Psalms 7:1-17: a reflection

1LORD, my God, I take refuge in you. Save me from all those who pursue me, and deliver me, 2lest they tear apart my soul like a lion, ripping it in pieces, while there is no one to deliver. 3LORD, my God, if I have done this, if there is iniquity in my hands, 4if I have rewarded evil to him who was at peace with me (yes, I have plundered him who without cause was my adversary), 5let the enemy pursue my soul, and overtake it; yes, let him tread my life down to the earth, and lay my glory in the dust. Selah. 6Arise, LORD, in your anger. Lift up yourself against the rage of my adversaries. Awake for me. You have commanded judgment. 7Let the congregation of the peoples surround you. Rule over them on high. 8The LORD administers judgment to the peoples. Judge me, LORD, according to my righteousness, and to my integrity that is in me. 9Oh let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the righteous; their minds and hearts are searched by the righteous God. 10My shield is with God, who saves the upright in heart. 11God is a righteous judge, yes, a God who has indignation every day. 12If a man doesn’t repent, he will sharpen his sword; he has bent and strung his bow. 13He has also prepared for himself the instruments of death. He makes ready his flaming arrows. 14Behold, he travails with iniquity. Yes, he has conceived mischief, and brought out falsehood. 15He has dug a hole, and has fallen into the pit which he made. 16The trouble he causes shall return to his own head. His violence shall come down on the crown of his own head. 17I will give thanks to the LORD according to his righteousness, and will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High.

Pursued by enemies and falsely accused, David takes his cause not into his own hands but to God, the righteous Judge. LORD my God, in you I take refuge; save me from all my pursuers. He even invites God's scrutiny, asking to be judged according to his righteousness and integrity, confident that the God who searches minds and hearts will vindicate the upright. God is a righteous judge, he affirms, and he entrusts the whole matter, his defense and his enemies' judgment, to the God who judges rightly.

Notice where David turns when he is wronged and pursued: to God as the righteous Judge. Rather than avenging himself or despairing, he takes refuge in God, appeals to God's justice, and commits his cause to the One who searches hearts and judges rightly. He is willing even to have his own heart examined, so confident is he that God's judgment is just. His security is not in his own defense but in the righteous Judge who sees the truth.

That is a wise refuge when we are wronged or falsely accused. We are tempted to defend ourselves anxiously, to strike back, or to sink into bitterness. David shows a better way: to take refuge in the God who judges rightly, to commit our cause to him, trusting that he sees the truth of every heart and will vindicate the upright in his time. When you are wronged or misjudged, do not take vengeance or despair. Take refuge in the righteous Judge; commit your cause to the God who searches hearts and judges justly, and rest in his justice rather than your own defense. He sees the truth, and he will set things right.

Lord, when David was pursued and falsely accused, he took refuge in you, the righteous Judge, committing his cause to the God who searches minds and hearts and judges rightly, rather than avenging himself. Teach me to do the same. When I am wronged or falsely accused, keep me from anxious self-defense, from striking back, from sinking into bitterness. Help me take refuge in you, the righteous Judge, and commit my cause to you, trusting that you see the truth of every heart and will vindicate the upright in your time. Let my security rest not in my own defense but in your justice. You see the truth; help me rest in you, and leave the setting-right in your hands.