Psalm chapter 41. This is an interesting chapter because David opens up this Psalm by saying,
"Blessed is the one who considers the poor! In the day of trouble, the LORD delivers him;" (ESV)
And I want to stop you right there to tell you that that's the theme basically. That's the essence. That's the theme of this Psalm, that David wants you to know, and he's going to go into detail about how the Lord takes care of those who take care of others. But he basically just wants you to know that when a man or a woman cares for the weak and the poor, it's something the Lord notices.
That's the basic essence of what he wants you to know, and furthermore, the law of sowing and reaping comes into play here in such a way that when we care for people, we find ourselves cared for. The law of sowing and reaping is something that often people only think of in the negative sense. Usually when you talk about sowing and reaping, somebody immediately says, yeah, you know, if I'm jealous, or if I'm angry, I'm going to reap jealousy and anger.
And if I'm greedy, I'm going to reap greed and all the other things that we think of kind of in a negative vein. But how many times have you stopped to think about the wonderful things that God gives you and I the opportunity to do that are positive, that we can then reap back a harvest from those things as well?
What are some examples of this, what David is saying here in verse 1, "Blessed is the one who considers the poor." Well, we know that in the Book of Acts there was a man by the name of Cornelius, you'll remember, who was actually visited by an angel. What did the angel say to him? The angel said, "Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before the Lord."
Remember? In other words, God took note. God took note of the things that you did. He takes note of the acts of those who belong to him.
Now David is going to go on here in verse 2. And he's going to begin to speak of the kind of care that the Lord gives to those who care for others. Verse 2, "the LORD protects him and keeps him alive; he is called blessed in the land; you do not give him up to the will of his enemies." Furthermore, verse 3, "The LORD sustains him on his sickbed; in his illness you restore him to full health."
Now, I want to stop for just a moment here and tell you, these are some of the promises that God included in the Mosaic Covenant. These are part of the Old Testament covenant that God had with Israel. God told the people of Israel that if they obeyed His Law, followed His Word, He would bless them in the land. He blessed them with long life. He would bless them by removing sickness from them. He would bless them by giving them dominion over their enemies.
David is simply recounting the things that God spoke through Moses when He gave the Law to Israel here. Verse 4, "As for me, I said, 'O LORD, be gracious to me; heal me, for I have sinned against you!'"
Now this is interesting. Earlier, David talks about the man who's going to be blessed by the Lord because he's been obedient. But now, as he starts verse 4, he calls out to the graciousness of God because he hasn't been obedient. He says, Lord, I need your healing because I've actually sinned.
Look what he says in verse 9, "Even my close friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted his heel against me." To lift your heel is an Old Testament statement regarding betrayal, and of all the things that can happen to a person there's probably nothing more painful and distressing than being betrayed by a close friend. David experienced it. Jesus experienced it in the betrayal of Judas. Jesus quoted this verse when He spoke of Judas.
What did Jesus leave out when quoting this passage? He left out that portion about "my close friend in whom I trusted" — because Judas was not a close friend, and he was not someone Jesus trusted. The Bible says that Jesus knew men and he knew what was in the heart of men, therefore he did not entrust himself to any man.
David goes on in verse 10, "But you, O LORD, be gracious to me, and raise me up, that I may repay them! By this I know that you delight in me: my enemy will not shout in triumph over me. But you have upheld me because of my integrity and set me in your presence forever."
What is he talking about when he says "my integrity"? The usage of the word integrity here is not referring to sinlessness. David is talking about the integrity that moved him to confess his sins. There is a whole world out there that will not confess their sin. What does it take to confess your sin? It takes integrity — and it's a kind of integrity that God loves and appreciates.
God loves it when we come to Him and just say, I am so sorry. And that's not to say that we use that attitude as a license to sin more. But when you do them, and you will, be quick to go to Him. He will forgive you. As 1 John 1:9 tells us: "If you confess your sin, He is faithful and just and will forgive us, cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
And with that David was moved to write that very last verse. Verse 13, "Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting! Amen and Amen." And with that statement we conclude this first division of the Book of Psalms.