Rescue Me

Psalm 144:5-8

There are great stories all throughout the Bible of God rescuing His people, but perhaps none are so dramatic as that of the Exodus.  From plagues, to parted waters, and provision in the desert, God was with the Hebrews every step of the way.  Then, as they were gathered around Mt. Sinai, God came down on the mountain and it was covered in smoke and fire.  There, as the people stood terrified at the scene, God gave Moses the 10 Commandments.

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Bow down Your heavens, O LORD, and come down; Touch the mountains, and they shall smoke.  Flash forth lightning and scatter them; Shoot out Your arrows and destroy them. Stretch out Your hand from above; Rescue me and deliver me out of great waters, From the hand of foreigners,  Whose mouth speaks lying words, And whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.

Psalm 144:5–8

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The psalmist asks God to come down again as He did in the Exodus.  He is literally asking God to let the heavens bend down like stairs and for God to descend and step foot on the mountains.  In the same dramatic fashion as before, let the mountain be covered in smoke and fire.  This would be sure to melt the hearts of his enemies.  

Verse 6 then prays that God will go on the offensive.  The psalmist does not only ask for God to scare his enemies by His presence, but to send lighting and arrows to destroy them.  The enemies of Israel are God’s enemies and therefore, the writer is asking God to fight this battle.  He is putting himself in the hands of God like a child would run to his Father for protection.

The next verse has the image of being pulled up out of water. Great waters in the Bible are often a picture of great masses of people.  That is true here as well, because the end of the verse says, “From the hand of foreigners”.  Deliver me from these invaders who have come to do me harm and to dishonor God’s name.  

Finally, the writer depicts his enemies as liars and their actions are motivated by the lies they have told.  We know a thing or two about wars being fought based on the lies of leaders.  This further adds to the petitioner’s cry for protection.  He submits this as evidence against his enemies and wants God to fight his battle.

As Christians, we too should want God to fight our battles.  There may be times where God needs to destroy our enemies.  There may also be times when God chooses to turn our enemies into allies because he saves them from their sins.  This last option is the best one because we don’t just lose an enemy, we gain a brother or sister.  Regardless, we should ask God to fight our battles for us.  

Father, teach us when we should pray against our enemies and when we should pray for them.  We want to see people saved.  We also know that there are those who wreak havoc in the church because of their hate for You.  Lead us to pray for Your will.