Psalm 31:13–14 (ESV) … “For I hear the whispering of many - terror on every side! - as they scheme together against me, as they plot to take my life. But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, “You are my God.”
David had prayed, “You are my strength” (v. 4), but now he said, “You are my God” (v. 14) and asked Him for the mercy he desperately needed (v. 16). When you consider the vocabulary he used to describe his plight, you can well understand his need for mercy. He was filled with grief; he was sighing; his physical strength was failing; and his very bones were weakening. His soul and inner being were pained because of the troubles others were causing.
He must have examined his heart and discovered sin there, so he confessed it to the Lord. Along with his physical and emotional anguish was the way people were treating him (vv. 11–13). His enemies were spreading malicious lies about him and people believed them. Of course, these lies spread rapidly, and David’s close friends and neighbors heard and believed them. Even casual acquaintances avoided him when they saw him coming, for who wants to be seen speaking to an evil man? He became like a dead man who had been forgotten and like a useless piece of pottery that had been thrown away. It didn’t take long for “the strife of tongues” (v. 20) to poison the nation and prepare the way for Absalom to take over.
The phrase “fear [terror] on every side” (v. 13) is used six times by the prophet Jeremiah (6:25; 20:3, 10; 46:5; 49:29; Lam. 2:22). In David’s day, the disruption of the government and the exile of the king brought great fear to the people, and all sorts of rumors spread throughout the land. David’s answer to this confusion? “My times are in your hands” (v. 15, niv). He had committed himself into God’s hands (v. 5), and now he committed his circumstances into God’s hands. “My times” refers, not to some special schedule, but to all the events and circumstances that surrounded David (see 1 Chron. 29:30). We would say, “All the affairs and details of my life are in the Lord’s hands.”
This is the Old Testament version of Romans 8:28. David trusted God to bring light into the darkness and truth into the sea of lies that was overwhelming the people. Instead of the king being ashamed, his enemies would be ashamed when the Lord exposed their wickedness and defeated them. [1]
Like David, we to can feel surrounded by trouble in life. We must keep faith in God and know that we are ultimately in his hands. He is our defender and keeper. We must remind ourselves that “He is my God.”
[1] Wiersbe, W. W. (2004). Be worshipful (1st ed., pp. 121–122). Colorado Springs, CO: Cook Communications Ministries.
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