Psalm 142

What’s Happening?

David was the anointed king of Israel, but in Psalm 142, he is hunted like an outlaw. His pursuer is none other than Saul, the current king of Israel. Saul has sentenced David to death, and his men have forced David into hiding in the depths of a cave, where he is desperate and alone (1 Samuel 22:1-2). Yet from that dark dungeon, David prays a prayer worthy of a king. While Saul, in jealousy and fear, hunts David in order to preserve his own kingship, David prays in a way that confirms his kingship. As the true king of Israel, he trusts God for deliverance even when his life seems forfeit, and hopes that God will hear his prayers and raise him to his throne.

Hunted like a criminal and trapped in a prison-like cave, David cries out to God for rescue. Holding nothing back, he pours out all his fears and prayers to the God who knows his trouble (Psalm 142:1-2). He tells God of the traps his enemies have set for him, how he has all but given up hope, and how there’s no one with him to protect him or care for him (Psalm 142:3-4). If God doesn’t rescue him from Saul in time, the cave he hides in could easily become his tomb.

David remembers that even though his life looks nothing like the kingly rule God promised him, he still has God on his side. Even if all hope and all allies seem lost and gone, God hears him and is his greatest defender. So David entrusts his endangered life to the God who promised to make him king (Psalm 142:5). He asks God to rescue him quickly from the enemies who have outnumbered him, and to free him from the prison of the cave (Psalm 142:6-7). Since God promised to make him king, God’s kindness to David will prove his kindness to his people. When God rescues David from his enemies and death, David and his people will praise God for his great deliverance and for being good to them (Psalm 142:7).

Where’s the Gospel?

God was faithful to his promise to David. Not only did he bring David out of his cave, but he also made him king of Israel and surrounded him with people who praised God and celebrated God’s goodness to him. God promised David an eternal kingship—that one of his sons would sit on a throne forever (2 Samuel 7:12-13, 29). This Son would be how God would finally rescue David from all enemies and secure his kingship forever. David praised God that this Son would be the ultimate rescue from the deepest prison and darkest cave, death itself (Psalm 16:10). This Son and King promised to David is Jesus.

Jesus is the true king who trusted God to rescue him, even though his life was full of enemies who hunted him. The night before his death, his enemies set a trap for him and were coming to capture him (John 18:2-3). Jesus poured out his heart to God, asking God to rescue him (Matthew 26:39-42). But even when all hope of escape seemed lost and his life was forfeit, Jesus entrusted himself to God. Jesus' pursuers captured him like a criminal and brought him to the people who wanted him dead. Pilate and the Jewish rulers of Israel, who wanted to preserve their authority, sentenced Jesus to death (Matthew 27:18, 24). Their men dragged Jesus out of the city and crucified him. Even though Jesus was the true king of his people, he hung on a cross, desperate and without any ally to protect him. But even on the cross, Jesus prayed like a true king, entrusting his life to the God who promised him David’s throne (Luke 23:46). And Jesus knew that, like David, God would rescue him from a cave. So trusting God, Jesus bowed his head, put his life in God’s hands, and his dead body was lowered from the cross and laid in a cave (Luke 23:53). And true to Jesus’ kingly prayer, God rescued him from his enemies and even from death itself. Jesus rose from his tomb as the eternal king, not only of Israel, but of the world (Acts 2:24-36). God’s kindness to King Jesus is proof of his kindness to us. Since Jesus was raised from his grave, we can know that one day, we will be raised from ours (1 Corinthians 15:20-24).

See for Yourself

I pray that the Holy Spirit would open your eyes to see the God who rescues his king to his promised throne. And may you see Jesus as the one who rose from the cave of the tomb so that we could be saved from the enemies that endanger our lives, even death itself.