like this, not because it’s right for us to hate our enemies and desire their demise but because God wants us to be honest and intimate with him. The psalmist had such a genuine relationship with God that he could express his deepest feelings, even those that didn’t necessarily reflect citizenship in the kingdom that was to come. And guess what—God can handle that! He knows we live in a world infected by sin, and he knows the pain this world can prompt in us. As a good Father, he wants us to crawl up in his lap and express the deepest groaning of our heart, even if in the moment it’s the desire for our enemies to be zapped! When we are willing to come to God and pray this way, he always welcomes us and loves us, just as a father does with a child. And as we commune with him in such unguarded honesty, he responds to us with the gospel. And that gospel refines and tweaks and redeems our childish passions, motives, and desires.

Another reason Psalm 54:5 is gospel praying is because the God of both the Old Testament and the New Testament is actually a God of justice and judgment. We know God ultimately is going to set things right, vindicate the righteous, and punish the wicked. He wasn’t kidding when he said all that stuff about fire and brimstone, eternal condemnation, and the wicked being damned to hell. So any time you pray for his kingdom to come and his will to be done, you’re actually praying for him to destroy the wicked. Wilson insightfully points out that

it is a bit naive of us to believe in a holy and righteous God who is incompatible with evil and to ask him to enter our world decisively in order to end the effects of evil, and to ignore the fact that such a clean-up would have negative consequences for anyone and everything infected by wickedness. (Wilson, Psalms, 803–4)

If that’s true, then the flip side is equally valid. Whenever we pray for God to destroy the wicked, as the psalmist is doing here, we’re praying for him to act justly, stop evil, make things right, and vindicate the righteous.

Finally, praying for God to destroy our enemies is gospel praying if we trust him with it. Vindication is never our assignment. David was clear: “Because of your faithfulness, [you] annihilate them” (emphasis added). He wasn’t asking to do it himself, and neither should we. Vindication is never our assignment or responsibility. It’s God’s. Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said, Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven” (Matt 5:43-45). Paul agreed:

Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Give careful thought to do what is honorable in everyone’s eyes. If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Friends, do not avenge yourselves; instead, leave room for God’s wrath, because it is written, “Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay,” says the Lord. “But If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him something to drink. For in so doing you will be heaping fiery coals on his head.”

Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good. (Rom 12:17-21)

When we cry out to God and ask him to vindicate us, we trust him to do it, to do it his way, and to do it in his time. And we follow our prayer for such justice with gospel-driven actions that involve loving our enemies, praying for them, blessing them, living peaceably with them, and doing good deeds for them. That’s what Jesus did (Luke 23:34), and that’s what the gospel demands of us.

Our Devotion to God

Psalm 54:6-7

Our trust in and dependence on God is the seedbed for worship. The demonstration of confidence in his great name issues forth into uninhibited devotion to him. The progression in this psalm is astounding. The distressed servant of the Most High pours out his heart in desperation. That desperation ushers him right to the confident assurance of God’s strong help. And the reminder and awareness of that help compels him to worship this one in whose name he trusts. As is the case with many of the laments in the psalms, this one concludes with sacrifice and praise. David describes what we do in response to God’s great name and then why we do it.

What We Do (54:6)

In response to God’s strong name and the anticipation of his vindication, the psalmist spontaneously promises to worship him. He vows to make a sacrifice of praise when his God comes through with deliverance. David’s intended worship provides a worthy model for us as we respond to God’s faithfulness and the confidence that he will deliver us. Consider three applications.

First, our worship should be shared. The kind of sacrifice referenced here was to be offered in the sanctuary and accompanied by a peace offering. They opened the door to God’s presence through atonement, expressed the love of the worshiper, and assembled the congregation so they could hear the story of God’s work (cf. Deut 12:6-14). David knew that God’s deliverance was intended to inspire praise from those he helped and to build up the faith of everyone else who heard the report of his actions. We frequently ask people to join us in praying for God’s help with some crisis in our lives, but too often we forget to circle back around and report when he comes through for us. God’s deliverance is something to be shared with our brothers and sisters so they can join in worshiping him.

Second, our worship should be sincere. The word freewill indicates the psalmist would make this sacrifice willingly, not under compulsion or obligation. This would be no religious routine to follow or lame liturgical box to check off. It would be a heartfelt response of public praise that acknowledged what God had done. Our worship of the God who delivers must be the natural outflow of hearts moved by his actions on behalf of his people. We can’t afford to get caught up in the routine of weekly worship and never have our affections stirred by God’s gracious work for us.

Third, our worship should be substantive. David vows to worship God’s name, a name he describes as “good.” This theme now comes full circle in the psalm and features God’s identity as helper and upholder. The psalmist’s worship would be prompted by the character and nature of his God who is for him, the one who is good because he protects and provides for the life of his people. God’s name—his divine character and very person—is good. So, like the psalmist, we need to vow never to hoard the celebration of the demonstration of God’s good name but to share it willingly with the community of faith.

Why We Do It (54:7)

Why do we worship as a natural response to God’s deliverance in time of trouble? The little word For flags the reason. When we find ourselves in the midst of struggle, it’s important for us to remember and acknowledge God’s track record of all the times he’s delivered us in the past. That should lead us to praise him because we know he will be consistent and comprehensive in his help—past, present, and future.

The verb tense used in the phrase he has rescued appears to support this understanding. The construction is common in vows of praise and likely indicates the anticipation of an outcome as opposed to the reflection on a completed act. Perowne says, “The [perfect verb tenses] in this verse denote not that the deliverance is already accomplished, but the confidence of faith that it will be, and give the reason for the thanksgiving of the preceding verse” (Perowne, Psalms, 434). So the psalmist worships, not just because God has delivered him in the past but because he has complete confidence that he will deliver him in the future as well. We worship our God with such an assurance of his faithfulness that we actually view what we anticipate he will do in the future as an accomplished fact! It’s as good as done!

The psalmist finishes his prayer with a declaration of victory. The Hebrew places “my enemies” at the front. Why? Because this is his reason for praying in the first place: to ask God to do something about his enemies. And the verb tense is the same as above, confidently anticipating a victory. The psalmist will take great delight when he sees his enemies ultimately overcome. This won’t be exultation over their misfortune but the celebration that God’s righteous judgment has been administered and the satisfaction that his good name has been vindicated (Gesenius’, 380). Anticipating the defeat of the wicked is actually an anticipation of our vindication as those who trust in God. Whenever that happens, it always calls attention to and prompts praise for his great name!

Conclusion

What do we draw from this psalm? I offer two takeaways, one for believers and one for unbelievers. For believers, let’s learn that we can pray with confidence in Jesus’s name for deliverance that will vindicate our faith when people threaten and attack us. Satan always will work through ungodly people to undermine the gospel and those who embrace it, but we can rest in the assurance that God promises he ultimately will crush the threats and deliver his children. Sometimes his deliverance will be immediate (e.g., Acts 12:1-19; 16:16-40). Sometimes it will be delayed (e.g., Acts 21:27–28:31), even until the other side of death (e.g., Acts 7:54-60). Regardless of the timing, Jesus taught us to keep praying, “Deliver us from the evil one” (Matt 6:13). And when we do, we can pray confidently in his name (John 14:13-14) because we know that one day God ultimately and finally will end the threat of evil people and give eternal victory to his children.

For unbelievers, Psalm 54 is such a beautiful and simple picture of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the salvation we find only in him. We are all in a desperate situation because of our sin. The assault of our enemy, the evil one, has left us in a situation we can’t do anything about. We can’t save ourselves. That’s why God left heaven and came to earth in the form of a man, Jesus Christ. He came to live a life we couldn’t live and to die a death we should have died. And he overcame that death by rising again and defeating our enemy. Now he stands ready to deliver us and give us back the life we were created to have. So, what do we do? We cry out to his strong name—the name of Jesus—to save us, to help us, to uphold us. After all, “there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to people by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12; cf. 10:43; Matt 1:21). In repentance and faith, we express our desperation for him to do for us what we can’t do. And we trust him and depend on him to do it. And he does! In return, we give him our devoted lives as a sacrifice of praise to his great name.

What’s in a name? Well, if it’s Jesus’s name, there is help for all who are desperate for him, who depend on him, and who are devoted to him.

Reflect and Discuss

1. How does knowing the context of this psalm help us understand David’s plight?
2. Knowing that one can be so close to the kingdom of God, yet be a stranger to it, what reaction should that stir within us?
3. That there might be false believers in our churches—is this a concern for church leaders?
4. In verse 2 David uses the words “hear my prayer” and “listen.” How should David’s example shape our own prayer lives?
5. How does God use desperate circumstances in our lives to draw us to him?
6. What are some examples of distractions in our lives that could draw our eyes away from God, our helper and upholder?
7. How is praying for God’s justice on your and his enemies in line with the gospel? What dangers do we need to avoid as we pray for God’s judgment against our enemies?
8. What are some practical ways we can share in worship with others?
9. What are some stumbling blocks that cause insincere worship? How can we avoid those stumbling blocks?
10. How does God’s track record of delivering “from every trouble” affect our confidence in his faithfulness?