Priorities in Prayer

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Opening Prayer

For Yourself, Lord, my Savior and my King, I bless Your holy name.

Read Psalm 60

^[1] For the director of music. To the tune of “The Lily of the Covenant.” A miktam of David. For teaching. When he fought Aram Naharaim and Aram Zobah, and when Joab returned and struck down twelve thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt. You have rejected us, God, and burst upon us; you have been angry-now restore us! ^[2] You have shaken the land and torn it open; mend its fractures, for it is quaking. ^[3] You have shown your people desperate times; you have given us wine that makes us stagger. ^[4] But for those who fear you, you have raised a banner to be unfurled against the bow. ^[5] Save us and help us with your right hand, that those you love may be delivered. ^[6] God has spoken from his sanctuary: “In triumph I will parcel out Shechem and measure off the Valley of Sukkoth. ^[7] Gilead is mine, and Manasseh is mine; Ephraim is my helmet, Judah is my scepter. ^[8] Moab is my washbasin, on Edom I toss my sandal; over Philistia I shout in triumph.” ^[9] Who will bring me to the fortified city? Who will lead me to Edom? ^[10] Is it not you, God, you who have now rejected us and no longer go out with our armies? ^[11] Give us aid against the enemy, for human help is worthless. ^[12] With God we will gain the victory, and he will trample down our enemies.

Meditate

This psalm reinforces the truth of God’s sovereign power. He is in control of human destiny—then and now!

Think Further

Psalm 60 is one of David’s prayers before battle. For the probable

background see the title and 1 Chronicles 18 and 19. Whether literal or metaphorical, an

earthquake has left the Lord’s people staggering (2–4). David diagnoses the cause as God’s

anger (1). There is an implicit acceptance that God’s anger is fully justified, although we are not

given a specific reason for it, either here or in 1 Chronicles. When we believe God has good

reason to be angry with us, the natural temptation is to turn away from him in shame, pride or

simple pique.

From David we can learn a better way, for his immediate response is to turn toward the Lord, not

away. He clearly knows his God well enough to have a right ‘fear” of him without being afraid

of him (4). He knows that the Lord still loves his people (5). He knows that the Lord wants to see

them rescued and restored to spiritual health before he offers practical help to meet their current

need. So David prays first for spiritual restoration (1) and only then for victory in battle (5). The

latter prayer is grounded in a specific word which God has spoken, claiming that only he has the

sovereign right to apportion land to the peoples of the earth (5–11). That promise reassures

David that the Lord’s will can never be thwarted. It also highlights the teaching that this psalm

aims to convey (see title), namely: the truth that God’s people need his help in battle rather than

any human help, because victory is his work (11,12). If the context of this psalm was indeed the

battle against the Arameans in 1 Chronicles 19, then David’s prayer was answered speedily,

positively and very convincingly (1 Chron. 19:14–19).

Psalm 60 is one of David’s prayers before battle. For the probable background see the title and 1 Chronicles 18 and 19. Whether literal or metaphorical, an earthquake has left the Lord’s people staggering (2–4). David diagnoses the cause as God’s anger (1). There is an implicit acceptance that God’s anger is fully justified, although we are not given a specific reason for it, either here or in 1 Chronicles. When we believe God has good reason to be angry with us, the natural temptation is to turn away from him in shame, pride or simple pique.
From David we can learn a better way, for his immediate response is to turn toward the Lord, not away. He clearly knows his God well enough to have a right ‘fear” of him without being afraid of him (4). He knows that the Lord still loves his people (5). He knows that the Lord wants to see them rescued and restored to spiritual health before he offers practical help to meet their current need. So David prays first for spiritual restoration (1) and only then for victory in battle (5). The
latter prayer is grounded in a specific word which God has spoken, claiming that only he has the sovereign right to apportion land to the peoples of the earth (5–11). That promise reassures David that the Lord’s will can never be thwarted. It also highlights the teaching that this psalm aims to convey (see title), namely: the truth that God’s people need his help in battle rather than any human help, because victory is his work (11,12). If the context of this psalm was indeed the battle against the Arameans in 1 Chronicles 19, then David’s prayer was answered speedily, positively and very convincingly (1 Chron. 19:14–19).

Apply

“Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Heb. 4:16). How does this promise impact your approach to prayer?

Closing prayer

With You, Mighty God, victory is mine. I will ever praise Your name.

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