"My soul, be silent only for God; for my hope is from Him." [Psa 62:5]
Often, through the Psalms, David affords us a great deal of strength and hope by his gracious words, which often mimic our soul’s own feelings. No doubt, this is because He, “being a prophet,” spoke as God, “for the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” [Acts 2:30, 2 Pe 1:21] One of these such places, which gives our souls strength and focus, a steady and unmoving light as in a dark place, which we would do well to take heed to, is found in Psalms 62. Here David writes, regarding The LORD,
“Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from Him cometh my salvation. He only is my Rock and my Salvation; He is my defence; I shall not be greatly moved… My soul, be silent only for God; for my hope is from Him. He only is my Rock and my Salvation: He is my Defence; I shall not be moved. In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.” [Psa 62:1-2, 5-7]
When the waves of life crash above our heads, we may lift our head, wet and heavy, toward the shore, toward our “desired haven,” and find there hope in that which is to come; for when the storm subsides, it shall come to pass even as it was written, “joy cometh in the morning.” [Psa 107:30; 30:5] Or when the black of midnight creeps forth and we find that we “walketh in darkness, and hath no light,” [Isa 50:10] we may look up toward the moon’s faint light which “rule[s] the night,” [Gen 1:16] and trust that “the Sunrise from on High” shall soon exult above the horizon and shower the night with bright day, for by the moon’s very presence we know of a truth the Sun yet shines, seeing that it reflects the sun’s light. [Lk 1:78] Or further yet, when we find ourselves deep within the “valley of weeping,” we may turn our gaze toward “the hills, from whence cometh [our] help” and find there atop the hill, our precious Shepherd who “ever liveth to make intercession for [us].” [Psa 84:6; 121:1, Heb 7:25] We are reminded here in David’s Psalm, that during all points of our various afflictions, God alone is our hope, God alone is our Rock, God alone is our Salvation, our Defense, and our Hope. Today, it is to the word “hope,” rendered “expectation” in the King James, to which we turn our attention.
The Hebrew word David uses here for hope/expectation has a secondary meaning; it is also used to mean rope or cord. Any man who has ventured to repel down a cliff, has multiple choices for rope in order that he might safely descend. A rational man would surely desire one that could withstand his weight: a rope which would hold him to the very last without strain or breaking. For the Christian, this rope is Jesus Christ. He only, as the Psalm says, is our hope. Jesus alone retains the strength to hold us, and He will never break, as Solomon says, “a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” [Ecc 4:12] Our God, three persons in one: Father, Son, and Spirit, will never be broken, for all strength and might belong to Him. Regarding this truth it is written, “God hath spoken once; twice I have heard this; that strength belongeth unto God.” [Psa 62:11] And again, “trust ye in The LORD for ever: for in The LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength.” [Isa 26:4]
Yes, it is to God alone that we must look. He only is our rope. The only rope, the only hope, which we can cling to, and be utterly confident that it shall not break. He shall be able to hold us; “blessed be The Lord, who daily bears us up, even the God of our salvation. Selah.” [Psa 68:19] And praise God that He is able; for it is Jesus Christ, our “forerunner,” having entered into the Holy of Holies, into God’s very presence, who is to us a strong hope, even “as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil.” [Heb 6:19-20] And just as an anchor always has a rope attached to it, so too our Savior Jesus; for He has entered into God’s presence on our behalf, “into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us,” [Heb 9:24] and we do fiercely cling to Him, who is the “King of Glory…mighty in battle,” who has boldly said, “open to me the gates of righteousness: I will go into them, and I will praise The LORD.” [Psa 24:8; 118:19]
This is a great encouragement to us, who are disciples and friends of Jesus Christ. For we have a glorious and sinless High Priest, Jesus Christ, who is “fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens.” [Heb 7:26] And it is He who has entered the Holy Place for us, never to die again, who ever lives to make intercession for us and who tends to our flame, just as the priest in Moses’ day tended to the lampstand’s flame that it be not quenched.
What a glorious and beautiful thought for us to meditate on, who are Christ’s; for we belong to an enduringly wonderful High Priest and King, to whom we may lovingly cling in full assurance of our hope, never doubting that He shall be able to hold us.
Click here for more posts in Daily Meditations on Jesus’ Glory, Vol II