Sickness has a way of making a lot of things that happen in our lives seem trivial and unimportant. The feelings imposed on our physical bodies by illness affect our spirit and soul so that we become more conscious of our need for God, and our emotions make us very vulnerable to tears. David must have been sick, and when he wrote the words of this psalm, he began with a testimony of his confidence in God, and then he confessed his sin to God. The conspirator’s whispering campaign against him and Ahithophel’s betrayal then moved him to cry for vindication.
This last psalm of the “Genesis Psalms” begins and ends with “Blessed,” the same as the Genesis book of Psalms. The word blessed is an affirmation of his faith in God in spite of his physical sickness and the betrayal of one in whom he had previously had confidence and considered a friend. There are a number of words he used to describe this confidence in the faithfulness of God: “Will deliver… will preserve… will strengthen… will sustain.”
When we experience spiritual sickness, we need the Great Physician rather than doctors or medications to deal with this problem. It is important for us to focus our meditation on the deliverance God can give. Our own confidence in our Lord moves us to think like Him when pressures come on us from those who are enemies of our souls. The poverty David was experiencing was not financial but that of one who is poor in spirit. That kind of poverty is an assurance that we are in the kingdom of God and do not want to let our emotions overcome our spiritual intelligence. When we know something is needed, then it is our responsibility to apply ourselves to that matter. The merciful will obtain mercy, so vengeance is not our right to seek on those who oppose. We can be confident that our Lord wants us to be restored to Him even more than we do.
David’s confession of sin is a prayer for personal restoration to fellowship with God. He asked God to be merciful and heal him. God's grace sustains His people in times of sickness. We then begin to consider our future and realize that this will pass, but that we will be privileged to be with our Lord forever.
The whispering campaign of conspiracy was obvious to David. They came to visit him when he was sick to gain information and undermine him. They spread evil gossip against him in their whispers, saying that his sickness was terminal. They were waiting and hoping for him to die so they could take over. We shouldn’t be surprised at that because people who are in their sins and want their sins have a natural affinity to sin. Like a tree bears fruit suited to its nature, so do people. Sadly, Ahithophel had been a friend, but now was an enemy. He had been David’s trusted counselor but felt it was more expedient for him to side with Absalom than with David, with whom he had shared bread at the same table and leadership responsibilities. Hostility and betrayal generally come when a person wants to put himself up. In order to do that, it is necessary to put the other person down.
Judas Iscariot did the same to our Lord Jesus Christ. He sold Him for thirty pieces of silver, but one wonders if there was more in Judas’ mind than money. True, he did love money and had the funds the Lord and His disciples used as they moved from place to place. Perhaps he was also looking for a position of responsibility in the kingdom he thought the Lord would establish then. His hopes were not on the Person of our Lord but on his advantage, financially and positionally. Prophecies regarding Judas Iscariot’s betrayal certainly teach us not to take vengeance on betrayers ourselves. Judas had learned from the Lord’s teaching. He had traveled with another disciple and been trusted to preach. He ate with the Lord, and he knew the Lord’s habit. He had handled the finances and yet betrayed Him!
David cried out for vindication with a prayer for vengeance. His enemies thought he would “rise no more.” We are thankful for knowing “the power of His resurrection” in our lives. He was sure the Lord knew of “mine integrity,” and he was assured of “Thy face forever.” He was the Lord’s loyal servant despite his failures, and his faith was in Him. God has blessed us, and we should bless others. That is an affirmation of our faith that we do trust our Lord in day-to-day living. We have experienced His love and care daily, and so should others.
The final benediction is that of the whole first book of Psalms, which is known as the Genesis Psalms. It opens with the “Blessed Man” of Psalm 1 and closes with the “Betrayed Man” of Psalm 41. Each of these describes our Lord Jesus Christ in His humanity. All human experiences are found in the book of Genesis in some way. In this world of sinful human beings, the Blessed Man came to bring blessing. No wonder it closes with a double “Amen.”