2 Samuel 22: God's Deliverance

"I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies." 2 Samuel 22:4

When is the last time you needed deliverance from a trial? We all know that in this life, there are intense troubles that often overwhelm us. Yet amidst them, we have hope in the deliverance of the Lord. David surely knew of this hope and of the great God who delivered him from his enemies, and he writes about it in 2 Samuel 22.

In the context of 2 Samuel 22, we find David triumphing over all of his enemies because of the great deeds of the Lord. In the previous chapter, the author of 2 Samuel describes to us how God gave victory to the Israelites not one, not two, but three times over their greatest enemy, the Phillistines. In response to this, David pens a psalm of praise here in 2 Samuel 22 (that is almost identical to Psalm 18) and describes what God does, how God does it, why God does it, and how much God does it.

Firstly, David describes what God does. Answer: deliver. God delights in delivering his children from trials. Yet, he is not only our deliverer, but our rock, fortress, shield, horn, stronghold, refuge and Savior (2-3). Need a rescuer? Look to no one other than Jesus.

Secondly, David describes how God delivers. He gives us a brilliant metaphorical picture of what it looked like when the Lord came down and delivered him from his trial. He mentions that God "rode on a cherib and flew" (11), "thundered from heaven," (14) and "drew [David] out of many waters" (17). In short, God delivers mightily and he delivers fully. He does not merely rescue us from trial, but he does it with triumph. He does not merely save us from one enemy, but from all of them.

Thirdly, David describes why the Lord delivers, that is, because he delights in us (20). Why would God not want to save those whom he loves? Furthermore, God delivers us because we are righteous, not in our own merit, but by God's grace (see verse 33). God saves us because he has made us a humble people (28) who seek to please him.

Fourthly, David explains to us how much God delivers. David states that God strengthens him to leap over a wall (30), bend a bow of bronze (35), and destroy his enemies fully (38-44). In short, God delivers to the utmost propotion, often delivering us farther that we have even asked him to.

Lastly, David gives us a conclusion of what we ought to do about the fact that the Lord delivers us: praise him. "For I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations, and sign praises to your name." What ought we to do after God delivers us? Answer: praise him with all of who we are. We ought not to grieve our God by not giving him the glory for his deliverance.

So, in response to our devotional today, let me encourage you to do three things. Firstly, remember that God is the one who delivers you. You don't deliver yourself--that's God's job. Don't try to take it away from him, because you can't. Secondly, trust that God delivers. Maybe many of you are currently looking for his deliverance, but it has not come yet. Take heart! The Lord is a God who delivers, and he will deliver you once he knows that the time is best. Lastly, praise the God who has delivered you. Do not forget that God has saved you from his wrath that you rightly desevered! Thus, praise him for all of who he is. Amen.