Sermon text
Psalm 5
¹ Give ear to my words, O LORD;
consider my groaning.
² Give attention to the sound of my cry,
my King and my God,
for to you do I pray.
³ O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch.
⁴ For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
evil may not dwell with you.
⁵ The boastful shall not stand before your eyes;
you hate all evildoers.
⁶ You destroy those who speak lies;
the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.
⁷ But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,
will enter your house.
I will bow down toward your holy temple
in the fear of you.
⁸ Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness
because of my enemies;
make your way straight before me.
⁹ For there is no truth in their mouth;
their inmost self is destruction;
their throat is an open grave;
they flatter with their tongue.
¹⁰ Make them bear their guilt, O God;
let them fall by their own counsels;
because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out,
for they have rebelled against you.
¹¹ But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
let them ever sing for joy,
and spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may exult in you.
¹² For you bless the righteous, O LORD;
you cover him with favor as with a shield.
Applying the text
- Have you ever suffered because a judge or person in authority failed to do their job well? How did you feel? How did it affect you?
- In Psalm 5, David not comes to God with his words, but also with his groaning. What does this teach us about the heart and character of God?
- What are some of God’s attributes listed in this Psalm? How do those attributes influence the way you see and approach God?
- This Psalm teaches us that those who take refuge in God sing for joy. What is the connection between God as refuge and our own personal joy?