But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; Suddenly they shall be wounded. So He
will make them stumble over their own tongue; All who see them shall flee away. All
men shall fear, And shall declare the work of God; For they shall wisely
consider His doing.
Psalm 64 is about a battle, the battle of words. David is writing this Psalm as he is
facing a fierce attack on both his life physically and verbally. His enemies
were lying about him and seeking to destroy him. They were falsely accusing him
of things he did not do. My friend, this is one of the toughest things to deal
with. But remember, this is what they did with Jesus as they tried Him with
false accusers. Even as He was hanging on the cross dying for their sins and
ours, they hurled false accusations at Him.
This is exactly what is happening today with us as we are dealing with the battle of
words. I remember when I was a kid and we might say to someone who was mocking
or making fun of us, “Sticks and bones may break my bones, but words will
never hurt me.” In trying to defend ourselves we were telling our offender,
“A physical attack may injure me, but a verbal attack cannot injure me.”
But honestly over the years, I have
found that the worse pain we actually endure is not physical, but mental and
emotional because of the mean, demeaning, devaluing words of someone. Words can
hurt us more than sticks and stones!
Just like David’s enemies had some words, David had some words! His words were to
cry out to God! “Hear my voice, O God…” (v. 1). Instead of fighting back
with our enemy with words, we can cry out to God, out loud with our mouths! But
even, if we can’t speak verbally, we can cry out to God with our thoughts!
David adds, “in my meditation”.
David then described his enemy’s attack. “Who sharpen their tongue like a sword,
And bend their bows to shoot their arrows--bitter words…” (v. 3). The words
they used against him were “bitter words”, tough words, mean words, malicious words!
We sure are hearing all around us today, these types of words from the enemies
of the Gospel and Christians. There is a never-ending assault against the truth
of God’s Word and His people in the media, from politicians and the “workers
of iniquities”, not only in our country but around the world. This should
remind us that the end time is drawing near as we learn from 2 Thessalonians
2:1-12.
Yes! We are in a battle, but we must remember we do not wrestle with flesh and blood
but with spiritual wickedness in the heavenly places (Ephesians 6:12-17). David
realized this and so in verses 1-2, he first sought the Lord’s protection. In
verses 3-6, he asked for the Lord’s wisdom. And in verses 7-8, he knew he could
trust the Lord for victory!
“But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; Suddenly they shall be wounded…” (v. 7). David didn’t
have to fight back with his own words to defend himself or to try to destroy
his enemies, because he really believed that the Lord would take care of them.
Their own words would cause them to stumble. They would fall into the pit they
had dug for him. The snares they set to trap him would actually catch them!
My friend, we have a sharper sword than our enemies! We are told to take up “the
sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Ephesian 6:17). “The weapons
of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds..,”
(2 Corinthians 10:4). We should aways remember that “The word of God is
living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the
division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of
the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).
“But God shall shoot at them”! When we
trust the Lord to vindicate us with His Word, “All men shall fear” (v. 9),
“And all the upright in heart shall glory!” (v. 10). I love it, “But God!” God always has the final Word!!!!!! Be
encouraged and trust Him today!
God bless!
