A Miktam of David.
Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge.
2 I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
I have no good apart from you.”
3 As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones,
in whom is all my delight.
4 The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply;
their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out
or take their names on my lips.
5 The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup;
you hold my lot.
6 The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.
7 I bless the Lord who gives me counsel;
in the night also my heart instructs me.
8 I have set the Lord always before me;
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.
9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices;
my flesh also dwells secure.
10 For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
or let your holy one see corruption.
11 You make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
This morning we take a look at another of David’s Psalms. Psalm 16 starts out with a plea for rescue: Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge (v.1). One almost thinks that the rest of the Psalm is going to be a lament after that somber beginning; however that is not what we have in Psalm 16. Rather, Psalm 16 is a hymn of confidence in the salvation provided by our Lord. Like a child who runs into the secure arms of a strong and loving parent, the Psalmist exuberantly recalls all his blessings from the confidence of the refuge provided by Yahweh.
I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.” (v.2). James 1:17 tells us that “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change,” and 1 Corinthians 4:7 reminds us “What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?”.
As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight. The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply; their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out or take their names on my lips (vv. 3-4). The Psalmist contrasts the ‘saints’, who join with him in praising Yahweh, with those who worship other gods. The contrast is stark: those who worship Yahweh experience true joy, whereas those who worship other gods experience sorrows multiplied in comparison.
The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot. The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance (vv 5-6). The Psalmist describes Yahweh in terms of a choice portion and a cup - banquet terms, echoing with prophetic foreshadowings of the Lord’s Supper. Then the author of the Psalm acknowledges that God holds his lot, that nothing is random or undetermined, that the occurrences of his life have been providentially ordered, and that all things (even the ‘bad’ things not yet understood) are for his good (Rom. 8:28).
I bless the LORD who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me. I have set the LORD always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken (vv.7-8). All wisdom comes from the great Counselor; even the wisdom to acknowledge that comes from him! The Psalmist holds no credit for himself, and acknowledges that the dark night of the soul is informative, that trial and tribulation is followed by instruction. The Psalmist renews his commitment to place Yahweh as preeminent, even amidst the nights of trial and tribulation.
Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices; my flesh also dwells secure. For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption (vv.9-10). Emerging from a confidently navigated night-of-the-soul, the Psalmist rejoices again in his assured security. Should that death were to prevail, the author is confident that his flesh is secure and will not undergo decay in Sheol, the place of the dead. Our Lord Jesus fulfilled this prophetic Psalm by overcoming death and emerging as the firstfruits of the resurrection that is to come (1 Cor. 15:20).
You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore (v.11). Everything we have and everything we know, we owe to our God. It is by his special revelation of himself to us that we can experience this unassailable joy that makes all other pleasures pale in comparison. This is the promise of our best life now: living a life that honors Yahweh as Lord, glorifies him, places him as preeminient in all things. In your presence there is fullness of joy. At your right hand are pleasures forevermore.