We have all heard of the cancel culture. Its desired effect is to eliminate opposing points of view. It’s not accomplished with overt violence, but with secret plots. Plots that use words as their swords and bitter arrows. Words that are sharp enough to pierce and destroy. The victims of the cancel culture cannot survive.
It appears that David experienced similar dangers. He knew intimately the evil plots against him. Being a wise man, he also knew the futility in fighting back. At least, not in the way the world expects. You see, fighting the cancel culture is like throwing gas on a fire, igniting flames that cannot be extinguished. But, David chose the right weapon, prayer.
David’s prayer is simple, starting with a cry out to God to listen. “Hear me,” and “protect me,” he pleads. We would all have a similar cry. There is, however, something about David’s prayer, that does not always exist in our own. Confidence. Beginning in verse 7, David fully experiences the power of God. Ok, maybe not in circumstance, but definitely in spirit. Truly, in verses 7-9, David is watching God claim victory over his enemies.
But God shoots his arrow at them;
they are wounded suddenly.
They are brought to ruin, with their own tongues turned against them;
all who see them will wag their heads.
Then all mankind fears;
they tell what God has brought about
and ponder what he has done.
There is only one response, and David gets it right. Praise and worship. I can hear him shouting victory, at the top of his lungs.
Let the righteous one rejoice in the Lord
and take refuge in him!Let all the upright in heart exult!
Good news. God protected and delivered him from his enemies. God saved him. And of course, God wants to save us too. All we have to do is ask.